Rocky

• Sweet and playful
• House trained
• Good with older kids
• Walks well on leash

His Story

Rocky has been with us for 3 ½ months. With the stress of being in two different county shelters in less than six months and then living the kenneled life with us also, he developed some unacceptable habits. He’d get too excited and a bit rough – and he’d ruin his chances with potential adopters. He was never aggressive or deliberately hurtful – but more like a giant, untrained, inexperienced puppy. And although everyone loved him dearly, he’d just go overboard when he wanted you or another dog to continue playing or he didn’t want you to leave him.

𝗦𝗼…𝗥𝗼𝗰𝗸𝘆 𝘄𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹
We wanted to give him the skills he needed to be successful in his search for a forever home. Thanks to the help of our friends at iWag, Rocky has completed a few weeks of their on-site training program where he concentrated on being the best Good Boy he can be. He learned lots of stuff. His recall (coming when called) is perfect now. And he was taught how to play properly with people and other dogs. He also learned the skills a great big dog needs to know when living in a house with folks. He learned to sit and wait before entering the house – and at gates and doors, too. He studied and mastered Sit, Wait, Quiet, Here, Off and Easy. He now understands that he isn’t allowed to jump on you (even if it is to give you the best, sweetest, most loving hug of your life. He’s just too big!) He still does tend to get over excited during playtime – but he knows the “easy” command now and does really well with that verbal correction. Let’s not forget to mention that Rocky is also house and crate trained.

𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝗶𝗴 𝗯𝗼𝘆
We seriously still have no idea what his breed mix is. His height would indicate Great Pyrenees or Anatolian Shepherd, but he doesn’t seem to have the guarding instincts that those breeds possess. Temperament-wise, he’s a lot like a big, goobery, goofy Lab. He’s tricolor – chocolate and tan and white…. His coloring and the way his tail curls are sort of husky or malamute-like. Putting all of these characteristics together gives us our best guess that he is what we would call a “Big Un.” 🙂 He’s around 2-years-old so he’s actually still very puppy-like in a lot of ways. He hasn’t had a lot of life experience either, so he can be a bit of a scaredy cat with new, loud or unexpected things.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗥𝗼𝗰𝗸𝘆 𝗡𝗲𝗲𝗱𝘀
𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄-𝗵𝗼𝘄: He’s a big, tall, strong dog. And like most big dogs, he needs an experienced, confident owner who will continue to constantly, kindly reinforce everything he has learned so they can appropriately communicate with each other to create a strong, trusting relationship. He’s an awesome dog who needs a strong consistent leader to provide firm but calm correction when he gets a bit wild when playing. Rocky is sensitive, so no meanies or bullies for him. He wants to please and be a good boy; he just needs someone who can show him what to do.

𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗮 𝗯𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗹𝘂𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗳𝘂𝗿 – 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲…𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲: Regular grooming is a must. Rocky does and will shed. He’ll need regular brushings to keep his coat nice and smooth and shiny. When we first rescued him, he was very stressed from being in the county shelter for an extended period, so he was ‘blowing his coat’ due to that stress. We brushed him a lot – and we ‘recovered’ a whole lot of fur. There was so much groomed out fur initially we accidentally thought some of the fur balls were smaller rescue dogs. We placed collars on them and took them for walks before we realized they were actually just large fluffs of his shedded fur. Just joking, of course… but seriously, he will shed. It’s much better now that he has good nutrition and isn’t so stressed out.

𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲: Like all dogs, Rocky needs a routine – a daily structure so he knows what to expect and how to cope.

𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗮 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗴: Dogs are expensive; really big dogs cost even more. They eat more; he currently eats 5 cups a day. And their meds, flea/tick/heartworm preventives and chewies cost more. Their crates and beds and toys cost more. Big dogs don’t come cheap.

𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮 𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲 𝘆𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆 𝗶𝗻 – 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲: Rocky loves the outdoors. He enjoys being outside and his favorite games are to run and chase with other dogs. He loves other dogs and is very playful. Another active, friendly confident dog would be great to have at the ready for his entertainment and exercise.

𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗮𝗹𝘁𝘆, 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘂𝗻𝘄𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁: Rocky can be very cuddly and affectionate. He needs his special lovey time with his humans. In his short life, he’s been passed around from home to home. He must have someone dedicated to ensuring he is in his forever home this time. Forever. He’s been abandoned and disappointed since he was a pup; he deserves more. He needs devotion and patience. And he’ll thrive.

𝗡𝗼 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝘂𝗻𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗶𝗴 𝘂𝗻: Although Rocky is sensitive and sweet-natured, he also does not realize his size nor strength and he can be clumsy sometimes, too. He could easily unintentionally knock over a small child while playing. Therefore, he’ll do best with only older, dog savvy children in the home.

𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘂𝘁: Rocky is a conversation starter. His size and never-met-a-stranger personality make him a people magnet. He’s not shy. He has loved everyone he’s met since we’ve known him. He’s a big and goofy boy with a sweet temperament. People will want to meet him. You will not blend into the background when he’s with you.

NOTE: Rocky’s training includes 2 sessions of training with his new adopter – plus lifetime support from iWag if needed. We’ve set him up for success!

Rocky is 2-years-old and 82 pounds. His adoption fee is $300 and includes his neuter, microchip, Bordetella vaccine, Rabies vaccine and other vetting. if you are interested in meeting Rocky, please fill out the application here.

Last update: May 7, 2020