Cinnabear

Meet Cinnabear-"Bear" or "Bear Bear" to her friends-a ten-year-old Pomeranian who would like to have a word with whoever decided that ten is supposed to be old. She weighs in at 14 pounds and has a few more pounds to lose before she is a good target weight of 12 pounds.

Bear may have reached double digits, but you would never know it from watching her. She is healthy, active, playful, and delightfully silly. In fact, her foster home has a large staircase, and Bear runs up and down it multiple times every day without giving it a second thought. She recently received a completely clean bill of health and, remarkably for a Pom her age, has none of the problems that so often come with the breed: no collapsing trachea, no luxating patellas, and no joint problems. She also recently had a full dental cleaning, so her smile is sparkling and her breath is minty fresh-which is fortunate, because Bear is a BIG believer in kisses!

And this girl loves to play.

Bear will happily chase a ball, but she doesn't necessarily need a human to keep her entertained. One of her foster dads' favorite things about her is her ability to invent elaborate little games that apparently make perfect sense to Bear and absolutely no sense to anyone else. She can amuse herself-and everyone watching her-for ages. She is funny, bright, curious, and full of personality.

But Bear also knows something younger dogs are still figuring out: life does not have to be an all-day sporting event. She is at a wonderful age where she can still romp, play, explore, and enjoy a good game of ball, but she is also perfectly happy being a companion. If your idea of the perfect dog is one who can make you laugh, keep you company, give you kisses, and enjoy life with you without requiring miles of daily hiking, Bear might be exactly the girl you've been waiting for.

Bear's journey into rescue is a sad one. For the first ten years of her life, she knew one home and one family. Then her mom passed away, and her dad had to move into an assisted-living situation where Bear could not come with him. In a very short period of time, this little dog lost everything familiar to her.

Understandably, arriving in foster care was frightening and overwhelming. She does take an anxiety medication that has helped her overcome so much and thrive in life.

Bear has opinions, boundaries, and a preferred way of making friends. She needs adults who will respect those boundaries, pay attention to what she is telling them, and give her the time and space to build trust. Because of this, a home with small children would not be appropriate for Bear.

Once you are in Bear's circle, though, you get to see the affectionate, playful, funny little dog hiding behind all that initial uncertainty. And yes, you get the kisses too.

Bear currently shares her foster home with two other small dogs and gets along with them just fine, although we suspect Her Royal Bearness would be perfectly delighted to have her people all to herself. She could live with compatible dogs, but she would also be a terrific only dog. And cat people, take note: Bear spent the first ten years of her life living peacefully with two cats.

Her housebreaking is a work in progress and she is getting the hand of it. She knows how to use a pee pad, and her foster family believes she would likely become much more reliable with a strict, predictable potty routine. Bear has already had enough unpredictability for one lifetime; she seems to thrive when she knows what comes next.

What Bear needs now isn't another temporary stop. She needs someone who can look past a number on a birthday card and see the dog standing in front of them: healthy, lively, hilarious, affectionate, and ready for the next chapter.

At ten, Bear isn't finished with life. Not even close.

She has balls left to chase, games left to invent, stairs left to conquer, naps left to take, and an awful lot of minty-fresh kisses left to give.

She just needs someone to give them to.

Could that someone be you?
To adopt Cinnabear, please complete an adoption application at peacelovepoms.rescuegroups.org. The $350 adoption donation ($250 for senior citizens 65+) includes core vaccines (Rabies, Parvo/Distemper, and Bordatella), Accuplex (Heart worm and Lyme test), fecal, microchip, bloodwork, spay, dental, and all the love you can handle! PA Kennel License 17652 Lebanon, PA