Adopted: Jax

Hi my name is Jax and I’m as cute as can be!

    Quick Fact Sheet:

  • Age: 1-2 years old
  • Breed: Lab mix
  • Size: 36 pounds
  • Gender: Male, neutered
  • Good with…
  • Dogs? Yes! Love them!
  • Cats? Maybe, see below
  • Kids? Yes, see below

Background:

Thank goodness, CDR rescued me from a high-kill shelter in KY, where I was turned in with 5 other dogs when our owners couldn’t take care of us or didn’t want us anymore.   The staff at the shelter liked me so much because I was so sweet and adorable, but their hearts also broke for me because I was so scared.  Whatever my circumstances were before coming to the shelter, it was clear to everyone that I had not had the luck of kind and loving relationships with people.  I seemed to expect bad or scary things to happen whenever someone came near, and I would freeze or hide or try to make myself invisible in one way or another.  The good news is that once I figured out that the staff people were nice, I was over the moon with love and gratitude!  And being around other dogs helped me feel more safe too.

I’m really starting to come out of my shell!  The first few days  were really scary…I hid in my crate a lot of the time, but then I started to make friends with the other 2 dogs (they are awesome!) and slowly began trusting my foster mom and dad a bit more every day, and at this point, I am feeling much, much better and happier!!  I almost never hide out in my crate anymore, am showing my more playful and affectionate side, and have become best friends with both dogs, but am especially in love with one of them!  I am her adorable sweet little shadow, I follow her everywhere and that’s who you’ll see me cuddling with in photos.

Personality:

So yes, I was very shy and scared when I arrived, but my foster parents were very patient and very gentle and very kind, and offered me wonderful things to eat (treats!  what a concept!) and  very slowly, a little bit more every day or two, I began to trust.  Now I LOVE being scratched under the chin and behind my ears by my foster family (mom, dad, and daughter), and sometimes even follow them around from room to room!   At this point, I really prefer to be out and about with everyone, and for the first time the other night, I went upstairs at bedtime and laid down and slept all night on the dog bed!!  It was such a wonderful, dreamy way to sleep!

When I meet new people, I revert to my shyness, which is pretty normal, and as long as people are patient and gentle and kind, I come around beautifully.  What everyone says is that there is nothing more rewarding than when a shy dog finally trusts you.  They say it’s a glorious feeling—it sort of breaks your heart… but in the good way, not the sad way!

I’m young and still have lots of puppy adorableness in me.  Both in how I look, but also in how I act!  My foster mom sometimes calls me “Cracker Jax” because I am so sweet and I crack her up!  Or “Jumping Jax” because when I am in the fenced yard and want to come back inside, I *jump*jump*jump to let her know to let me in!  I love to play with toys –I will take them outside with me and throw them up in the air (“whoo-hoo!”) and jump around (“leapity-leap!”) and throw them up in the air again (“whoo-hoo!”)!  She says that I look utterly delighted, and that it’s incredible to see me pouncing around playfully in those moments– without a care in the world– having fun like any young dog should, when she knows how scared I have felt for much of my former life.

I am SUPER gentle when taking food from hands, and everyone says it’s really sweet and a nice change from other dogs who “chomp-chomp” fingers where treats are involved!   I am also smart and ready to learn so would love to go to a positive training class with you!   My foster parents are starting to work on some basic skills such as sit, come, and stay.

I’m working on housebreaking, which I didn’t have at all when I arrived, and am getting better and better all the time.  I now have some days with no accidents at all, and other days with just 1 accident usually.  A huge success from my 0% housebreaking of 2 weeks ago, don’t you think?  I think I’m about 75% of the way there at this point.

Right now I am too scared to walk on a leash. The sight of it scares me and then I just lay down and pretend my legs don’t work.   My foster parents are working with me on it, very slowly.  For now I have my fenced in yard and get plenty of exercise out there.   The head rescue lady says that she adopted a dog about my age a long time ago who would roll over and play dead any time she offered to take that dog for a walk–that dog was just as scared of going for a walk as I am.  She says though that that dog watched her take her other dogs out for walks for about a month, and seemed shocked to see the dogs come back from their walks happy-happy-happy, and then finally one day, that dog came over when it was time for walking and wanted to go!  And then never had a problem again.  So maybe it will be like that for me too.

Cohabitation:

I live with my foster mom and dad and their 7 year old daughter.  They love me to pieces! I love to hang out with them, they are teaching me to trust and enjoy life!  I like that their lifestyle is on the quieter and calmer side…given my shyness, a very bustling house with people coming and going a lot would probably be hard for me.

I am VERY happy to say that I also have two doggy sisters! They have been a huge help with overcoming my shyness. I hang out a ton with the younger one– we run and play in the fenced in yard and she shares her toys with me! I lay close to her in the house and my foster parents think it gives me comfort, since I grew up with other dogs.   I will need to find a forever home that has a playful, sweet young female with whom I can bond and pal around.

    Favorite Things:

  • Other nice dogs!  My current doggy sisters!!
  • Finding that people can be kind!  And patient!  And loving!  And affectionate!
  • Treats and food!  I am a good eater and love yummy treats and hot dogs!
  • Toys!!  I love throwing them up in the air and then catching them!  I like chewing on them too!

Medical:

I am in great health! I have been to the vet and am doing just fine!

Summary:

I would LOVE, LOVE, LOVE a forever home that has another dog, especially a sweet female that will be my buddy and play with me, but really, any nice other dog would be terrific!  Because I’m so shy it really helps me to have a canine friend for moral support.   I would love a fenced in yard to play in—while I’m sure at some point I will decide that leashed walking is good too, for now, it’s a no-go, so having a yard is important to make sure I get my exercise and can do my business.  Shy and scared dogs are often traumatized by electric/invisible fences, so a hard fence is needed.

If you are interested in adopting me, please fill out an online adoption application and live close to Ithaca , Syracuse, Binghamton, or Elmira. We do home visits on every applicant, and can’t do home visits where we don’t have local volunteers.

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