Lucky has been adopted!
Sponsored by Michelle in loving memory of her father Frank, and with love to those he held dearest to his heart, his wife Dorothy, his son Andrew and daughter-in-law Niky.
Please read the entire bio, including some important health information at the end.
Lucky is a 4 year old Cocker Spaniel cross. By the look of him, we think he might also have some Lab in him. He was surrendered by his family and ended up in a shelter just before Christmas.
Lucky is a very happy, affectionate, playful boy. With his thick, long bottom coat, he looks more like a teddy bear than a dog. He loves to climb up on the couch and cuddle. He is always up for a full body massage.
At night, he wants to get in bed with his people and get up nice and close. He is not a dog who wants to be in a home where he will be locked in a crate. He needs a home where his family will get down on the floor and play with him.
He is also not a dog who will disappear into the background at home. Where you go, Lucky will go. He is a bit of a shadow.
While he loves his play time, he is usually very quiet and laid back in the house. He is very happy to curl up with a bone, but will want to be right beside you while he chews.
He is great on a leash and loves to go for long walks. Being a cocker, there are simply no smells not worth examining in detail. He is well behaved when he meets new dogs or people while on a walk. He has never shown any signs of aggression.
He likes to get outside frequently, so a home with a fenced back yard is essential.
He is house trained.
He is learning how to play ball and there is about a 50-50 chance he will bring it back after it is thrown. He gets the object of the game and no doubt will soon be a pro.
Lucky would be more than happy not to have to share the limelight with other dogs. He is living with three other dogs right now, and gets along with them, but is pretty indifferent to them. While there is the occasional play with one of his housemates, he much prefers the company of his humans.
He is a bit of a thief. A sock left unguarded on the floor, or a tissue sticking temptingly out of a pocket, will quickly disappear. A hat may be pulled off your head. The sock will no doubt end up with a hole in it. The tissue is gone for good.
Because he loves to chew, bones and other chew toys are essential. He needs to be kept busy. He is still a young dog, and needs stimulation. One of his favourite things to do is have someone hold the chew toy while he gnaws at it.
I suspect that right now you are thinking Lucky is the perfect dog for you, but before deciding to apply to adopt, please be sure to turn your mind to some additional important information.
Lucky is a barker. A loud and sometimes persistent barker. He will often bark in the house if he hears a slight sound or if he sees someone walking down the street. He will need training to address the barking. There is no guarantee his barking will stop.
Lucky does not like to be left home alone. He becomes quite anxious and he will bark to let you know his displeasure. The barking may continue the entire time he is alone. Other dogs as company do not seem to deter the barking. Because of this, Lucky is not suitable for an apartment or a town house, or even houses that are very close, where he may disturb neighbours.
As he does not like to be left alone, he needs a home where there will not be a lot of home alone time. As discussed below, we believe there was a behavioural issue that was exacerbated by being left alone too much.
He can also get anxious when members of the family leave the house. He will need training to learn that he is not being abandoned.
If you watch the video (link below) you will see that Lucky loves toys. However, he is a bit of a toy destroyer. The toy is safe as long as Lucky is carrying it around, tossing it in the air, or retrieving it, but once he lies down, watch out. He will do all he can to dissect the toy and sometimes eat those torn off parts. So, toys (other than chew toys)cannot be left lying around where he can get at them unsupervised.
Because of his toy issue, Lucky is best in a home that either does not have children, or where the children are older. His tendency to destroy toys may lead to unhappy children.
Lucky in a bit of mystery in the car. He jumps in as soon as the door is opened, but paces and pants when the drive starts. He will usually settle down as the car moves along, but as you approach the final distinction, his energy level shoots up. When the door is opened, he propels himself out, so needs to be tethered while in the car. We have yet to figure out if he is excited about going someplace, or anxious about being in the car. He might be best in a home that does not do a lot of road trips.
When Save Me Dog Rescue was first contacted by the shelter to see if we could help Lucky, we were told that he did have some medical concerns. Once settled in his foster home, Lucky’s foster parents were not seeing the concerns that his prior owners had mentioned. Wanting to make sure that all was as well as it seemed, an appointment was set up for Lucky to have a thorough examination at our vet. One of the things noted in his file was a history of ear infections (not uncommon in cocker spaniels). Lucky’s ears have been fine during his time with us and there were no issues found during his examination. It was noted that at times Lucky would urinate small amounts frequently and a urinalysis was done which was perfectly normal. Lucky does have a grade 3 heart murmur, which is considered moderate, and it is not causing any cardiac concerns at this time. This is something that should be monitored at any vet visit. For his heart health it is best for Lucky to be kept at a healthy weight and to avoid high sodium foods and treats. One of the things Lucky’s future family should watch for is if he develops a cough as that can indicate cardiac changes.
During his time at the shelter, Lucky was exhibiting constant “fly catching” behaviour in which it appears that he is literally trying to catch something with his mouth. This behaviour was also noted on his intake sheet when he was surrendered. Once out of the shelter, this behaviour has virtually stopped altogether although he does have the odd incident – usually after eating. Due to the fact that he can be distracted from this behaviour our vet has ruled out that it is caused by any kind of focal seizure. It seems that stress played a very big part in this behaviour and being left home alone for up to 10 hours a day, and spending his nights in a crate, could have been the biggest contributing factor before his surrender and then being in the shelter exacerbated it. While in the shelter they did have Lucky on trazadone to help with his anxiety, he has been off the medication for a while now and not exhibiting any behaviours that would necessitate it.
Seeing how well he is doing in his environment has been very heartwarming and reinforces his need to be in a home where he will not be left alone for any length of time.
To see a video of Lucky, please go to: https://youtu.be/JkDNMuvK7-0
Lucky was lovingly fostered by Bob.
