Willow Piper

LIFE ON THE FARM WAS JUST WHAT WILLOW NEEDED

Needless to say, her fosterer, Lynn, was right when she said “Willow is an all-round good dog and she would make a fabulous addition to a knowledgeable family”.

Life on the farm is absolutely perfect for Willow even though it meant having the long journey from Scotland down to Devon to achieve it.

The even better news was, within a couple of months, fellow Scottish foster dog, Rocky, went to join her.

LATEST FOSTER UPDATE 9.6.2018

Willow is a 5year old spayed female Golden Retriever rescued in Scotland by Lynn. She had a history of snapping and resource guarding in her bed although, in every other way, she appears to be really good.  

Lynn tells us “Willow is a happy, relaxed and playful girl. She loves sitting beside you for cuddles, brings you presents and is also happy in her own company.

Whilst we have several dogs, our house is not busy with children running about or lots of people visiting. Our walks are in the country away from the hustle and bustle of streets, traffic and public parks. This lifestyle suits Willow very well.

She is a beautiful but sensitive soul who when faced with busy things can get stressed and worried. By keeping her in a relaxed, stress free environment she has, in the last 7 weeks not displayed any signs whatsoever of reacting badly to any challenge presented to her.

Her ideal home would be in a rural or semi-rural location in a relatively quiet household ideally without children.

She likes to be part of the family and sit beside you on the sofa and come to the bedroom at night where she sleeps in her own bed.

She is a sociable dog and likes to play contact sports with her foster brother so ideally her forever home would have a brother or sister she could play with.

PERSONALITY

Shortly after arrival, although at times she could be fairly confident, calm and laid back and even playful and happy, she was slightly timid and withdrawn. Lynn thought she seemed to be depressed but soon started to improve slightly. She had bursts of fun and play and then lapsed back. She loves attention and sitting beside you for cuddles. By her second assessment, Willow had improved greatly from when she first arrived. Lynn says “Willow is a much happier dog than on my first assessment. She is calm and laid back and would be scored 4/5 for confidence, being alert and inquisitive, playful and happy.

She needs to be involved in family life to bring out the best in her. She can be inclined to hang back but once called she is all waggy and delighted to be included. Willow also comes upstairs at night with our other dogs. She is happy to lie in her own bed and makes no attempt to come up on ours. We have been doing a lot of confidence building games which she loves and I’ve done a lot of work with her reference her possessive habits … find it, give it, take it, have it. She now is happy to do that.

I’ve not had any more issues with her snapping at me or with her bed but the bed she claimed initially now has no value which I think is why her behaviour has changed. She can be wary of being patted on her head from above so again we have worked with a positive approach for that and there is a little improvement however she is fine if you approach her from the side or underneath. She is an all round good dog with a little quirk that a new owner would need to be aware of. If I can keep building her confidence and she becomes less worried that should also improve.

HEALTH

Her health is good and she eats well. On arrival, her ears seemed to be a little itchy but are fine now.

SOCIAL LEARNING

TRAVEL:  She is happy and content travelling in a vehicle

HOUSETRAINING:  She is fully housetrained

BASIC TRAINING:  Willow is well socialized and good with all the basic commands

LEADWALKING and RECALL: She Is very good on the lead. She walks `loose lead’ with a slip lead and does not need a halti or a harness. She is great off lead and stays close by.

RESOURCE GUARDING:  She has not displayed any resource guarding since her 2nd day and, then, she only guarded things in her bed. Willow shows no other evidence of resource guarding.

SEPARATION ANXIETY:  Willow shows no signs of separation anxiety

ADULTS:   She is very friendly but she does bark if strangers enter into the house and she still doesn’t like being patted on her head. She is more confident with women than men.

CHILDREN:  Willow has not been tested with children since she arrived but she is really not suitable for children. She has previously nipped when she has been disturbed in her bed by attempts to pat her

DOGS:  She is great with other dogs, very friendly and happy to play.

CATS: Willow has not been tested with cats.

WILLOW’S DREAM HOME

Willow could be described as the perfect dog apart from her strong need to feel secure and left alone in her own special place, her bed. She would love an adult only home with no visiting children and with people who will give her plenty of attention but who won’t insist on invading her private space and who won’t allow visitors to attempt to do the same.

She would probably benefit from a canine companion of similar age who would be able to help her through her trust issues and who would help her to realise that life is good and can be fun for her again.

THE PERFECT HOME (JULY 2018)

Willow has gone to live in her Forever Home with Mary and her husband on a farm down in Devon and she is loving it .