Dog of the Week: Booker

Booker is an extremely beautiful and loving dog who would be absolutely perfect for someone who only wants one dog but has previous large dog training experience. Booker is a very large older puppy (89 lbs. at 12-18 mos.) with the potential to grow into an even larger adult dog. He seems to be a mix of yellow Lab and Great Pyrenees – and his temperament is most like the Great Pyrenees. He can be stubborn, but he has a very calm temperament around people, is consistently friendly with strangers and children (tested down to 4 year old), and is eager to gain your positive attention. If he has enough exercise, he is perfectly content to lay down or sit next to you and just be petted frequently indoors the rest of the time. He needs at least 3-4 miles of walking each day to remain this well-behaved indoors, but he is an absolute DREAM to walk on a leash because he loves going for walks and really wants to be next to you (as long as there are no other dogs in sight or hearing). He needs a little practice yet at times when there are distractions, but he has been the EASIEST dog I have ever met to train to walk on a leash. I’ve walked extra miles (5 instead of 3) just to walk longer with him!

Booker is in need of a patient and positive person willing to finish housebreaking him and take him to obedience classes – but he is very intelligent and very easy to train using positive methods. He is crate trained and has had few accidents indoors (4 in a week – two the first day) when taken out every 1-2 hours. He does well in his kennel at night.  Booker is making great progress on the following commands at his foster home: sit, stay, heel (his best command!), kennel, foot (as in “let me wipe your foot”), wait, and off. He does not jump up a lot, especially when exercised, but he is not yet polite around people food and does at times try to climb up on top of you to see if he can nab a bite.

He is curious and likes to explore the neighborhood – so he needs a 3-6 foot fence around his yard unless his owner is willing to take him out on a leash each time he needs to go potty. If there are any gaps or small holes under your fence, you will want to block them. Booker would also be best for a home with no other dogs, as he is very picky about his dog “friends” and wants to be the dominant dog. He also shows food, bone (rawhide), and toy protectiveness toward other dogs (but is ok when humans take them). He is not good with other male dogs close to his size, but might be ok (would have to be tested very carefully) with smaller dogs. He seems to want to play, but does not know how to do that with other dogs his size. He shows a lot of interest in cats and other small animals. He might be okay with them, but that would need very careful testing as well. Booker has had little to no experience playing with humans and toys, so he will need training if you want him to fetch, play tug, or any other toy game. He would probably be easy to train to pull a cart as his Pyrenees ancestors did. He sometimes will chase a tennis ball or a furry or crinkly (water bottle) toy and pick it up – and has returned it once or twice most of the way, but then seems to lose interest. He does show a little interest in larger balls as well. He will play with the water from the hose now (loves this!), which is good, because that makes it easier to bathe him outdoors. Overall, right now he would rather be petted than play!

Booker’s coat is a beautiful medium length yellow and white. He does shed and he will need regular brushing to prevent matting. He will also need regular wiping with doggie wipes, or washing or bathing (especially if he plays with the hose and gets all muddy), as his coat shows everything. He is not really wild about being bathed indoors in the tub, but it can be done with the right motivation :). He is picky about treats, but is also motivated very much by the right ones –  If you are a one-dog family ready for a large, loving walking companion and snuggler and are willing to train him, please come meet Booker today!

If you are interested in Booker, contact [email protected] or complete an application HERE.