Ripley
Terrier Mix | male | 4 Years 11 Months Old | 48 Lbs
QUICK FACTS: ✔️ Good with other dogs! ✔️ Good with kids! ✔️ Enjoys doggy daycare! ✔️ Potty trained! ✔️ Crate trained!
✔️ Good in the car! ✔️ Walks well on leash! ✔️ Treat motivated! ✔️ Good with people after slow intros ✔️ Could live in an apartment! ✔️ Loves to play! ✔️ Loves to snuggle!
Updates
Check out these videos of Ripley here! and here!
Ripley is an incredibly smart and playful pup with a goofy side that’s sure to make you smile! He’s a medium-energy dog who loves walks, toys, and snuggling up with his favorite humans. Ripley is a Velcro dog and a true shadow—he’s happiest when he’s right by your side, soaking up all the love and attention you have to offer. And look at his gorgeous pittie smile!
Ripley is a pro at many commands such as sit, shake, spin, leave it, down, stay, wait, speak, roll over, crawl, crate, and place. His treat motivation and agility make training with him a joy and a great bonding experience. Ripley thrives off of mental stimulation, so aside from training he also loves working on puzzles and games that involve hidden treats. He also enjoys playing with other dogs, so he would do well in a home with or without canine companions. He also gets along well with little kids. Ripley has encountered outdoor cats in the past and seemed to just be curious and not reactive, but we have never seen him directly interact with cats before. In general, though, Ripley does not have a very strong prey drive and may be ok with cats.
This sweet boy is fine with sleeping in his crate or on his dog bed. His day usually starts around 9am with a quick potty break and dry food for breakfast. Because we work from home, we have him switch between free roaming and crate time. When he's free roaming, he is either snoozing the day away or keeping himself busy with toys. Ripley loves walks, and is a pretty great walking/running buddy. He is generally not reactive to people or dogs on the leash unless he is suddenly directly approached by any strangers, which results in some tugging and barking that is usually re-directable. Ripley is trained on the retractable leash and does well with the commands “heel” (walk by your side) and “break” (go off and explore). A 30-60 minute walk in the evening and some play time with his toys throughout the day is all he needs to let out some energy before dinner around 7pm and sleeping for the rest of the night.
Ripley’s early life as a stray in Indiana was challenging, and has resulted in the following training needs that are important for potential adopters to consider:
- SLOW INTROS/STRANGER DANGER: Ripley is not aggressive, but rather fearful and defensive around strangers. To help with this, Ripley needs slow introductions to new people where he is given the space to approach people at his own pace. This process (when supplemented with treats) usually takes 10-20mins. He adjusts faster to women, children, and people with generally smaller/shorter builds, and slower to men and people with taller/larger builds. The slow intro helps him learn that he is safe with new people; after this, he loves everybody he meets! Ripley is an extremely loving dog that craves to be close with his humans, and once you earn his trust, you have it forever. With patience and gradual trust-building, Ripley’s true, affectionate personality shines through.
- SEPARATION ANXIETY: Love and attention is Ripley’s drug, and as a result he does not like to be left alone by his people. Because of his nervous behaviors when left alone, Ripley spent a month living with a highly skilled trainer making great strides in his crate behaviors. Ripley does not have accidents or destructive behaviors in the crate, but he does have a difficult time relaxing in the crate when alone at home and will spend a significant amount of time pacing and whining in the crate. Ripley has been professionally trained to use a bark collar when in the crate, which has eliminated any barking in the crate. Ripley rarely sets the collar off, so it mainly functions as a physical reminder to regulate his emotions and consider relaxing in the crate. We have also found that if all of his basic needs are met (fed, hydrated, tired out from physical and mental stimulation) he spends more time resting in the crate.
Ripley is an extremely smart boy that is very capable of overcoming these challenges with dedicated training, patience, and most importantly STABILITY! He will thrive with a family who believes in him and is motivated to help Ripley in his journey to heal from his past so that his wonderful and goofy personality can continue to shine brighter. Ripley has touched the hearts of everyone he has met, including his trainer, fosters and volunteers within the Fetch Community. This means that he has several people, including myself and his trainer, willing to lend support to his furever family.
If you’ve read this far, you’ve earned some fun facts about Ripley!
- extremely goofy and expressive: Does silly things that make you laugh all the time, and often makes silly sounds or faces so you can always tell exactly how he is feeling.
- very comfortable in the car: Likes to snuggle into a ball in the backseat and sleep, doesnt matter if its a 10min drive or a 3hr drive. In fact, his separation anxiety seems to disappear in the car. During warmer weather months, he can easily snooze in the car while you run errands!
- easy to groom: Once Ripley trusts you, he will pretty much allow you to do anything to him. He doesn’t love baths but tolerates them without any fight, it is very easy to clip his nails and brush his teeth, putting warm clothing on during cold weather
- connoisseur of coziness and comfort: Ripley will always default to the comfiest, softest, and most cushioned place to lay that is available to him. He also loves to be completely buried in blankets, and will only peek his snoot out for air after a few hours of baking in his blanket pile. The only time he sacrifices the coziest spot is if there is a somewhat cozy spot closer to you.