Date of intake:: 9/17/2026

Spay/Neuter status:: No

Means of surrender (length of time in previous home):: Stray, limited history (1 week with finder)

Previously lived with:: Adults

Behavior toward strangers:: Playful, tolerant, friendly, and outgoing

Behavior toward children:: Playful and tolerant

Behavior toward dogs:: No experience

Behavior toward cats:: No experience

Resource guarding:: No resource guarding reported

Bite history:: No history

Housetrained:: Partially

Energy level/descriptors:: Okapi's finder described her as medium energy.

Other Notes:: Okapi was found as a stray but spent one week with her finder before being surrendered to the shelter. They reported that she pulls hard on leash and is anxious when left alone. On walks she pulls towards other animals, children, strangers, other dogs, and vehicles. She is unbothered by being disturbed when sleeping, being moved from furniture, having her paws touched or her collar grabbed. She is fearful when startled and has never been held or restrained. During her time with her finder, she relieved herself on newspaper in a designated area of the home.

Date of assessment:: 9/22/2026

Summary:: Leash Walking Strength and pulling: no pulling Reactivity to humans: did not pass Reactivity to dogs: did not pass Leash walking comments: Sociability Loose in room (15-20 seconds): sniffed and explored room, approached people with loose body Call over: approached readily with loose body Sociability comments: Handling Soft handling: leaned in, whale eye Exuberant handling: leaned in Handling comments: Arousal Jog: hackles up, jumped up on handler Arousal comments: increase in arousal with faster movement Knock: approached handler readily with loose body, jumped up Knock Comments: Toy: interested, sniffed hand Toy comments:

Summary:: Due to entering the facility as a stray, there is no prior dog-dog history recorded. 09/22/26 Okapi is introduced to a novel male while off leash. She approaches the gate with a forward, square frame and her hackles along her spine raise. Okapi will jump and vocalize, elbows remaining stiff and at some portions stands forward onto her tiptoes. She does not loosen during the interaction.

Summary (7):: 09/25/26: Okapi is standing at the front of her kennel with a neutral body as handler approaches. She tries to push past the kennel door but handler is able to leash her and take her to the yard for a walk. She remains loose bodied in the yard, sniffing around, and chasing after pigeons. She is returned to her kennel on a kennel rope without issue. 9/22/26 (BA): Okapi is at the front of her kennel laying down as the handler approaches but she will get up and is leashed with ease as she pushes out of kennel. Once she is in the behavior office, she is loose and wiggly with all handlers in the room and her assessment is conducted. Once she is brought out of the room to be returned to kennel, Okapi will thrash quickly, placing her paws on the leash and pulling down. On a third attempt, Okapi will lightly mouth the leash. When a familiar handler attempts to return her to kennel, she will thrash again. They are able to carry her back to kennel and she is secured safely. (see behavior assessment for more details) 09/18/26: Assistance is requested with retrieving a leash from Okapi after she became fearful and did not want to exit kennel. Staff handler was able to leash her, but she was trembling and did not want to come to the front of kennel so they dropped their leash inside and attempted to use a hook to remove it. She became tense and began to bite at the hook. As behavior handlers approached, Okapi growled from the back of kennel. Behavior handler cracked open the kennel door and slowly grabbed the end of the leash. Okapi came out of kennel easily and walked to the Canine Behavior Office where she would slowly approach handlers in a social manner. After her session, handler is able to clip their leash and return her to kennel safely.

Date of intake:: 9/17/2026

Summary:: Friendly, jumped up to lick staff

Date of initial:: 9/18/2026

Summary:: Initially tolerant followed by lip curl, growl, snap

ENERGY LEVEL:: We have limited history on Okapi so we cannot be certain of her behavior in a home environment. However, she is a young, enthusiastic dog who 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 additional to physical exercise, to positively direct her energy and enthusiasm.

BEHAVIOR DETERMINATION:: New Hope Only

Recommendations:: No children (under 13),Recommend no dog parks,Place with a New Hope partner

Recommendations comments:: No children (under 13): During her medical intake, Okapi showed fearful behavior and the potential for defensive escalations when stressed. For these reasons, we feel that an adult only home would be most beneficial for Okapi at this time. Recommend No Dog Parks: Due to the concerning behaviors that Okapi has shown during playgroup (see DOG-DOG SUMMARY), we feel that she should not visit dog parks. The Behavior Department recommends that she be socialized in a more controlled setting until her behavior towards other dogs can be further addressed. Reward-based, force-free training can be utilized to help Okapi associate dogs with things she enjoys like toys or treats. Place with a New Hope partner: Due to Okapi's fearful behavior in the care center, both with medical handling and when being moved in and out of her kennel, we recommend placement with a New Hope partner who can provide any necessary behavior modification (force-free, positive reinforcement-based) and re-evaluate behavior in a stable home environment before placement into a permanent home.

Potential challenges: : Basic manners/poor impulse control,Fearful/potential for defensive aggression,Separation anxiety,On-leash reactivity/barrier frustration,Leash-biting

Potential challenges comments:: Fearful/potential for defensive aggression: Okapi has shown fearful behavior in the care center, including growling and snapping during medical handling and showing reluctance to enter and exit her kennel. She gives clear warnings when she is uncomfortable, and does seem to choose to avoid or retreat when given the opportunity, but if prevented from moving away, there is a potential to escalate to these higher-level warning behaviors. It is important to move slowly with her, to build positive associations (treats/toys/praise), and to allow Okapi to initiate interactions with new people. She should never be forced to greet or to interact if he is not comfortable and is not soliciting attention. Please see handout on Fearful/potential for defensive aggression. Basic manners/poor impulse control: Okapi has been observed to jump up on handlers in a social manner. It is recommended that default behaviors such as "Sit" and "Off" are reinforced to substitute any frustration and teach her to control her impulses instead of simply reacting; proper management is also advised. Force-free, reward-based training only is recommended. Please see handout on Basic Manners. On Leash Reactivity: While spending the week with her finder, Okapi was reported to pull on leash when seeing other dogs, people or vehicles. Okapi may need positive reinforcement, reward based training to teach her to look at you rather than other things in the environment. We recommend a front clip harness to help manage this behavior. Please see handout on On Leash Reactivity and Barrier Frustration. Separation anxiety: While spending the week with her finder, Okapi was also reported to get anxious while left alone. We do not know the nature or intensity of this behavior, but we recommend that potential adopters feel comfortable with managing and positively modifying separation-related behaviors should they appear in a home environment. Leash biting: Okapi has been observed for leash bite when being returned to the kennel. Please see handout on Arousal.