The Pug Dog Welfare & Rescue Association
Run entirely by volunteers & public donations
Adoption
We are fully open in a selection of regions to receive general adoption applications again, as well as for pug-specific homes appeals.
We are finding the need to re-home more pugs 7 years & over, as well as those with very individual, or special-needs, plus bonded-pairs, so we welcome all applications from dedicated, loving homes to match with all surrendered pugs in our care.
Please find full details for adopting as well as which regions of the country we are accepting general adoption applications from, in our Adoption section. Any Pug-Specific homes appeals can also be found there which are open to all PDWRA regions across England & Wales.
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
Following our temporary closure last year, we have been able to receive pugs needing to be surrendered from our busiest region, the South East, parts of the South West, as well as Central & East of England, plus West & East Midlands and Wales. All pugs in our care are matched to our complete region-wide waiting lists for homes.
The difficult decision for that closure was to provide the best welfare solutions to the very high number of pugs in our care with the resources available to us. It enabled the escalation of specific applicants being matched to adopt pugs in our care, while reducing the number of those waiting for a home.
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:
- Rehoming Coordinator
- Volunteer Area Coordinator
- Fundraiser
- Home Checker
- Transporting a Pug
- Something Else
We are open to applications from England and Wales. Please see our Volunteering section for more details of these roles and how to apply.
Pug Home Appeals
These priority Pugs need a home. Please read about these Pugs and apply to adopt online.
Could You Adopt Bonded Mother & Daughter Ruby & Dee Dee?
Ruby (estimated 12 years) and Dee Dee (estimated 10 years) are a delightful Mother and Daughter bonded pairing. The girls arrived in our care following the passing of their elderly owner. 💞 Ruby is a wonderful older lady, with huge spirit and a very affectionate...
Could You Adopt the Lovely Max?
Max is a big, boisterous, ‘goofy’, full of energy 2-year-old male pug! Before being surrendered to the PDWRA 6 weeks ago, Max had spent most of his life living in a kennel in the back yard. He hadn’t had much human or other animal contact and slept and ate outside....
Millie is Looking for a Forever Home
Hey everyone! I’m Millie and I’ve just turned 10 years old. My foster mum says that I’m a very calm and quiet little girl who just wants to hang out with her humans. I love nothing better than laying by my fave human’s side or down by their feet where I can curl up...
Meet Daphne, a Dot at 5.6kg!
Daphne is a nine-year-old female pug cross, believed to be Griffon x Pug. Daphne is currently in foster with two male pugs, but would be best residing as an only dog, as she prefers to be the centre of attention. She could potentially live with a confident male dog...
APPEAL for Molly & Tilly Who Need a Forever Home Together
Please meet Molly & Tilly, a devoted bonded pair searching for a loving home where they can stay side by side 💞 🐶 Molly (8-year-old French Bulldog) Our bright, bubbly girl! Molly is curious, sociable, and loves being involved in everything around her. She can get...
Double the Love II – Boots & Socks
Meet Boots & Socks A devoted bonded pair, both aged 8, searching for their happy ever after home 🏡 These two may not be littermates, but they’ve shared their whole lives side by side… and where one goes, the other follows 💞 They sleep curled up together, finding...
Latest PDWRA News
Cat Adopts Vito
I first found out about the PDWRA through Google when I was looking for Pug rescues, and saw that they needed volunteers to collect and foster pugs. Our family of 3 already had a much-loved little black rescue pug, Petal, but we thought it would be a nice idea to give...
Fostering 21 Pugs in 3 Years!
PDWRA Fosterer and Transporter Helen Talks about her Experiences of Volunteering Our fosterers are a hugely important part of the work we do as a charity. When pugs are surrendered to us, they will usually need to be placed in a safe temporary home so that they can be...
In Memory of Bo
To our Floofy Handsome Boy Bo We'll never forget the day you came to us, this little nervous floofball!! Your new little brother and sister, Reggie and Lola, so eager to meet you. Within a few hours you were all sniffing your way around the garden and flipping pillows...
Jane’s Story of Adopting Ted
I first started fostering dogs in a casual way, by taking in a friend of a friend’s dog when they had to have an extended hospital stay. At that time, we had two pug crosses - a mother-and-son duo called Ruby and Bear - both of whom had never been an “only” dog and,...
Laura’s Story of Adopting Pat
We lost our Pug cross Bubba in November 2024, he had been by my side for almost 13 years. After losing Bubba we missed having a dog so much and the flat felt so empty, so we decided that we were going to look into fostering, as weren’t ready to be full time dog...
Volunteers’ Week 2026
Volunteers' Week is a time for us to show our immense appreciation to everybody that gives their valuable time for the cause of rescuing pugs in need. We couldn’t rescue and rehome the hundreds of pugs that we do each year without our incredible volunteers, we’re...
Students Fundraising for the PDWRA!
We'd like to give a MASSIVE thanks to the students of the University of Westminster and Project Coordinator Yousef Marafi for setting up a Crowdfunder initiative to raise money for the PDWRA. They've done this because they wanted to create a meaningful impact beyond...
Mattias & John’s story of adopting Willow & Vera
We have had pugs in our lives for over 30 years and they have always been part of the family. Over the last 10 years though, we made the decision to rescue exclusively. It just felt like the right thing to do. There are so many wonderful dogs out there who need a...
Leona Will Be Running the Bristol 10k Again This Year in Aid of the PDWRA!
You may remember that last Spring PDWRA adopter Leona ran the Bristol 10k to raise funds for the PDWRA, bringing in over £1000 of much-needed funds! Her partner Gordon also brought in a whopping £800 by running the ruck race! This year, they are joining forces to run...
Jane’s Story of Adopting Dotty and Bertha
My husband and I applied to adopt with the PDWRA in 2024. We filled in the form, had the zoom call interview and were really happy to be chosen to adopt 10-year-old George. George came live with us in late August 2024 and was a real sweetie. He didn’t like walking,...
Sian’s Story of Adopting Leo
I have always had dogs over the years, a border collie, King Charles spaniel, German shepherd and 3 pugs. I couldn’t imagine life without a dog in it, they enrich our lives so much, and a pleasure to care for, a best friend! My first encounter with a pug was about 12...
What Happens When a 15-Year-Old Pug With Special Needs is Surrendered?
Alfie came into the care of PDWRA just before Christmas 2025. Sadly, Alfie’s long-term, elderly owner had passed away, leaving him in need of a very special home. Alfie was due to turn 15 years old in the January, and with old age comes many things, ill health being...
Donate to the PDWRA
The PDWRA is completely run on public donations and we wouldn’t be able to help the hundreds of pugs that are surrendered into our care each year without the help of our wonderful and generous supporters. Thank you!
Our vet bills alone run into hundreds of thousands of pounds annually and this is constantly increasing with the onslaught of inflation.
All help is greatly appreciated!
Friends of Welfare
Become of Friend of Welfare today!
Your membership provides us with reliable, much-needed and regular funds towards ever-increasing costs for Pugs in our care.
