Date of intake:: 11/7/2025

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

Previously lived with:: 2 adults, has previously lived with small and medium sized dogs

Behavior toward strangers:: Friendly and outgoing, barks

Behavior toward children:: alert barks

Behavior toward dogs:: tolerant of familiar dogs, social/playful with unfamiliar dogs on and off leash

Behavior toward cats:: tolerant

Resource guarding:: none reported

Bite history:: none reported

Housetrained:: Partially

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

Other Notes:: Jumps up often, barks a lot, has destructive tendencies, is anxious when left alone, pulls really hard on the leash, bites the leash, can be mouthy when taking treats, and is fearful of loud noises. On walks, he is reactive to strangers who approach, children, and other dogs; he will bark at them or try and jump up on them if they are close. He is unbothered by being held or restrained, disturbed while sleeping, being startled, moved from furniture and having his collar touched. He will bark or growl if his paws are touched. Joey loves bath time and water and will allow his family to bathe and brush him but is not a fan of nail trimmings.

Date of assessment:: 11/10/2025

Summary:: 11/10: Leash Walking Strength and pulling: mild - moderate pulling Reactivity to humans: inconclusive - did not pass Reactivity to dogs: inonclusive - did not pass Leash walking comments: Sociability Loose in room (15-20 seconds): hard barks once upon entering room, difficulty focusing, jumps up persistently for treats Call over: approaches with coaxing Sociability comments: body softens, remains vocal and will demand bark for more treats Handling Soft handling: vocal, jumps up, leans in slightly, begins panting Exuberant handling: vocal, jumps up, leans in slightly, begins panting Handling comments: difficult to position due to anxiety Arousal Jog: follows, stares at the handler's knees Arousal comments: Knock: hard barks, body tense Knock Comments: slowly recovers after a few seconds Toy: grips, moves away Toy comments: loose body 11/9/25: Joey begins hard barking at the seated assessor upon entering the behavior office. He is tense with his hackles raised, but he does explore the room. Both handlers offer him treats, and he does offer the seated assessor a brief wiggle after approaching on his own to sniff them. But Joey overwhelms himself and he grumbles while turning to face the handler leading him on their lead, to then jump on them. Due to his conflicting body language, he is returned to his kennel to be given more time to acclimate. On the way out of the behavior office, Joey begins barking hard at a third handler who was holding the office door open and the assessor.

Summary:: According to Joey's previous owner(s), he is tolerant with familiar dogs. Joey is friendly, playful, outgoing, and tolerant of unfamiliar dogs when off-leash and can be playful with unfamiliar dogs on leash. 11/10/25 Joey is introduced at the gate to a female helper dog wile off leash at the care center. Joey will approach the gate appearing conflicted as he pays mind to the handler in the female dog's pen, ignoring the female dog. As the female dog attempts to solicit his attention, Joey prey bows with a tense body, running to and from the gate line in which the female dog stood. Joey begins alert barking, becoming aroused as he displays hackles and displays a lack of focus. Joey is returned to kennel, concluding the interaction.

Summary (6):: 12/20/25: Joey is observed to hard bark/lunge at dogs and bark at several strangers walking past him. 12/19/25: Joey is observed to be jumping, hard barking and growling at his kennel door when people pass by his kennel. 12/17/25 (Trainer Note): Joey is standing at the front of his kennel with a loose body as the handler approaches. He is easily leashed and pulls moderately to the canine training room. He is loose and social with the handler. The handler works with him on sitting as he approaches and taking a deep breath instead of jumping. He is increasingly successful. Joey is easily leashed and returned to kennel without issue. - 12/02/25 (Trainer Note): Joey is standing at the front of his kennel with a loose body as the handler approaches. He is easily leashed and pulls moderately to the canine training room. He is loose and social with the handler, but barks repeatedly at the other handler with a loose body. The other handler exits the room and Joey engages with the primary handler with a loose body. He jumps up on the handler, but the handler works with him on sitting on approach. Joey offers deep breaths and improves on sitting each time he approaches the handler instead of jumping up. He is easily leashed and returned to kennel without issue. 11/25/25 (Trainer Note): Joey is standing at the front of his kennel with a loose body as the handler approaches. He is easily leashed and pulls moderately towards the canine training room. He barks at the other handler in the room but approaches with a soft body. He jumps up on the other handler and leans into contact. The trainer works with Joey on sit without jumping, but he has difficulty focusing. Joey repeatedly moves over to the other handler and jumps on them. The trainer picks up Joey's leash, but as soon as he realizes he cannot access the other handler, he begins to repeatedly bark and jump towards the handler. The trainer is unable to regain his focus so the handler leaves the room. Joey stands at the door and barks for a few moments before the trainer can regain his focus. The trainer works with him on the 123 game and take a breath. He is easily leashed and returned to kennel without issue.

Summary (7):: 11/14/25 (Trainer Note): Joey is standing on the glass of her kennel barking as the handler approaches. He is easily leashed and pulls moderately to the canine training room. Joey begins barking repeatedly at the handlers that are already in the room, but his body remains soft. He struggles to focus and barks when he hears other dogs. The handler works briefly with him on sitting and take a breath, but he quickly loses focus and stops taking treats. He is returned to kennel without issue. 11/10/25 (PG Note): Joey is standing at the front of his kennel and allows the handler to leash him easily. He is escorted to the play yard for a dog-to-dog introduction with a female playmate. Inside the yard, a collar and drag leash are placed on him. At the greeting gate, the playmate offers a play bow, to which Joey responds with a prey-like bow, tail wagging, and a conflicted body posture. He begins vocalizing, prompting removal from the yard. On the return to his kennel, Joey hard barks at strangers and nearby staff members. He is returned to his kennel safely. for more information see Dog to Dog notes. 11/9/25: (assessments) Joey is on his kuranda bed with a slightly tense frame and slight whale eye as the handler approaches his kennel. He will come up to the door as the handler opens the door and presents their leash. He is leashed with ease and will pull moderately to the behavior office where he immediately begins hard barking at the assessor who has their back turned to him as they are on the computer. He is able to recover and begins to sniff around the room, pulling moderately. He will sniff the assessor who he had previously barked at and becomes wiggly momentarily, but moves on quickly. He will also sniff the handler briefly and begin jumping on them. They stop him with the leash. Due to FAS, Joey's assessment is postponed. When exiting the behavior office, a third behavior staff member is standing by the door and Joey will sniff them towards them and barks again. He is guided away and returned to his kennel where he is secured safely. (Please see assessment for more information)

Date of intake:: 11/7/2025

Summary:: loose, wiggly, alert barks, jumps on staff, takes treats

Date of initial:: 11/8/2025

Summary:: loose body, resists handling and restraint

BEHAVIOR DETERMINATION:: Level 4

Recommendations:: No children (under 13)

Recommendations comments:: No children (under 13): Due to the variety of behavior concerns reported in the previous home, including barking and jumping towards children on walks and during his stay in care, we recommend that Joey to be placed in an adult-only home.

Potential challenges: : House soiling,Destructive behavior,Basic manners/poor impulse control,Mouthiness/poor bite inhibition,Handling/touch sensitivity,Fearful/potential for defensive aggression,Separation anxiety,On-leash reactivity/barrier frustration,Leash-biting,Strength/leash pulling

Potential challenges comments:: House soiling: Joey is reported to be partially house-trained. Please see the handout on House Soiling. Destructive behavior: Joey is reported to show destructive behavior in the home. We are unaware of what, if any, attempts were made to remedy this behavior but we suggest to future adopters that he will need to be provided with physical and mental stimulation and with a variety of appropriate and engaging chew toys so he can engage in necessary chewing behavior without damage to human objects. Please see the handout on Destructive behavior. Basic Manners/poor impulse control: Joey was reported to jump up non stop in his previous home. Similar behaviors have been displayed during his intake and stay in care. 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 hndout on Basic manners/poor impulse control. Mouthiness/poor bite inhibition: Joey is reproted to become mouthy when taking treats. Please see handout on Mouthiness/poor bite inhibition. Handling/touch sensitivity: Joey is reported to bark or growl if his paws are touched and did not allow his previous family to trim his nails. It is important to avoid touching his paws at this time and to be cautious when touching him in other areas as we do not know where he may have other sensitivities. Positive reinforcement, reward-based training should be used to pair touch with good things such as food rewards in order to teach Joey to be more comfortable with this. Please see the handout on Handling/touch sensitivity. Fearful/potential for defensive aggression: Joey began barking hard at the assessor during the first attempt at a handling assessment upon entering the room. He could not settle and would become conflicted at times. His signs of discomfort must be respected; Joey should never be forced to interact. He should always be allowed 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 Joey. More aversive techniques are likely to increase fear, increase the risk of aggression, and decrease Joey's quality of life. Please see handout on Fearful/potential for defensive aggression. Separation Anxiety: Joey is reported to experience separation anxiety when left alone in the previous home. Please see handout on Separation anxiety. On-leash reactivity/barrier frustration: On walks, Joey is reactive to strangers who approach, children, and other dogs; he will bark at them or try and jump up on them if they are close. Please see handout on On-leash reactivity/barrier frustration. Leash Biting: Joey is reported to bite the leash during walks in his previos home. Please see handout on Arousal.