Chickpea is an 8 month old female Cross-Breed. She is 22 inches long and 16 inches tall. Chickpea can occasionally bark at men on a walk but at a distance and without aggression. She barks at male visitors but she barks at all visitors initially; less likely to bark at women on walks. She is fine with children but doesn’t like being startled and can bark if they leap out at her, which has only happened twice. She was fine with them afterwards. She barks when visitors arrive but calms down quickly.
Chickpea can be unpredictable towards other dogs in the home. Needs to be only dog in household. When on walks she is good with other dogs 99% of the time but can occasionally bark at them, particularly small dogs but at a distance. She does sometimes growl at other dogs and then this needs intervention to prevent it from possibly escalating.
When she sees another dog on a walk at a distance, her tail goes up, she stands still and her hackles go up. She can be snapped out of this by being called and being given a treat. She is incredibly food motivated and I always carry a big bag of treats on walks as this improves her recall and calms her down when we meet people and dogs. She is excellent with our cat and we have no concerns. Our cat is a very good judge of character and has no problems.
Chickpea has a high prey drive and will chase birds across fields even when they are in flight. She also chases squirrels up trees and tries to climb the tree.
Chickpea is reactive to loud noises, she has got better with this but will bark at loud noises. She is very alert and can be hypervigilant, growling at things we can’t smell or hear or barking and running into the garden. She is fine with collar and walks well on lead but can pull enthusiastically on the lead when being taken to the beginning of the walk where she is let off the lead.
She can be more reactive to other dogs when on the lead but this is similar for all dogs. She doesn’t bark excessively but as above she is very alert and would make a very good alarm system! We live in the countryside so there are lots of foxes and wildlife in the fields behind us that stimulate her with their smells and noises.
Chickpea will need to be the only dog in a household as she is unpredictable towards other dogs. Chickpea is a beautiful dog and is highly intelligent and trainable. I have formed a very strong bond with her and she is loyal, affectionate and playful. She is a real joy to have around and she is easy to manage with dogs on a walk if you are vigilant to her behaviour and intervene as appropriate. Her recall is very good unless she is chasing birds or squirrels.
Even when chasing birds she can run across a whole field but will circle back to you when it has flown too far away. I always carry a big bag of treats on a walk and regularly (but not always) reward her with a treat when she comes to check in with me. This has trained her to come to me when called and to stay quite close to me. I practice recall on walks with her at different distances and she is food motivated she is good at coming back.
As noted above, this also works well when you want her to avoid a dog on a lead or when her hackles go up. She likes playing in water but does not like swimming or going out of her depth. If you throw pebbles for her in water she loves trying to catch them and will do so indefinitely. She likes to run very fast across fields in loops to expend energy and is very fast but always comes back to you. She is very playful and loves to play tug of war or chase balls.
When she barks in the garden at distractions in the field we scatter treats in the grass and this distracts her as she then sniffs them out and focuses on that activity. She is housetrained and will do a wee before bed in the garden if you go out with her (although it can take some time). She will do a poo at the beginning of most walks but also soils the garden. She sleeps well and is quiet at night. She loves sleeping on sofas or armchairs.
Chickpea likes to be around people and we have only left her for an extended period of more than four hours on one occasion. We left her with a bone and a licky mat and she was fine when we got back. We are at home almost constantly so she is not really used to being separated for long periods. She has bonded with me as the person who walks her and can follow me wherever I go in the house.
However, we have not let her upstairs. She is not destructive in general but has destroyed the occasional fluffy seat cover. She likes her toys, especially squeaky ones and they give her hours of pleasure. She has two walks a day of between 30 mins and 50 mins and is fine with this. She is fed twice a day. She likes to jump up to greet you and is always pleased to see you.
Chickpea is a wonderful dog. She would benefit from having an adult only home in a rural location with plenty of walks.
Chickpea needs someone with time and patience to continue her training and to provide plenty of physical and mental stimulation/activities throughout the day. Experienced owners only. Currently in foster in Horsham.
from Dogs for Adoption – dogsblog.com https://bit.ly/3vIIELK
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