Size
(when grown) Small 25 lbs (11 kg) or less
Details
Good with dogs,
Good with cats,
Needs special attention,
Story
William
Breed: Pomeranian
Location: Troy, MO
Adoption Fee: $550
Meet William 🐾
William is a sweet, smart puppy with a huge heart and an incredible capacity to learn. He was born to an irresponsible breeding situation involving two merle dogs, which can carry a risk of sensory impairments. In William’s case, he is deaf—but he has beautiful blue eyes and full vision, and it certainly doesn’t slow him down.
William is already beginning to learn sign language cues from his foster mom and is showing just how intelligent and attentive he is. With consistency, patience, and a family willing to learn how to communicate with him, William will absolutely thrive and become a wonderful lifelong companion.
Like all puppies, William is full of curiosity and energy. He is currently teething and learning what is appropriate to chew, so redirection and providing proper chew toys is important. Potty training is underway using washable potty pads, as he was behind on vaccinations and hasn’t been able to safely explore the outside world yet. Once his next round of vaccines is complete, formal outdoor potty training can begin.
William loves toys of all kinds—especially squeaky toys! Watching him repeatedly squeak them (without realizing they make noise) is endlessly adorable. He is a great eater and does well on Fromm Puppy kibble with Rawbble freeze-dried raw toppers, which are also being used as high-value training treats to help him focus on faces and hand signals. He has recently added crunchy treats, cooked proteins, and pumpkin to support his GI system after treatment for Giardia and Coccidia. Heartworm prevention has also been started.
At intake, William was noted to have a small, easily reducible umbilical hernia, which can be repaired at the time of his future neuter surgery. Otherwise, he is a happy, healthy, energetic puppy. He is microchipped.
William is affectionate and loves to give kisses—though he occasionally forgets that fingers are not chew toys. Gentle correction and redirection are helping him learn appropriate behavior.
For now, William’s world is intentionally limited for his safety, but with time and proper training, it can expand beautifully. His ideal home would include:
• A secure, fenced yard for supervised exploration
• Someone home most of the day to continue his training
• A confident resident dog to help guide him and match his puppy energy
• Experience with hearing-impaired dogs (preferred)
• Use of a bell collar to help locate him in the home
• A puppy pen indoors and an x-pen outdoors for safe potty breaks, especially at night
William is becoming more alert, attentive, and engaged every day. He watches his foster mom closely, eager for guidance and connection. His potential is enormous, and with the right family committed to working together, William’s world will truly blossom.
Leia’s Hope is a volunteer-run, foster-based rescue. All of our dogs live in foster homes. Applications typically take 7-10 business days to process. Meet and greets are scheduled only after an application is approved. We do not transport dogs; adopters must travel to the dogs location in Troy, MO for the meet and greet and adoption.
William is a 15 year+ commitment and his adopter must be prepared to love and support him for his lifetime.
To Apply, Visit Leiashope.org
02/05/2026
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Foster Notes
by lhcr_kwilliams
William is such a sweet and smart little boy. Born to an irresponsible breeder that obviously bred two Merle dogs risking that 25% could be born being deaf, blind, or both. In Williams case, he is deaf and born with beautiful blue eyes and has vision. He is very smart and is beginning to catch on to some sign language cues that the foster is teaching him. With continued time, training, and a family willing to invest the time and learn to communicate with him he will be a wonderful addition to a family.
He is a puppy, with all things that go along with being a puppy. He is teething so chewing on everything and teaching him what is appropriate and providing him options is important. Currently the world is his bathroom and working on potty pad training with washable potty pads. He was definitely behind on vaccinations so he has not ventured to the outside world yet. So official potty training can start after another vaccination is on board next week. He absolutely loves toys of all kinds and is so funny when he finds a squeaky toy and repeatedly squeaks it since he can not hear. He is a good eater and is doing well with his Fromm Puppy kibble and Freeze Dried Raw toppers of Rawbble. We are also using the Rawbble as a training treat when teaching him to focus on our face and hand signals. This week he has added some crunchy treats to his diet as well as so cooked proteins and pumpkin mix to help get his system back on track with all the treatments for Giardia/Coccidia.
William loves to give kisses and occasionally thinks finger are chew toys. Gentle correction and redirection with proper chew toys occurs so that he begins to understand.
William’s world is one that is limited for his own protection at this time, but with time and proper training his world can greatly expand. He will need a secure fenced yard to allow him to explore under strict supervision. A bell collar would be appropriate to use to help locate in the house. Someone home most of the day to really work with him. Another confident dog in the home that can keep up with his puppy energy and help him learn by example. Also, it would be preferred to have a home that has experience with hearing impaired dogs.
William is becoming much more alert and attentive to his foster mom. He is so smart and is looking for signs from her. His ability to learn and expand his horizons is there and ready to blossom with the right family working together to teach him all that he needs to know.
