ADOPTED
Please read our dog bios carefully to be sure that the dog you are applying for suits your family and lifestyle.
We at PDR believe in the benefits of post-adoption training for our dogs and their families. This allows for continued socialization, learning and helps to create a well-mannered and balanced dog. Post-adoption training is a requirement in our adoption process.
Introducing Hattie! This beautiful girl is a 3 month old Australian Shepherd mix. She has a medium length tri coloured coat with flecks of gold at the tips of her darker colours. She is expected to be medium-large sized once she is fully grown. Her expressive brown eyes will watch you closely, ensuring she is always included in what the group is doing. She loves being part of the pack and usually is not far from your reach. She will occasionally wander off in search of the coziest nap spot.
House training is going quite well but she needs to be watched closely and let out on a frequent basis. She is used to having someone at home during the day to let her out as needed, but can hold it while crated and at night for a few hours. We will only consider homes for Hattie where someone is home or has the capabilities to come home throughout the day. Puppies need to be taken outside for bathroom breaks very regularly when they are small and will not be able to hold it for an 8hr work day. We are also looking for families that are fully aware of the time commitment of a puppy and the work involved. Puppies are a total joy and bring so much love and happiness into a home, but you cannot underestimate the work and time involved in raising a puppy properly. They need constant supervision while young to expedite the house-training stage and to ensure they aren’t chewing on anything inappropriate. We are also looking for a family that will crate train her as we fully believe that this is the best for pups and offers them a quiet and secure “den” to call their own. A crate trained pup is a blessing as it offers a safe place to put them when you can’t be watching them all the time.
Hattie is being fostered with other dogs, a cat, small animals and young children. She loves everyone and everything! Her days are spent wrestling with the other dogs with the 
occasional nap. She is curious of the other pets and is generally respectful of the cat. She adores her tiny humans but doesn’t quite understand why the baby doesn’t play with her like the adults do.
We will consider a home for Hattie with children over 6yrs of age. She is currently in her nippy/jumpy/bitey stage and will be too much for younger children. If there will be young children in the home (6rs to 11yrs) then we would need the family to be experienced dog owners who are fully aware of how to manage a young, excitable puppy with young, excitable children. Supervision is key and the adults in the home would need to ensure that puppy/children management is a task they wish to take on. For a home without young children we would consider 1st time dog owners for these pups. Any family considering her needs to take obedience training and socialization seriously and have the time to dedicate in the 1st year especially of the dog’s life to this. The more that is done with her in her 1st year, the better dogs they will be! A home with or without other dogs is just fine. A home with a cat would be fine as well keeping in mind that proper training and supervision is key around a cat. They won’t be suitable pups for high-rise apartment living but would be suitable for townhouse, ground floor condo, semi or single detached homes. Keeping in mind of course that while she is settling in, a crying puppy in the crate when no one is home is to be expected so if an attached living situation, there must be good noise barriers to avoid neighbor complaints. Her people need to be active and outdoorsy as Hattie will need a good couple walks a day in all weather. They will be suited for higher energy activities so very active people would be a great fit. She will require more than just simple walks around the block though. Her family should have a good understanding or experience with her breed and energy requirements to ensure it matches their lifestyle. A home with a good sized fenced in yard would be ideal and convenient for puppy training but is not mandatory. She will need easy and quick access to a grassy spot outside for the million trips out for potty training a young puppy needs.
Hattie is too little to be spayed before adoption so potential adopters must live within a reasonable distance (within an hour) of Cambridge as she must be returned to our vet at 6 months of age to be spayed (included in adoption cost). Adopters must be able to drop her off in the morning and pick up later that day for this surgery. Adopters will be responsible for the continuation of puppy vaccinations and all other required vet care at their veterinarian of choice. She will have had everything medically that she should have for her age and have been microchipped as well. The forever family must also not have any holidays away planned for months coming up after adoption or be planning to move in the near future. Stability is key in months after adoption.
We will be expecting our adoptive family to attend puppy socialization class with Hattie immediately upon adoption, along with, at minimum, level 1 obedience school after. The guidance and lessons learned in puppy classes are very important to getting your pup off to a good start. Hattie is a very smart puppy and would excel with advanced obedience classes to bond with her people. She has quickly learned new commands and is very eager to please.
Hattie has been a wonderful addition to our busy household. She is a playful, curious pup who loves everyone she gets to meet. She is eager to find her forever family to love her just as much.