Roscoe (ADOPTED!) is an Australian Kelpie and Cattle Dog mix, with a super sweet, soft, happy personality. He is 1.5 to 2 years old, weighs 51 lbs. and is just a big, happy-go-lucky puppy! He needs a quiet, calm home situation, and would love at least one other dog friend to play with. He is very friendly and polite with people, but is initially unsure when meeting new humans. People must go slow to gain his acceptance. Shouting and sudden actions in a busy household will scare him and send him running.
There is not a mean bone in Roscoe’s body. He loves to meet and play with all dogs. He is submissive to other dogs and accepts reprimands from them very well. He is the best natured, most even tempered dog. He is also very quiet, only giving out one bark, when he is very excited to get another dog to play with him.
Roscoe wants to belong to a family/pack, and to have a human to bond with. He has the velcro nature of a cattle dog and follows his foster mom from room to room. He will check in often with his human, happily wagging his tail when he sees him/her. Although he has the energy to run and play, during the day he is also content to be inside, relaxing near his person, who he looks to for direction. If he understands, he will try to do what you ask. He is a silly guy with a sense of humor, and always has the best intentions. If his foster mom tells another dog to stop misbehaving, Roscoe gently nudges the other dog as if to say, “Stop, Mom says no.” However, when he is told to calm down, he wags and smiles a big “You don’t really mean it?!” grin.
Roscoe is very eager to please, highly attentive to his person/people, and extremely food motivated. Whenever his foster mom calls him, he immediately and very happily comes. Most of the time Roscoe is very polite. He initially would not step inside a doorway until invited or led in on leash. in a few days, he learned from the other dogs in his foster home that it is ok to just come in.
He walks fairly well on leash. He may walk out to the end of his leash in his desire to explore, but will not pull. He is also is completely housebroken. However, in just the first day or two in a new home, he may try to lift his leg to mark in the house, especially if there is another resident male dog. He was neutered on April 7, 2021, and in another month or so his marking behavior may diminish.
Usually after a meal and an outing to do his business, the puppy in him comes out. Bursting with joy, he just wants to play with other dogs and toys, and to race around the house. At these times, he can get carried away and become a pest to the other dogs with his insistence to play. He often seems to not understand when another dog is trying to get away or wrinkling a nose to tell him to back off. In these moments, he can become mouthy, trying to playfully nibble or mouth on another dog or on the hand/arm of his person. Like an overly stimulated toddler, he can’t stop himself. Sometimes we can redirect him by giving him a squeaker toy to play with, and other times we give him a time-out, by luring him to another area and separating him. He will usually become calm within a minute or two.
He adores food, and will take delicious smelling items off a counter, if within reach. He recently took a carving knife, that was used to cut a rotisserie chicken, off the kitchen counter and dropped it at our feet in the living room! When people are eating, he will often beg for a morsel, usually by placing one paw, and then two paws, on your leg or arm to let you know he would like a bite. Although Roscoe is very drawn to food, he has a very soft mouth and take food very nicely from your hand.
When it’s mealtime, Roscoe is very patient and polite while his food is being prepared. He gobbles his meal like a starving animal. We are teaching him not to go to another dog’s bowl while they are still eating. He has no guarding tendencies around food, toys or anything else.
As a big puppy, Roscoe enjoys all toys. He is a ball dog, and loves both plush squeaker and chew toys. He does not chew on anything inappropriate, and only chews what he is given. He mostly enjoys squeezable balls and squeaky toys. He also loves a peanut butter filled Kong at bedtime.
Roscoe can be a wily escape artist if on a leash or if tied to something. He is a master at chewing cleanly through a leash or rope to free himself. Especially in the beginning, his people must have a securely fenced outdoor area to keep him contained when outside. After he chewed through three leashes in as many days, we just purchased a leash with a metal cable core and plastic exterior jacket. A metal tie-down or leash should not be attached to him for long periods, as he may damage his teeth as he chews it to try and free himself. If a time-out is needed for him, he does best when separated in an area behind a baby gate.
While Roscoe possesses a wonderful nature and excellent personality traits that cannot be taught, he is not a turn-key dog for people who have never had a dog before. He wasn’t taught much in his past life, and still needs to learn rules, boundaries, basic obedience commands, and to be kept vigilantly secured by his people, as he can be a flight risk when something scares him.
Roscoe is great with people, but must meet them slowly and quietly. If people approach him quickly, staring at him, with hands outstretched, he may run from them. If you quietly come close, sit down and offer treats without eye contact, he will warm up to you in no time. He just needs a little time to figure out that someone won’t manhandle him. It took him several days to trust the humans in his foster home, and within a week he was bonding to his foster mom. When he received a clean bill of health from the vet, he was thrilled to be able to meet the other dogs at his foster home.
We love this boy, and he is very special to us. At the shelter he was terrified, cowering far away from humans. After 3-weeks he gained trust in a few shelter staff and was happy and friendly. When he was being driven to us, he again didn’t know what was happening or who any of us were. He was very afraid of a slip lead or collar going over/around his head. The van door had not been secured, he pushed it and escaped. For 2-weeks he ran from anyone who called or moved towards him. People who saw him said “He’s running scared” or “He looked terrified.” Only by working with two expert dog trackers and trappers, were we able to methodically figure out his movements and work towards setting a large live trap, baited with rotisserie chicken, in an area where he had been seen. Miraculously, we managed to trap him. Folks in Sonoma County may have seen our fliers and postings, in April, about “Redford” (his shelter name) being lost.
For this reason, we feel the need to take extra time and care in transferring him to a new home. Potential adopters must be willing to have an adoption transition process that spans multiple visits between his foster home in Santa Rosa, CA, and his future home, to allow him to make the mental transition to new people and a new situation. Because of the need for several visits to his foster home, and then a few visits to his adoptive home before he stays, potential adopters must live within about an hour's drive to the Petaluma-Santa Rosa, CA, area.
Roscoe should be in a quiet and calm home, and not allowed off leash in public until he is closely bonded to and has a solid recall with his adopters.
If you have questions or are interested in meeting Roscoe, please email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or leave a message at (707) 583-9583. Completing an adoption form, is the first step to meeting him.
