SWEET!! FUN!! MISCHIEVIOUS!!!
We welcomed Toby into our home a little over a week ago, and boy has it been a pleasure! Toby is a 10 month old Collie Cross with a beautiful, long silky coat. He came to RAGOM after he was found as a stray in South Dakota.
Toby settled into our home life with ease and seems to do great with everyone he meets. He really enjoys romping around our back yard getting into all sorts of mischief with our 7 month old puppy, he plays fairly gentle with our cats, and enjoys a good belly rub or cuddle from our daughters.
Toby does have a few things that we need to work on. He is a digger- he LOVES to dig a hole and bury his bones or balls. Toby would do well with a designated spot, such as a sandbox type pit designated for him to dig in. He is hard to deter. Toby is also a counter surfer and will use his super sniffer to seek out anything that we have left up there that may or may not be edible. He also likes to chew- A LOT. With a wide variety of appropriate chewing toys we have seemed to make a lot of progress in that department. We do still have to be mindful of what is left out, because if it is there, he will chew it.
In the short time that we have been blessed with Toby in our home, I have taught him to sit and lay down. He is intelligent and eager to please. He walks great with a harness or gentle leader, but I have also witnessed him walking great with just a leash and collar. He really enjoys our casual strolls around the trails near our home.
Toby has not demonstrated any resource guarding or food aggression. I have allowed my little ones to give treats and food during training sessions and he is very mindful, no matter whose hand is feeding him. He would probably do best in a home with children 8+, as he sometimes forgets that he is much larger than my 1 & 2 year old and they get stampeded or knocked over.
This guy has A LOT of energy. He has benefited from having our dog in the home to help exert the energy and I feel that it would be best for Toby to enter a family that has another well mannered dog as a role model and playmate. If he goes to a single dog home, he will definitely need a daily commitment from his adopters, to provide him with a safe outlet to release his puppy energy.
