Harley Yellow Labrador Retriever Male, 5 Years Old

6/12/2018: Harley has settled into our weekly routine. Typically Harley will not eat until his foster mother wakes up even though his foster father puts out breakfast at 5:30 am! When the rest of the family gets up Harley eats breakfast and goes for a morning walk. Harley runs to the window and watches everyone leave for the day. After the house has cleared out he jumps onto the couch and watches the front door. Harley is full of love and becomes super excited when his foster family returns. He desperately tries to kiss everyone, runs around in circles and rolls on his back to get a belly rub.

Over the weekend Harley met his first furry friend and with a proper introduction, Harley accepted him. The two played in the yard and followed each other through the house. Harley was excited and interested in the other dog. It seemed to even calm him down a bit! Woody his doggy friend has come over a few times since and Harley has been excited to see his new friend. Harley was not possessive over his food even when Woody helped himself to some of Harley’s dinner! It has been so nice to see Harley playing with another dog. In addition Harley is doing better with our 5 year old son and is slowly bonding more with him each day with proper supervision. Harley is a love bug and will make a great pet with proper training and socialization.

5/31/2018: Harley is available for adoption, but until his forever family finds him, we are looking to move Harley into a new foster home or a foster-to-adopt home.  Harley needs a quieter, less hectic environment and should be in a home without young children, other dogs or cats.  Harley was evaluated by a behaviorist who provided us with the following insights into Harley’s behavior:

He’s nervous when first meeting people and startles easily, but quickly warms up. I was able to touch him all over – ears, teeth, feet, head, etc. – once he felt comfortable with me. It did not take him long to feel comfortable and when we were talking, he was giving me kisses. He does not have any resource guarding issues. He is probably not a dog who should be placed with other dogs as he is somewhat reactive to the dogs he meets. He should be an only dog with a family with older children and a calm environment.

5/25/18:  Harley is a handsome 5-year old yellow Lab mix who is about 73 pounds, housebroken, neutered and up-to-date on vaccinations. Harley is a friendly, affectionate, and playful boy who can be a bit shy when meeting new people and startles easily but quickly warms up. Harley is a bit of a lady’s man, preferring females to guys. As a typical Lab, Harley is active but settles easily with regular exercise. Harley LOVES attention and wags his tail whenever you look at him! He really is a happy Lab who loves to give kisses! He loves to go for walks, hang out with his people getting belly rubs and scratches, and play fetch in the yard. Harley needs a fenced yard that he can run around and play fetch in. Harley gets very excited about going on car rides and will generally sit or lie down in the back, although he will sometimes try to climb into the front seat. Harley has free roam of the house in his foster home, sleeps through the night, and has done well being left alone for 4 to 6 hours.

Harley would love to find an active family who will spend time with him doing his favorite things. Harley needs to be placed in a home where he will be the only dog since he has shown some reactivity to other dogs when walking and has never lived with another dog. He also needs a home without cats or other small animals since he has a high prey drive and will chase. Harley responds well to clear verbal commands, and his foster home has been teaching him the “easy” command, to which he responds well when taking walks. Harley would do well with an older couple who are looking for a warm, loving companion, a single person, or a family with children over 12 years of age who are willing to give Harley time to adjust and learn to trust. Harley would do well in a less hectic environment and a calm home.

5/4/18: Harley is getting comfortable and settling into our home and we are learning more about each other. Harley loves to run around in the backyard and play fetch. He is learning how to “drop it”. Harley was so excited to fetch his toy that he ran through the screen door. (Don’t worry he wasn’t hurt!). When we are away, Harley sits by the door most of the time waiting for his foster family to return (except when he went counter surfing and got a hold of freshly popped popcorn and knocked over a large container of water that was on the counter. Oops). We have learned not to leave any food items on the counter. Harley loves everyone in our family but really gravitates to his foster mother. (Maybe because she is more of a softy than his foster father.) Harley LOVES attention and wags his tail  just by looking at him! He really is a happy LAB! He loves to go for walks and sleeps through the night. Lately he has been eating breakfast when his foster mother wakes up (around 7:30 am) even though breakfast is served at 5:20 am! Overall, Harley did well his first week.

4/24/18: Harley had another great night and didn’t even want to get up for breakfast at 5:20 am. Not sure what kind of food hound he is! However, once he heard the food hit the bowl, he jumped out of bed. I guess he is a foodie after all. After breakfast, Harley went back to bed. Harley’s foster brother was allowed to stay home from school to play with Harley. Harley was given a lot of exercise and at one point went to lay down. Foster son did come up behind Harley and tried to hold him at which point Harley let out a short growl. There was no other aggressive nature. Harley played well with son throughout the day (prior and after). Foster parents have no reservations with son playing with Harley but will continue to watch Harley’s interactions with son. Harley loves to go on his nightly walks and enjoys spending time with his foster family. Harley received his care package today and has been enjoying his Nylabone and new toys. Harley is super affectionate and doesn’t stop wagging his tail! He loves to be around the family. Harley has been adjusting nicely to the foster family.

4/23/18: Harley slept nicely throughout the night on his comfy bed next to his foster mother. At 5:20 am, Harley got up and enjoyed a yummy cup of kibble which he finished in a heart beat. Harley has been walking nicely on a leash and once in a while needs a prompt to heel. Harley did well when he was left alone for a few hours. When everyone came home, Harley was super excited to see his foster family and was ready to play. Harley loves to play outside, run around and has been gentle with our 5 year old son. Harley is still working on “out” when playing fetch. After dinner, Harley settled down and got ready for bed, but not before his belly rub!

4/22/18: After a great ride from PA to New Jersey, Harley was introduced to our home. Harley transitioned smoothly and is a quick learner. Harley can sit, give paw and started to follow “out” when playing with a toy. Harley loves running around in the backyard. Despite a long trip and the transition to a new home, he has been excellent. He saw some other dogs and only once required a minor correction.