A lot of great things have come out of Hoboken, New Jersey—Frank Sinatra, baseball, The Cake Boss, and now… Hoboken Hank. The Tales of Pug People had a chance to interview this six-month old superstar and his People, Amanda and Shea, and trust us, between the pink nose and the 90-degree head tilt, we were beyond smitten. (Hank’s nose and head tilt, not Amanda and Shea’s, although their nostrils ‘n’ noggins are quite cute, too)
PP: Okay guys, what are your Pug People origins? Did either of you grow up with pugs?
Amanda: I grew up with a pug named Winston, and then my parents got a brindle named Norton. So, I’ve been sold since childhood. Pugs are so great with people, they don’t need a ton of exercise, they’re great to snuggle on the couch with. And lovable. You never see a vicious pug.
Shea: For me, it was when I first saw Hank’s nose. That pink nose does me in every time.
PP: When was this first nose sighting?
Amanda: We had been trying to get a puppy but it was tough-- pugs are popular. A breeder called us because one of her adoptions fell through.
Shea: It’s funny, because on the way to the breeder we were like “well, we’re not sure” but the moment Amanda saw him… “Well, we’re going home with a pug”.
Amanda: She brought Hank out and I looked at him and just… ohhhhhhh.
PP: We know the feeling. Our quote is ‘my biological clock just started barking’.
Amanda: Yes!
PP: The pink heart on his nose is pretty killer, we gotta say.
Shea: We’re really hoping he keeps the pink nose.
PP: Does Hank have any quirks?
Amanda: He sleeps sooo much. My family says they’ve never seen a dog sleep so much, especially a puppy. But when he’s awake all he wants is love.
PP: Does he sleep in bed with you?
Amanda: No, he sleeps in his crate.
PP: You realize this makes you an outlier amongst the People. Pugs usually demand the bed.
Amanda: Yeah, he’s so chill, he just has his nightly routine of crating himself.
PP: Okay, so you don’t have bed pugs, but does Hank have any food quirks?
Amanda: Just that he’ll eat anything. Anything.
Shea: Doesn’t even have to be food. Rocks, leaves, tissues… But because he loves food so much, he was super easy to train. Because he will do anything for food.
PP: Does Hank have a ‘voice’?
Shea: We were just talking about this, what his voice would sound like. In my head I always hear this hyper “what’s goin’ on? whatta we doin’? where we goin’?”
PP: Yep, that voice goes perfectly with his head tilt.
Amanda: Full-on head tilt.
PP: It’s like an honest-to-pug 90-degree head tilt.
**Interview pauses while everyone does squeaky sounds to make Hank tilt his head
Shea: One thing I have learned is that there’s a lot of cleaning to do with a pug, you know, like maintenance on the rolls and cracks.
PP: Oh yeah, wiping out the crevices can be pretty nasty.
Shea: Seriously! There can be a lot of stuff in there. I’m finding things from, like, days ago.
PP: You’re remarkably Pug People-d for a newbie, Shea.
Shea: Oh yeah. I’m a goner.
Amanda: He is. We both are.
