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s, trying to find a remaining morsel on a long dead carcass. He is very underweight, he was covered with fleas, and has some thinning hair and sores from the fleas and the neglect (he tested negative for skin mites). He has been getting medicated baths. He has some hairless areas where scabs have fallen off (like the one on his nose), we expect that hair to grow back. He has obviously been in a home environment at some point, he waits to be let inside, and he is familiar with stairs and everything else indoors. He is relaxed a nd heads to a dog bed shortly after coming in. :) He has not had any accidents in the crate or in the house since he was taken in by his foster family. He doesn't go far from his foster parents or siblings (human or dog :) ) when out in the yard. He definitely follows the pack, and he shows no desire to get out of the yard or their sight. For this reason, we suspect he may have been brought to the area he was found in and dumped. He has been great with the other dogs in the household (3) and the kids (2). He showed a lot of curiosity- but no aggression- about the horses on the premises, but they did not appreciate his constant sniffing and weaving between their legs, so one of them gave him a little hoof tap. He has not bothered them since :) . There are chickens in a coop on the property. He showed a brief interest in the noises they made initially, but paid them no attention by day 2. He is not aggressive about his food, despite the fact that was starving. He is currently being separated from the other dogs to eat, but his foster parents have already taught him to wait a few moments until the okay is given for him to eat, and they are able to pull his bowl away from him while he's eating with no reaction from him except to follow the food :) . This handsome man is heartworm positive. RUFF is going to cover all of the heartworm treatment costs. He will need to be on heartworm prevention 3 months prior to treatment. He has already started the course of antibiotics to help weaken the heartworms. His new owners must be willing to bring him in for all necessary treatments and follow ups, and keep his activity to a minimum for a couple of months following treatment. So far he has seemed to feel well without being high energy. We do not take in animals that require extensive/long term treatment typically because we are limited on space, funds, and man power, but we will make exceptions when the wonderfulness of one wedges his way into our hearts, as Deebo has done. He wants nothing but your love and affection (regular meals would be nice too :) ) He is about 12 months old, Pittie/Boxer/Lab? (he has an adorable underbite), and weighs 59 lbs (he should weigh at least 70). Please let us know if you think he may fit in with your family.
UPDATE 10/6/16: Deebo was adopted out to a young couple two weeks ago and has been returned. One of them was intimidated by him and was unable to control him, and she was the one primarily responsible for his care because she was home the most. He would jump on her a lot and "knock her into walls", and she unable to walk him because he would pull her down. She understood this was not fair to him either as he needs regular exercise. She reported that he did growl and bark at her some, and she was unsure why, she thought maybe it was because he smelled other people's dogs on her. She admits that she did feel a "little fear" as far as he was concerned, and that "probably didn't help either." Deebo was in a foster home for 3 months prior to being adopted out 2 weeks ago. This home had 3 other dogs, 2 older children, chickens, and horses. Deebo has never snapped at or tried to bite anyone. He was very rough around the edges when he arrived, he was starving and we do not what experiences he had prior, or whether he had ever even been in a home environment before (although her showed signs of ownership). He definitely lacked discipline and training, his foster mom referred to him as "uncivilized". :). He does have a history of barking at you when physically reprimanded (i.e a butt spank), and he was growling initially when removed from the couch or made to go in his kennel. This occurred much more frequently when he was first brought home, and had diminished to almost never by the time he was adopted. AGAIN- HE HAS NEVER SNAPPED AT OR TRIED TO BITE ANYONE. These verbal responses to being made to do something he doesn't want to do can be compared to a hard headed child that talks back. Deebo is a bulldog, and he is typical for the breed in the way that he is "bull headed". It is important that his owners be consistent with training and discipline. If you let him on the couch once and decide you don't want him on it again, be prepared for him to try to get on the couch every day for about a month until he finally realizes that you are not going to give in to his pushiness. :). He was also a body part chewer when he first arrived. If he wanted to play or wanted attention, he would start gnawing on your closest body part. Again , this was not aggressive behavior, and not unusual for dogs period, but even more so common with bully breeds. This cannot be tolerated because "mouthiness" and rough play should never be allowed between dogs and people (dogs and dogs- yes :) ), so his foster family worked on this with him daily and consistently until the issue was virtually resolved by adoption time. He would not be considered high energy- he can relax on his dog bed in front of the TV- but he does need regular exercise and stimulation. All of the above aside- Deebo is a loveable goofball. He loves to play, and he did fine with the other dogs in the foster home, and most dogs he would run into on walks/runs (there was one yapping, lunging Chihuahua mix we wouldn't let him get close to because we didn't know how he would respond to its aggressive behavior). He did annoy the other dogs in the household regularly, they were all older than him and didn't want to be pestered or play as much. They "yelled" at him frequently, and he took this in stride, never responding aggressively. He came in contact with friends and family (adults and children) often and he has always been friendly and outgoing with all. He does not bother chickens, and gives the horses a wide berth. :) He likes to put his head in your lap and for you to rub his head and ears- he could that for hours. He's fine for baths (even though he doesn't really like them), ear cleaning, etc. He has NEVER shown any signs of food or toy aggression despite his starving history. He is housetrained and crate trained. He simply needs a family that have the physical and personality strength to match his own. Please let us know if you are interested in meeting this handsome man.
This pet's adoption includes his physical, fecal, deworming, all vaccines, neuter, and a microchip.
We require proof that other pets in the household are current are vaccines, spayed/neutered, and on heartworm prevention.