Fergus
Black and Tan Bloodhound | 1.5 Years Old | Neutered Male | 83 lbs
QUICK FACTS: ✔️ Good with dogs! ✔️ Good with cats! ✔️ Crate trained! ✔️ House trained! ✔️ Leash trained! ✔️ Good in the car! ✔️ Loves to play ✔️ Snuggle pup!
Check out these videos of Fergus here, here, and here!
Fergus is a Black and Tan Bloodhound (please research the breed) that comes to us from our rescue partner in Alabama. He was in the Birmingham shelter when they pulled him and that’s all we know of his history. Fergus has been in Wisconsin since April 5, 2025.
Fergus is a perfect gentleman that is a full adult and has grown out of the adolescent phase. Fergus is extremely sweet but incredibly shy. He’s making good progress on building his confidence and I see a positive change in him everyday. Fergus will need a patient owner who is willing to help him build his confidence. Quick movements and loud noises scare him and send him into a cower or flight mode. His behavior is very similar to a dog who was a stray and is scared of being caught. His foster Mom has rescued/fostered a lot of shy dogs and is willing to support his adopters with ideas.
For any foster/rescue dog we go by the 3-3-3 rule. 3 days to decompress, 3 days to learn your routine, and 3 months to feel at home.
Energy Level:
Fergus loves to go for a 1.25 mile walk and run around in the backyard with his foster brother and American Foxhound. Currently we take days off of walking because he is still building his confidence and in decompression mode. He is a Bloodhound so he is built to exercise all day so he would make an excellent hiking buddy.
Training:
Currently we are not focusing on training commands with Fergus. I’m just letting him get used to me. He does know the command sit.
Fergus definitely lived in a house previously and is not scared of normal household things, like stairs, TVs, coffee grinders, etc;
Fergus walks nicely on a leash. If we see a dog across the street he will try to go meet them. If he sees people on a walk he will try to get away from them. When he sees squirrels or birds on a walk he will gently lunge on the leash towards them almost like he’s playing with them. He will need someone that can handle a 83 pound dog on a leash.
We are also working on scent work with Fergus to help build his confidence. Scent work is putting a qtip with scent (lavendar) in a cup and teaching him to “find it” in the house.
Crate Training:
Fergus will happily sleep in a kennel at night in my bedroom. If he is away from his people he will paw at and bite the crate to get out. He is a bit of a velcro dog and wants to be by their people when they are home.
Fergus is crated during the day in the living room while I am at work (away from home). He is able to settle and be in his crate all day without issue.
Potty Training:
Fergus is potty trained and will go outside on command.
Grooming:
Fergus has a beautiful coat and will require brushing. Bloodhounds are a breed that shed. Fergus was easy to give a bath too and he let me trim his nails without issue.
Dogs:
Fergus loves all dogs. He just wants to go up to them and play.
Cats:
Fergus lives with 2 cats and does not try to hurt them. He playfully chases them when they run but if they are just sitting there he’ll either sniff them or just leave them alone.
Kids:
Fergus has not met kids because he is scared of all people currently.
Fergus is an incredibly sweet boy who loves to snuggle and give kisses when he gets to know you. As soon as he builds his confidence he is going to be the perfect dog for any hound lover. To build his confidence, Fergus would benefit from living with a confident dog that he can follow, kind and patient owners that can expose him to normal everyday things, and even doggy daycare so that he can learn from other dogs that people are ok.
