Charlie

My story

"Charlie" is an approx 80-lb, 8-yo neutered male GSD who is super-affectionate, incredibly loyal and easy-going. Charlie is friendly with everyone he meets (not a great watchdog) and great with young children. He recently lived with a family with two young boys (7 & 10-yrs old) and he was great with them. He takes treats gently from hand but sometimes forgets that he's not a little lap dog. Charlie loves to snuggle in bed! Charlie is good with medium & large dogs, but NOT good w/ small dogs. He's also not good w/ high-energy dogs--he wants to run after them and "correct" them. Because Charlie has exhibited a prey drive towards small dogs he's almost certainly NOT good with cats. Charlie is completely housetrained and can be left inside for hours without issue. However, if you have lever-style door "knobs", be sure the lever is locked because Charlie is smart enough to open a door with such levers. Charlie knows a few basic commands such as sit and lie down. He pulls very strong on leash initially, so needs a person strong enough to handle him and who is willing to work with him in this area. Charlie hasn't shown much affinity for toys since he's been with me but the other day he picked up a ball and trotted off with it, so maybe there's a playful pup hidden in Charlie. Charlie is in great health. He has a straight back, sound hips and fluid mobility. His ear tips have permanent scarring from fly strike (due to unsanitary conditions outdoors). A family in North Highlands raised Charlie from a pup. However, both his people became ill and were no longer able to provide him with exercise or much attention. I received a request in May from their daughter to rehome him. I went to meet Charlie on May 19, 2021, and he literally begged me to take him with me--so I did! A family with boys ages 10 & 7 yrs and a small female Terrier mix adopted Charlie on June 13.Charlie did fantastic in most regards, especially with the boys. However, he would often harass the little dog and his people never trusted him enough to leave him alone with her. Charlie also did not do well with small dogs in their neighborhood. On one occasion he got out and bit a little dog—not bad enough for vet attention, but it put his people on notice. In late August, Charlie opened the front door (which has a lever-style door “knob”) and set his sites on a little dog whose people were walking it across the street. This time, Charlie did enough damage to send the dog to the vet. (The dog was OK, but it cost Charlie’s people about $2K in vet bills.) After this incident, Charlie’s people sadly realized they could no longer keep him due to his strong prey drive so they returned him to me on Aug 16. Since I took Charlie back, he’s been once again perfect w/ all of the GSRSV dogs. So, a home w/ another large dog is certainly an option for him--just no small dogs or cats. Charlie's adoption fee is $160.

If you have any questions or would like to adopt Charlie, please reach out to the adoption group directly. PetSmart Charities does not facilitate the adoption process. Thank you.