MEET:

HARLEY
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STATE:  ME
AGE: 2 years
DOB:   11/6/06
WEIGHT:   60(?) pounds
SEX:  Male
NEUT/UTD:  Yes/Soon 
COAT COLOR: Brindle
DOCKED TAIL:    Yes
CROPPED EARS:   No
CHILDREN UNDER 4:  No
CHILDREN OVER 4:  Teenagers
SEPARATION ANXIETY:   No
OTHER DOGS:  No
CATS: No
CRATE TRAINED: Yes
HOUSE TRAINED:   Yes
LEASH TRAINED:   No
OBEDIENCE TRAINED:  No  
MICROCHIPPED: Unsure
ADOPTION FEE: $300
UPDATE 4/11/10 -   Hi there! I'm happy to report that Harley is doing great! We have seen a big difference in Harley over the last year as he became more comfortable with his new family. His attitude toward other dogs has greatly improved. At one point, we were unsure whether he would ever get along with other dogs because he was so aggressive/dominant towards them- obedience training didn't seem to help at all. But over the last 4-5 months we have slowly introduced him to a number of dogs, and Harley continues to make friends. We are just careful not to introduce him to a dog that is dominant like he is; for fear that it may cause a fight. The important thing is that Harley is playful and interacts with friends and family dogs and we can take him places.

Harley has grown very attached to his new family. When his 'father' goes away for a day or two, I notice a difference in his personality. He is clearly sad that his dad is away!

Harley had a reaction to his annual rabies shot last month which gave us a scare. A week or so after the injection, I noticed a lump on him that felt like a mast tumor. We immediately brought him to the vet and they explained that it was a reaction to the rabies shot. It took a few weeks, but the lump has dissipated.

Harley is a very well behaved boy. He knows his place in the house and always stays off the furniture.  His favorite thing to do is eat. When Harley moved in, the trash can found a new home on top of the washing machine. Food left unattended anywhere within his reach will disappear in a matter of seconds! He has even been known to snag things on top of the fridge! Don’t ask me how but he did it once.  The bag must have been barely hanging over the edge, and boy can that dog jump high when he wants too!  Harley eats faster than any dog I've ever seen. We have tried different things to slow him down but none of them seem to work. I honestly don't think he even chews his food! Since Harley was adopted he has gained 10 pounds and he looks great. The vet says he is at a perfect weight for his age/size.

Overall, we are very blessed to have Harley and we love him to pieces. Thank you so much for matching him with his forever home. He is a one happy boy!

4/11/09 - Harley found his forever home today!!!

4/4/09 - Harley has been doing very well the past week he has been here at his foster home and he is just the sweetest & cutest big boy!.  He is getting down the routine and his favorite time still is FEEDING TIME! LOL  He is starting to fill out some and not looking so skinny as he did from the stress of being at the shelter.  I actually have had a few play bows out of him as he is starting to get more comfortable here.  He loves to be petted & does a really good "boxer lean" when you pet him, like he cannot get close enough to you.   I have found out though that even though Harley gets along with my dog fine a lot of the time, Harley will start fights with him over the littlest things to do with food and water.  For this reason Harley is going to need to be an only dog in his home, though he is not aggressive to just be around other dogs or walked by them, in the neighborhood, etc.   I just do not see him being a dog park or doggie daycare type of a boy as that would put too much stress on him. His dominance will show through with the other dogs in these pack like settings.  With me, I have not seen any issues and he truly respects me, but again I do see him needing a "pack leader" in his new home or he will take advantage.  I also have been working with Harley with my kittens and he was scared of them at first (I don't think he had seen cats before!-LOL), but after he got use to them, he thought they were too much of a toy to play with and got too rough with them. Soooo no kitties in his new home either.  This adorable boy is not going to be around much longer, so hurry and ask for him!

3/27/09 – Harley arrived here Saturday afternoon from a great shelter we work with. We want to thank all the transport volunteers that helped get him to his foster home with an extra special thank you to Stephanie from the shelter who drove over 300 miles round trip to help Harley! Harley was surrendered to the shelter by his last home who got him from a friend of a friend about 4 months ago. The last home said he showed aggression around food and when they disciplined him, but he never bit anyone. Harley was at the shelter for almost a month and their volunteers were working with him on his training and food aggression issues and they saw improvements. As we know how much boxers love being with their people, the shelter saw that Harley was not doing well with being kenneled so long. He really needed to get to a foster home where he could have his second chance.
     Harley is a very tall, super cute, skinny boy who needs to gain some weight. He is crate trained, house trained, loves to go for car rides and LOVES his food and treats! I have introduced him to my boxer boy Simon and he is okay with him, but Harley did start a spat over the water dish and another time when Simon tried to play roughly with him. I have been feeding Harley in his crate to avoid any issues with Simon and I am watching to see how Harley continues to do living with another dog.
     I can already see that Harley has a very dominant personality and is head strong. For example, he knows what you mean when you tell him to do something, but he will be stubborn and not want to do it until you put on the “firm Mommy voice” telling him what to do. I call this the “bratty teenager” stage, right around 18 months to 2 years when the boxers with dominant personalities try to test out how far they can push things. For this reason Harley is going to need an experienced dog home that doesn’t have young kids and that is able to be Harley’s “pack leader”. Nothing In Life Is Free training is what he needs, where he has to work for everything (ex: sitting for his dinner, waiting to eat until told okay, not allowing on couch or bed, etc). He is super smart (too smart! – LOL), so I know he will do well with consistency & he needs NO PUSHOVERS in his new home!
     Harley is heartworm negative and had his rabies and kennel cough vaccines. I just need to get him in for his distemper combo shot and get to know his personality and needs better. Hopefully he will be ready to go to his new home soon.