Adoption Status: Accepting Adoption Interest
Gender: Male
Breed: Maltese
Age: Est DOB: 10/2024
Weight: 10.6 lbs
Dog Friendly: Yes
Cat Friendly: Yes
Kid Friendly: Older Kids Ideal
House Trained: Yes
History: Rio is a super sweet boy who arrived to rescue in desperate need of a second chance. He is such a handsome and striking boy who is ready to meet his forever home soon!
A Note from the Foster: Young, Smart, Adorable: Check, Check and Check!
Have you met Rio? NO!? Yeah, well that's probably for the best. You'd only fall victim to his cuteness. He is quite iresistable, you've been warned!
Rio has only been a guest in my home for a short time, but he has been a joy to host. He is a smart, eager and obedient dog with lots of love to give. Some key highlights include;
Housebroken! He had two small accidents in our home the first two days, and none since. It took us a few days to notice he will do a 'happy dance', silently, at our door to signal he needs out.
Obedient. Rio has had professional training, with lifetime support! He knows the basics already. Sit, stay, place, down, heel. He is very smart, enjoys practicing his skills and the treats that come with it!
Walks well on lead. Rio does like to test a little, just to see who is in charge. But he will 'heel' when told. With the cold here, walks are short and sweet but he still really does look forward to them.
Enjoys his grooming time. He is very tolerant of my inexperience at this task and 'grooms' me right back as I stumble through it. His coat does need maintenance, but he seems to enjoy the bonding time spent on it.
Crates well. Happily goes in for feeding time and when it's time to leave for work. He will also sneak in for a mid-day nap.
Rides well in the car. Once loaded in, he settles into the back seat for a nap or looks about with only the occasional bark/alert.
Rio gives affection to all, but favors my 13yr old daughter the most. I don't have littles anymore, but he isn't nippy and should do well with mannered, respectful littles.
He is friendly with our dog savvy outdoor cat. (She is far from shy and has no problems putting pushy dogs in their place.)
He has become best friends with our resident Great Dane puppy. Rio definitely has big dog energy for a little guy! He happily holds his own during play time and shares toys, chews and bedding nicely. (High level treats and food are isolated.)
Rio does have some separation anxiety in our home. He is ok as long as he is with another dog or human. If crated all alone, he will bark non-stop until reunited. This has settled some in our home, but not entirely. I think with training, trust and support, he can outgrown this behavior. But because of this, he may not be best for a household with shared walls or being left all alone often. In our home, he is crated next to our dog and this is enough for Rio to feel safe and self settle within a few minutes.
Rio does have moderate energy needs. He really benefits from a short walk each day and a few minutes of outside play. He loves playing in the snow on his long line. Add in some indoor obedience practice and his physical and mental energy needs are easily meet. Rio is not high energy but he does need structured outlets so he can enjoy his sofa time. Lack of exercise and lack of structure encourages Rio to become 'yippie' and a bit frantic, with less ability to self settle, listen and behave.
Do you have room enough in your home and heart for 10lbs of pure joy?
Adoption Fee: $560 + tax
Adoption Status: Is this dog available? Submitting an application is the best first step to learning if a dog is still available. There is a chance this dog could have a pending adoption when your application is submitted, however our team will offer approved applicants to be put on a waiting list for that dog. Additionally, we can make recommendations on other dogs that may be a match. Pending adoptions do not mean the adoption is finalized. Why did we implement this change? We implemented this update because, unfortunately, dogs were pending for applicants for several weeks and then the applicant would change their mind. This happens more often with puppies, as applications are submitted impulsivly more often for them. Our process is great because it takes a little time, so impulsive decisions fade. However it was unfortunate for the dogs, and the foster homes, as then the process needed to be re-started. By securing a wait-list we are able to move forward more quickly if a pending adoption falls through. This is a new process for us, so your feedback along the way is helpful! Thank you for supporting rescue and adoption!
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