About Rufus

Will the lady who is interested in Rufus contact us again please?! His fostermom has lost your number! Rufus is Special needs: Poor Rufus had a hard start in life. Evaluation suggest he was placed on a chain at a very young age and never petted or loved. It also appears they hacked off his tail with a hack saw and did it very short. Then he either escaped or they just put him out to fend for himself. He had to be trapped to catch him, so he could be helped as he would not come close to any human. The day come he was caught, he was estimated at about 1 year of age. We immediately began socializing him with humans...this took months of slow motion, effort, patience, and love. Everytime we got close, he would groan and shiver. After almost 4 months he could be touched. It took a couple more months before leash training could even begin. Rufus was introduced to a couple of other dogs at this time, he played but did not really know how. On walks he was constantly aware of all of the surroundings keeping his head high and on alert, never relaxed. 'Took him to cross the bridge over interstate thought maybe build confidence as he was doing much better on his walks although I still couldn't really touch him, so when we got there he would not cross...he went a few feet that was it. Again & again we walked up to the bridge and he would not cross, one day I was running with him we ran onto the bridge got halfway across & I stopped with him in the middle, he was scared. then we took of running, turned and went back up the ramp, ran all the way across no problem!!! he was fine to cross after that. : ) 'he was now placed inside a privacy fenced and tethered on a cable, a thunderstorm came thru and he was found hiding in his house, shaking and terrified, this is when he decided a human touch was OK. A milestone had happened today! New hope had been established, so we began trying even harder to help this sweet boy.After about a year of us trying so very hard...he could be touched, walked on a leash, and began to come inside. He quickly decided to LOVE the sofa :) HE is now housetrained, up to date on shots, on HW preventative, and lives at a foster home with 3 small dogs and his big dog girl friend Brownie (Brownie just got adopted). If strangers show up, he barks at the fence line, but if they come inside and sit on the sofa,stay quiet, in minutes he will come offer to let them pet his back side and then they are friends....He loves the outdoors during the daytime. NEVER during thunderstorms or fireworks! He has been in foster care for 4 years now. He is estimated at 5-6 years old, and now he is READY FOR A FAMILY TO CALL HIS OWN. Is this YOUR next boy? He needs a quiet, loving, HOME, with a sofa. He has come so far with his recovery, would you consider helping this poor baby have the 'best' now, as he has already endured some of the 'worst'??? He is really a handsome guy. More pics if you just ask...Best in a home with a mature couple or single person and no kids. Getting good at car riding.

Sumner County
Goodlettsville, Tennessee