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Ducky came to Saving Shepherds of MN in February 2023.  At an estimated 6 months old, Ducky was a stray with evidence of severe neglect. He was underweight and his muscles were atrophied from prolonged confinement in a crate that did not allow him to stand or reposition.  Worse, he was covered in urine burns and pressure injuries with wounds on his ribs, elbows, hips, and feet. Ducky was a mess but his spirit was not broken. 

As Ducky began to heal, he has become a playful and explorative boy!

Outside, he enjoys chasing the flirt pole and playing tug with our female dog. He is great at fetch and loves to hoard balls if he manages to get them from the other dogs. Inside, he loves to be where the action is and will follow us around from room to room. He has a big, soft bed that he prefers to nap on with his head hanging over the side. 

Because Ducky spent the first 6 months of his life neglected and confined, he was massively under socialized and was beginning to exhibit fear reactivity towards people and dogs. Luckily, a spot opened up at Premier K9 and Ducky spent five weeks in their board and train program, working on his basic obedience command and leash walking skills as well as going on field trips to expose him to new environments. Ducky does well with sit, down, place/on your bed, and kennel. His recall is fantastic but often unnecessary because he prefers to stay close to his people.

Since February, Ducky has only had a few potty accidents and none in months.  However, he loves to drink water so we do restrict access before he goes into his kennel. When he needs to potty, Ducky will sit near the front door and whine to get our attention. During the work day, Ducky spends most of the day napping in his kennel but does get chances to potty and play over lunch and often again later in the afternoon. 

Ducky sleeps in his kennel in our bedroom. He sleeps well through the night and can sometimes be heard snoring. He can be vocal when excited, such as when we wake in the morning or come home from work. We are continuing to work on this and have noticed slow but steady progress. 

Ducky is not a quiet boy. Like most shepherds, he can be whiny and has a big bark to notify us when strangers come up to the house. He is pretty easy to redirect and we expect this will continue to improve with socialization. Ducky requires slow introductions to new people but once he knows you, he is friendly and excited to come over for a cuddle. 

Overall, Ducky is a fun guy that would do well with an active household. He has not been around kids and is still a big, excitable puppy who needs supervision and training so we think older kids (teenagers) or a family without children would be a better fit. Ducky is very trainable and motivated by both food and toys. He seems to be pretty smart but like all dogs, benefits from consistency.  Ducky loves Lily, our resident dog, but his in-your-face approach would not be a good fit for some dogs.  We think he would do well with or without another dog in the home but because he can be dog-selective, slow introductions and supervision are a must. Cats and other small animals would not be a good fit for this high-drive dog.