Date of intake:: 10/9/2026

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

Previously lived with:: atleast 1 adult

Behavior toward strangers:: Minimal experience. May bark or growl at first but is friendly

Behavior toward children:: unknown

Behavior toward dogs:: playful

Behavior toward cats:: playful

Resource guarding:: Considers treats items of value and will have a tense body or hover over the items when approached.

Bite history:: When attempting to rehome Rex privately, he bit his potential adopter. The incident did not draw blood and reportedly caught the person's pants. The owner stated that they think the reason he escalated was that the person was leaving and Rex had separation anxiety.

Housetrained:: Partially

Energy level/descriptors:: Rex is reported to have a high energy level.

Other Notes:: Relieves himself on walks or on wee-wee pads and very rarely has indoor accidents Jumps up often/non-stop and is anxious when left alone On walks he is known to bark or growl at strangers and children. This can also be observed when his home is approached by strangers. He is unbothered by being held, restrained, disturbed when sleeping, being startled or moved from furniture, having his paws touched or collar grabbed

Date of assessment:: 10/12/2026

Summary:: Rex has escalated to growling, baring his teeth, hard barking, and lunging in his kennel when approached. When out of his kennel, he is tense and jumps up and fixates on the leash. Due to his behavior, a handling assessment is not conducted.

Summary (6):: 10/15/26: (PM): Rex is standing at the front of his kennel as handler approaches. He begins jumping and barking at the door as the handler unlocks it and is unable to be distracted when the handler tosses treats inside. He continues to jump up and bark at the door as the handler gets there leash over his head. Once leashed, he then pulls hard on the way to the medical room due to having some concerning blood in his kennel. He is able to be distracted with treats as a doctor takes a look at his foot and paw. He is the taken outside for a walk. On the walk, he would pull ahead as he sniffed around and would constantly mark his territory. He pulls hard on the way back to his kennel, and when reaching the front kennel door of the kennel, he begins to back away and thrash on the leash as the handler attempts to muscle him in. Once muscled in, he then quickly spins around and grabs the handler's leash as they close the door. The handler then let's go of the leash and he continues to tug at it while it was stuck in the door. Another handler comes over to assist, he continues to tug at the leash as the handlers toss treats and squeaks squeakers. He does not respond to a pet corrector and eventually quickly let's go when the treats start to fall on his head. The the handler's are then able to quickly pull the leash out as he attempts to grab it again. 10/15/26: (AM): Rex is standing at the front of his kennel as handler approaches. He begins jumping and barking at the door as the handler unlocks it and is able to be distracted when the handler tosses treats inside. He quickly eats the treats and attempts to jump up and grab the the leash as the handler quickly leashes him. Once leashed, he then pulls hard while heavy panting on the way outside for a walk. On the walk, he would continue to pull ahead as he sniffed around. He would constantly pull towards trees to sniff and mark his territory. He would stare at dogs and people nearby and is able to be distracted with a squeaker. He is then comfortable taking treats. He pulls hard on the way back to his kennel and he enters when treats are tossed inside. He has no interest in the treats , and he then quickly spins around an grabs the handers leash. He is able to drop it for a quick second. The handler then tosses more treats above and he is able to quickly pulls the leash out as he attempts to grab it again. He barks at the door as the handler locks it and walks away.

Summary (7):: 10/14: Rex is standing on his kennel door when a handler approaches. He is hard barking, jumping on the kennel door, and muzzle-punching the glass. As the handler opens the door, he bites and pulls the lead in. He doesn't show interest in the handler's treats and continues to jump up and tries to grab more of the treats. Rex does not hold onto the lead and only continues to grab and pull, following the handler up as the stand after getting their lead out, growling at them. It takes the handler a few minutes, with the use of sliced cheese and spray cheese (which he does not reliably take), for the handler to successfully leash him. Rex pulls hard out of the building and is taken on a walk. He does not react to passing strangers, bikes, or strangers that approach the handlers to ask a question. On the walk back to the building, a stranger attempts to interact with Rex, but he does not initially notice. The handler begins to maneuver away from the stranger as they reach their hand out to touch him despite the handler's warnings. Rex swings around to face the stranger, body stiffening and hackles quickly standing. His lips pucker, but the handler quickly crosses the street before Rex reacts further. He is then returned to his kennel without issue. 10/12/26: Rex is at the front of his kennel as the handler approaches and begins to jump, bark, and push forward as the handler opens the door. Once leashed he is taken outside for a walk where he loosens up, with only mild pulling and lots of sniffing. He balks at the entrance of his kennel, but then readily follows a toy as it's thrown in. 10/10/26: Rex is at the front of his kennel as the handler approaches. He is sitting at first, but when the handler begins to unlock the lock, Rex jumps at the door, hard barks, and bears teeth. He is leashed easily and brought to the office. In the office, Rex sniffs around, but becomes increasingly tense. He jumps up and fixates on the leash. The handler takes him outside for a walk instead. On the walk, Rex is still tense and walking at the end of the leash, but he sniffs around and stops frequently to mark. He is brought back inside and returned to his kennel with no issue.

Date of intake:: 10/9/2026

Summary:: hard barking and growling at staff, lunged at window when seeing staff approach car

Date of initial:: 10/9/2026

Summary:: hard barking at front of kennel to the point of hoarse bark, sedation required for exam/tasks

BEHAVIOR DETERMINATION:: New Hope Only

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

Recommendations comments:: No children (under 13): Due to Rex's potential for defensive escalations, resource guardingh, and leash biting, we feel that an adult-only home would be most beneficial at this time. Place with a New Hope Partner: Due to all noted concerns displayed in a home environment and during his stay in care, the behavior department recommends Rex 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 Rex to acclimate comfortably to his new environment; force-free, reward-based training only is advised when introducing him to new and unfamiliar situations. Consultation with a professional trainer/behaviorist is highly recommended for guidance to safely manage/modify any behavior Rex presents with outside of the care centers.

Potential challenges: : Resource guarding,Basic manners/poor impulse control,Fearful/potential for defensive aggression,Separation anxiety,On-leash reactivity/barrier frustration,Leash-biting,Kennel presence,Bite history (human)

Potential challenges comments:: Resource Guarding: Rex is reported to guard treats and will become tense and hover over them when approached. His response was appropriate, and we cannot be certain if this behavior will be seen in a future home environment. Nothing should ever be taken directly out of Rex's mouth, and any time something is removed he should be rewarded with a high-value treat or toy. He should be taught the "drop" cue and trade-up games. Please see handout on Resource Guarding. Basic manners/poor impulse control: Rex is reported to jump up often in the previous home. It is recommended that default behaviors such as "Leave it", "Sit/Stay", "Down" are reinforced to substitute any frustration and teach him to control his impulses instead of simply reacting; proper management is also advised. Force-free, reward based training only is recommended. Please see handout on Basic manners/poor impulse control. Fearful/Potential for Defensive Aggression: Rex has escalated to growling and lunging on multiple occasions both at intake and during his time in the care center. His signs of discomfort must be respected; Rex should never be forced to interact; he should always be given the opportunity to walk away from situations or people he finds uncomfortable. We recommend a slow approach, and we recommend only force-free, reward-based training methods for Rex. More aversive techniques are likely to increase fear, increase the risk of aggression, and decrease Rex's quality of life. Please see handout on Fearful/Defensive Aggression. Bite history (human): Rex is reported to have bitten the pants of a potential adopter when his previous owner was attempting to rehome privately. Separation anxiety: Rex is reported to become anxious when left alone in the home, but his previous owner did not detail how this behavior manifested or if any steps were taken to modify the behavior. Please see handout on separation anxiety. On-leash reactivity/barrier frustration: Rex is reported to hard bark or growl at strangers and children on walks. He is noted to also display this behavior when strangers approach the home. Rex may need positive reinforcement, reward-based training to teach him to look at you rather than other dogs. We recommend a front clip harness or head halter to help manage this behavior. Please see handout on On-leash reactivity/barrier frustration. Leash biting: Rex has been observed to jump up and bite the leash, pulling it into his kennel when he loves attempt to remove him for walks. Outside of the kennel, he has positioned himself to jump up as if to bite the leash but has not followed through. Please see handout on arousal. Kennel presence: Rex has escalated to bearing teeth, growling, hard barking, lunging, and muzzle punching the glass when approached in the kennel. It is unknown if he displays these behaviors outside of care when in stressful situations. Please see the handout on kennel