Misty

- Any issues? Separation anxiety and fear based reactivity (dogs and people*).

- Can she live with other dogs? Possibly, with slow introductions. Bear in mind her reactivity and how this will impact your other dog(s).

- Can she live with cats? Definitely not

- What sort of home is Misty looking for? An experienced, calm home (older, dog savvy children would be considered) with someone at home most of the time, preferably without too many visitors.

Misty is the absolute sweetest. So full of love and affection, she just wants to be snuggled up next to you/on you. She's a little dog with big feelings, both positive and negative, however, and will require an experienced and understanding home, who is either willing to put in the work with her, or perhaps live a quiet life somewhere with land, where she won't be exposed to her stressors. 

Anyone interested in adopting Misty should ideally be willing to visit Misty at least a couple of times in Northampton, to start creating a bit of a connection and minimise any additional stress for her. 

Given the upheaval she has been through (returned twice), it's no wonder she's a little highly strung. With a lot of patience and understanding, she really has bags of potential. 

*Training and exercise*

She's very smart and easily picks up new things. She's been in foster for about 6 weeks now, and other than some general training, she's also been doing scentwork (which she loves!) and a bit of mantrailing (we're tweaking it, as she finds interaction with strangers overwhelming). 

She really loves learning, and we've never seen a dog so enthusiastic about it - even simple commands like "down" are the most exhilarating with Misty! She responds so well to positive reinforcement (also something to be mindful of, to make sure you don't inadvertedly reinforce something you don't mean to).

Despite her breed mix, she doesn't appear to need a significant amount of exercise, however, she has great stamina and can definitely keep going. She's a pocket rocket and a lot fun! 

*Reactivity (outside)*

Right now she finds the outside world very overwhelming. 

She's a lot more unsure about dogs than people, but really isn't keen on strangers. We suspect her boundaries haven't been respected and therefore her reactivity amplified. With people it's often if they talk to us or stare at her, but mostly if they ignore her, she's fine, and is happy to be around people (and might also go and try to sniff them). Dogs she's generally really not keen on.

We've done several of walks with no reactivity to people or dogs (the latter at a distance), though, but also several of walks where she's reacted several of times. How she's feeling and the level of overwhelm,  and even excitement, has a direct impact on her tolerance and reactivity. It's also worth noting she is in foster near Northampton town centre, which does provide for a challenging environment, but despite it, she's doing really well. A quieter environment would be preferred. 

As she's settled more into her foster home, and starting to learn that her handler can provide reassurance and treats, as well as protect her and keep her at safe distance from dogs and people, she is showing small signs of improving (it's very early days still). 

*Reactivity (inside)*

She does bark inside the house, but she is not a major barker. Her mental state definitely plays a big factor in this. As mentioned, she's in a foster near a town centre, and there are building work taking place on the opposite side of the street, which she mostly tolerates. There are, however, a lot of noises with it being a terraced house, on street level, with people walking by, and it does sometimes set her off.

*Separation anxiety*

She gets worried and doesn't like being left. She will stand in the window sill, and then run from one end of the room to another, and she will cry and bark. She's a counter surfer and might grab stuff or eat any food if left out, but hasn't caused any damage.

Inside the house, as much as she prefers to be near you most of the time, she will also take herself away to another room to sleep, which is a good sign.

Anyone interested in adopting her would therefore need to leave her minimally, and ideally, be willing to work with her to help her feel less anxious when left alone. 

*Other dogs (inside the house)*

Mister currently lives with another dog, and has lived temporarily with dogs before and done well. A few things are worth noting with this:

- Misty requires a lot of training and attention, and it's not easy if you've got other dogs. She's also likely to set other dogs off and cause them to react (and she absolutely cannot be with a dog who reacts, as we wouldn't want her feeding off of this energy).

- She is not calmed by other dogs either, at least not so far, so it's unlikely to help neither her separation anxiety or reactivity. 

- She is cheeky and would need a very calm and tolerate dog. She doesn't always know when to stop play (and we have to step in), and when it comes to toy, whilst she's not guarding, she will want to steal any toy another dog is playing with, and isn't subtle. 

That being said, she does love having a playmate, so we would consider it, but it'd have to be the right dog and managed well.

*Lead walking*

Lastly, she can sometimes pull a lot on the lead. This appears largely to be down to her mental state, I.e. the more overwhelmed she feels, the more frantic she is, whereas when walked in quieter places like fields or woodland, on a long line, she mostly walks incredibly well. We wouldn't recommend attempting to work on loose lead walking at this point, but solely focus on helping her be more comfortable and focus on walks (and her lead manners will automatically improve).

*Bottom line*

Misty is such a sweet girl, and deserves a forever home that will return all the love she has to give (not an easy thing to match!). Importantly, she needs a home that will either accept her for who she is (with separation anxiety and reactivity, and keep any exposure to a bare minimum), and/or be willing to put in the work with her to improve this.