ADOPTED
How adorable is this guy? Meet Romeo, named for the incredible amount of affection he loves to shower his person with. He is a Pomeranian x Chihuahua cross that is just shy of 4.5 years old. He has a gorgeous, soft red coat with some white on his paws, chest and face. He is like a living teddy bear and looking at him just makes you want to snuggle him up in your arms and shower him with kisses. If you are searching for that devoted companion who believes the sun rises and sets on you, keep reading on, he just might be the guy for you.
Romeo found himself in rescue after his elderly owner passed away. It was clear he was not properly cared for in quite some time. His back end was severely matted and needed to be shaved, his nails were quite overgrown, and he weighed 20 lbs. Yes, you read that right, his little body was supporting the weight of essentially two dogs. He found it very difficult to move around, walk for any kind of distance and couldn’t do more than three stairs at a time. He is on a gradual weight loss program and has lost over three pounds, can now do short zoomies in the back yard and no longer struggles to do stairs. In fact, he can bound up the staircase quite easily when the mood strikes him. This is such an awesome improvement in his overall health, but his future family needs to know he is not yet at his ideal weight. They will need to commit to feeding him a high-quality diet with daily exercise that will slowly increase in duration and intensity. The good news is Romeo loves his walks (or neighbourhood waddles might be a more appropriate term), he just needs to take things a little slower right now until his weight continues to drop and his strength continues to improve.
This guy wants nothing more than to be with his person, doing whatever they want to do. He loves car rides and exploring new places. He also loves cuddling up on the couch beside you while you binge watch the latest TV series. If you’re cooking dinner, he loves to be near you in the kitchen but is not underfoot. If you are taking a shower, well you’re going to have an audience. When out on walks, he is happy to meet people on his terms, but is not a fan of young children at this time. Romeo also tends to ignore other dogs on his walks but is definitely not a fan of exuberant dogs or ones that come right up into his face. He’ll let them know in short order exactly what his opinion of that behaviour is. He is not an instigator by any means, but he doesn’t have a high tolerance for rudeness. Although Romeo lives alongside other dogs in his foster home, he would be happiest to be the only dog and companion for his person or family. He doesn’t like to share their attention and will get his nose out of joint. He hasn’t been tested with cats, so we cannot speak to how he would interact with them at this time.
Despite how much of a velcro dog he can be, Romeo doesn’t exhibit any separation anxiety in his foster home. When his foster mom leaves, he stays in his crate and hardly lets out a peep. Romeo actually really enjoys his crate and if you leave the door open during the day, you will often find him snoozing in there. He tends to be a very quiet dog and even when he barks, it’s not overly loud or piercing. He is housetrained but does need a few trips outside to the bathroom throughout the day. Romeo could live in attached housing, even an apartment, but it would have to be one with an elevator as he cannot do multiple flights of stairs at this time and doesn’t love being carried. Truly, he would be happiest to have a securely fenced yard as one of the ways he gets some gentle exercise in outside of his walks, is his multiple patrols of the yard. He loves to wander, explore the nooks and crannies and soak in the fresh air. It’s almost like he experiences it for the first time every time he is in it. He hasn’t shown a prey drive for little feathery or furry animals at this time and rarely barks when he is outside.
When it comes to people, Romeo likes to meet them on his terms and if they give him a chance to check them out first without invading his space, he warms up very quickly and will be in their lap in no time. One thing to know about Romeo though is, he does not like to be man handled. He doesn’t like being physically forced into situations and can get defensive when that occurs. He makes it very clear when he is uncomfortable. Romeo will need an adult only home, or one with older teens as he does not enjoy the energy of children and needs people that understand how to work with and respect his boundaries. His vet visit was a challenge, but with a gentle approach and the help of a sedative, he settled in ok. He also was not a fan of grooming and that takes time to build his trust with as well. It would appear he did not have much exposure to these situations before and he needs his person and their care teams to build his trust in them and take a gentle approach. His foster mom can now brush his entire body and he rather enjoys it. Romeo was also hand shy when he came in, but that has pretty much disappeared in his foster home. Romeo does love to learn and train (even though he is a little stubborn) but it should be noted that punitive styles of training are not going to work with this guy. He will become defensive and it will take you time to earn is trust back again. The name of the game in all you do with Romeo is kindness, patience, and a calm and gentle approach. He is not difficult at all, he’s just clearly lacking a lot of positive physical interactions and needs more and more of those in his life.
In terms of health, besides still being obese and needing to continue on that weight loss journey, Romeo has no other underlying issues. He has not shown to have any food allergies or aversions, his heart is nice and strong and his teeth are doing well at the moment. He will need a dental a few years down the road as all small dogs do, but there is nothing of concern at this moment. He loves his dental chews so adding those into the mix for him will help keep his oral health in check.
Overall, Romeo is a lover of a dog and his foster mom adores him. He is a quiet, loving, mischievous and endearing companion and all he wants is to find the family that he will never have to leave again. Romeo would thrive with an active retired or semi-retired person or family that can spend more time with him than not. He bonds deeply and loves even deeper, and he’s waiting excitedly to find his happy ever after.