Pug dog makes way in acting world

Aloof, smug and totally adorable, Joey the pug dog is making a career of mugging for the camera.

The Creemore Echo caught up with Joey this week while the actor-dog was spending time in the village.

Joey splits his time between Creemore and Toronto, where he was discovered by a pet talent agent two years ago.

Most recently, he appeared as ‘Barkvader’ in a Furlani garlic toast You Tube commercial and modeled the latest dog fashions in a Target flyer.

The four-year-old Pug was given as a gift to Helen Chung by her son James when the dog was three months old. Helen and her husband Bob had moved to Creemore the year before, after purchasing Jug City convenience store and gas bar at Mill Street’s north end.

With a move to a small town and three sons grown, James thought his mother might be lonely so he found Joey online and gave it to his mother for her birthday.

Helen said she had never owned a dog before in her life. She said she wasn’t sure what would be involved in caring for the dog and was worried she was too busy running a business.

James suggested they share custody of the dog, so when not in Creemore, Joey is in the city with James and his girlfriend, Jam Bravo. It was in Toronto that Joey was discovered by a modeling agent for dogs.

“Now, he has become a star,” said Helen.