Poodle: An adopted dog in Rehoboth, MA

UPDATE 5/16/11 Pepe is a truly wonderful dog, and all of us who have worked so hard to rehabilitate him have decided that HE has adopted US! So,,,Pepe is our newest "official" family member. Thank You ! to everyone who showed such support and interest yet could not give him a home - you have all been so kind with your concern and we know you will be pleased with Pepe's decision! ******* 3-19 -11 We can't believe Pepe is still here! We tell him it is because he is waiting for the best home in the world to find him here. We all love him, and will miss him when he finds his forever home. 12-10-10 Still available, and sweeter than ever! Pepe has become so playful and cuddly! He loves to sit in your lap, or be carried around like a baby.He is never aggressive with other dogs and recently has even started to play with them! He wants everyone to pat him, but is not pushy about it. Pepe has lovely manners. He is...

UPDATE 5/16/11 Pepe is a truly wonderful dog, and all of us who have worked so hard to rehabilitate him have decided that HE has adopted US! So,,,Pepe is our newest "official" family member. Thank You ! to everyone who showed such support and interest yet could not give him a home - you have all been so kind with your concern and we know you will be pleased with Pepe's decision! ******* 3-19 -11 We can't believe Pepe is still here! We tell him it is because he is waiting for the best home in the world to find him here. We all love him, and will miss him when he finds his forever home. 12-10-10 Still available, and sweeter than ever! Pepe has become so playful and cuddly! He loves to sit in your lap, or be carried around like a baby.He is never aggressive with other dogs and recently has even started to play with them! He wants everyone to pat him, but is not pushy about it. Pepe has lovely manners. He is housetrained, walks nicely on a leash, and only barks when the doorbell rings. He has come SO far from the terrified little dog he was 11 months ago - we are all very proud of him! Please call Alexandra at 401-434-3687 for a phone interview. Our standard adoption donation is $300. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ PEPE'S BACKSTORY & UPDATES: 10-28-09 Pepe is a charcoal gray toy poodle, maybe 8 years old, who has clearly had some very bad experiences in his life. He was taken from a high-kill shelter in Georgia by a New Jersey rescue group,but he turned out to be so aggressive that they gave up on him, and decided to euthanize him. By chance, a transporter was on her way from GA to NJ to me, with two little dogs I was taking in to re-home. When she heard about Pepe, she volunteered to give him a ride to me, to ask me if I thought he was trainable. (I'm a dog trainer - www.alexandramorgan.com) I met him, realized he was badly abused and terribly fearful, & agreed to take him. Well, Pepe is friendly,gets along great with all dogs, goes cautiously up to people to greet them, ...until something spooks him.Then he freaks out completely, shrieks, growls and bites - not hard, but ouchy! When in a crate, he is ferocious if a person closes the crate door, or reaches in to him. Pepe is not yet ready for adoption, but is making good progress. UPDATE 1-2-10 : Pepe is doing very well! He has been taught to wear a little, lightweight basket muzzle, and he actually seems to feel safer when wearing it! With the muzzle on, we have been able to work on all sorts of things that scare him, and gently show him he won't be hurt. It is amazing to see how hard he is trying, and to watch him learn to trust people. UPDATE 6-10-10: Pepe is finally ready for adoption! He is continuing to improve every day. The ideal home for him would be a calm household, with no kids - he does not dislike kids, but they could easily scare him! He clearly wants to be someone's snuggle-bunny, and gets in my lap every chance he can.With his little muzzle on, I let him snuggle with my daughter, whom he loves. (See the picture) He does not object to being muzzled - he even lets my daughter put it on him. Recently, he has gotten very silly and playful, especially on the bed. He's fine with cats, and excellent with other dogs. He is neutered, healthy & up to date on shots, etc. He is very playful, and enjoys going for walks. He really deserves to enjoy the rest of his years, as he has clearly been badly abused in the past. Despite this, when you look in his face you can see he is still hopeful that he will find "true love".