Hi! My name is Leigh and I am a super awesome girl!
Quick Facts:
- Breed: Feist mix
- Gender: Female, spayed
- Age: 2-3 years old
- Size: 60 pounds
- Good with…
- Dogs? Yes for play, but not to live with!
- Cats? No!
- Kids? Yes, 12+ years.
***Leigh is not a CDR dog and has not been evaluated by CDR.***
History
I was found when I was around a year old and brought to the SPCA in Ithaca, where the kind folks there discovered I already knew some basic commands. My sweet face, cool tricks and intelligent manner got me adopted quickly by a couple who I stayed with for a little over a year. I stayed home with my mom most days and got a lot of attention. Unfortunately, my parents split up and I ended up with daddy, who took great care of me but had to work very long hours, and was not in a position to keep me forever.
My daddy found me a new family and they are super terrific!! They are a couple with lots of space to run, a creek and a sweet older CDR dog whom I loved to romp and play with! Even though me and my new dog brother love each other, we have been fighting at home and we don’t even know why. Our fights pass quickly and we adorably lick each other and coexist very well most of the time, but I’m very strong and hurt him in our last fight, so now we have to be kept separately, which is stressful and no fun for any of us. I had a history of enjoying playing with other dogs so much, we thought living with one would be a bonus for me, but turns out I am one of those dogs who likes dogs at parks, on trail, and at daycare, but cannot share a home territory with a dog. We didn’t know…and now we do! So now I am looking for one last awesome home, with lots of love, and activity and space to run and incredibly fun and loving people, where I can be the only pet in the house!
Personality
I’m great company! While I have a lot of energy for playing, when it’s time to chill out and relax, I am a pro at snoozing next to your feet. I am athletic and able to run and play for hours, but I’m very mellow and gentle inside when I’m hanging out with my people. I like to visit everyone in the morning and gently ask for a head pat with a nuzzle, and then I go about my business of looking out the window and making sure nobody dropped any treats around the house.
I’m sensitive and thoughtful and smart to the max. My people have been working on training me to stay calm when people come to the door, and also when I see other dogs while we’re walking on a leash. I can get very excited, and because I’m pretty strong, that can be tough for my walker to handle. But I’m a fast learner and have already learned some really good skills like laying on my bed when asked, sitting, and making eye contact with my person. I am capable of learning a lot more with the right owner who enjoys training as much as I do. When they get the treats out, I go running around the house looking for my bed because that’s what we always start our training sessions with. Did I mention that I loooove training? It’s so stimulating and exciting (and I’m a huge fan of treats) and sometimes after a training session with my people I fall right to sleep because all of the thinking and learning wore me out!
I have a crate that I feel super snuggly and safe in and I sleep there every night in my bed with my frog blanket! I like to fluff everything up just right and then I tuck my face under my paws and settle in for the night. I have a sweet little snore and sometimes you’ll hear me quietly wuffing at night while I dream about dog parties and peanut butter and rides in the car. Right now I get up early in the morning and keep my people company while they start their day, while my super snoozy dog brother sleeps in. Sometimes we go for a walk or do some training, and other times we just sit quietly. But don’t worry, when it’s time for all of us to sleep in, I’m very happy doing that too! I’m not one of those pups that will roust you out of bed in the morning before you’re ready.
I’d rather not be left at home alone all day long, but I have learned how to stay calm and relax until my people come home from work, especially if I have a Kong with some peanut butter in it, or a raw marrow bone to chew on. My favorite situation is when one of them works from home so I can relax at their feet all day, collecting snuggles here and there. If I’m really lucky, I can convince someone to take a break and play tug-o-war with me! I have the softest fur you’ve ever felt and, though I’m never pushy about it, I love it when someone sits on the floor with me and pets me gently. Once I get to know you, I’ll lean into you while you pet me and you’ll feel like the most special person in the world.
Once I’ve bonded to my person strongly, I’m great off leash. Nothing makes me happier than being able to zig and zag and sniff things for as long as I’d like, but I keep my people in sight. I spent a lot of time off leash with my first people and never ran away or got into trouble. I would love to live somewhere where I can run and play in the woods! I am an ideal pooch for folks who have some acreage, so I can run around and explore!
Cohabitation
I have been going to doggy daycare at Canine Comfort (my happy place!) one day per week for almost a year and a half and I play with other dogs perfectly well, so it’s really just living with another dog that isn’t working for me.
Living with cats or other small animals is probably not a good idea either—-they seem really fun to chase.
I have enjoyed interacting with kids in the past, and have always been happy and friendly toward them. But I’ve never lived with little kids, and so everyone thinks it’s wise to keep it that way. After all, I have always had good interactions with other dogs until we had to share home space together. It would be awful if the same turned out for kids, so let’s just not risk it. I want my next home to be the perfect forever situation for me please!
Favorite Activities
- Playing outside with other dogs or people! That’s my favorite thing ever!
Even though it didn’t work out living with another dog, I would really love to continue to go to doggy daycare or have other monitored play situations with another dog or two that I know (just not in my own house). - Playing tug-of-war!
- Chasing and demolishing sticks!
- Riding in the car and feeling my ears flapping in the breeze!
- Being your jogging partner! I am a super awesome running partner and settle into a nice trot next to my person when I’m on a leash.
- Swimming and playing in the water! I’m a total party animal in the creek behind my house. If you have a pond or a creek, you will love watching me frolic-—diving, splashing, swimming and chasing sticks. It’s the best!
- Peanut butttterrrrrrrrrr!
Medical
I’m fit as a fiddle! I had a small mass on my shoulder that was benign, and it was removed last month so it wouldn’t bother me. I had to wear a sweatshirt for a while, which I didn’t mind at all and everyone thought I was super cute. You can still see a little scar on my shoulder, but it doesn’t bother me at all.
Summary
I am a super awesome dog and can’t wait to find the right person to stay with forever! My ideal person enjoys great dog company and wants to be the center of my life. They also don’t have any other pets. My person has time to hang out, snuggle, walk, run, play and maybe even the means to send me to doggy daycare or a similar play situation regularly. I don’t want to spend too many hours home alone and I hope my new home has plenty of space for me to run around and explore. A home in the country with some woods and fields, and even a creek or pond, would be such an amazing thing for me!
If you are interested in adopting me, please fill out an online adoption application and live close to Ithaca , Syracuse, Binghamton, Rochester, or Elmira. We do home visits on every applicant, and can’t do home visits where we don’t have local volunteers.
