Sacramento, CA: M Neutered GSD 8.5 years old - Page 1

Chili is an 8.5 year old black and red male neutered German Shepherd Dog.  

Chili was rehomed to me because his former owners were unable to meet his needs.  I am a trainer and have worked to reestablish good behavior and habits in him since then.  In his former home, Chili was provided with far too much freedom, no structure, virtually no exercise or work and he was allowed to run the show, which he was not capable of doing without developing huge amounts of anxiety.  His high anxiety led him to break several teeth (they were extracted and he has healed) and to injure his knee so that he can no longer jump.  He still has high energy, but cannot do anything at a quick pace.  I have found that he can still go rather long distances as long as the pace is relatively slow, like a jog.

With clear leadership, regular exercise and lots of structure:
Chili is trained well in basic obedience on and off leash.  House trained, crate trained, rides nicely and quietly in the car.  He is good with men and women and respectful children, though I was told that he has curled his lip when pestered.  He is great with cats and other friendly or respectful dogs.  He loves to swim, loves to fetch and especially find his hidden toy.  He can walk for hours off leash on a treadmill.  He can go along horseback riding, biking, rollerblading or jogging.  He outs on command, has no food aggression and knows how to settle and stay on a bed calmly in the house (when you are with him).  He does have a protective nature.  His current lifestyle is going for walks/bikes/skates, playing a little ball, occasionally swimming, hanging in the car and then hanging out on a dog bed or relaxing quietly in his crate.

Without strong leadership, regular exercise and structure:
Chili can be strong willed and will take over.  He is naturally high energy and prone to separation anxiety.  He was rehomed because of his high levels of anxiety that were becoming increasingly destructive, both to self and property.  Chili will fight with dogs who seek to dominate or are looking to fight or challenge him.  If he believes you are in control, these can be largely prevented or stopped with verbal correction.  If he doesn't believe you, he is quite powerful and intense.  He was known to kill chickens in his previous home, when he escaped the yard and ran loose.  He will become extremely attached (especially to men) and will shadow obsessively.  This leads to his high separation anxiety that, if it builds, means he will scale fences, destroy crates, tear things up and generally create havoc.  His former owners could not keep him contained and thus had to resort to taking him everywhere with him, as he is content to be in the car.  He can be overly reactive or protective of the car.

Chili is a really beautiful and wonderful dog with a lot of amazing qualities that can shine in the right home.  He requires a lot of attention, exercise and focus, so I would like him to go to a home that isn't already hectic or busy, with someone who will be around quite a bit and will  give him regular daily exercise with strong leadership and structure.  I will consider placing him with another calm dog, but this boy deserves to be someone's center of attention.  In the right hands, Chili is a joy and sweet boy.  He is a dog you could take anywhere.  I will be very selective over choosing the right fit for this guy as it's what he deserves and needs.

Please contact me with more questions at (530) 902-1152 or behavek9bliss@gmail.com
Thanks, 
Tammy Cowen

Tammy, do you know anything about his breeding ?  I ask
because your description reminds me in so many ways of
 my Taz,  now almost 11, only without the vehicle-guarding,
or the SA - though I suspect that too could have developed,
given time in the wrong hands !   PM me, if you've the time ?

Sorry I cannot offer to help with rehoming Chili,  I only have
room and funds for Taz these days, and we are in England.

I wish you all the best in finding him a great 'forever home',
I'm sure he deserves it.

Bump - Chili is still available...

<sigh>  If only I could.... Will pass the word again, maybe the right person will be ready for him now.  He looks like he's at least part, if not fully, working-lines breeding, yes?

last pict of dogs on a rock...looks like Bass Lake.....

@Hexe He likely had some show line in him, but he is most probably byb working lines. I tried researching his pedigree, but the few ones listed on here were all byb type with no titles, etc and not familiar names.

@Ladyfrost That picture was taken at a lake in northern Minnesota. Where is Bass lake?

California....near Fresno. i dug through everything but could not locate the photo for comparison...

Hi Loony, His behaviour is similar to Fidu, a working line dog. May be Chili is a very good watch dog isn't him? , Fidu's brother was given back to the breeder beacuse he became incontrolable and he was trained. I neutered Fidu and he has changed his behaviour a lot, but he has a large garden and some girls to run and play to. I think Chili could be a very good dog to guard a property with a large park. Good luck!