Shelter Seeks Home For Sweet Dog Who's Been There For Nearly 4 Years

Ginger the dog doesn’t have a bad life at the Paris, Maine, animal shelter where she’s lived for almost four years. She’s beloved by staff and volunteers, and she spends a good amount of time outside the shelter ― including long walks through the woods and trips to McDonald’s, where she enjoys a plain cheeseburger.

“She’s our little princess,” Pat Ingersoll, canine director at Responsible Pet Care of Oxford Hills, told HuffPost.

But after more than 1,450 days, Ginger needs a home of her own.

Ginger has gone viral after the organization wrote a Facebook post detailing how long she’s been looking for an adopter. The post includes a photo of Ginger appearing to look at the camera with pleading eyes, wearing a sign that says, “I have been in the shelter for 1,456 days. Please Adopt Me.”

“She was brought to us as a stray in 2014,” the Facebook post reads. “She needs the perfect home, not just any home.”

Ingersoll said that it’s been difficult finding the right home for Ginger because she has some specific needs that a new family must be able to handle.

Ginger is outgoing, loving and enjoys snuggling, Ingersoll said. But she also has some issues with resource guarding ― meaning she can become defensive and possessive of objects like her food bowl and toys. For that reason, RPC doesn’t consider her a good fit for families with small children, or any children who may not be savvy enough to recognize when they need to leave Ginger alone. She also cannot be placed in a home with other animals.

Ingersoll noted that Ginger has never bitten anyone, and RPC wants to make sure it stays that way.

“Because she is such a unique and loving dog, we don’t want to put her in a situation where she can fail,” she said.

While RPC is willing to consider adopters who aren’t local, any adopter would have to come meet Ginger in person and agree to a home check by the shelter. Adoption applications can be found on the group’s website.

“We would love nothing more than for her to have her own family right now,” said Ingersoll.

This story has been updated with additional information about Ginger.