Prince

No longer available

Hi everyone

My name is Prince and I am an approximately 6 year old German Shepherd. 

I have a very sad story to tell, and a lot of information about myself to pass on.

In June 2021 I was found dumped in a park in Kent. I had been starved and had chronic, untreated mange as well as open sores all over my body, and severe muscle wastage. 

By the time I was found by a kind passer by, I had almost given up. I was tired, weak, hungry, in pain and alone. 

But my rescuer gently led me to her car and took me to a safe place, which has been my home ever since. 

When I arrived in rescue, I was given a warm bed, good food and medication. My feet were so sore and cracked that I had trouble walking and my skin was so hot and inflamed that even the gentlest touch felt like fire. 

Over time my physical condition improved with medication, a good diet and a lot of love. I am now at a much healthier weight, my skin has improved drastically and I am much stronger thanks to building up muscle with gentle exercise. 

Fixing my physical health was relatively easily with the right care…but my emotional healing is still continuing - and I am looking for the right person to complete the last bit of my puzzle in my journey. 

You may think I would be scared of people after being so badly abused…but I am not. I lived a life of such pure neglect and in such pain for such a long time, that I became shut down and depressed. I lost my faith in humans.

I need a human who understands my trauma, and my need for a hands off approach whilst you get to know me. You will need to win my trust and let me go at my own pace, rather than showering me with love and affection before I am ready. You will need to understand that I will come to you, I will take your treats - but I won’t allow you to stroke me the first time you meet me. You must be absolutely prepared to go at my pace, if you cannot be patient…please don’t apply to adopt me. 

I’ve made a lot of human friends whilst being in rescue, but I am not a fan of other dogs…especially ones who invade my personal space. I will react if this happens but would rather avoid dogs and so I will need to be managed in a way that does not put me in vulnerable positions around other dogs. I could not live in an area densely populated with dogs…I need a quiet home in a quiet area. 

You will need to be physically fit and experienced with bigger dogs.

Here’s what my foster mum says about me!! 

I absolutely adore Prince and I am so pleased I’ve been able to give him this time out of kennels to be assessed in a home. He’s made the most amazing progress in just a few days, and he will absolutely thrive with a quiet person or two, who can read his body language and who can be patient and hands off with him initially. They will have to really be on board with not touching him or stroking him initially…and he will soon reward that patience with the invitation of a bum scratch :-)

Prince

Foster mum

He is house trained, but did have a few toileting accidents in the first few days, but I expected that after being in kennels.

He gets very vocal around food.  He will settle if you ignore him. I don’t leave any food unattended as it wouldn’t be there when I return 😂  He loves Greek yogurt and blueberries. He takes treats gently from your hand.

He barks at me intermittently as he thinks this will get him a treat, again I ignore him and he eventually gives up.  If he has anything that I don’t want him to have I can always exchange it for a treat rather than attempting to take the item away from him, as I don’t feel he would be comfortable  with that. I use a high feeder so he doesn’t have to bend right down to get his food.

He likes the sound of his own voice, he goes into the garden and barks to let everyone know he’s there. He barks at squirrels in the tree, people/dogs walking along the pathway (not always) and kids screaming. He also barks at the dog next door but one when he is in the garden barking.

He barks when the doorbell goes and if you are stood at the door chatting, he will continue to bark.

He sleeps downstairs of a night time and is very settled and quiet.   

I have rugs/mats covering the flooring downstairs as I have vinyl flooring and don’t want him slipping.

He knows paw and and sit and he picks things up very quickly.  I give him a treat last thing at night after his wee and he began wanting to go to the garden, bark, run back in and straight to the kitchen door as that is where I keep the treats. He’s a clever and cheeky monkey!! And it’s so lovely to see his personality beginning to emerge. 

He mainly sleeps on the sofa overnight and during the day, this is where I find him in the morning and when I come home from work. I use a folded yoga mat which he uses to get on/off the sofa. I use this for the car as well. He does use the orthopaedic bed when I am sitting in the living room.

He likes his toys, especially a ball and toys he can chew.

He is not destructive with the toys or with anything in the house.

He started to come to me for a gentle calm fuss after about 4 days of being here. Before then did not touch him at all….and that really helped to build up his trust.

He now pushes his face towards my hand. He moves his body around to where he wants to be stroked and back into you for you to stroke his backside. These are short sessions and he will move away when he has had enough. His new owner will need to be able to read his body language, and not push him too far too quickly.

He is good in the car, although he did whine for the first part of the journey when I first took him on foster.

He is not bothered by the washing machine. I used the hoover and he initially barked but settled in the other room away from it.

I leave the radio on when I leave for work.  The first day I left him he barked and scratched at front door but soon settled down and is now absolutely fine when I leave. I always give him a treat before leaving.

He loves mental stimulation with brain games indoors or in the garden, and we have just started going on very short walks at times and in places I am the least likely to bump into other dogs. 

Seeing Prince progress so much in such a short space of time has been so rewarding, and its been really emotional to see him start to blossom. I am so sad that I cannot foster him for longer, but my circumstances simply won’t allow me to, and if I could keep him longer I wouldn’t hesitate. 

So….now you know all there is to know about me, if you think you can offer me a place in your heart and your home, please fill in the form here and tell my carers as much as you can about you so that they can find me the perfect match. 

I look forward to hearing all about you, and hopefully meeting you soon.

Big barks (in the hope of a tasty treat) and lots of love 

Prince 🐾🐾