A few weeks ago my husband, mother-in-law and I went to our local county fair here in San Diego (previously known as the "Del Mar Fair", it was a great day!).  As we were getting ready to leave I saw something that I had never seen before.  It was a Pug dog wearing its service harness walking along side a man in a wheel chair.  What a loyal pet companion in such a small package.

I was shocked!  I had never seen such a small dog as a Service Dog.  I have since spent some time searching the net and found that it is really not that uncommon.   Here are a few of the services that I have found that a Pug performs:

"I’m a brittle diabetic, and he alerts me when my glucose levels are in the extreme levels. He has prevented many hospital trips."

"…my sister is 10 years old with Asperger’s Syndrome (high functioning autism) and she has a pug as a service dog."

"Our much loved pug of 15 1/2 years was a therapy dog and brought smiles and laughter to the elderly in retirement homes for many years."

"Pugs are being used as hearing dogs with "Paws with a Cause" service dogs headquartered in southwestern Michigan."

"I have a pug that I trained as a service dog myself. Mine retrieves dropped objects and provides emotional support, as I have social anxiety disorder and lupus."

I found all of the above quotes on the following site:

http://www.unretouchedphoto.com/2007/05/16/the-puzzling-appearance-of-tina-the-pug/

There are more breeds of smaller dogs becoming service dogs. So remember, it's not the size of your furry friend, he or she can be trained to do the big jobs.  Way to go little ones!