Michael Basset Hound & Beagle Mix Cincinnati, OH

A personal endorsement from Mikey's best volunteer-friend: "Man, I love this dog. Michael (aka Monkey) is my all-time favorite pup at the shelter. Many years ago, I was 'volunteered' to clean Michael's ears. Michael is really a sweet pup, but he isn't one to trust people very easily, so while ear-cleaning seems like an easy task, it took some finesse. Once I figured it out, it became our weekly date and we became fast friends. While I do sneak an ear-cleaning in, it's mostly just a play session, loads of silliness, butt scratches, belly rubs and a hound dog howl as a grand finale!"

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Michael (est. birthdate April '08) is an owner surrender - twice. The first time Michael came to STAF it was because he was turned in to a high kill shelter. The person doing the transport that day couldn't pass this dog up. He was incredibly sweet and very friendly. Still is to this day.

Michael soon found a home through STAF and it turns out that this sweet and loving dog sometimes takes the affection he receives a bit too far and began to claim his owner as his own.

Michael has a lot going for him: not a lot of energy, happy with just a few walks a day, housebroken. He got along just fine with all in the home as well as the dog. Michael is going to need a teenager/adult only home who is going to be strong enough to let him know who the leader of the pack is. You'll have to be able to assert yourself in the beginning, letting him know that he is going to do what you ask him to do. You'll have to be able to say no when you see that cute as pie face staring up at you. You're not being mean about it all. He needs jobs to do, sitting for everything, gathering toys or playing mind games. Take him to training classes for your date night. Once he's safe from the worry of always having to wonder if you're always going to love him, he'll be a stress free, happy dog.

If you start off on day one this is not a time consuming change your life kind of thing. It something that you'll need to guide Michael with. He is well worth it!

• All of our animals are spayed/neutered and current on shots.
• We do not do same-day adoptions; we ask that you return for a follow-up visit before taking an animal home.
• You must be 21 years or older to adopt from STAF.
• We require a 4-foot-tall physical fence for homes with children under the age of 11. We also may require a physical fence for specific dogs on a case-by-case basis, depending on each dog’s behavior and exercise needs.
• Due in part to increasing coyote activity/incidents in the area and the difficulty of predicting how a dog will respond to invisible fence training, we can not adopt to homes with invisible fences.
• We do request vet and personal references.
• We can facilitate adoptions within a 75-mile radius of our Cincinnati-based shelter.