Date of intake:: 5/1/2025

Means of surrender (length of time in previous home):: Owner Surrender, 4 Years 11 Months

Previously lived with:: 2 adults

Behavior toward strangers:: owner stated that she is shy/contact on her terms, tolerant, playful, friendly and outgoing

Behavior toward children:: she has spent time around kids of various ages and is tolerant

Behavior toward dogs:: when on walks when she sees other dogs she is tolerant, playful, friendly and outgoing

Behavior toward cats:: she has not spent time around cats so behavior is unknown

Resource guarding:: she will hard bark/growl when her treats and toys are touched

Bite history:: no known bite history

Housetrained:: Partially

Energy level/descriptors:: High

Other Notes:: She will escape the house/yard and will pull towards people on walks for attention. She isn't bothered when she is held/restrained, disturbed when sleeping, startled, feet/paws are touched, her collar is grabbed and it is unknown when she is push/pulled off furniture She is very active and playful, lazy/couch potato. She likes to be where people are, the bedroom and the backyard. She allows owner/family to bathe and brush, and to trim nails/touch paws. She goes on 20-30min walks 2x daily with mild to moderate pulling and getting in the car makes her nervous. She knows the cues for sit, paw, food and her name. She loves to play tug of war and the peanut butter snacks from Trader Joes

Date of assessment:: 5/4/2025

Summary:: Leash Walking Strength and pulling: Loose Reactivity to humans: None Reactivity to dogs: None Leash walking comments: Sociability Loose in room (15-20 seconds): Explores room- seeks attention, soft body Call over: Readily approaches- treats are tossed, soft body Sociability comments: Handling Soft handling: Allowed- leaned into touch, loose body Exuberant handling:Allowed- leaned into touch, loose body Handling comments: Arousal Jog: Did not conduct due to limping on back legs Arousal comments: Knock: Approches- neutral body Knock Comments: Toy: Doesn't hover over toys. lunges Snap/bites dummy hand with hard pressure multiple times Toy comments: 5/4/2025: Due to Trinity's intense fearfulness and defensive aggression displayed in care, a handling assessment will not be conducted at this time.

Summary (2):: 05/09/25: (Assessment Note) Trinity is lying down in her kennel and allows the handler to leash her with ease. She is brought to the assessment room, where she socializes with handlers, displaying a loose and wiggly body and allowing touch. During the toy portion of the assessment, Trinity displays resource guarding behavior, biting the hand multiple times. Please see behavior assessment for more information. Trinity is escorted back to her kennel safely with no issues.

Summary (3):: 05/07/25/ (PM) Trinity is at the front of her kennel door displaying a soft frame and slight wagging tail. The handler will coax her forward with a soft voice, kneeling down to appear small. Trinity approaches softy, taking treats a bit rough as the handler administers them through the bars of the kennel. The handler will slowly guide the loop of the lead onto Trinity as she is collecting treats from the handler, and she is leashed. They will proceed outside for a walk. Trinity displays a neutral, still frame as she pulls slightly on the lead. Minimal leash pressure is applied. Trinity will explore different parts of the sidewalk over the course of the walk. Trinity is treat motivated, periodically muzzle nudging the handler, indicating she would like a treat. The handler will cue her to sit in which she does in a soft manner, taking the treat gently when administered. They will commence their lengthy walk before returning to the facility. Trinity will enter the building as well as her kennel with no issue 05/07/25: Trinity is hard barking with raised hackles upon handler’s approach but will take treats from the handler while inside her kennel. When the handler attempts to leash her, Trinity snaps at the leash and head-whips to avoid contact, continuing to hard bark and growl. Once the handler is able to lasso the leash over her head, Trinity walks to the front of the kennel and exits with the handler on a short leash, maintaining a neutral frame. 05/06/25 (PM): Trinity greets the handler standing in front of her kennel, barking. When she stops barking the handler offers her treats and feeds her through the kennel door. The handler continues to feed Trinity through the lead before slipping the lead over her head. She treats at first but allows leashing. The handler guides Trinity out of the care center for a walk. Trinity will walk behind the handler tracking and fixating on scents. The handler escorts Trinity back to the care center, where she is kenneled and safely secured. (AM)Trinity stood up from kuranda bed and approached front of kennel. She barked at handler but would pause to eat all treats offered. When handler presented leash she began barking with teeth bared. Handler used a treat scatter to distract while lassoing. Trinity exited kennel willingly and walked to the yard. Handler crouched down and slowly clipped her to a drag leash. Handler sat on bench and let her approach on her own terms. After some time wandering the yard, Trinity jumped up on handler's lap with her front paws. Trinity engaged in mounting behavior for several seconds so handler slowly stood up without touching her. Trinity got down and handler picked up drag leash to return to kennel. Handler unclipped drag leash as she walked into kennel. Handler dropped a toy into kennel and covered with a visual barrier for her comfort.

Summary (4):: 5/5/25: Trinity is at the the back of her kennel sleeping on her bed when approached and when approached, slowly walked to the handler without barking once. Trinity takes treats gently and allows the handler to leash and walk her out of her kennel with no issue. Trinity walks out with a neutral body, noticing a familiar handler and begins to trot alongside both staff members with her ears in a neutral position, wagging tail and looking back at the staff members. Trinity is walked outside onto the street where she explores her surroundings, not reacting to dogs, people or loud cars passing at all. Trinity when coaxed will approach staff, leaning there head in for petting and shaking off. Trinity is walked back to her kennel after her walk with no issue, allowing the staff member to remove the leash and she goes back to her bed. GO/DW 5/4/25: At kennel approach, Trinity is at the back of her kennel, barking. Her kennel is partially covered and she does not appear to notice the handler immediately (likely due to kennel stress noted in her record, refer to GAN 5/3/25). Once uncovered, Trinity’s body begins to soften, shifting from tense to more neutral. She approaches with a low posture and a fast, neutral tail wag. Trinity vocalizes briefly while a new handler begins to feed her treats the familiar handler remains nearby, softly baby-talking her. Trinity remains vocal and a bit weary of the new handler but accepts the treats and allows the new handler to place a leash over her head with gentle coaxing. She is walked out of the kennel with no resistance, trotting alongside the second handler and glancing back occasionally at the familiar handler. Her body remains neutral, tail wagging, and she pulls very little. Once in the yard, Trinity greets both handlers with a loose body and wagging tail, and leans in for petting. She is slowly introduced to a collar. Upon visual presentation, Trinity shows no avoidance or tension. She leans into the handler’s touch as the collar is placed around her neck and clipped on without issue. When a third handler enters the yard, Trinity remains neutral and does not display any reactivity towards them. She is walked back to her kennel slowly, checking in with the familiar handler throughout the return. Upon arrival, she enters willingly, allows the leash to be removed, and begins exploring the kennel and bedding with no issue. 5/3/25: Trinity is observed to be barking in her kennel throughout the day, and hypersalivating.

Summary (5):: 5/3/25: Upon initial approach, Trinity is at the front of the kennel, vocalizing with repeated upward-directed barks, appearing to scan the environment. As the handler draws closer, she transitions into sharp, barking accompanied by snarling. Her body remains tense, with tail tucked and facial muscles tight. The handler adopts the same soft, non-confrontational posture used in the previous session. High-value food is delivered through the bars. Despite maintaining a stiff posture, Trinity is able to orient toward the handler, tracking movement and accepting food. To begin systematic leash desensitization, the leash is introduced in a passive manner—draped near the handler’s knee and not directed toward the dog. At this presentation, Trinity exhibits escalated vocalizations hard barking and emits a deep snarl while fixating on the object. Her eyes widen and her weight shifts back slightly. The leash is repositioned farther away but remains within her visual field. As this occurs, she resumes eating when offered chicken. The leash is then presented through the kennel gate in a loop format (mimicking later leashing conditions in kennel), while remaining physically outside the kennel. Trinity initially displays a similar patterns, snarling and hard barking, by lip licking and partial retreats. Trinity lowers her head and ingests food while cautiously remaining at the front. Reinforcement is given each time she raises her head or shows interest in the handler. After approx. 10 minutes of passive exposure and food pairing, Trinity accepts food through the leash loop without displaying avoidance. The kennel door is slowly opened, and Trinity initially vocalizes with low barks. However, she makes no attempt to flee or escalate. The leash is carefully introduced inside the kennel and placed near her, where she sniffs it and continues to take food through the loop. She remains in a semi-neutral body posture and permits the leash to be placed over her neck. Once leashed, Trinity exits the kennel willingly, her posture remaining low but without resistance or freezing. In the yard, Trinity displays hypervigilance and she orients frequently to her environment with limited engagement toward the handler. She scans while moving, nose to ground, and maintains distance. Over time, as she continues to sniff and self-soothe exploring her environment, and her body language begins to soften overtime. She resumes eating from the handler and engages in a “find it” game. She retrieves treats both from the ground and the handler’s hand, and intermittently orients toward the handler with sustained eye contact. She begins to offer sit cues in exchange for reinforcement. Her body remains alert but loose. Trinity is then walked through the street environment with minimal handler input to allow self-guided exposure.

Summary (6):: 5/3/25: (Continued) She chooses her direction freely and engages in prolonged sniffing. During this phase, she initiates subtle behaviors, including light tail wags, orienting toward the handler, and taking food from the handler’s hand. When the handler crouches to assess comfort, Trinity approaches with a neutral body and permits gentle contact under the chin. She briefly leans into touch before returning to exploration. Due to kennel conditions and not being cleaned yet, Trinity is brought in the behavior office. In this new setting, she approaches additional staff members of her own accord, displaying a slow wag and allowing chin scratches without hesitation. She demonstrates social behaviors including soft eye contact, gentle leaning into touch, and neutral body language. She is returned to her kennel without issue and remains neutral during leash removal. The handler lingers post-return; no signs of barrier frustration or reactivity are observed. Trinity remains at the front with a relaxed posture and is left with food items to promote decompression and positive association.

Summary (7):: 5/2/25: At the beginning of the session, Trinity is at the front of the kennel upon handler approach. She displays repeated, sharp vocalizations with intermittent tooth display. Her overall posture is rigid—muscle tension is visible in her limbs and torso, and her tail is tightly tucked beneath her body. Eyes are wide and tracking, with direct attention on the handler. When the handler lowers their body posture to a crouch, Trinity remains stiff and does not disengage. She elevates her head slightly and exhibits a low, sustained snarl directed toward the kennel gate. No lunging or charging behavior is observed during this moment. High-value food is introduced by tossing small pieces of chicken to the ground inside the kennel. After several tosses, Trinity lowers her head to consume the food while maintaining a tense body posture. Her movements remain cautious, and she does not orient fully away from the handler. With continued food pairing, Trinity begins to shift slightly closer to the bars and takes chicken pieces directly from the handler’s hand through the gate. During this exchange, her barking ceases, though body tension remains present. She maintains a semi-stationary posture near the front, showing both hesitancy and approach behaviors. Throughout the session, environmental sensitivity is noted. When other staff members pass by her kennel, Trinity immediately returns to vocalizing with intensity, accompanied by a lifted lip, forward-leaning posture, and visible snarling. However, these reactivity spikes are not sustained and Once the trigger is no longer present, she disengages, intermittently lip licks, and retreats a short distance within the kennel, only to return again to the gate within seconds. The session is deliberately brief, lasting under 10 minutes, in order to observe predictability and to avoid overexposure or triggering prolonged arousal. The goal was to introduce the handler as a consistent, non-invasive presence while pairing proximity with high-value food in a controlled and manageable context. Trinity demonstrated early indicators of potential response to counterconditioning, including a marked decrease in vocalization, willingness to eat in the handler’s presence, and slight approach behavior despite initial displays of defensive aggression. Her behavior is consistent with fear-based defensiveness, not offensive aggression. No attempts to make physical contact were initiat

Date of intake:: 5/1/2025

Summary:: allows handling, timid, takes treats rough

Date of initial:: 5/2/2025

Summary:: lunging, growling, snarling, sedated

ENERGY LEVEL:: Trinity is described as active and enthusiastic. She will need daily mental and physical activity to keep her engaged and exercised. We recommend long-lasting chews, food puzzles, and hide-and-seek games, in addition to physical exercise, to positively direct her energy and enthusiasm. We recommend feeding with puzzle feeders and food-dispensing toys. And we recommend only force-free, reward-based training techniques for Trinity.

BEHAVIOR DETERMINATION:: New Hope Only

Recommendations:: No children (under 13),Place with a New Hope partner

Recommendations comments:: No children (under 13): Due to Trinity's fearfulness displayed in care, we recommend she goes to an adult-only home. Place with a New Hope partner: Due to Trinity's fearfulness displayed in care, we recommend she is placed with one of our New Hope Partners.

Potential challenges: : Resource guarding,Fearful/potential for defensive aggression,Anxiety

Potential challenges comments:: Resource guarding: Trinity's previous owner notes that she may growl and bark loudly when her food or toys are approached. We recommend that Trinity be left alone while eating and playing with toys. Nothing should ever be taken directly out of Trinity's mouth, and any time something is removed she should be rewarded with a high-value treat or toy. She should be taught the "drop" cue and trade-up games. See handout on Resource Guarding. Fearful/potential for defensive aggression: Trinity has escalated to growling and lunging on multiple occasions both at intake and during her time in the care center. Her signs of discomfort must be respected; Trinity should never be forced to interact, and she should always be given the opportunity to walk away from situations or people she finds uncomfortable. We recommend a slow approach and we recommend only force-free, reward-based training methods for Trinity. More aversive techniques are likely to increase fear, increase the risk of aggression, and decrease Trinity's quality of life. Anxiety: Trinity is highly anxious in the care center, hyper salivating and barking in her kennel throughout the day. We recommend long walks and puzzle toys to help her alleviate her anxiety. See handout on Generalized Anxiety.