Date of intake:: 4/13/2025

Means of surrender (length of time in previous home):: Stray (Limited History)

Bite history:: Xena is reported to have bitten her owner on the left arm. No skin was broken nor was blood drawn, but the bite did leave a bruise. No further information about the bite was provided.

Date of assessment:: 4/14/2025

Summary:: 4/14/25: Leash Walking Strength and pulling: moderate - hard pulling Reactivity to humans: inconclusive - did not pass Reactivity to dogs: inconclusive - did not pass Leash walking comments: barked at other dogs while in kennel Sociability Loose in room (15-20 seconds): enters room panting but loose bodied, explores, checks in, accepts treats Call over: approaches with coaxing Sociability comments: bounces toward seated assessor Handling Soft handling: stiffens, whale eye, lip lick Exuberant handling: stiffens, whale eye, lip licks, begins to lean away from assessor Handling comments: does not shake off Arousal Jog: follows, darts past assessor Arousal comments: Knock: tense, does not esclate Knock Comments: Toy: grips, firm, moves away Toy comments: ***03/27/25: Xena displays fearfulness and kennel fighting. Xena is given more time to decompress.***

Summary:: Due to Xena entering the facility as a stray, there is no prior dog-to-dog history recorded. 04/20/25 Xena is introduced at the gate to a novel male dog while off leash at the care center. Xena will stalk the novel male dog from a distance, army crawling her way to the gate with a hard face. Xena displays a stiff frame. As the novel male dog stands behind the gate with a stiff frame while hyper salivating, Xena is moved away. Xena is returned to kennel, concluding the interaction.

Summary (6):: 04/29/25 Xena is standing on her kennel door with a stiff frame, hard barking at other dogs in their kennels. The handler will unlock the kennel door and Xena stops hard barking. The handler will attempt to leash Xena, but she dodges the lead, backing into kennel. Xena will do this a few times before being coaxed with treats and leashed simultaneously, while she's administered treats. Xena is taken outside for a walk. Xena displays a neutral frame as she trots moderately beside the handler. Xena will see other dog's with novel handlers and lunge towards their direction, but the handler applies directional leash pressure in order to commence the walk. Xena and the handler will commence their walk and Xena gradually becomes visibly relaxed. As they return to the facility, she will become tense again, anticipating the arrival of her kennel room. She is quickly ran into her kennel and the handler tosses in a toy, distracting Xena as she is lead in. She engages with the toy upon arrival.

Summary (7):: 4/20/25: Xena is at the front of her kennel hard barking across the kennel from her when she is removed from kennel and immediately tries to kennel fight the dog next to her, lunging and barking. Xena is brought out the yard where she begins to hard stare at other dogs on the sidewalk, and is brought to the pens for a greet. (See dog-dog summary for more details) Xena is brought back into her kennel and is put into her kennel not kennel fighting with that same dog due to that dog being covered. 4/15: While two handlers were attempting to coax a dog that had pancaked in front of Xena's kennel, she was observed to hard bark and growl. Her behaviors escalated when the fearful dog began to roll onto it's side, causing her tail to drop closer to Xena. Xena began biting the bars of her kennel and attempting to use her paws to swipe the other dog's tail into her kennel. One of the handlers quickly use their lead to sling under the other dog's hips, dropping the toys they were using to coax the other dogs in front of Xena. She grabs the closest toy to her and pulls it into her kennel, biting, growling, and shaking it. 04/14/25: Xena is standing at the front of kennel with a neutral frame as handler approaches. She begins to bark at dogs in the kennel across the way but is easily redirected with tossed treats and leashed with ease. Upon exiting kennel, Xena will lightly pull toward neighboring kennels but is easily redirected with directional leash pressure. She pulls mildly to the Canine Behavior Office for assessment (see Behavior Assessment for further details). Xena is loose and wiggly throughout her time in the room and takes treats gently from hand. She shows some conflicted behaviors, becoming slightly tense and showing whale eye during the touch portion of assessment. After her session, she is leashed with ease and returns to kennel safely.

Date of intake:: 4/13/2025

Summary:: hard bark, but allowed leashing

Date of initial:: 4/13/2025

Summary:: allowed handling

BEHAVIOR DETERMINATION:: New Hope Only

Recommendations:: No children (under 13),No cats,Single-pet home,Recommend no dog parks,Place with a New Hope partner

Recommendations comments:: No children (under 13): Due to Xena's bite history and defensive warnings, we recommend a home without children. No cats/Single-pet home/Recommend no dog parks: Due to Xena's reactivity, and behavior with other dogs in her dog-dog summary, we recommend Xena goes home as a single pet, and does not visit dog parks. Place with a New Hope Partner: Due to the concerns reported in the previous home and displayed in care, the behavior department recommends Xena be placed with a New Hope placement partner who is able to provide an experienced adult-only foster home. A period of decompression is recommended to allow her to acclimate comfortably to her new environment; force-free, reward-based training only is advised when introducing Xena to new and unfamiliar situations. Consultation with a professional trainer/behaviorist is highly recommended for guidance to safely manage/modify any behavior Xena presents outside of the care centers.

Potential challenges: : Fearful/potential for defensive aggression,On-leash reactivity/barrier frustration,Bite history (human)

Potential challenges comments:: Fearful/potential for defensive aggression: Xena was reported to hard bark and growl at officers during her pick up. During her intake, she barked at staff but allowed for minimal handling. Guidance from a professional trainer/behaviorist is recommended to assess behavior after decompression in a new home environment. Force-free, reward based training is advised when introducing or exposing Sasha to new and unfamiliar situations. Please see handout on Fearful/potential for defensive aggression. Bite history (human): Xena was reported to have bitten her owner, but did not break skin or draw blood; the bite did result in a bruise. Details about the incident were not provided. On-leash reactivity/barrier frustration: Xena has been observed to hard bark, growl, swat, and bite her kennel bars when other dogs pass her kennel. Please see handout on On-leash reactivity/barrier frustration.