Abbey is approximately a nine-month-old golden puppy who was rescued from the streets of Miami.  She has had two rescues but through no fault of her own, these did not work out, so she is anxiously waiting her forever home.

Abbey is very sweet and smart.  She bonds quickly to her people. She responds to the commands sit, down, and is learning to respond to the command for come.  Abbey is very food motivated so using treats as part of her training works very well.  Abbey will beg for food, most likely due to her time on the streets so it is important not to reinforce this behavior except for treats used in training.

Abbey is very high energy and needs a placement where she will be exercised and allowed to run on a regular basis.  Abbey gets what we call the “zoomies” where she will tear through the house at a dead run.  She is much calmer when she has been given structured time to run a few times a day.  A quieter house without a lot of chaos would be best. Her favorite toys are balls or any toy she can fetch. She is learning the command “drop it” when she brings the ball back.

Abbey is house trained.  She drinks a lot of water so she does need to be taken out for a “pee” break every couple of hours or she will have an accident in the house.  She knows when she is taken out at these times to “go potty” or “do business.”

Abbey will pull on a leash, but she does much better with a harness with the leash hooked in the front.  When she pulls, she is given the command, ‘with me” and is learning to respond to this.  It is important to carry treats on a walk as she will try to pull to another dog, a squirrel, or people so the command, “with me” along with a treat when she refocuses her attention back has been helpful.

Abbey does very well with her crate. In fact, if left with free rein in the house, this creates stress for her.  She will go willingly into the kennel with the command, “kennel in”.  There are times Abbey will put herself in her crate to rest or sleep.

Abbey guard barks.  This is the biggest need for training. She will bark incessantly if someone rings the doorbell or knocks.  We have been setting up “staged” training, asking friends or neighbors to come and knock.  In advance, we have Abbey on a leash with treats ready.  As she starts to bark, we refocus her and give her a treat as soon as she stops so hopefully in time, she learns she gets a treat if she doesn’t bark.  Also, when someone comes in, we make sure they have treats so she becomes comfortable with them.  This has worked very well and once they are in the house; she settles and will approach them for pets and belly rubs. If a worker comes to the house, she will need to be crated as she does not like the uniform, especially men in uniform.

Abbey does very well with other dogs but would be too much energy for an older dog and would knock them over. We are recommending a home without cats and children. She needs a fenced yard to burn off her energy spurts. Abby will be spayed after she turns one. 

In short, Abbey is a wonderful puppy who has great potential but needs an active adopter who will understand her quirks and work consistently on training and exercise.