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My basic info
Breed
Australian Shepherd
Color
Merle
Age
Young
Size
Med. 26-60 lbs (12-27 kg) (when grown)
Weight
–
Sex
Male
Pet ID
–
My details
Purebred
Shots current
Spayed / Neutered
Housetrained
My story
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Here's what the humans have to say about me:
**Thank-you to Jess Croezen at Impressive Canines (www.impressivecanines.com) for generously offering private agility sessions to Jesse!**
Jesse is a beautiful 1.5 year old, purebred Australian Shepherd. He came into foster care from a home that was not healthy for him and bought him for his looks.
In his previous home, Jesse received no training or socialization and very limited exercise. He spent most of his life either crated or chained in the backyard. When Jesse first came into foster care, he was extremely shy and timid and was nervous of anytime of handling. He wasn’t sure how to act around new people and had never interacted with other dogs before. He had so much pent-up energy, he literally bounced off the walls!
Jesse’s foster mom has been working on introducing him to new situations and environments using lots of encouragement and positive re-enforcement. He is still nervous, but making good progress. He loves to go for rides in the car and jumps enthusiastically into the backseat. Once in the car he is so excited he can’t stay still, so he needs to be restrained. Now that he is settled into his foster home and has a regular routine, including plenty of daily exercise, Jesse has started to come out of his shell. He loves to go on long walks or runs with his foster mom. He pulls on leash so his foster mom uses a no-pull harness which he responds to well.
He is a blank-slate in terms of training and is eager to learn new things and please his people. True to his breed, he is a smart dog and can pick-up a new trick or command after being shown only a few times. He knows all basic obedience commands and responds to both verbal cues and hand-signals. However, he is still working on his focus and listening skills. Typical of an untrained herding dog, he is jumpy and mouthy. His foster mom is working on these behaviours and he is learning how to settle and calm himself down when excited.
Due to his past situation Jesse does not do well in a crate, his foster mom is helping him become desensitized to the crate, but at this time he is not crate trained. Fortunately, Jesse is fully housetrained and not at all destructive and can be left free in the house when no one is home.
Jesse is fine with well-socialized dogs and he absolutely adores his foster dog sister and follows her around in the house and backyard. He loves to play tug-of-war with her or race around the yard. He gets very nervous when meeting aggressive or poorly socialized dogs and can become reactive, so play dates in the backyard are better for him than the dog park at this time.
He is a high-energy dog, but after a brisk walk or game of fetch in the backyard he settles down very nicely to enjoy a snooze. His foster mom also feeds him his breakfast as a large, frozen stuffed kong; this helps to fulfill his drive to work.
If you are interested in Jesse, make sure to first do your research on Australian Shepherds. Australian Shepherds are amazing dogs. They are extremely intelligent, loyal to their family, and very eager to please. However, Aussies are high-energy, working dogs that were originally bred to herd livestock and live on ranches and farms. Australian Shepherds need plenty of exercise and stimulation or they will become bored and develop behavioural issues. These dogs are quick and agile and are known to excel at all types of competitive and recreational dog-sports, such as: agility, Flyball, and Obedience. Jesse has been building some much needed confidence and burning off some of his extra energy in private agility classes at Impressive Canines. It is strongly recommend that he continue with agility and/or training classes which are a key factor in his rehabilitation and are helping him to overcome his fearfulness.
Because Australian Shepherds have strong herding and guarding instincts, Jesse would not be a good fit for a home with small children. Jesse is a very sweet and affectionate dog who would do best with a family who is experienced with higher-energy dogs as he requires a confident handler and someone who is willing to commit to working him daily.
Jesse is available for adoption through Grand River All Breed rescue. His adoption donation is $375. All of our dogs are spayed or neutered,
microchipped, vaccinated, and heartworm tested as part of their adoption. Please fill out an application at our website
www.grandriverallbreedrescue.ca. You can also reach us by email at GrandRiverRescue@hotmail.com
