Date of intake:: 12/4/2024

Spay/Neuter status:: No

Means of surrender (length of time in previous home):: Owner Surrender, 7 Years

Previously lived with:: 3 Adults, 2 Children

Behavior toward strangers:: Noted to initially alert bark but is friendly, outgoing, and playful.

Behavior toward children:: Noted to be tolerant.

Behavior toward dogs:: Noted to be tolerant and playful with unfamiliar/familiar dogs that are on/off leash.

Behavior toward cats:: No experience

Resource guarding:: None Reported

Bite history:: None Reported

Housetrained:: Yes

Energy level/descriptors:: High

Other Notes:: Noted to have general anxiety. Hercules barks/growls when disturbed. He isn't bothered when his collar is grabbed/touched or when he is restrained. Hercules is described as social, affectionate, very active, and playful. He spent most of his time in the bedroom. For exercise, he goes on 1-2 hour walks, 3-4 times a day and pulls hard on the leash. He relieves himself when on walks. He loves bath time and allows his owner/family to bathe him. He is crate-trained but no longer needs it. He has never been in a car. He responds to the following cues: sit, stay, go to your bed, and get down. His hobbies include: walking/running off leash and playing fetch with his favorite ball. He eats Rachel Ray, dry food. His previous owner's favorite thing about Hercules: He is very playful and loving.

Date of assessment:: 12/6/2024

Summary:: Leash Walking Strength and pulling: Hard pulling – pressure is maintained the entire time on leash Reactivity to humans: No reactivity but fixates on some people Reactivity to dogs: None-ignores Leash walking comments: Sociability Loose in room (15-20 seconds): Distracted, does not approach – active, exploring environment, not fearful Call over: Approaches Sociability comments: Handling Soft handling: Tolerates contact – not relaxed, lip licks, distracted Exuberant handling: Tolerates contact – not relaxed, lip licks, distracted Handling comments: Whale eyes, soften a bit Arousal Jog: Follows handler (loose, neutral) Arousal comments: Knock: Knock Comments: No response Toy: Toy comments: Hovers, recovers quickly

Summary:: 12/17/24: Hercules greets another dog at the gate with a tense face and neutral body. he begins to whine with high tail wag.

Summary (6):: 1/19/25: Hercules is laying in the back of his kennel as handler approaches. He gets up and quickly picks up a toy from his kennel and approaches the front. He is leashed without issue and pulls moderately out of kennel and into the hallway. Hercules holds on to his toy during his walk and once on the street will pull hard, so handler places Hercules on a slip lead harness which alleviates his pulling tremendously. He walks slightly in front of handler and walks past people on the street without issue. He stops to use the bathroom or to sniff spots on the street and will turn to engage with handler and for treats. Hercules will drop his toy for treats and allows petting around his chin and head for brief intervals before disengaging calmly to interact with his toy. Hercules is brought back to the building after a while and returned to kennel without issue.

Summary (7):: 1/13/25: ACS reports that Hercules started jumping up, grabbing, pulling, and shaking their treat pouch. When the handler unclipped the treat pouch, Hercules began to rip up part of the treat bag. 1/1/25: Hercules is observed to be biting his kennel bars. When handlers go to leash him, it is reported that he is pushing his way out of kennel. 12/14/24: Hercules was observed to bark at the transfer door at the back of his kennel. He stops and comes to the front when called by handler and takes a treat offered. 12/12/24: Hercules is observed to be biting at the bars of the kennel. 12/6/24: Hercules is standing at the front of his kennel as handler approaches. He is leashed while distracted with treats and walked out to the street for his walk. While outside Hercules pulls hard and walks past people without issue accept for two people he fixates on. In both instances he is redirected by calling his name, he also spots some dogs on his walk but is uninterested and passes them without issue. He is then brought into the behavior office for an assessment, during which he approaches handlers and accepts treats softly from hand. He tolerates collaring but at one point when adjusting the collar he turns his head with an open mouth towards handlers hand as the collar is being adjusted but overall is distracted by treats. He allows petting from handlers while distracted with more treats and after finishing hs assessment is brought back to kennel and returned without issue.

Date of initial:: 12/4/2024

Summary:: Tense body, whale eys

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

IN SHELTER OBSERVATIONS:: 12/26/24: After Hercules assessment, his collar was being adjusted by a staff member. Hercules displayed whale eyes, turned his head and display small "chomps" near his hand but did not make contact or growl or bark.

BEHAVIOR DETERMINATION:: Level 4

Recommendations:: No children (under 13)

Recommendations comments:: No children (under 13): Due to Hercules fearful behavior and what he displays after his assessment (see In-Shelter Observation) Hercules should go to a home with older behavioral savvy children.

Potential challenges: : Resource guarding,Basic manners/poor impulse control,Mouthiness/poor bite inhibition,Handling/touch sensitivity,Fearful/potential for defensive aggression,Anxiety,Strength/leash pulling

Potential challenges comments:: Resource guarding: During his assessment Hercules hover over a toy. Positive reinforcement should be utilized to help manage this behavior. Please see the handout on Resource Guarding. Basic Manners/ Mouthiness: Hercules has been observed to jump up and mouth handlers treat bags. It is recommended that default behaviors such as "Sit" and "Off" are reinforced to substitute any frustration and teach them to control their impulses instead of simply reacting; proper management is also advised. Force-free, reward-based training only is recommended. Please see handout on Basic Manners. Please see handout on mouthiness. Handling/touch sensitivity: Hercules displayed discomfort with some handling towards the end of his assessment. Treats and toys should be paired with handling to make Hercules comfortable. Please see the handout on Handling/touch sensitivity. Fearful/potential for defensive aggression: Hercules is noted to growl/bark when he is disturbed, and noted to initially hard bark at strangers when approached. We recommend Hercules to initiate interactions with new people. He should never be forced to greet or to interact if he is not comfortable and soliciting attention. Hercules would do best in an initially calm and quiet home environment and should be given time to acclimate to his new surroundings. See handouts on Decompression Period and Fearful and Defensive Aggression. Anxiety: Hercules is noted to be anxious. If he displays anxious behavior in his future home, we recommend puzzle toys, long walks, and giving him other things to focus on to alleviate his anxiety. Positive reinforcement, force-free training only should be used. Strength/leash pulling: Hercules is a large, strong dog with the capability to pull over an average adopter, so his adopter must be prepared and able to handle a dog of this size and strength. It is recommended that he be walked on a front clip harness or head halter, which help diminish his strength through leverage, and that he be trained using positive reinforcement, reward-based training to not pull on leash.