Rooney

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Hi, my name is Rooney. I’m a beautiful, loving, and incredibly affectionate boy!

Background:

I hail from Vestal, NY where I was adopted from the Humane Society into a wonderful family ​in 2011 when I was a bit over 1 year old​. I was so grateful to them and when I met my puppy brother, a Lab, we ran and ran, it was so much fun! They had 4 cats and I was OK with that! I wasn’t OK with strangers and other dogs, though--they made me very nervous. Once I had time to get to know people, I felt comfortable around them. I went to school and worked with a trainer to help me get over my nervousness. It worked well and my parents worked with me a lot, especially my Pa. We were great together. He said I was the most loyal dog he ever met.

I have been a very well-loved and cared for dog since then, but our family has had a recent tragedy. My dad, who was the best guy in the whole world, died unexpectedly a little while ago, tearing all of our lives apart. We are all grieving quite a lot, and mom has had to start working 50-60 hours a week to make ends meet, and will be putting our house on the market soon. This leaves her very little time to get me and my brother dog out for exercise, or to spend much time with us which is breaking her heart and is really hard on me. Dad was my #1. His extremely laid back and calm personality was a perfect fit for me, I responded incredibly well to it and I miss that desperately. Mom is incredibly loving and takes great care of me, but she’s more of a​n anxious type, and that’s not great for me. We both want me to find a new home with a loving, calm, laid back person or family, ​where I will get plenty of attention and affection and outdoor exercise ​because we know that will make me the happiest.

Personality:

Once I know you, I am a 100% lovebug, honey bear, mushy-lovey boy. I love being near you, interacting with you, hanging out beside you, being talked to, being petted, and gazing lovingly at you! I like accompanying you on walks, would love to lay next to you while you garden, and would love to go for short jogs and long hikes with you!

I get very excited when someone I know and love comes to visit. I do the wiggle-wiggle-wiggle and push my nose into them to let them know they can pet me or rub my ears or, best of all, scratch my butt! Ooohhh… that’s the best! Butt scratches feel so good!! You can scratch my butt until the end of time, I never get tired of it!

Next to butt scratching, I love a good belly rub. Who doesn’t?! They feel so wonderful and I get an easy, peaceful feeling like all is right in my world. Sometimes my puppy brother and I lay on either side of our Mom and she rubs both our bellies. We are so cute (she tells us)! We turn our heads to look at each other and silently agree that we are so lucky to get belly rubs. And if the belly rub stops, I will use my nose to nudge her hand right back to my belly! Don’t stop mom, please!

As you might expect from a Border Collie mix, I am smart-smart-smart! I am a really fast learner, and I love to learn new things and practice the things that I know. I have learned ‘wait’ and ‘stay’ and ‘come’ and ‘lie down’ and ‘leave it’, 'drop it', ‘inside’ and ‘home!’ If you wanted to teach me tricks I would love it!!

I am a very good listener! I lay my head on my Mom’s knee while she is talking and I look right in her eyes so she knows I am there for her. She can tell me anything--I like to listen. And sometimes I will nudge her hand with my nose so she knows that petting me will help her feel even better. J (It’s true! There are research studies!)

I love walks! When I go for a walk, I walk proud! I love going for walks in the country where there is not much hustle bustle and there are loads of smells and the nice calm sounds of nature. On a walk, I trot like a pony and I have been told that I am quite handsome! I don’t pull unless I get startled, like when a diesel vehicle is close. I get startled by the sound and bark at it (the high pitch of the diesel vehicle bothers me).

Leashed walks are great but I like running the best! When I can’t run outside (due to super cold weather), I am very comfortable using a treadmill! That’s right! I can use a (slow) treadmill to help me get the exercise I love!

I don't know why but new people and new dogs make me very nervous. I am definitely more nervous with dogs and people when I am with my mom compared to when I was with my dad. With dad, who was super chill and relaxed, I might be a little nervous, but it wasn’t a huge deal. He wouldn’t get nervous and we’d just keep walking. When I am with mom though, it’s not bad if people or dogs are a decent distance away, but if they are closer, I get more scared and at some point will start to growl or lunge. When this happens, my Mom steers me away, which is what she learned to do from the trainer, so I don't fixate on the situation. If my upset continues, she will either keep walking me away from the scary people or dog, or she might have me go 'down'. Then I lie down and she rubs my ears in a very comforting way until I am OK to begin walking again. That helps lot!

I don’t like thunderstorms, but am NOT destructive when they happen. I head to the bathroom and camp out for the duration of the storm, and I appreciate it when mom puts my Thundershirt on me, because that helps. It’s best if she knows that a storm might be coming and puts it on me even before the storm arrives. If we are outside and I hear a thunderclap, I used to freeze in place and not be able to move, so dad taught me the ‘home’ command, and then I would just head directly home.

Cohabitation:

I currently live with my brother, a black lab named Bear and he and I have always gotten along famously. So, even though I haven’t had much socialization with other dogs, chances are that I could learn to love another dog in the home as long as the introductions were done very carefully and slowly and I had plenty of time to get to know the other dog. Of course, the more calm and non-threatening the other dog is​, the better!

I have been living with four cats and I am great with them. I understand that they are the bosses, and I don’t mess with them! See, I told you I was smart! I confess that I do try to sneak their food if they walk away from it, but If I am told ‘leave it!’ I do. Betty, the cat, seems to like me a lot--she often curls up with me to snuggle me and sleep next to me. She and I like to sleep on our Mom’s feet so we can keep her warm. And Betty likes to mother me by cleaning my nose! Lick-lick-lick on my nose… I let her do it because it feels good and I like the attention. Don’t tell—the other dogs might make fun of me!

Favorite things:

Health:

I am a healthy boy! I have some dry skin but with combing (which I love) and the occasional shampoo I do fine. The rescue folks suggest that adding fish oil capsules to my meals might help a lot too!

I did have some allergies last fall that the vet gave me medicine for because I was so scratchy. She said it was seasonal and that it would get better, and it did!

Summary:

I am a total sweetheart of a boy who is grieving the loss of my dad, but who is cautiously hopeful and excited about the new wonderful home that everyone promises to find for me.

I love to be loved: rubs, scratches, cuddles, lying next to a human, you name it! I love to be included in all activities. I love to listen. I love, love to run fast when I can but am a very good leash walker. And I need time--time to get to know people, time to get to know other dogs. I am willing as long as I have the time to become comfortable. After that, I am a loyal, loving boy. So I need a new mom or dad who understands me and is patient and will make sure that I am not put into scary situations, and who knows how to constructively help me gain more confidence in the situations that still make me nervous. Mostly, I need a new person or people who are very laid back types, and who have time to be with me. I’m a special and wonderful dog…maybe you will be the next chapter in my life!

To apply to adopt me, fill out an adoption application and the rescue folks will forward it to my mom!

Because of the high rate of accidents between dogs and young children, we rarely adopt out our dogs or puppies into homes with young children.  If you think your particular situation might warrant an exception, please feel free to inquire with us.

link to adoption page

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