POLLY - AMERICAN STAFFORDSHIRE TERRIER / MIXED (SHORT COAT) DOG FOR ADOPTION

Description

Posted Breed: American Staffordshire Terrier / Mixed (short coat). Meet Polly! This sweet, petite bully girl with the adorable ears has been in foster care for a few months learning how to be a family dog. She is no longer fearful of car rides, enjoys her daily walks, and is very comfortable inside the home. Once she settles in and trusts her environment, her joy is palpable and her passion for toys is unmatched. She’s also a champion snuggler! Polly was confiscated as part of a dogfighting/cruelty case when she was only a puppy and held as "evidence" for almost two years. She was NEVER involved in fighting as she was far too young, but she was kept at the county shelter as evidence until the case went to trial. In the shelter, she had very little exposure to the outside world - stairs, car rides, or walks in a neighborhood were all new to her. She was held hostage by a broken justice system. With timid dogs like Polly, they typically need more time in foster care to rehabilitate and be ready for adoption. Polly is fortunate to have foster parents who understand that she needs a little time, but can and will evolve. She has been gradually introduced to new things and continues to improve with every new experience. Polly was initially fostered in SC by Laine and Gary, living with their pack of 4 dogs. They are veteran fosters who have a lot of experience with undersocialized dogs. While she was scared at first, she acclimated faster than we expected. She found a BFF in the family dog, Clarysse, and discovered her passion for toys. She carries her treasures everywhere...even on walks if you let her. In SC, she learned about home life and became familiar with all the new home sounds (TV, dishwasher, vacuum) and stairs. She also became a champion couch snuggler. FOSTER MOM UPDATE (SC) - July 2022 "Polly is really starting to enjoy herself. She is very loving and likes to lay on the couch with you or on you with her toys of course. She loves to do zoomies. She's crate trained, housetrained, and has learned 'sit' but does a cute little tapping with her front paws because she gets so excited when she thinks a treat is coming. She loves her toys and will play fetch when she is in the mood. She's great with our dogs and enjoys playing with Clarysse and Gypsy. She's getting braver on her walks but is still a work in progress. She's pretty good on leash but will pull when she wants something like going inside after a walk, seeing one of the dogs, a toy.” After a few months of decompressing and getting comfortable with home life, Polly came to N. VA in mid-December 2022 to start the next leg in her journey. Her transition was much quicker this time as she’s learned to trust people and now has more life experience outside the shelter. She’s currently living with Shaleia and Sean and their two pups and quickly assimilated into her new pack. FOSTER MOM UPDATE (VA) - 3/1/23 Polly has been in her local foster home for about 2.5 months now and is really finding her groove. She’s very comfortable in her foster home and is doing well as part of a pack. Once she settles in, you can see her happy-go-lucky nature: she is excited about life (especially food), very affectionate, loves to play, and loves to be the center of attention. This petite Bully girl is a pup who needs a little time to adapt to a new environment. She’s still a little skittish around sudden or loud noises but is fine with normal street traffic on walks. She can be timid when meeting new people but is improving. Her foster mom, Shaleia, has been inviting friends over with dogs for playdates and taking Polly to the local dog park to get more exposure outside the home. We checked in with Shaleia for an update: “Overall, I think she’s made progress in every area, but the biggest progress has been at home. I’m very glad that she’s comfortable and happy here, and we’ve proven that she can be okay with men and women in the home. She loves my husband and has proven to be a champion snuggler. She likes to snuggle up on the couch with me, and she snuggles with Doc and Donner too. Polly loves to play... With other dogs or on her own with toys, especially if it’s something she can rip up or chew to pieces. We are careful about what toys are left out if we’re not going to be there to supervise. She and our pup, Donner, really love their playtime together and are a great match. Polly likes to roughhouse play and is best paired with a social, playful, confident dog, a pup that she can learn from and emulate. I’ve figured out that most of her pulling on walks is because I’m not fast enough though she does tend to pull more when walking with other dogs. She’ll still jump at unexpected sounds or if a jogger comes up behind us, but has gotten more comfortable passing people and generally passes dogs calmly too. Bikes are fine, but baby strollers and scooters are still a bit scary. My friend who comes over for playdates has made great progress with Polly. We had her come into the house on the last visit to see how Polly would react and it went pretty well. There was no barking or extra shy behavior. Now when we hang out, Polly will come up to her to say hi, get a couple of scratches, and give a lick to her hand too…progress!” Crate - We're using the crate when the humans are out of the house. She does usually cry for a few minutes when you leave and again when she hears you come back home, but checking the camera shows she is quiet and calm the rest of the time. On leash - There's still room for improvement, but the martingale made a big difference for her pulling. The first time on any trail, you can tell she's a bit apprehensive, but she gets more comfortable with repeated trips. Road sounds and cars don't seem to bother her. Skills/training - We are working on basic commands, obedience, and recall. She knows to sit but she needs work with everything else. She is super food motivated so that helps. Polly has been fortunate to have two sets of foster parents who understand that dogs need time and stability but can and do evolve. They’ve been patient, gradually introducing Polly to new things and she improves with every new experience. We are looking for a loving, patient owner for Polly who will give her time to settle in and adjust to her new surroundings. We feel another social, playful, established dog in her home is VITAL which will help her trust and adapt more quickly. She will do best in a quieter neighborhood vs. city or condo setting. Apply today! BREED ESTIMATE: AmStaff/Bully mix GENDER: Female APPROXIMATE WEIGHT: ~ 35-37 lbs (petite pittie) APPROXIMATE AGE: ~ 3 years old COAT TYPE: short ADOPTION FEE: $400 OTHER INFO: utd on shots/spayed/microchipped LOCATION: Bealeton, Va FOR MORE INFO OR TO ADOPT: Please go to adopt.worthydog and complete the application. You can also help save dogs like this one by becoming a foster, providing a rescue dog with a temporary home, and giving them the love and care they need until they are permanently adopted. Every person who fosters is directly responsible for saving the life of a dog because we can only save as many dogs as we have foster families available to welcome them into their homes. If you think you might be interested in becoming a foster and want to learn more, please go to foster.worthydog and fill out an application. Worthy Dog Rescue is an all-volunteer, foster-based rescue that primarily adopts to families in the DC Metro area.

• Physical Attributes

  Coat Length:	Short
  Likes to Vocalize:	Quiet

• Behavioral Characteristics

  OK with Dogs:	Yes
  OK with Cats:	Yes
  Energy Level:	Moderate
  Activity Level:	Moderately Active
  Exercise Needs:	Moderate
  Obedience Training:	Has Basic Training
  Owner Experience Required:	Species
  Other:	Yard Required Leash Trained Crate Trained Housetrained Likes to Fetch Likes to Play with Toys

• Personality

  Personality Characteristics

  Playful Timid Skittish Affectionate Eager to Please Intelligent Goofy

• Additional Information

  Was the Dog Found	No
  Other	Up-to-date on Vaccinations