About Ryder

Hi there! I am Ryder, I'm 5 years old and I'm looking for my furever family! I am a mixed breed, adult, mostly Border Collie (39%), Shetland Sheepdog (19%) and Cocker Spaniel (16%), but I also have lots of other herding dogs (Aussie, mini-Aussie, Collie, and German Shepherd) and even some Norwegian Elkhound in there too! It's a rather good recipe, I think. I'm pretty smart if I do say so myself, and LOVE - really LOVE - frisbee and fetch. Frisbee is my absolute favorite. I can even CATCH it! Foster Mom says I'm not great at handing back the frisbee, and I can get a little grabby when I get excited. That means that sometimes I'll accidentally hit your hand with my teeth trying to get the frisbee, so it's really important that whoever adopts me keeps up with training me to show good manners when playing fetch. What's great about me: Well, let's face it - I'm adorable. I am about 35 lbs. - about the size of a Border Collie. The perfect size, I think. I do great in my crate and seem to be housetrained. I don't guard toys or food. And I love pets and attention. I learn quickly and thrive on routine. As soon as I know your routine, I'll automatically do what I'm supposed to. My quirks: I have an EXTREMELY high prey drive, chasing just about anything that moves. I keep the yard free of birds by chasing them off. I am not a fan of other animals, so I will bark - a lot - when I see them. I would benefit from some training on reactivity and am not a good fit for a home with other pets. I also do NOT as a rule like men. In general, it will take me a long time and very structured training to adapt to strangers, so anyone who adopts me will need to be willing to put some time and effort into that and be able to give me some private space when strangers come. The best yard for me is one with a fence that I can't see through to bark at strangers or other animals. I'm not great at walking on a leash since my previous home didn't teach me that. Right now I get to play in a fenced yard. From Ryder's Foster Mom: Ryder LOVES playing fetch more than anything else. He will pick out which toy he'd like to play with on a given day - ball, frisbee, or tug. I limit tug games to only two particular tug toys so that he does not associate tug with his frisbee, etc. He is smart and very, very affectionate. He's very vocal when there is something he wants or doesn't like. He will also run the fence line and bark if he sees people or other animals. Ryder will need lots of exercise. Right now, he gets at least three short play sessions a day. He likely needs a female-only household. Despite working with him in training with my husband, he is only tolerating him at present. He loves me, though, and reacts well to other females. Because of his reactivity, he is not suited to a home with children or other pets. He will make a great companion for a single female or a female-only household that is OK with a fenced yard. He would make a great watch dog too, as he will bark at any changes in his environment (but is not a guard dog). Although Ryder is not a dog for beginners, he's a lot of fun and will make someone a wonderful companion. If you are interested in learning more about Ryder, please apply at: https://www.australianshepherdsfurever.org/adoption-application There is an additional $20 microchip fee which includes registration and transfer to his new furever family. All adoption fees are used for future rescue efforts.

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Litchfield County
Torrington, Connecticut 06790

Contact Person:

Australian Shepherds Furever

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