ZOE - Labrador cross, not quite sure which other breeds but possibly collie or husky

 

Size: Medium- Large 
Sex: Female
Age: 4 years old approx
Neutered: Yes
Vaccinated: Yes
Microchipped: Yes

Temperament: very affectionate, loves attention and cuddles, food orientated, playful, energetic, strong, often willful, can be dominant with other dogs at times and lacks some social skills, fearful and insecure from lack of early socialization and hence has issues which need working on (see description)
Behaviour/Training needs: general socializing with people and dogs, very reactive when on lead towards people and other dogs, car guarding, has got good recall, not very welcoming to visitors in the home
Housetrained: yes 
Child friendly: has had contact with older children when she was younger, but definitely needs a home without (see description)
Dog friendly: needs mindful introduction (please see description), prefers male dogs 
Cat friendly: possibly, has had 2 different experiences with cats, one positive and the other not so much, hence would prefer a home without cats. 
Ideal home: rural or semit rural, quiet and relaxed with no pressures on Zoe. Someone experienced who can take the time with her or where here issues don't matter much. Zoe needs time to learn trust and feel safe.

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Current location : Launceston

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Zoe's beginnings:

 

Beautiful puppy Zoe was carelessly thrown over the garden fence of our friend Brinda’s house. She was just a few weeks old. It may be because Zoe is a black dog and sadly in Romaniawhere she comes from black dogs are generally disliked and suffer more because of that. Brinda took her into her home  and had her examined for any injury she may have sustained and amazingly, she was fine. Like many dogs from Romania Zoe suffered a brush with distemper. But caught early it did not progress far and did not cause any nerve damage. The only trace that still speaks of her short battle with this condition is a discolouration of some of her teeth which will remain with her for life.

At first she was shy and nervous but quickly overcame that when she was introduced to more dogs and soon became a part of Brinda's gang where she grew up into a highly energetic, adventurous and very playful young dog. Sadly any other socialization was not possible due to circumstances at the time. This had an impact on Zoe's behaviour which is still with her to the present day. For a little while until she was ready to come to the UK we found Zoe a lovely home foster place in Bucharest where she is being more socialized in a lovely family and a group of dogs as well as some cats. 
Sometimes there were visitors of all ages and Zoe tended to be shy at first, but once she realized that there will be no cruelty towards her she enjoyed the attention very much. 

This beautiful girl is looking for a very experienced, realistic and committed home. She has gone through some failed situations and deserves to be truly wanted, despite her not being a balanced dog nor being able to adapt to new situations that easily. This time it has to be a FOREVER for her. 

Adopting Zoe would entail to successfully complete our vetting process and afterwards meeting her a few times prior to adoption so that the transition is not such a drastic sudden change for Zoe. 

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We love Zoe very much and will be very sad to see her go, but she deserves so much more than we can give her here and a home with less dogs for sure. She needs someone with experience, a realistic outlook, willingness to learn new things for her if needs be. Someone with sufficient time to train and socialize her, including to  slowly introduce Zoe to new situations in life and/or where here issues don't matter. 

The wonderful person who will commit to helping Zoe to become the best she can be will be rewarded with a very loyal and super affectionate companion. Depending on how much time her future adopter is able to invest it could take months, years or maybe she will even never be quite what is considered perfectly balanced. However, we have great hopes for this wonderful dog, based on what we have already seen and experienced. It just takes the right person to fall in love with her and take Zoe into their heart and home with all that she is and can be. 

 

In our opinion Zoe would be best suited in a home without children and many comings and goings. She needs a quiet and settled home with someone who would also be prepared to carry on her training and in time possibly take her to socialization classes too. Zoe needs to build trust and realize that no matter what hurdles may present or back steps there may be- SHE IS HOME FOREVER. 

 

 Zoe is a lively, strong and affectionate dog who bonds with people deeply. However, it does take her some time to get used to new people. When she arrived here over a year ago it took her a couple of hours to get from the transport van into our house and get used to us a tiny bit more before we could progress further. She was one of the most insecure and confused dogs we had ever met. 

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Due to lack of socialization in her past Zoe has got fear/inserurity issues and is a dog who needs a lot confidence building. Her previous foster mum has already worked wonders with our girl. From a very shy insecure girl Zoe who had not seen and experienced much in her young life, Zoe has bravely conquered rides on the London Tube, been briefly introduced into a busy office environment and made friends in the secure doggy run close to where she was previously fostered in London. However, she never fully relaxed into London life and has shown that she is very much a country girl at heart. This is now almost 2 years ago and sadly Zoe has in the meantime lost some of those skills due to a different life here. 

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Zoe is very much a work in progress and needs further slow exposing to different situations to boost her confidence more. She is still quite fearful in many situations and will show this by hiding or barking at what she perceives as frightening.

 

Her new people would need to be realistic in their expectations and be prepared to take things at Zoe's pace.

Zoe needs a very special home where she won't be overwhelmed as this would sadly set her back; and where she can progress in her own time. Preferably a home without busy comings and goings by too many people. Someone who can give her the love, patience and help she needs.

 

Zoe very much takes her courage and reassurance from a confident person or a role model dog. She needs a confident adopter and preferably a well balanced dog for company. This will help her to progress further and become the best she can be.

Here with us Zoe lives with 6 other dogs which is a juggling act. We can only leave her unsupervised with 2 of our male dogs and separate her when we are unable to be present. She would definitely prefer to live with less dogs or none. Her manners are not very polished and she was not very readily received into the gang of resident dogs. Zoe sadly has the tendency to bully other dogs and is very much a 'me first!' dog who loves to get all the attention. But she does listen most of the time when told off by the other dogs but has also caused a few tussles here. 

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She can be left without a problem. In her previous foster home she lived as an only dog and was never left for very long. 2 hours as a maximum. They did not experience any problems. She had a brief experience for a couple of months in a new home which sadly did not work out for Zoe, but leaving her wasn't a problem either.

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We are taking Zoe for rides in the car, but she guards it by barking at everything that passes by. Hopefully the car journeys help her get used to different situations  a bit and also meet new people at times. She is not a dog who will approach new people with a waggy tail. She is very cautious and needs her time to approach people when she is ready. This can take time. But once she trusts you she is a very clingy dog.

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Due to her guarding instincts as we well as fear issues Zoe barks at things. And she has quite a bark on her! Hence she is looking for a home where this would not be a problem.

 

Zoe is very much a country girl at heart. She coped with city, but she is far more relaxed in the country which is where seh belongs.

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Zoe is gorgeous. From experience we can say that she will love cuddles and will give you so much love and loyalty. As long as her boundaries are respected she will be a fabulous dog.

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Being a labrador cross her love for food is huge and given the chance she will steal food from worktop or other places. This love for food can be channeled into training incentive. Her recall is already fabulous. And she knows some other basic commands too.

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Sadly she does pull on the lead in her eagerness. We are working on this with her, but progress is not a quick one. She is strong dog too!

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Zoe loves to chase her ball and cannot get enough of a game of fetch in the field. However, she can be quite possessive over her toys.

 

We also found her to guard her bed from the other dogs and is generally a resource guarder.

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Her adopters would need to be prepared to alter their lives to fit in with the kind of dog that Zoe is in her present state and accept that even if she improves a lot over time, she may never be quite perfectly balanced and needs a degree of managing throughout her lifetime. We have high hopes for Zoe in the right hands and life style. 

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If you think you could give Zoe the special caring and loving home she needs we would love to hear from you.

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Thank you so much for your support. With much hope  ~ Love, Zoe ♥

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