Birdie

My story

Birdie is in a class all of her own. She loves to play fetch, tug of war, and chase after her indestructible ball! When she is at a fenced in yard, she LOVES to chase tennis balls and bring them back. She loves the rewards and praises when doing a good job, even when playing. Lets get some facts out of the way upfront, to see if this sweet girl is a match for you and your home: All the rainbows: Approximately 2 years old. She has plenty of puppy energy and curiosity, even if she is napping or lounging 75% of the time. With that puppiness, she does not yet appreciate her own strength. She is small, but she is mighty. She LOVES other dogs. She had great play groups when she was at ACCT, and has been used as a "helper dog" on pack walks and at adoption events. While we can not promise she will get along with your dog, she is what we would consider dog friendly with proper introduction. She is loving and wants nothing more than to be with her people. Watching TV? She is right next to you. Working from home? She will gladly nap in a sunny patch, or lay on the couch as she looks out the window keeping a close watch on anything going on outside. She won't bark at whatever she finds, but she doesn't miss much either. Is leash trained, but can be resistant to putting on her harness at times. When she was found, she had a ripped / torn harness still attached. I am guessing that may have something to do with it. Once it is on, she walks the best out of all the ways we have walked her with it on. She is name and whistle trained to respond no matter who is talking to her. Did I mention she loves attention? She LOVES her time sitting on your lap, across your lap, in your arms like a baby, getting tummy scratches, and over all closeness. She is not shy about being your space! She is mostly house trained. We have had a few accidents, but they seem to be around times of stress or overstimulation. With being a puppy, she can still be a little nippy / mouthy. Never aggressive, or with malice, but puppy mouthing. We are working on the issue with training, but something any adopter will want to make sure to continue with. She is leash trained, but she can pull at times. The whole curious puppy thing.....the part of her that has some hound in her LOVES to be nose down on a walk and can get excited if she finds a curious scent. Her walks are so fun as she is so fun, but at times, it feels as much as your resistance training as it does a walk. She does not seem to be a picky eater. We make almost all of her food from scratch and have found little she doesn't like. We do not feed her from the table, but she does eat human grade food as her meals. She is FULL of love, She loves to give kisses, hugs, snuggle, and just be alive with her people. I may have mentioned it a lot, because it is one of our favorite traits about her! She is for sure one of the smartest and fastest learning dogs I have ever spent time with. A few points we like to mention... We think it is best that she goes to a home with no cats. While we have not had any negative encounters with cats, she has displayed the same reaction to them as she has for birds and squirrels. I am not 100% sure it was what I would call aggressive, but I can say it was not innocent, playful intrigue either. She is definitely a hound cross and it shows when it comes to her reaction to all three of those animal types. She is what I call lovingly jumpy. Another one of those things where the behavior is due to her being a puppy, and not out of malice. It can be intimidating to some as she can catch some serious air when excited. We strongly think it is best if Birdie goes to a home without small children. To be fair, Birdie loves meeting new adults and kids alike. The issue is she is still a 2 year old pup who does not know her own strength and is jumpy, and still playfully nips. We are working on training for all of those issues, but my fear is in her excitement (and daily zoomies) she could easily knock over or run into small children. I am 6'3" 265 lbs and she has almost taken me out running with the zoomies. Her jumping is also another potential issue with small children. Because she is still a pup, when we come home or when we are playing she can jump high and with some power that would knock over and could hurt a small kid. She has never, not even once, shown any aggression or negative traits, but she can get very excited and playful and would feel awful if that innocent excitement would lead to anyone getting hurt or scared of this sweet wonderful girl. The Ideal Home If you ask us, the ideal home would have a somewhat active family, who has a yard (not a deal breaker, but she would just love it so!), with a playful, youthful dog that can match her energy. A history of dog ownership and training would not hurt either. Birdie is overflowing with love and life and needs a family or home that can match her and give it all right back to her!

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