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RoccoRescue Me ID: 21-09-18-00028

No longer available

About Rocco

Adoption Fee: $50
Lab / German Shepherd
Age: Puppy
Sex: Male

My husband and I have come to the sad decision that we need to re-home our beautiful, 23 month old lab/shepherd mix Rocco. He is often a good boy, but some recent life changes, (a move, restarting of my home preschool business, my stepson and another dog moving in,) and the traumatic experience of a very painful pinched nerve in his back that took most of the summer to heal, have triggered some new aggressive behavior that we have not seen before. These recent events plus our busy home with lots of people coming and going and other pets around are triggering this behavior for him sometimes, particularly around his toys and food. He has become very concerned with dominance and testing boundaries, sometimes growling and snapping at us. He has never bit anyone. Although he has been with us and our two kids, our other dog, a cat and a rabbit since he was 8 weeks old, we think that he would probably do best in a household without kids or other dogs. He is a good pet most of the time, and is still quite young. With the right person, the right environment, and some more training we believe that he could mature into a great dog. He has many fine qualities: -usually friendly -energetic -usually barks when people come to the house (watchdog, sort of) -loves hiking -good in the car -doesn't bark much -not destructive, trustworthy alone in the house or car -not prone to separation anxiety -house trained -neutered -up to date on shots -good on the leash as long as he has a choker on -content to hang out alone for long hours every day as long as he gets enough walks and exercise in -ok with cats -ok with other dogs to a degree in the right situation -he has been given lots of love in his life and has never been mistreated The challenges: -protective of his stuff and sometimes unexpectedly aggressive about it -headstrong (He has had several rounds of obedience classes, he's very smart and learns skills easily but isn't really that for motivated to be obedient so far in life and picks and chooses when to obey. He's not even 2 yet though, so there is hope. He ideally needs someone who is experienced or interested in regular obedience and dominance training. Although he is a mutt he has a shepherd personality, so someone experienced with German Shepherds would be a plus.) -hates the crate (but there is little need for him to be crated since he is not destructive) -a hard return, not yet trustworthy off the leash -not great at the dog park or with other dogs. He is generally friendly but overly energetic and aggressive in his play. We are very sad to be looking to re-home him, but we don't feel that he is entirely trustworthy in our situation, and we understand that in order to succeed, he needs a less triggering environment and more training and attention than we can possibly give him right now due to the demands of our family and jobs. He could do well in any home with any owner where he is given enough space, lots of exercise and consistent training, but he responds best to men and we believe that he would be happiest living with a single, adult man.

Bennington County
Manchester Center, Vermont

Compatibility

  • Not Good with Other Dogs
  • Good with Most Cats
  • Good with Adult Men Only

Personality

  • High Energy
  • Very Dominant

Health

  • Neutered
  • Vaccinations Current

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