Darby is a special 9 month old boy needing a special home.
Darby was found as a stray in Covelo. He came to Ukiah Shelter terrified and malnourished. It seems obvious that what little human interaction he had was not positive. Darby has been in his current foster home for almost 3 months and he has made some progress. For the first three or four days, his foster mom had to carry Darby everywhere. He now freely walks on a leash in the yard and he comes out of his crate on his own. He has also started exploring the house a little bit here and there.
Darby did not eat the first couple of days. Once he did, he would eat in his crate super fast and give himself hiccups. His foster mom switched him to a slow-feeder bowl, and is trying to get him acclimated to eating outside of his crate and there have been improvements with that also. Initially, any physical contact caused Darby to cower. Nowadays Darby is enjoying physical affection more and more, especially when he is on the couch or on the bed with his foster Mom.
Darby is good with the small senior dogs and the senior cats in the home. It's likely that Darby will chase a cat if it runs, but it would be from playfulness and not from aggression. He very much wishes that the other animals would play with him and will try to initiate play. Now that Darby’s foster mom is more aware of his schedule, habits, and signals, his potty-training is going well. His adoptive home will need to be vigilant and observant. Darby is being crate-trained and able to sleep through the night without needing to go outside for about 7 hours.
Because Darby was so malnourished, he still has almost all of his puppy teeth, and is still teething and needs to chew things. It will be important for his adopter to supply him with appropriate chew toys and bully sticks.
Darby is learning about walking outside on leash. He's still fearful about traffic, etc, and right now, the best times for walks are when it's quiet outside. Darby can become overwhelmed outdoors and his foster Mom is trying different approaches to help him. He may get used to it, or it may be that he is just going to be a homebody dog!
Darby needs a quiet, calm, and patient home. His adopter needs to be willing and able to give him the time and tools to become the best version of himself. Darby is going to be a long-term project for someone in continuing his journey toward accepting kindness and love from people. Having an adopter that is either retired or works from home would be hugely ideal for him.
Because Darby seems to feel more comfort and kinship towards animals, being in a home with another dog would definitely help him come out of his shell and having a dog that is an appropriate playmate for him will really help him blossom.