Lil Bear

Bear has adapted very well, it's like we've always had him. We are in love with him and I think that the feelings are mutual! He and Mariah, our 7 1/2 year old long haired female doxie, have bonded as well. We lost our little rescue guy, Stetson, in September after 5 years and when we ready Lil Bear's story it sounded almost identical to Stetson's when we adopted him. Stetson was a beautiful long haired red dachshund that had been used as a breeder at a puppy mill for about 4 years when we rescued him....or rather he rescued us! We cautioned ourselves that we couldn't expect Bear to "be" Stetson but he has not disappointed us in any way. He has filled the hole in all three of our hearts that was left when we lost Stetson. Mariah grieved as much as Ray and I did when her brother died. Bear has come along well with learning to walk on the leash and is quite happy when I mention going for a walk. We have put him on "somewhat" of a diet....the same one that Mariah and Stetson have always been on. He gets 1/3 cup of Science Diet WD twice a day. At 5:00 he sits on the carpet and waits for his bowl to be filled. If we are "late" filling it he pushes it onto the tile floor to get our attention and if we still don't respond he begins to push it across the floor. But believe me he is not starving! He is thriving and do very well. Potty training is still an ongoing project but the fact that we don't have a fenced in yard and access for him all the time is a problem I'm sure....but he is getting us trained. He did great with all the company of the holidays....he loves everybody and every dog he meets. He loves all of our grand dogs....a black Lab, a yellow Lab, a Pugle, a 13 year old Doxie, a Ridgeback, and a Jack Russell/Bischon mix....and that doesn't include the two pekinese and long haired dachshund of friends that were here over the holidays! As you can see we are all dog lovers. He just wags his tail and tries to kiss them all! Such a sweet boy! When I take him to the dog park he is the official greeter.....whenever anyone comes to the gate he bounces over there with his tail wagging! He is very well adjusted and doesn't have a lot of the "issues" of many rescues; we think that is because of the love and wonderful care that he received from his AADR foster mother.I have volunteered to help with AADR. Not as a foster parent, because we are on the move way too much, but for transport, home visit, special events, etc. That way we can help in Florida or in North Carolina. No one could figure out why Bear was in foster care for 6 months without being adopted. We truly believe that he was waiting for us. We will always be grateful to AADR for helping to make our family whole again.