BEAR
Neutered Male
DOB: NOV. 27, 2023

Bear's Adoption Requirements

Bear is accepting adoption applications! Please review his requirements, and if you meet his needs, click here to apply. 

 

Adoption Fee: $400

 

Medical issues: Dry eyes. Requires medication 3x/day, lifelong.
Special diet needs: none
Behaviour issues: Becomes overexcited and overstimulated in high-energy situations, especially with large breed or excitable dogs.
Good with Kids?  Yes! Loves dog-savvy kids ages 5+ 
Good with Dogs? Good with small breed calm dogs, although he does hump some small dogs. Becomes overexcited and rough with large breed dogs. Ideal home would not have large breed or excitable dogs.
Good with Cats? Yes, lives with 3
Housing? Detached house with backyard to run in.
Crated? Becomes anxious in crate. Does much better when loose in the house.
Time dog is alone? Bear would thrive in a home where people are home most of the time.
House training: Bear is house trained
Sleep with humans? Absolutely a bed sleeper! He sleeps on our pillow or on our faces

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Bear is a busy little guy who needs an active forever home. He needs an hour walk each day, plus a safe space to run his energy out several times a day. And he LOVES to run! He is also happy playing with his foster siblings - both human and canine. He loves a good game of tug followed with a serious snuggle session. He has never heard of personal space and enjoys being sprawled over his humans or even held like a baby.  If your ideal pug is a devoted, Stage 5 clinger, then Bear is your guy!

Bear also loves dog-savvy children and has been exposed to children of all ages - except babies and toddlers. If children are sitting on the ground, Bear is immediately in their lap, begging for all the love and snuggles. He enjoys running and playing with children as well. Even if the kids get overexcited, Bear remains calm and continues to play with them gently.

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As a young pug, Bear is quite healthy. Like most pugs, he does have dry eyes and requires Optixcare Eye Lube Plus 3x/day. He is trained to hold still for his medication and looks forward to his rewards afterward. He does not need any special food, but given his busy nature, he does tend to require more food than is recommended on the bag. 

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Like most teenagers, regulation and impulse control is not Bear’s strong suit. When something exciting happens (e.g. feeding time, knock on the door, other dogs playing or running etc), he is usually unable to control his excitement level. This lack of control can present as pulling on his leash, loud crying/whining, barking, chasing, nipping, spinning, jumping etc. When Bear first arrived, his excitement would occasionally be redirected into aggression. It was clear in these moments that Bear’s “brains fell out” temporarily in these situations and he would quickly come back online and move on from the situation. There was never any actual biting and this behaviour only lasted a couple of weeks and since then, it has not recurred. Bear’s overexcitement has improved considerably during his time in foster care and, in most circumstances, we can bring his focus back to us and he settles quickly. With continued training, Bear has even learned to self-soothe and correct his behaviour without us intervening. We have also taught him a “quiet” cue when we’re preparing his meals and he is learning what that means and eagerly awaits treats. With continued training (and lots of treats), we expect his impulse control will continue to improve. However, given that he can be a noisy boy, it is best that Bear live in a detached home. 

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Bear currently lives with 3 cats, 2 large breed (100lbs) dogs, a pug and a tiny chihuahua. He does well with the cats and would be fine in a home with dog-savvy cats. He is very respectful of the chihuahua and adores our pug! They can often be found snuggling or playing together with their toys. They love to playing chase with each other outside and get along fabulously. On occasion, Bear will hump our pug, who is quite passive. We usually have to step in to redirect Bear in those instances. However, he was just neutered so hopefully this behaviour will stop with time and training. 

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Bear does struggle with our large breed dogs. It’s not that he doesn’t love them. In fact, he adores our large female and they often play together and even wrestle. However, Bear usually becomes overstimulated after a minute or two and ends up mouthing our girl too hard, making her yelp. We have been working on redirecting their play before he becomes overexcited and he is improving, however, most large breed dogs are not as tolerant as our girl. Bear also struggles when our large dogs are off-leash around the farm. Typically, while on walks around our farm, we keep the small dogs on leash for their safety, while the big dogs run around loose. This frustrates Bear quite a bit and he will bark and screech and pull in an attempt to run with them. When the big dogs return to us, Bear will jump and nip at them, not causing harm, but some dogs may take exception to this kind of behaviour. Because of this, Bear should not go to an off-leash dog park. He also cannot be adopted into a home with a large breed dog. He can be in a home with small breed dogs or as an only dog. 

It is important to note that, despite struggling with our large dogs, Bear is not reactive on-leash when meeting or seeing new dogs while out. He is also very polite for on-leash meetings. 

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Bear is a bit of a glutton when it comes to food and treats. Thus, he is fed separately from the other dogs as he will happily start eating the other dogs’ food if he finishes first. He’s not aggressive about it, but our dogs don’t appreciate the sudden appearance of his face in their bowl. The same goes for treats and chewies. If not watched, Bear will steal the chewy right out of our pug’s mouth. He does leave the chihuahua alone, but he will stare at him from a foot away until he finishes. Thus, it’s just best that he eats in a separate space and he has no issues with that. 

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Bear is not left alone very often, but we have found that he does best when left loose and not crated. When he first arrived, we crated Bear and he showed signs of significant separation anxiety in the form of loud panicked crying when we left and when we returned, he would jump on us for 5 minutes, desperate for attention. When we stopped crating him, he was much calmer when we left and when we returned. He still cries a bit, but is generally much more settled. He also has never gotten into anything he shouldn’t and hasn’t chewed anything except his toys. He loves his stuffies, balls and chewies and has never shown any guarding behaviour. 

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Bear is such a special little man! He has so much love to give. He is what I would call a super noodle cuddler! He wants to snuggle pretty much always; preferably as close to your face as possible! He loves his people and is so devoted. He is a very athletic pug and did not have any issues with the heat this summer. He is the best of both worlds - he can run for hours without tiring, but can also just have a Netflix and chill day on the couch (after his walk course!). He is very easy to train - so smart and loves to learn new things. He loves car rides. He is good around chickens, goats and other livestock and can be trusted off leash with them. My daughter says that Bear is the sweetest pug on earth. His future family will be so very lucky to have him in their life!
 

Foster Update - October 15, 2026

​Mr. Bear didn’t end up getting his neuter surgery as planned. When he went in for his appointment, his pre-op bloodwork showed elevated liver enzymes, so the procedure was postponed out of caution and he was started on a liver supplement. The month before, his bloodwork had been completely normal, so we weren’t overly concerned but wanted to be safe.

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During that visit, it was also discovered that Bear doesn’t produce enough tears, so he was prescribed medications to help keep his eyes comfortable. At his two-week recheck, his liver values were back to normal and his eyes are doing much better! He’s been able to come off one of the eye medications, but he’ll need eye lubrication three times a day for life to keep him comfortable.

Bear’s neuter has been rescheduled for early November.

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He’s had a wonderful month overall! With the bugs and heat finally easing up, he’s been able to enjoy a few day trips to the beach—he absolutely loves splashing in the water! He’s also started grooming the resident pug when they snuggle up together, which is just too cute. 🥰

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Recently, Bear has shown his incredibly caring side. When his foster mom wasn’t feeling well and needed some time to rest, he stayed by her side the entire time—keeping close watch and offering comfort in the sweetest ways. He’s such an intuitive, affectionate little pug, and continues to bring so much joy to his foster home. 💛

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FOSTER UPDATE - SEPTEMBER 6, 2025

🐾 Bear – Garden Helper, Gentle Soul, and Soon-to-Be Neutered!

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Bear has had a pretty good month and continues to bring joy (and a few laughs!) to his foster family.

One challenge that’s popped up recently is his “unneutered behavior”—his humping has reached new levels, and his foster family has been giving him plenty of redirection and the occasional time-out to help him settle down. Thankfully, Bear is scheduled for his neuter on the 15th, which should be a blessing for him. ✂️🐶

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Bear had another vet visit this month for his vaccine booster, and he was such a good boy. He walked in calmly, even when faced with a couple of unfriendly dogs. He simply sat down and checked in with his people. His foster daughter was able to handle him the whole time with ease. On the table, Bear turned into a bit of a softie, smooshing himself against his foster mom for comfort. As soon as it was over, he bounced back quickly to his cheerful, happy self. 💛

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Life on the farm has also been a big success. Bear has made huge progress with the chickens and goats. He can now be trusted completely off leash around them, even when they get playful or silly. 🐐🐓

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With harvest season starting, Bear has been spending afternoons in the garden. He’s discovered that peas and beans make great snacks and occasionally tries to sneak a carrot or two. He's quite the little garden helper! 🥕🌱

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He’s also been enjoying walks with his foster grandma, who’s visiting. She was impressed by how easily Bear trusted her, happily joining her on evening strolls and walking beautifully on leash. 🚶‍♀️

Bear continues to show what a sweet, adaptable, and loving companion he is. With his neuter coming up and all the progress he’s made, we’re excited to see what the next month brings for this silly, affectionate boy!

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FOSTER UPDATE - JULY 29, 2025

July has been a great month for Bear! He continues to keep his foster family smiling with his cuddles, quirky personality, and lovable antics. 🐶 He’s making fantastic progress with his training and has come a long way in managing his excitement. When play gets a little too rowdy, Bear is learning to take his own breaks. Instead of reacting to the energy of the other dogs, he now chooses to run to his foster mom for a treat – what a smart boy! 🍖

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Bear recently had his first vet appointment, and let’s just say it was an adventure. He strutted into the clinic like it was his favorite place, totally relaxed and focused. 💼 He followed all his cues like a champ—until the exam started. As soon as the poking and prodding began, Bear melted into the sweetest, suckiest little guy you’ve ever seen. 💔 He shook like a leaf, leaned into his foster mom for comfort, and avoided eye contact with everyone. But even in his nervousness, he was gentle and trusting, never fussing. With a little time and some extra love, he bounced right back to his cheerful self, tail wagging and treat-ready. 🎉

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Oh, and in true Bear fashion—on the car ride to the vet, he fell asleep standing up with his head resting in his foster grandma’s hand… complete with snores. 😴 This boy can truly sleep anywhere!

Bear continues to be a sweet, loving, and joyful companion who is learning every day. With structure, affection, and a few treats, he’s thriving. 💛 We can’t wait to see how he does at his next vet visit in August—and we know he’ll keep making everyone around him smile.

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FOSTER UPDATE - JUNE 24, 2025

Bear is doing great, he has settled into our house and routines now and his personality has really come out! He is what I would call a pug breed ambassador! When I think of young Pugs - Bear's personality is what I imagine; he is loving, crazy, snuggly, smart, sweet, outgoing, energetic, playful and a sucky baby!

 

When you pick Bear up he completely limp noodles into your body. His favourite place to sleep at night is still on our pillows as close to us as he can get. He also keeps us entertained with his sleep positions! He is a little yoga sleeper. He loves our daughter and is really great with kids. He does get over excited when they do though (he cries, barks and starts jumping if the energy starts getting high) but he can be redirected to a toy, chew or game of fetch.

 

We have discovered that Bear loves to play fetch, his favourite fetch toy is a tennis ball but he will go after anything really. He also LOVES water; puddles, swimming pools, ponds, anything he can jump into and splash around! He loves his walks and exploring and his favourite thing to do is run! He is so fast that his ears always flop over his head! He is still working on impulse control and remaining calm during exciting times, but he is improving!

 

He plays well with our dogs but sometimes he needs help to take a break as he gets a little too excited and forgets to play gently. He does call out of play really well now though and runs over to the treat bin. Bear got a new harness and he is so happy when it comes out. He was wearing one of our old spares but I think he knows the new harness is all his! He gets a big tongue out smile when his harness is on! He really is just a super sweet young man and he gives the biggest slobberiest kisses!!

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FOSTER UPDATE - MAY 22, 2025

Bear is a wonderful little guy with the perfect balance of energy and chill. He’s fantastic in the house—fully housetrained, respectful of boundaries (he knows he’s not allowed in the basement and patiently waits at the top of the stairs), and hasn’t gotten into anything he shouldn’t.

 

Bear loves his walks and playtime—fetch is his absolute favourite! He listens well, is eager to learn, and is super motivated by attention and affection. He especially adores people and has a special bond with his foster family’s daughter—he sleeps in her bed every night and often shares her pillow!

 

Bear gets along beautifully with the resident cats and has formed a sweet bond with the family pug. They’re often found snuggled up together or hanging out side-by-side throughout the day. Like many dogs, Bear can get a little overstimulated during high-energy moments like mealtime, unexpected visitors, or rowdy play. In these moments, he may redirect his excitement toward the nearest dog. These incidents have been minor and easily managed—he responds well to redirection and quickly returns to calm behaviour, often going back to the other dog to offer a gentle lick. His foster family has found that a little proactive management goes a long way, and he’s been thriving.

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INTRODUCTION - MAY 6, 2025

​​🐾 Meet Bear! 🐾 

 

Say hello to Bear, the newest addition to Pugalug Pug Rescue! At 1.5 years old, Bear is a lively, affectionate young pug already making himself right at home in his foster family. He travelled like a champ, snoozing most of the way in his crate before curling up in his human foster sister’s lap for the rest of the drive.

 

Since arriving, Bear has had a great first introduction to his foster home's dogs and even the cats! He especially adores the resident pug, tagging along with him everywhere. Bear has shown a bit of amorous energy typical of an unneutered pup, but he’s easily redirected and eager to please. He’s doing wonderfully with crate training—just a minute of quiet whining before settling for a good night’s sleep.

 

Best of all, Bear has been doing all his business outside like a pro, with no marking indoors. Bear is a sweet little love bug, bursting with classic pug charm, energy, and kisses. We’re excited to get to know him more in the coming weeks as he settles in, learns, and grows. Stay tuned for updates!