Alfie Douglas

Sad News 11 February 2023

Alfie’s mum wrote, “Our gorgeous boy, Alfie, has crossed the rainbow. He was challenging, clever, funny and full of life, even when he lost his eyesight.

He came from Spain and had unstable times in uk as he had three fosters and one failed adoption before he came to us.

We’ll miss him terribly.”

History

ALL ALFIE NEEDED WAS TIME

We thought Alfred had found his perfect forever home but, although the people seemed just right for him, they returned him after just a few days for not settling.

We all felt so sad for him as he had gone from having a home in Spain probably for a lot of years. He endured kennels and the long journey to the UK, two “quarantine days” required on top of him having a Pet Passport and then going to two different foster homes for assessment before moving to a different home again.

He, clearly, didn’t know whether he was coming or going, poor boy.

Returning to foster, a third for him simply because of logistics, he was given time to re-build his confidence which had taken a knock and was then assessed again before going to a Forever Home where he would be given the chance to grow and grow and return to the lovely dog he had, no doubt, been for the first seven years of his life.

EARLY HISTORY

Alfie is a mid golden coloured, castrated Golden Retriever type who was 7yrs old in 2018 .

Very little is known of his background except that Alfie was handed in to a rescue in Spain. There he received all the necessary vet checks, inoculations etc to obtain his Pet Passport.

In the UK, he was in foster with Val and Barry and their two elderly IRR boys who he tended to ignore. She said of him ”He has a very loving nature and just needs a forever home with experienced people who will continue to teach him all about good natural behaviour”.

To continue Alfie’s learning and for an even fuller assessment of him with other dogs, after 4 weeks, Alfie moved into a new foster home with Wendy and her two much younger Goldie girls, Freya aged 4yrs and 2yr old Pearl where he got on very well.

Having returned after a brief spell in another home, Alfie went into foster with Paul and Anne and their dogs.

PERSONALITY

Wendy told us “He is a very loving dog who wants to sit close and is happy to lick my hand when I am stroking him, however he does become very anxious when he can’t actually see me. Once he knows how to behave in all situations he will be fantastic I’m sure.

I do feel there is a very excited little chap inside who is just longing to run and play and I’m sure, given time and once he has learnt how to conduct himself, he will develop into a fun loving little guy who loves life.

In the main, he is a happy, confident dog, who loves to be with people and loves a fuss and a ball. However, if he wants to do something (play, go out for a walk etc) then he will let you know by barking at you to tell you. I think this is probably just because he had a routine in his previous home in Spain and is taking time to adapt. Once he has resigned himself to the fact that it’s not going to happen, he will settle and lay down”.

HEALTH

Alfie’s general health is really good and he seems to be a strong healthy dog especially now he is having a good diet.

His coat is beginning to look much better now he understands what daily brushing is all about.

SOCIAL LEARNING

TRAVEL: He likes going out and, at the first sound of car keys, he will run for the door. Alfie adores the car and would happily ride in it all day! He travels superbly, lays down and goes to sleep on the back seat or the boot compartment (estate or hatchback). He has gone in rivers and the sea where he was initially tentative but he has not swum yet.

HOUSETRAINING: He is fully house trained

BASIC TRAINING: Alfie still has quite a lot of social learning to do and is a work in progress but he learns well. We are trying to introduce Alfie to play but it is a long process. He will play with me but not the dogs. We will continue to work on this over the next few weeks.

LEADWALKING and RECALL: He walks `loose lead’ with a body harness and a long leash. He is very responsive to the whistle and to his name. His recall on the long line is excellent.

RESOURCE GUARDING: He eats well and loves food but he has not been trained to be fed from the hand and so he snatches treats and will also grab food if it’s within his reach.

He will try and barge through and jump up but I’m teaching him to sit and wait. He does understand this and is responding well. He does the same with getting in and out of the car.

ADULTS: He is friendly towards people but wary of them and is most attached to Anne. He is a lovely dog but we think he was probably the only dog and with only one person in the household, maybe an elderly lady.

CHILDREN: Not tested with children

DOGS: He still has no idea how to play and this can worry him so he is better with older, quieter dogs. Alfie is good with other dogs when out on walks and isn’t really interested in them although he will sniff and say hello.

CATS: He chases cats outside and barks excitedly.

LATEST UPDATE 5.12.2018

The only real negative is that Alfie cannot be homed with cats.

His separation anxiety seems to be gone now. We are sure Alfie just needs to be given time to realise his new owner will be coming back when they go out.

He seems much happier when one of us goes out or even both go out now and we have, gradually, extended the time to 3 hours now.Alfie still has no idea how to play but he is getting better. He tolerates our 2 older dogs but he does still have a hard time with Robbie. He doesn’t understand that they only want to play but he is starting to get much better.Again, it’s very much a time thing with him. He needs time to adjust so, at least, a good month to 6 weeks to settle in his new home would be required.

We still think that if there was an adult only home with no cats and with a quieter older male or female, he would get on really well.

ALFIE’S DREAM HOME

Alfie will need an experienced forever home, preferably with people at home all day, because he really deserves to be able to continue to learn how to conduct himself in all situations. They would need to give him a good couple of weeks to allow him time to settle in and not expect too much of him too soon.

We think that if there was a home with a quieter older male or female, he would get on really well. An adult home with no other pets would be important.

He learns really quickly and doesn’t forget what he has been taught. In return we are sure he will be a very faithful trusting addition to the family and will make someone a lovely loyal companion.

A HAPPY HOME (December 2018)

Alfie has gone to live in his Forever Home