Cinnamon

---

Update 11/27/11:

After several months of schooling for drug detection work, Cinnamon was released from the program by his agency. Cinny could not continue because he lost his ball drive, an important point for working dogs in the program. 

Back in a foster home again, Cinny is having a blast playing and wrestling with the other dogs in his home. He also loves to follow his foster dad around and is always willing to help out with whatever he’s doing. Cinny remains the sweet boy he has always been. He’s waiting patiently for a forever home where his full time job will be that of a wonderful companion!

Update 07/22/11:

This news is short but just too good not to share – Cinnamon has passed his initial evaluations and will start school in mid-August. For now, he lives with one of the department’s dog handlers and is having lots of fun! Hoping this boy will be a star student!!

Update 07/17/11:

Though Cinnamon’s status is Adopted, he has moved into a unique situation that warrants sharing with MAESSR families and Springer lovers. During his time in foster care, Cinnamon’s family found him to be a powerful and play-motivated dog. This led to his adoption by the Maryland Department of Corrections where he is being evaluated to join their team as a drug detection dog. Fingers are crossed for his success with this vital work, and, if he doesn’t make the cut, he will return to MAESSR for placement as a wonderful companion with a traditional family. 

Check back for updates on this cutie!

Original:

Cinnamon came to MAESSR from a shelter in Pennsylvania when his person went into rehab and the family couldn’t care for him. Cinnamon passed his temperament tests at the shelter with flying colors and has proven to be a sweet boy in foster care. He was a bit nervous when he got to his foster home, but after having been in three homes in three days to make it across the state to his foster mom, this is to be expected. 

Cinnamon gets along beautifully with the resident dogs and backs down to any that grumble at him. He loves, loves, loves the resident eight month old Springer/Brittany puppy and the two play together like they are best buddies. They share toys, steal toys from one another (the puppy generally steals toys from him), and play tug. They also wrestle with each other! With Cinnamon being twice the size of the pup, this might not seem like a good pairing, however, he’s got great bite inhibition. While they wrestle and mouth each other, neither bites down and they take each tumble in stride. It’s the cutest thing to see them, even when tired from running and playing hard, lying down to continue playing together or chewing on bones side by side. 

This handsome boy is housetrained and goes to the door when he has to go out. He is also crate trained, and does best when a sheet is placed over his kennel so he can settle in securely. He barks a few times when his foster parents first leave, but remains in his crate quietly for the work day reliably. He also sleeps quietly through the night when crated. Cinnamon does not like to be on the other side of the door from his people and would like to run from room to room. He’s learning that his four feet must remain in the floor and not be used to check out what’s on the counter. He does like to jump on the furniture so his foster mom is working on this behavior. 

For exercise, Cinnamon does very well walking in the evenings with an Easy Walk harness. He will pull when he sees another dog, but is learning to “leave it” and keep walking. Cinnamon also LOVES to play fetch. Even when he’s tired, he’ll keep on chasing a toy if it’s thrown or if the puppy is playing with one. He just can’t help himself. Cinnamon is an exuberant boy, so he should go to a home without small children since he will need continued training to keep from jumping on people. His foster mom has been able to take all sorts of things away from him, but he does try to grab things quickly that are sitting on the floor if he sees you reaching because he gets so excited and can’t wait to play. 

Overall, Cinnamon is a delightful young dog who will benefit from consistent, positive reinforcement training, which is a breeze for him since he’s very food motivated. He rode in the car while crated for over three hours on the way to his foster home and did great. If he is not crated, he should use a harness or seatbelt since he gets very excited about going for rides. 

Cinnamon would love a family to call his own. He will entertain with his comedic antics and return any love shown him tenfold.