What Speckles wants more then anything else is to be the love of someone’s life. He is an extremely sweet boy with people, and loves attention. He had always been an outside dog before being turned in, and never really learned to snuggle and cuddle, so he is awkward at it, but tries so hard. He prefers to be wherever you are, doing whatever you are doing. He is also one of the few grown dogs to come through rescue with a known date of birth. His birthday is October 7, 2001.

When Speckles was surrendered to a shelter, he was severely Heartworm+ and had to undergo full treatments. During heartworm treatments, dogs must be kept confined and are not allowed to have any activity, so he was crated 24 hours a day, with the exception of bathroom breaks. During that time, he developed some severe jealousy issues with the other dogs, but we have worked on that and he is doing much better. He does like playing with some of the other dogs now, but is awkward with that too. Because of this, he might do better as an only dog. He is an “Alpha” dog, and will not back down from a challenge, so if you have another dog, or would ever consider another dog, be aware he might have issues. I would only suggest this be attempted with a VERY dog-savvy person, and would be leery to trust him unsupervised with other dogs. When he was fully recovered and able to have exercise again, he had a lot of energy and spent much of his time in the yard running. He is what we Setter people call “very birdie” and loves chasing birds in the yard. Since then, he has settled in and still loves to be outside, he prefers more to be with us. If we are outside in the yard, he’ll be with us, running and chasing whatever moves. If the weather is bad, then he’s happy to pile up and watch a movie, play video games or curl up at my feet while I’m in the office at my desk. As long as you love him, he’s happy. As with many Setters, he should not be off leash unless in a confined area, as his instinct is to hunt prey and will focus on that more then you.

He is good with kids, but since he’s such a tall boy (about 24 inches at his shoulders), I’d be leery to put him with toddlers, only because he could take food away from them or might knock them down without meaning to. I also feel he would not take well to little fingers pulling his hair. He's not a counter surfer...he's a counter "I can reach anything I want". Ummmm....We are still working on that. He knows he’s not supposed to take things from the counter or sink, but still can’t seem to resist when you aren’t looking. Needless to say, an unattended sandwich, pot roast or container of dip could ‘mysteriously’ disappear. He is doing much, much better now.

Speckles has house trained very well, and does good with a doggie-door. He is crate trained and seems to prefer to sleep in his crate at night. Sometimes we close the door, sometimes we don’t. He knows the command “Go to bed” and will run to his crate and snuggle in and wait for his nighttime treat. He also knows “Sit”.

He does pull hard with a leash, and is trying very hard to do better. He is eager to please and anyone with the time and desire to work with him should find him an eager and willing companion. However, anyone with a lack of strength to keep him in check on a leash should be weary. I would not suggest he be on a leash with a younger child or anyone who lacks upper body strength or balance. A “NO PULL” harness would be suggested.

Speckles LOVES water, so if you have a pool, you will need to keep him away from it, or be prepared for a new swimming buddy. We have a small plastic ‘kiddie’ pool we put out for the dogs to play in during the hot months, and he loves getting in and laying down in it to cool off. I can easily see him jumping in a pool or pond.

He has the shorter ‘Field Setter’ coat, so grooming for him is pretty easy. He has a few tufts of fur that may need some trimming, but otherwise should only need the normal brushing of his feathers to keep him looking like the handsome boy that he is. He looks like a full Blue Belton, but has a few liver colored marks, which makes him technically a Tri Color. He is not bad to bark, but will let you know if something that doesn't belong is around.

Speckles has displayed no destructive tendencies, and shows no real interest in dog toys. His favorite thing to do is go for walks. Once he sees a leash in my hand he will go sit at the front door to wait for me to clasp it on, and take him out. So if you enjoy walks in the park and bird watching, then this boy might be a match for you.