Roman

Let me introduce you to Roman, a Black Labrador mix who is about 4 months old.  Roman currently weighs 50 pounds, and it’s quite clear that he is going to turn into being quite a big boy! Roman is going to be a larger sized dog and we believe that he will reach between 80-100 pounds.  Roman is a big gangly puppy with thick puppy fur that is all black, though in the sunlight it almost looks dark chocolate brown.  Roman has one small bit white on his chest that really stands out, as well as one tiny little white toe on his back foot.  Roman is such a sweet natured dog and you can see it when you look into his beautiful brown eyes that show such curiosity for his surroundings.  Whoever came up with the saying “following you around like a puppy dog” clearly was describing Roman, no matter where you go he will always get up and follow you and lay down right behind you, so make sure you’re paying attention when you’re in the kitchen!Roman and his siblings were unfortunately puppy mill discards that didn’t find a home, so Pound Dog Rescue took them in to give them the best chance at finding their forever homes.  Roman was initially hesitant when he came into our home, but it didn’t take long for him to be full of joy and excitement, and when I say it didn’t take long, I mean it took about a whole 15 minutes for him to give us those big fully body bum wiggles.  He loves to explore his surroundings, though new sounds can sometimes frighten him, once he realizes that everything is safe he is happy to stick around.  Roman is a super submissive puppy, he will immediately roll over and show you his belly, and he is like that with all of the dogs too.  Roman would do well having another dog in the home to help show him the ropes and help him with building his confidence.  We don’t want a friend for him who will push him around though.

Roman would do well in pretty much any home situation as he is a pretty easy-going guy.  He absolutely looooves his foster dog siblings and wants to run around and play with them when they are outside, once he comes in there is always a bit more play time, then some independent play with a toy or chew bone, and then he will find a nice quiet and comfy place to take a nap.  Roman’s ideal home would have another playful dog for him to expel some energy, but we also think Roman would do well as an only dog so long as his family was committed to giving Roman lots of socialization and proper exposure to new surroundings to continue to build his confidence.  Roman is also currently living with a cat, he has certainly shown interest in the cat and likes to bark at her occasionally and given the opportunity to sniff the cat he thought it was appropriate to treat her like a chew toy.  Roman could learn to live with a dog savvy cat as long as there was lots of patience and proper training.  Roman also lives with two teens in the house, being as he is still a puppy we have been working on his mouthing and he is doing very well with it.  He loves when the kids get down on the floor and play with him!  When he gets excited he gets some full body wiggles going on and his little tail will wag a mile a minute.  Roman is excellent with the kids, but we think he would do well if he had children in his forever home that were over the age of 8.  Roman is still very much a puppy despite his size, and he still tries to jump up on his humans when he gets excited, and although this is something that we are currently working on, it’s something we need to take into consideration and given his size there should be older/bigger children in the home that would be equipped to deal with a large dog jumping on them.  

Roman would love a big fenced in backyard to be able to run around and play in, he loves playing outside so much and it is one of his favourite thing to do, he especially loves when his humans will go outside with him and he will happily follow you around while you’re doing clean up, gardening or cooking on the grill, or else he will find a stick to chew on in the shade.  Roman will require a fully fenced, escape proof and dig proof backyard to ensure his safety when he is in the backyard.  Roman is crate trained, so when it is bedtime or time for the humans to leave the house he happily walks into his crate and waits for a couple of treats.  Roman does sometimes bark initially when he is put in his crate, at night he settles down after about 15 minutes when this happens.  When we put him in his crate during the day he does bark a little bit, but eventually settles down and is fine, when he is really tired he doesn’t make a sound.  Because he sometimes barks when he is in his crate we suggest a detached home would be best to avoid disrupting any neighbours.

Roman has been doing really well with his house training, despite his stubbornness. He is still pretty young but most days we are accident free.  Occasionally he will have an accident in the house, but we feel it is mostly due to human error.  His forever home will need to make sure they are diligent with him during the first few weeks.  Roman knows to come when he is called and he knows to sit while his food is being made.  Overall though, Roman is such a well-mannered little guy that he has been an absolute dream to have.  Once he gets some playtime outside he mostly takes a nap.  Roman will on occasion find an empty toilet paper roll to chew, but he is generally pretty good to only chew on his toys.  Roman is a pretty chill and relaxed pup and he will happily take a nap anywhere on the floor, but you can bet that if you get up to go to the washroom, or even just walk to the other side of the room, that Roman will get up and follow you.  He will constantly be your shadow because he loves his human companions and just doesn’t want to miss a thing!  Roman loves attention and if you are petting another dog, you can bet that he’s going to push his way through to make sure that he can get in on some of the pet action too.

Roman has been a good passenger in the car when we have gone out, he usually is in the back seat and will curl up and wait until you arrive at your destination.  Occasionally he will get up to see if there is anything good to look at, but usually gives up and lays back down.  Roman has been doing extremely well on his walks, he absolutely loves to go out to see and smell everything he can.  He walks very well on his leash and only occasionally pulls if he sees something exciting up ahead.   Continued walks will have this boy being a star walker!  Obedience training will be a must with Roman as it will help him develop a wonderful relationship with his new family, but also it will help him to understand what is expected of him and help set out rules in his new home.  This should be followed by an advanced obedience class to get him to be the best boy he can be.   Taking him through several levels of obedience will really help him develop the confidence that he needs so that he can live a happy and fulfilling life.

Being Roman is still such a young puppy, we will only consider a home for him where someone is home or has the capability 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 8 hour work day.  We are also looking for a family or person that is 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.

Roman is looking for his forever family with someone who will spend their time walking and playing with him, going to training class, and someone who will relax with him at the end of the day.  Ideally he would like to have a large fenced yard with another young playful dog to keep him company and run around with.  Roman is such a handsome, calm and sweet natured dog and he is looking for someone who will love him forever and be active with him.  Roman has been such an easy dog to love, his eyes and mannerism say it all in how sweet he is, if you’re ready for your days to be filled with looking at him and your heart breaking in a happy way because of how sweet he is then maybe you are the home for him!