About Lucy

Lucy is 28 lbs, 3 years old, docile, playful, loving, sweet and devoted. She is submissive: rolls on her back and squirms and smiles, and will try to lick you! She is always patient and goofy with our 10 year old, even when he rolls around on the floor with her and hugs her tightly. She loves his friends, too. We really want Lucy to find a new loving home without cats. One of our cats was terrified of her and ran away. She is half Australian shepherd, but her half-terrier prey drive makes it impossible to let our other 2 be free in the house due to her chasing them. They stay in one small area of the house. We've tried every way we can to make it work. Even when Lucy is locked outside, she catches a glimpse of one our cats cat through the curtain and it's non-stop barking. We didn't know she had strong prey drive towards cats but would never return her to the overpopulated, kill shelter where we adopted her. We love Lucy, and the situation is tearing us apart; we so want her to find someone to make her happy. (and for her to make happy!) Lucy is athletic: loves walks, chase, running, tug. The trainer said more activity (play, exercise, training time (she's very smart) to occupy her brain) would relax her leash reactivity.. We really didn't give her that. Lucy is charming and devoted to you,loves vegetables, catches snacks in her mouth, and leaps effortlessly into your lap (when invited!) She needs to chew on bully sticks, etc. She is 55% Australian shepherd, 20% Parson terrier and the rest is a mix of 6 other terriers. Everyone who meets her falls in love with her. She likely lacked socialization with other dogs in puppy hood. There are dogs on our walk she loves: one (an Aussie!) we always let her off leash to play with. Others she whimpers at, sniffs noses with, and play bows. But most often she barks and pulls on walks when she sees another dog. We hired a trainer, initially to help with her chasing the cats, but also for her strong reaction of barking at dogs while she is on leash. The trainer said most reactive dogs get along with dogs when they are off leash, with proper introductions. In 7 sessions, Lucy learned 'down','sit', 'stay','wait','leave it','let's go','heel'& 'place'. She's good on a leash. The trainer and I worked with 'leave it', starting with treats. She's smart and learned quickly but with dogs on walks it was still a challenge. She said it could be reduced with more controlled exposure to other dogs, but would need more sessions with her. Besides more physical activity, she taught us workarounds: reverse direction when another dog approaches, kneel down with your back to the dog, or stand behind a car, bush, etc, and say 'look at me!' When she does, offer a treat, and repeat until the dog passes. It works! Also, I walk in the later evening (8:00) when there are few dogs. Patience is key, but when you meet her, you will see she is so worth it!

Contact

San Bernardino County
Redlands, California 92373

Marta Mueller: (916) 804-1130

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