The Pug Dog Welfare & Rescue Association
Run entirely by volunteers & public donations
Adoption
We are pleased to be open again in select regions, for new adoption applications following a necessary, temporary pause to handling nationwide general applications. By focussing our resources on pug-specific adoption applications, we have shortened waiting times and reduced the large number of pugs we had in our care, onto their forever homes.
This included rehoming more older pugs, those with very individual or special-needs, and bonded-pairs for which we tend to receive fewer applications for.
You will find the latest details about which regions of the country we are accepting general adoption applications from, in our Adoption section, as well as any latest pug-specific homes appeals.
Fostering
Good foster homes are essential in our rehoming process, particularly those that can support age-related or special-needs, or accommodate bonded-pairs, as the number of pugs surrendered to us in these categories has been relatively high.
For specific areas of the country that we are accepting new fostering applications for, PDWRA provides ongoing support with vet costs covered. You may offer short or long-term care, for which the individual needs of the pugs will be matched to your home.
Our Fostering section provides full details and considerations for fostering, as well as the areas where we’d welcome new foster homes from, also where you can apply directly online.
Surrendering
In our phased re-opening, we are able to receive pugs needing to be surrendered from our busiest region, the South East, Central & East of England, plus West & East Midlands. All pugs are matched to our nationwide waiting lists for homes.
The difficult decision for our temporary closure was taken in order to provide the best welfare solutions to the very high number of pugs in our care earlier this year, with the resources available to us. By limiting the processing of new general adoption applications this has enabled the escalation of specific applicants to adopt matched pugs, sooner, and reduce the volume waiting in our care.
Please go to our Surrendering section for latest information and contact details.
Volunteering
There are a number of ways that you can volunteer to support PDWRA, including:
- Home checking, by assessing adoptive or foster applicants in your near locality, according to rehoming requirements.
- Transporting, involves the collection, delivery and safe transportation of a PDWRA pug on its journey to its new home.
We are open to applications in specific areas of the country so please see our Volunteering section for the latest details and where you can apply directly.
We also have vacancies for specific, dedicated roles in the charity, that you can apply for too.
Volunteering
There are a number of ways that you can volunteer to support PDWRA, including:
- Home checking, by assessing adoptive or foster applicants in your near locality, according to rehoming requirements.
- Transporting, involves the collection, delivery and safe transportation of a PDWRA pug on its journey to its new home.
We are open to applications in specific areas of the country so please see our Volunteering section for the latest details and where you can apply directly.
We also have vacancies for specific, dedicated roles in the charity, that you can apply for too.
Latest PDWRA News
The Pug Dog Welfare & Rescue Association 2025 AGM
The Pug Dog Welfare & Rescue Association’s AGM will take place on Wednesday 15th October 2025, from 7pm – 7.40pm. The AGM will be held via Zoom, and we welcome as many of our supporters and members to attend as possible. We will be sharing an update of the...
The Importance of Keeping Pugs Slim, therefore Healthy.
As temperatures drop and Autumn/Winter approaches, our activity levels especially outdoors might reduce, with the potential addition of comfort and seasonal eating. So, it’s a good time to be particularly vigilant about our pug’s waistlines especially as weight creeps...
A Message from our Interim Chairman, Kay Greene
Further to joining the trustee team as Interim Chair in mid-April this year, I thought you may find it helpful to have brief update from me about what PDWRA have been achieving these past few months. One of the most impressive aspects of our charities work which...
In Memory of Ralph
We lost one of our stalwarts of the pug world on 19 July 2025. Dear old Ralph who coped with a multitude of problems throughout his life but despite all, took and gave pleasure to those who came across him Ralph was surrendered in 2019 by a lady who saw him advertised...
Rebecca’s Story of Adopting Ozzy
We are a family of dog lovers who had dogs in the past, but when I had some health problems and we weren’t sure whether we had the capacity to offer a dog a long term home. We’d been a dogless family for several years and we were all yearning for the pitter patter of...
Meet our new Trustee
Iris hanging out with the kittens Meet our new Trustee - Anne McDonald My name is Anne and I’ve recently become a Trustee for PDWRA. This is a bit about me… I’ve been a dog owner from the age of four, my grandad’s dog had puppies and he gave me one for my birthday....
Loveday’s Father’s Bequest to the PDWRA
Loveday's father leaves his beautiful collection of ceramic pugs to the PDWRA. My father was a pug enthusiast for most of his life. Shortly after my parents married, 70 years ago, they welcomed a pug called Bunky into their lives and things were never the same again....
A Sad Farewell
We are saying a sad farewell and a huge thanks to Helen & Malcolm McKee - Voluntary Vet Advisors to the PDWRA from 2018 - 2025 Helen first became involved with the Charity in early 2018, when she made an initial approach to enquire about fostering. At the time,...
Brachycephalic Obstructive Airway Syndrome
Written by Helen McKee PDWRA Veterinary Advisor I am sure all of you, and anyone who has had a pug, is familiar with the term ‘BOAS’. It stands for Brachycephalic Obstructive Airway Syndrome’ It is a large topic and there is much to discuss about the condition, but...
PDWRA’s Facebook Mega Auction
Please read a Special Notice from PDWRA’s Chairperson;
Further to the statement made yesterday on the PDWRA Facebook Mega Auction Group page, the Trustees for the PDWRA would like to reassure our followers and supporters of the following key points:
- As part of modernising PDWRA governance and operations, the Trustees need to ensure that all fundraising activities whether “in aid of” and/or “on behalf of” PDWRA are fully compliant with Charity Commission guidance and the fundraising regulations.
- With the group closing in its current format, the charity will be developing a cohesive fundraising strategy, consistent with the Code of Fundraising practice: https://www.fundraisingregulator.org.uk/code as the charity intends to register with the Fundraising regulator: https://www.fundraisingregulator.org.uk/ This will likely be when the charity has incorporated to become a CIO (Charitable Incorporated Organisation) early in 2026 – as approved by members at our general meeting last month.
- PDWRA is incredibly appreciative of the hard work undertaken by the team who have been responsible for operating the Mega Auction group over the years and continue to be extremely grateful for all they have done. The charity could not do its vital pug welfare work without the support of its volunteers, supporters and followers.
- Going forward, PDWRA intends to initiate volunteer fundraising opportunities for which any of our loyal supporters and followers are warmly welcome to apply. Anyone willing to be part of our Fundraising Team and keen to help us develop our income generation strategy and operations, please contact us.
- The trustees look forward to hearing from as many interested people as possible – especially if you have a charity fundraising background – thank you!
Thank you for reading this statement, our contact details are all clearly accessible from our website at:
https://pugwelfare-rescue.org.uk
Kind regards,
Kay Greene
Chair PWDRA
3rd November 2025
Friends of Welfare
Become a Friend of Welfare today!
Your membership provides us with reliable, much-needed and regular funds towards ever increasing costs for Pugs in our Care.
