Surrey, BC, CANADA, Simba, male(n) 10 months

[SARC]

SIMBA is a handsome 10 month old German Shepherd Dog who was surrendered to the shelter by his owners. Although they loved Simba very much, and worked very hard with him, but admitted they underestimated the amount of effort and time an adolescent, busy working dog would be when they purchased him at 8 weeks of age. They felt it would be in his best interests to find a home with someone who has more time to devote to Simba's exercise and training needs.

Simba has a very sweet and gentle nature - he lived with a toddler and an infant in his previous home and his owner described him as being "total trustworthy" with them, although we have not tested him with children ourselves. Typical of his breed, Simba often initially seems reserved with new people, showing only mild interest in them, which some people interpret as unfriendliness. However, while Simba may not be overly demonstrative, he is actually very affable with everyone he meets.

Outside, Simba pulls like a cart horse so staff is working on teaching him to walk calmly with the help of an Easy-Walk (front clip) body harness. He is often very excitable in his kennel and likes to jump up and put his paws on his walker ... as Simba weighs a cool 75+ lbs, this can be uncomfortable, so we are teaching him about the many benefits of keeping"four on the floor." Simba is a smart boy and should catch on quick!

SImba loves to play ball. A regular ball is not as good as a soccer ball, and the soccer ball can be momentarily dropped for the frisbee, but it's still better than most any other toy. It's so good, actually, that Simba does not understand why on earth he should drop it, give it back or otherwise leave it alone for 10 seconds. It's tough to get Simba to give up any toys, and catching him can be virtually impossible when he's got one in his happy jaws, so he will need some work on learning "drop it" and the value of trading toys for yummy cookies.

Simba is a high energy dog who needs a goodly amount of exercise every day, and would be a poor match for a couch potato or a 'weekend warrior." He has been to obedience class but would benefit from some classes that exercise both body and mind, like maybe a trick training class, or a Rally-O session, or Canine Nosework. Simba is the kind of dog that is good for people who like dogs they can do things with, but not so good for people who just like having a dog around. Simba would benefit greatly from a positive / clicker training class. He is not a dog for guarding your farm or business, or wasting away in your backyard.

If you are thinking that a young working dog, who is almost entirely a blank slate, is the exact dog of your dreams, please come to the Surrey Animal Resource Centre to meet this handsome fellow. We are open for viewing between noon and 4:30pm every day,