Willow
Willow came to us when she was about 10 weeks of age and when we first advertised her for rehoming she had been with us about four weeks. She caused quite a stir when we first posted her for rehoming - we were bombarded with applications and enquiries! Due to a change in the expected lockdown restrictions, we were limited in home-checking so decided to pull Willow’s ad so that we could spend more time helping her settle and getting to know her.
She is by no means the finished article, and is just entering adolescence, but with thanks to wonderful foster humans and in-depth program of social and environmental exposure appropriate for her developmental stage, Willow is maturing into a lovely young lady.
Willow is about 5.5-6 months old and is a mix breed of unknown parentage. She still has plenty of growing to do, but her fast-growth stage is slowing, so she will likely be a large dog (maybe about 30-40kg) as an adult. But, who knows!
When Willow came to us, she presented as socially and environmentally cautious and this means that she will always be a little shy and soft; this is something that’s really established by about five weeks of age, combined with genetics, of course. (That's just how crucial early and appropriate social and environmental exposure is.)
We have worked very very hard with her and her confidence and resilience have massively improved.
Willow is now entering adolescence and is getting her adult teeth. Adolescence is by far the most difficult developmental stage for dogs, and their humans. That means that we will be working with Willow’s new people for quite some time pre- and post-adoption and her new family will really need to be committed to riding the waves of canine adolescence. (Some info here.)
Dogs go through a lot of stages and changes until behavioural maturity, which can be about three years of age. That means Willow will change a lot between now and then. She has great foundations in social skills, engagement, environmental exposure, confinement training, night-time training, toilet training, handling comfort, confidence building and enrichment. This and more must be continued in her new life.
While all new dogs require plenty of work and support to help them settle and set them up for success, adolescents will need more. A lot more.
Willow's new humans will need to be prepared to diligently put our program in place and deal with adolescent mouthing and jumping (there will be plenty of this); regression in toilet training and night-time training common with adolescence, teething and moving; dealing with further adolescent challenging behaviours especially out and about, including fear and arousal related behaviours so often seen during the teenage months. AniEd will continue to support Willow and her new family.
Most people think puppy stuff is challenging, but that ain't nothing compared to the work adolescent dogs need...and by the time Willow goes home, she will be a fully fledged teenager!
Willow has excellent dog-dog skills and for her behavioural welfare, she must go home with a suitable dog. Her new pal should be a male of a medium-large size who is playful and robust but able to manage his arousal in interactions with other dogs. We will spend some time, pre-adoption, helping them get to know one another before she goes home.
She, and her new pal, will need a good-sized and secure garden at the house so they can hang out. Willow will not go to a home with other pets, such as cats, rabbits, birds etc.
The best location for Willow will be in a rural or suburban area that has plenty of green space and is not heavily built up or very busy. Having means to drive her to suitable areas for exercise and exploration, especially early on, will be important.
Willow is a young dog - do not apply for her if you are going to be unavailable to her during the day. That means her new humans must be working at a maximum part time and that includes if working from home - you’re still working! This is important for young dogs generally, and this dog specifically, so that she can learn to be around life with humans.
Willow can spend short amounts of time alone, in confinement, each day and settles well while alone in her pen or crate. She must be confined as she is a naughty young dog and will definitely get herself into mischief!
Willow is vaccinated and microchipped (972274200058273) and we will organise spaying her when she has developed more and it's healthy and safe to neuter.
A home for Willow:
will continue to work with AniEd on a post-adoption program
will have another suitable dog
will have no resident children and visiting children, at most, infrequently
must have a secure garden, of a good size, at the house
works part-time, at most, even after lockdown but is home much of the time initially
committed to continuing to work with challenging adolescent behaviour, and supporting her throughout
ready for life with a big, cuddly dog!
Willow is fun and lovely; such a stunning dog. She has specific requirements and with the right support, she will continue to become an awesome companion and grow in confidence. But, she may not ever be a social-butterfly and may need some management and specific tools in place to help maintain her comfort, especially through adolescence.
If you applied for Willow before, please do not apply again.
She will not go to a home with children or vulnerable adults (she is big, boisterous and terribly clumsy); she will not go to a home without another dog or with other pets; she will not go to a home where the primary care giver/s (that’s the person we’re in contact with) works etc. any more than part time, even if working from home; we do not recommend dog-daycares or dog-parks (or similar) for any of our dogs and Willow will not go to a home where this would be part of her life; she must go to a home with a secure and good-sized garden at the house so that she has space to hangout as she settles and gets to know her new companion; Willow must go to a home with a suitable dog whose social behaviour is such that he will be able for a large, adolescent pal.
Please read Willow's profile carefully and apply only if you feel you match the criteria. We will only be able to process applications that match Willow's needs.
Dept of Ag. Registration No: JPT20000