My name is West!

Let me introduce you to this ADORABLE boy West. West is an 18month old male German Shepherd/Husky mix with a BEAUTIFUL temperament. He is a large sized dog weighing 50 pounds, with an athletic body and a wonderful disposition. He definitely has the Shepherd look but his face has more tan to it and has eyes that will just melt your heart. West is an enormous suck and loves being by your side rather than off on his own. He is a young dog with an old soul, but I’m sure once he feels loved and knows he has his forever family he will become more alive. West would bring absolute joy to any household that has the heart to love him unconditionally.

West came to us from a rural pound as a he was found wondering on his own. He must have been out for quite some time as when we met him he was very malnourished, fur so dirty and even had a faint smell of skunk spray. We are working on getting his weight up as well we have given him a bath, which made a world of difference for him. West deserves a family that will be devoted to him as much as he will be to you. He was very timid at first and scared of the adult male figure, not really knowing if he was doing the right thing. We are working with his confidence by just providing him with a lot of attention, love, cuddles and positive reinforcement. His response to this has been so amazing, gives you tones of kisses and smiles all day long. We really don’t know why he is like this because other than jumping up to greet you he really has no bad behaviours. West will need a family that will be able to reassure him that he is loved and that he is a good boy. A family that will not mind a big body laying across them for snuggles and kisses. He needs a family that will welcome him into their home and not keep him as an outside dog as from his neglected state and lack of understanding of being in a home when we got him its apparent he was an outdoor dog. West wants to be a family dog and be loved and cuddled and be an important member of the family.

West is completely house trained and has quite a strong bladder, no accidents since the first day we brought him home. He will let you know when he wants out. If you decide to crate him he is fine with that. He doesn’t really like to go in, however once he is in his crate he lays down right away and also sleeps through the night. We have also had him out of the crate overnight and he does well with that too, just sleeps. So either way he is a great sleeper.

West would do well in any home situation. He is being fostered with another dog and two young teenage boys. Really, with his gentleness he would do fine even with young children, as he has shown absolutely no aggression what so ever. He would just be a gentle giant to littles ones.
He has no problem with anyone coming around his food. I would say toys as well however it seems like he never was introduced to them as we had to teach him even how to pick up a ball. Playing with toys, fetching etc.was a foreign thing to West, we are gradually introducing him to different kinds of play, which I’m sure if you have children they would be great at helping with this.

We have socialized West with other dogs and he does not show any dominance over them, if anything he is submissive. A few walks a day would suit him fine. He is a great walker, but I really think it’s because he doesn’t really know how to behave on walks as a leash seemed foreign to him as well. He doesn’t pull at all and we think that is because he really is uncertain what to do, so other than the ground sniffs he stays by your side. Continuing with these walks so he can familiarize himself with outdoor surroundings would be a must. A cute thing about West is that after he gets in from his walks he jumps and barks as if he is saying “Thank you”.





West doesn’t seem to of had any training, not even the basic. He is just starting to recognize his name. We are working on the basic come, sit and off right now, a struggle but I’m sure it will come. His new family will have to take him to basic obedience training to stimulate his mind to help him gain confidence as well as continuing them at home. The only time he really barks is when someone comes home and after his walk, however he does get a little upset when someone leaves, only for a few seconds and that will likely change once he is comfortable and feels secure/safe in his new forever home.

On a sad note, when we had West at the vet getting him checked out we discovered that he tested positive for Lyme disease. It is figured that he was bitten by a tick some time ago and caught the disease from that. His previous owners obviously didn’t have him on the heartworm/tick preventative which would have prevented this. Good news is, he shows no negative signs or symptoms of the disease and the vet says that he has a perfectly normal life expectancy and it really isn’t all that serious. He is on some medicine now to lower his Lyme level and he is doing well on it. He won’t need to be on meds long term which is great. His adoptive family needs to be aware of his Lyme status and advise their vet of it and understand that he will test positive for Lyme’s every time he has his heartworm/lyme tests done. Our vet is more than happy to talk to West’s prospective adopters about Lyme disease and reassure them that he is a healthy and hardy dog regardless of his Lyme status.


West is a lovely, affectionate and friendly dog that will bring joy to any person/family. If you can commit to love, care, training, and will give this beautiful boy the attention he deserves he is the perfect dog for you or your family. All he wants is a forever home that won’t scare or mistreat him. A forever home that will let him be the young dog he probably never got to be. A forever home to show him what unconditional love is, something that he deserved from the beginning and will show him till the end.

All Pound Dog Rescue dogs are spayed/neutered, vaccinated, heartworm tested, de-wormed (if required), and microchipped prior to adoption. The adoption donation of $400 is applied to assist in the costs of veterinary care and the overall care of the dog. For more information and adoption applications please consult our website at www.pounddog.ca.