Rodger
chihuahua/pug Mix | male | 1 years Old | 15 Lbs
QUICK FACTS: ✔️ Good with other dogs! ✔️ Crate trained! ✔️ Housebroken! ✔️ Can free roam when alone! ✔️ Good in car!
✔️ Walks well on leash! ✔️ Good for beginner dog owner!
Updates
Rodger found his forever home August 25, 2021!
PUPDATE 2
Rodger continues to be one of the most easygoing, laid back dogs that I've had the pleasure of fostering. With a few walks a day along with some play time, Rodger is content to spend the rest of the day lounging around on the couch or in his crate. Since I give him his meals and a lot of treats in the crate, he's started to go in there on his own while I'm working from home. I've been able to leave him free roaming at home while I go out for several hours, and he's done very well with that. With enough exercise in the morning, he'd likely be able to do well alone during a full work day.
While Rodger is still a bit skittish around loud noises, sudden movements, and new people, he's been doing well as he settles into my home and into his routine. He's gotten better at ignoring others on walks with redirection, as well as not barking out the window with quick correction. Friends who have come over to the house give Rodger treats while letting him come to them on his own terms, and that's helped him to be comfortable with strangers. Usually by the end of the time that guests are here, Rodger can be found cuddling with them on the couch.
With a quieter environment, or some adjustments made to apartment living (white noise or the TV on, blinds closed on windows that he can see out of), as well as a love of love and cuddling, Rodger would absolutely thrive.
PUPDATE 1
Rodger sleeps in a crate overnight with a comfy bed and blanket. He's used to getting up around 7am during the week, but is happy to sleep in a bit longer on weekends. Rodger absolutely loves going on walks, so we start the day off with a longer walk in the morning. After that, he spends some time playing fetch with toys, eats his breakfast in his crate, and then spends most of the day snoozing on the couch, sitting in a sunbeam, or looking out the back window while I work from home. Rodger will bark if he sees people out the back window, but closing the blinds stops his barking. Since he does sleep and eat meals in his crate, Rodger is fairly comfortable in there, but it does take some coaxing and some treats to get him in there, since he'd much rather be with me!
We take a quick walk around lunch time, a longer one after work, and another one before bed. His favorite time of day is being able to cuddle up next to me on a comfy blanket on the couch while we watch TV. Rodger is a big fan of comfy blankets, belly rubs, and Netflix :).
Rodger is very friendly once he knows you and has had time to warm up to you. For new people that come into the home, he's interested in seeing who they are, but needs space to come up to them on his own terms. Having guests give him treats helps with this. Once he does warm up to you, though, he becomes your very best friend! Despite Rodger's grumpy outward appearance, he absolutely loves human attention once he's comfortable with you. His tail wags happily every time I talk to him.
He hasn't had much exposure to children. Rodger can be a skittish, though, with sudden movements and loud noises. He would likely prefer a home without smaller children, as their unpredictability would probably make him nervous.
Rodger is overall a low-medium energy dog. He loves going on walks, and will gladly go on as many walks a day as he can. We usually get around an hour of walk time a day, which is good for him. He walks very well on leash, usually right by my side with a loose leash unless he's going potty or there's something interesting to smell. He's very responsive to his name if you want him to keep walking, though.
Inside the house, he can be a very silly guy! He loves playing with toys - pulling them out of the toy bin, chewing on them, running after them when I throw them, and sometimes bringing them back to me. He also likes playing tug with longer soft toys. Rodger loves toys so much that he'll sometimes accidentally nip lightly at your hands while playing around with toys - redirecting him to only chew on toys has helped with that, but is something to keep in mind. We tend to have 15-20 minutes of play time spaced out throughout the day, and that's good for him. The rest of the day he can be found napping in comfy places around the house.
Rodger does really well with my resident 5 lb chihuahua/Brussels Griffon mix inside the home. They mostly ignore each other, playing together every once in a while. Rodger does like trying to steal toys from my dog, though, so resident dogs who aren't as forgiving as my dog might not get along with Rodger as much. Outside of the home, Rodger mostly ignores other dogs while out on walks. Rodger has not had any exposure to cats.
I'm able to leave Rodger free roaming when he's left alone. He does whine initially when I leave, but is not destructive, and settles down after a few minutes. I usually find him waking up from a nap on the couch when I get back home.
Rodger currently knows 'sit' and 'come here', and could probably learn a lot more tricks in his forever home. He's very treat and praise motivated. One thing he is still working on is going up on down stairs. He's okay going up and down the small set of stairs leading up to my front door, but he's less comfortable with the steep wooden stairs inside my home. I've been having to carry him up and down stairs. Since he is only 15 lbs it's doable, but just note that if your home has a lot of stairs, that will be something that Rodger might need help with while training continues.
Since he is so treat/food motivated, I do have to keep an eye on any human food that's readily accessible to Rodger. He doesn't counter surf, but will sniff around and try to grab food from the living room coffee table. He's been doing less of that with correction and redirecting him to sit and not sniff at the table, but that would be something to keep an eye on.
Rodger has some tartar accumulation and would benefit from a dental in the next 1-2 years.
Rodger is one of the sweetest boys I've had the pleasure of fostering! He's very eager to please, and a complete goofball once he's settled in and comfortable with you. If you're sitting on the couch, he loves to come up and lean against you for pets, or give you some gentle kisses. Any love you give Rodger is repaid tenfold from this small, sweet boy.