Bear

Bear is an 11 year old male Maltese Shitzu cross.

He has the cutest little short legs and big body with the most adorable little trot. For the most part, he snoozes the day away but if he even thinks he is going for a walk, he totally gets excited and will perk right up! He loves going for walks however if he sees another dog, he will pull on the lead to go see the other dog. We have observed he is friendly with other dogs, generally he just wants to say hello and then move on.

Bear is toilet trained and will use the doggy door at his foster carer’s house, taking himself outside when he needs to go. He will also need to be groomed on a regular basis, his fur was matted to the skin when he came in to foster care.

It took Bear a little bit of time to trust his foster family so we feel once he has bonded with you, he will be a total smooch and will follow you around, come in for cuddles, offer you his tummy and give you lots of licks and love in return. He loves nothing more than being close to his favourite people. He does have a grumpy look to him that totally softens when you are patting him.

He does not like to be picked up and will growl at you to let you know. We have found he is usually ok if you do pick him up and the growl is to let you know he doesn’t like it but it took time before he would allow his foster carers to do this. For this reason, we would suggest if you would like him to come up on your bed or couch, to use a doggy ramp. He would love this too! His foster carers tried one out and he took to it very quickly. It would be suggested to use it if going in and out of the car too, although with time and once you have a bond, he will likely allow you to pick him up to get him in the car. He travels well in the car, usually falling asleep.

Bear has come such a long way since being in foster care. He came in with another dog that has since been adopted and it is hard to know what they had been through but initially he was very protective and would growl and on occassion nip at a person if he felt threatened. With time, routine and firmness, he has improved so much on that front but it is important to note as this could potentially mean that he takes some time to settle in with his new family.

Although he was close with his partner, we believe that Bear will be ok in a home without another dog as long as his carers are mostly at home. He could also be in a home with another dog too as an option depending on how they get along. His foster carer’s dog is a quiet and reserved dog and they live happily side by side but don’t interact much.

Do you think that you could give Bear the loving home he deserves? If so, we’d love to hear from you.