Luke
Lab/Shepherd Mix | male | 6 months Old | 33 Lbs
QUICK FACTS: ✔️ Good with other dogs! ✔️ Good in car! ✔️ Crate trained! ✔️ Potty Trained! ✔️ Walks well on leash! ❌ Working on dog interactions (on leash)! ❌ No apartments!
Luke found his forever home on August 31, 2022!
Updates
PUPDATE 2
I have been at my foster home for almost a month now and I’ve gotten a ton of socialization. I’ve completely gotten over my fear of other dogs, and I now behave like a typical puppy and want to play instantly with every dog I meet. Sometimes other dogs don’t want to play with me, but I think if I lick their faces and jump around enough, they’ll change their minds. If they growl or snarl at me I immediately leave them alone, but if they’re too submissive to correct me, sometimes I can be a bit overenthusiastic and my foster mom has to step in and tell me to back off. I met a little dachshund who I was very excited to play with, but when he told me in no uncertain terms to leave him alone, I gave him lots of space for the rest of his stay. Then I had a play date with my littermate, who was exactly my size and my age and I was SO excited to jump all over him that he was a little overwhelmed. He didn’t correct me so I didn’t understand that I was being a bit much. So in summary, I would do very well with another dog who likes to play, or else a dog who has no problem telling me off if I get too excited. The dogs I live with are very used to correcting puppies so I do great with all of them. When they tell me they are done playing with me, I find a rawhide or a bone to lay down and chew.
I also have met lots of strangers and it’s been awhile since I barked at any of them. They usually bring dogs so then I’m more interested in playing with their dog, but I will go up to strangers and wag my tail at them and lick them.
I am still learning to be calm in my crate. I do great at night, but I still cry for the first few minutes when I’m crated during the day. I also get very excited when I hear the car pull in or when I hear all the other dogs getting up in the morning. My foster mom makes me sit and stay while she opens the crate door and then I have to wait for my release word before I can get up and leave my crate. I’m very good at this but sometimes I need a reminder, especially in the mornings when I have the most energy. I am also continuing to work on my place command to teach me to have a calm mindset when I’m inside. I want to play all the time, but my mom says that outside is for playing and inside is for chilling. I am so good at doing my place now that I even know how to stay in my place when the other dogs are playing around me.
My foster mom took me swimming a few weeks ago and I loved it. It took me a few minutes to figure it out but once I did, I was a big fan. I really want to go again so I’m hoping she takes me again soon. I also love to ride in the car so if I’m let out in the driveway, I immediately go over to the car and hopefully stand by the back door to give a polite hint that I would like to go for a ride. I already know how to ride politely in the back.
I think that is all I have to update for now so I hope you are all enjoying your summer as much as I am!
PUPDATE 1
Hi! I’m Luke. I am 6 months old and I think I am a shepherd/lab mix, but I’m not really sure. I’m a lot smaller than both those breeds, so I must have some small dog in me too. My mom was rescued from a shelter when she was pregnant with me. I was born in my foster mom’s house and I was already adopted once. Unfortunately once I got to be a teenager, I was a little too wild for the little kids in my home and I had trouble barking at other dogs when I went for walks. So I went back to my foster mom’s house to work on my manners and get ready for my next home. I really like my schedule and my people, and it takes me a few days to adjust to new places, so I’m hoping my next home will be my forever home.
My foster mom says I am the sweetest dog she has ever met, except for my mom who she also fostered. I want to make my humans happy so bad. When I see the treats come out for my training time, sometimes I get so excited that I can’t focus on what I’m supposed to do and I just run through all my commands one after another to try to get the right one. I try to slow down and focus on what I’m supposed to do, and I am very good at sit, come, crate, and place. I am working on my off-leash recall with distractions. I always start in the right direction, but if one of the other dogs is there on my way, I have to stop and play with them first. But as I get older I’ll get better.
I am a bit of a baby and I get scared of other big dogs at first. I love little dogs; they aren’t scary. And I love the six dogs that I live with because I know them and I love them very very much. Every morning I am very excited to go to each of them and lick their face and tell them I love them. The littlest one is only 8 pounds and he doesn’t like it when I lick him. He snarls at me and I lay down and show him my belly, because I am very submissive. But then I still try to lick him because I really do love him. My best friend is the 10 pound dog. We play together all day. I am faster than her but I slow down so she can keep up with me when she’s chasing me; I don’t want her to feel bad. I love to be chased very very much. I like to grab toys and show the other dogs hoping that they will chase me. I am also pretty good with new dogs coming into my home. My foster mom does boarding, so we always have new dogs coming and going. I usually bark at them a few times at first but then I just avoid them for the first few hours. I try to hide behind my foster mom and she tells me to stop being dramatic and that the new dogs are nice. But I have to watch them first for a few hours before I’ll play with them. That’s all it takes and then I love them just like I love the dogs that I live with.
I get the most scared when I’m on a leash and big strange dogs come up to me. I used to bark at them very loudly. If they barked back at me I would tuck my tail and duck away from them. Like I said, I am very submissive. The leash is just scary because I can’t get away. My foster mom has been practicing walking me around other dogs and I have gotten so much better. I might give one or two barks when I see another dog but I calm down once I know she is going to protect me. Lately I have not been barking at all, I just watch other dogs very carefully but if she has me just keep walking then I’m fine. I might get worse again when I move to a new home until I know I can trust you to keep me safe, but I just need a few days to settle in. I have never tried to bite, even when other dogs are very scary.
Speaking of leashes, I am very good on a leash as long as I am wearing a gentle leader. I like to pull very hard with a flat collar, but with a gentle leader I walk like a dream. Seriously, I don’t pull at all. The gentle leader also helps me keep looking in the right direction if I notice another dog and want to turn around and look at it.
I absolutely love to play. I love toys, especially the ones with the squeakers. I throw them up in the air and pounce on them. I also like to play tug of war and chase with my dog friends. I always submit to the other dogs if they try to take my toys, even the little dogs. I never guard anything from them, or from people. If I get too excited and rowdy, the other dogs growl at me and I instantly submit.
I really love my foster mom. I would like to jump on her and shower her with kisses all the time. She says I can’t do that so instead I like to stand next to her and lean in for pets. I used to live with a 6 year old and I loved her a little too much. I liked to jump on her and try to wrestle with her. So I should probably live with just older children or else be monitored closely around younger children. I can be scared of strangers. I’m not as scared of them as I am of strange dogs, but sometimes I still bark at them. I am most scared of tall men. My foster mom’s boyfriend was pretty scary and I barked a lot the first time I met him. But I never snarl or try to bite; all I do is bark. Then he shared his string cheese with me and I decided he wasn’t so scary after all. Now we are best friends and I get very excited every time I see him. I try to climb in his lap if he is sitting down, although I’m really too big to be a lap dog.
My foster mom says I really am a very good dog. I’m not perfect, and I know everyone wants a perfect dog. But I promise I am very good and I try every day to be even better. I want to live with my foster mom forever, but she said she has to help other dogs so I need to find a new home. So I am hoping there is someone out there who will give me a chance. I wouldn’t do well in an apartment because there would be too many strange dogs and people that I’d have to walk past in the hallways, and also sometimes I still cry in my crate (but I’m working on it!). I would love a home with a yard where I can run around and I would really love a dog sibling that I can play with. I promise to love you forever and give you lots of hugs and kisses.
