Courtesy of DeAnna, Petunia's biggest fan...
Tucked away in the back corner of kennel B, Petunia tends to get overlooked - which is a shame, because this is one sweet girl. But her time is running out at the shelter, and we need to find her a real home, either foster or adoptive, ASAP. Not only does she come with BACS’s standard bully package of free Bad Rap training classes, Petunia’s many fans are ready to send her off with the complete package: ongoing one-on-one support from her best shelter buddy staff-member, her complete wardrobe, and a sweet leather collar and leash. It doesn’t get much better than this, folks...
When “Tuna” and I started Bad Rap classes last October, she was a bit of a mess. Tense and reactive around other dogs, we spent the first few classes on the sidelines just working on sitting, looking, and not lunging. She’s gotten much, much better since then - beautiful eye contact, a great connection with her handler, and most importantly, much better doggie manners. She still has issues around unfamiliar or reactive dogs and will need to be in a single-dog home with a dog-savvy handler, but she’s shown great improvement and is now able to ignore polite, familiar on-leash dogs. In class, she loves nothing more than leaning into your leg and gazing up at her person, and when we’re in the zone, she aces even the silent wedding march (10 cones, 10 sits, 10 looks, 0 verbal commands). If you’re interested in checking her out whether she might be the dog for you, she’ll be strutting her stuff at Bad Rap this Sunday at 11:30.
Aside from some reactivity towards dogs with whom she is unfamiliar, Petunia is a cheerful, easy dog who greets life with gusto. You want to go three miles around the lake? She’s up for that. You’d rather flop down in the grass and laze around all afternoon? She’s game. Half an hour of being dressed up and photographed? (Not that I, ahem, would ever torment a dog in this way...) She’s your dog.
Slightly older - at five years old, she’s well past her adolescence - she shows all the delight of a puppy at seeing her favorite person approach, but with none of that puppy-craziness. When you enter her kennel, her whole butt wags with delight, but she’s very mindful not to jump up, and she’d never dream of being mouthy. Instead, she dances back and forth on her front legs, whole body wagging, nose glued to the crack of the kennel door, staying carefully still as soon as you produce the collar. Good girl!
With her happy, easy-going temperament, she’s miraculously gone eight months in the shelter with nary a sign of kennel stress. She absolutely delighted to get out of the kennel for a walk or just a visit, a belly rub in the grass on a sunny day or a chance to gleefully splash her way through puddles after the rain. Mostly, Petunia loves people! She has a rock-solid temperament with strangers, little kids, and anyone else who might offer scratches, treats, or a kind word.
Petunia is a little too interested in cats and needs a home without such temptations.
If you’re able to provide a home for this wonderful girl, please contact the shelter at 510-981-6600 for adoption information or Home at Last at 510-237-1625 for fostering information. As a health note, Petunia does need to have some dental work and exploratory surgery for a sinus problem. If there is a firm offer from a foster or adopter, shelter volunteers have several options to cover the medical costs.
1 comment:
Hi, do you still need help with Petunia?
Post a Comment