Hannah - Courtesy Listing German Shepherd Dog Carlsbad Springs, ON

The very short version:
- GSD
- 2.5 years old
- Female
- Spayed
- Other dogs: no.
- Kids: no.
- Teens: Dog-smart teens okay.
- Cats: no experience, but caution advised.

Management issues:
- food and resource guarding, severe.
- Reactivity, situational.

Ideal situation:
- a trainer, vet, vet tech, experienced foster or rescue person, or other person with wide experience of dogs and dog training.

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Background:
Hannah is a two and a half year old German Shepherd Dog who has had a difficult start in life.
She came to us from a home with two unfixed male GSDs, after police got involved in a domestic abuse situation. The owner later disclosed that this was her fourth home.
She had a litter in late January and was allowed to become pregnant again on her first heat.
She came to us in June and gave birth to her second litter while in foster this summer.
She has been relinquished to No Surrender and we have full authority to make decisions for and about her.
Her first placement failed due to the adopter ignoring the management information.
She came back after one minor incident and is now stable with her previous foster.
Adopter will need to commit to force-free and fear-free training.

Good stuff:
Her hips have been checked and pronounced excellent.
She is strong and agile and would do well in dog sports.
She is very quick on the uptake in training.
She is a "people dog" and is very good and deeply sweet and affectionate with people she knows.
She is good with dogs she knows for a playdate, or playing in a field or in a dog park, but can have trouble with strange dogs on-leash, in an indoor enclosed space, or sharing toys.
She loves water, loves tug and playing with a ball.
She can be left alone for several hours at a time.
She is a very good passenger in a car or truck and loves going for very long drives.
Her reactivity diminishes rapidly outside an urban environment. She is much happier and calmer in suburban or rural settings. She is OK with larger animals like horses, but has too much play/prey drive to stay calm with smaller livestock.

Management:
Hannah has no bite history. Although she requires management around food, she gives ample warning of her concerns.
Hannah is a country dog who hates the city. She needs a quiet suburban or rural environment to thrive. Many though not all of her problem behaviours only express in the city.
The primary issue is severe food guarding with both dogs and people, although she does not guard from her foster, who has won her trust. She often eats near him as she feels he will keep her food safe.
This is exacerbated by a tendency to hoard food and chewies when not immediately hungry.
This is not affected by whether she's in a loud urban area or a calm rural environment.
We are currently, slowly, getting her on a schedule of training her to eat and enjoy chewies only in her crate. We expect this to be a lifetime requirement for her safety and the safety of others.
This is the primary reason for not placing her with children, who she does love and is very good with when food is not involved.
She shows toy-guarding with other dogs, but not people, and has on-leash reactivity to dogs and people she does not know. This is somewhat better in a calmer environment, but she should not live with other dogs unless the adopter is extremely experienced and willing to manage the food issues lifelong.
She had almost never been on leash when we got her and did not walk well on leash, but is learning rapidly. She is inclined to pull but is doing well with the Halti.

Health:
She had a litter in late January of 2023 and was pregnant with a second litter when we got her; delivered mid-July 2023.
She was sufficiently underweight on arrival in foster that an x-ray was required to confirm the pregnancy 3 weeks prior to delivery. Despite an immediate shift to puppy food and puppy formula as a supplement, of 5-6 fetuses observed on x-ray she delivered only 4 and only 2 survived.
She was spayed in late November of 2023.
She had an occasional limp when we got her. The vet has examined her hips and pronounced them very good, and suggests that the trouble was due to poor nutrition and irregular activity levels. It has not come back since the pups weaned.
After she weaned we found she was not only underweight but was B-12 deficient and has some food allergies. She's since had two B-12 shots and is now on an appropriate diet and at a good weight. Her B-12 should be monitored going forward.

Steps we're taking:
We have her wearing a Halti and are working on leash manners.
We have not tried any counter-conditioning for reactivity. We are concentrating on teaching her that her crate will keep her food safe for her.
Addressing her health and nutritional issues means she now largely eats her food immediately instead of hoarding it, which reduces opportunities the guarding behaviour noticeably.
She continues to hide and then guard chewies, so she does not currently get them. When we can close the door of the crate with her in it without her reacting, we will give her chewies there.
We are arranging a formal training consultation, and are willing to do more to invest in her future as needed. We are absolutely committed to her success, while and after we have her.
She is extremely bonded with her foster, and would need to get to know her new family in his presence.

This is a courtesy listing.
If you are interested in giving Hannah a forever home, please contact info@nosurrenderottawa.ca