Best friends: Ref & Kristy

How old is Ref?

Ref is 5 years old.

What made you get a pug?

Kristy: I had always wanted a pug. I always thought they were a cute dog but little did I know about the breed and just how amazing they are and also the health problems that they can have.

How did Ref come to live with you? 

Kristy: After our family dog had passed away, I had wanted to get another dog. I decided to finally get a pug and so my mum found a breeder and since it was close to my birthday when he was born, my mum bought Ref as a birthday present for me. I met him at just 2 weeks of age and was lucky to visit him at the breeders every week until he was 8 weeks old and ready to come home with me.

Can you tell us a bit more about your Instagram account @refthepug How did it start?

Kristy: Ref’s Instagram account initially started as a personal account sharing photos of everything in life but it seemed to mainly focus on Ref. I am big into photography and he became my main subject. I decided that I would change the name of my Instagram to be @refthepug since it was all about him anyway.

Does Ref enjoy being a model?

Kristy: It took quite a bit of training with Ref to get him to look at the camera. A lot of treats helped that. The more photos we did, the better he got and he loved getting the treats. Now, all I have to do is either show Ref the camera or ask him if he wants to do photos and he is up and off to the room where we take photos. I think it is only because he’ll get treats for it.

We adore your outfits! What is your favorite thing to dress up as? Do you get spoilt with treats for being such a wonderful model?

Ref: I don't really have a favourite outfit to dress up as cause everything I do dress up as gets me some treats so I'll wear anything. Mum loves bow ties on me and I think I look pretty dapper in them. I think mum loves my blue tux the most though. And I definitely get spoilt with treats. I will even not look at the camera just so mum will give me extra treats. Then I'll work the camera to get more.

Can you tell us what your daily routine is?

Ref: My days are mostly the same. I wake mum up for brekkie and enjoy my delicious fresh meal. Mum gets ready for work and then we have cuddles until she leaves. When mum is at work, I hang out with Grandad. I mostly sleep until mum gets home. Then it's cuddles and catch up on what we've done for the day. Then I start hassling mum to go cook dinner. We all have dinner and then I have my nightly cuddle Nan. Then it's bedtime. But on weekends, it's much more exciting. I wake up early so I can go wake Nan up. Then I got back to bed until mum says I can have brekkie. Weekends are fun cause mum is home or we get to go on adventures to pug meets or play dates with my friends. And the weekends is when we take most of our photos for the week ahead so weekends mean lots of treats.

What is the cutest thing you do?

Ref: I think it is using my puppy dog eyes to get some treaties but mum says it is the way I sleep. If it is a nice cool night, I love to snuggle up to mum’s chest and when it is hot, I love to sleep on my pillow with my head resting on mum’s pillow.

Do you go to work with or travel with your best friend?

Kristy: I would love to have Ref at work with me but I would never get any work done and my boss wouldn’t be too happy with that. But when I am working on my blog, www.thepugdiary.com he is right beside me, on my lap and being the best model I need to take photos for my articles. When it comes to travel, we have yet to be on our first holiday but we have done a pretty awesome day trip to Canberra which was loads of fun. And he was amazing for the 3 hour car ride. Going on a dog friendly holiday is on both of our bucket lists.

Ref the pug is my best friend because...He makes me smile. He cheers me up on those not so good days. He loves me unconditionally. He made me see how much love I could have for a dog. He is always so stoked to see me whether I’ve been gone for 5 minutes, 10 hours or 4 days. He will sit and pose in front of the camera as much as I ask him to. He makes me want to do everything possible to make sure he is the happiest and healthiest pug and lives a long life. And seriously, have you seen him? How could he not be my best friend.