xxlynne
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Karl Staffie 2-3 yrs Bishops Waltham S'hampton
His Story: Found stray in Yorkshire. Young and vibrant, but hasn't benefited from the best of care of late.
Salient points: Karl is a black brown Staffie with potentially stunning looks. He appears to have good dog skills and the friendliness of the Stafford throughout his genetic make up. Lovely example.
Advert: Karl needs Kare. He has fallen on his luck and is currently a shadow of his potential. His looks battered and crumpled, dulled by his ordeal, but a little polish, the very best of ingredients for his body, fresh air feeding his lungs, guidance and dedication and ... ! What a proud, proud owner will be on the end of his lead in the not too distant future.
Yes, he wants to play with his lead and loses it, then calms and tries to please. Karl is young and not used to the exhilaration of walks. He isn't used to clear messages and praise. He has the love flowing through his veins, but doesn't quite understand how to perform to gain that approval and owner satisfaction. Karl needs consistency, stability and conveyed approval to shape his walks, his relationships and to clarify his behaviours.
Karl has the intelligence and will soon settle. Karl is young and eager. You just get the sense he hasn't had the right chances in life up until NOW. Now Karl is going to find them and prove himself to be so worthy of his family. Special, so very special. A Staffie who will win over prejudiced minds. A young lad who will learn to walk tall.
Please visit Karl's individual thread, in Dogs needing homes in our care on this forum to find out more about him and follow his progress.
If you are interested in re-homing please complete our homing questionnaire so we can ensure our dogs are matched and will suit your circumstances/lifestyle.
"Please note that this dog is currently in kennels and is also available for foster until a 'forever' home is found"
Karl's thread below:
 | Quote: | | He is a nice friendly boy, not as young as I was led to believe and not the dog in the picture I was given. He is about 2-3 years old, a cuddle monster. When you stand with him he either jumps up for cuddles or sits down for you to stroke and cuddle him. Gives lovely staffy kisses!! He has kennel cough, he is skinny. He has little shar pei ears and almost looks like a lab cross too but until he fills out a bit I don't think we'll really see what he is. Walked him on a slip lead and tbh didn't go too far with him because he just pulls like a train and doesn't stop, had to stop coz he would choke himself and when he stopped he was breathing heavily to get some air. |
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xxlynne
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Karl presented as so different from the above picture. As you can see he is leggy, under-weight and oh so very staffie in nature. Kennel Cough nearly over now coat very dull . So needs tender loving care. Lovely lovely kind kind soul but mixed up and so unsure. Clingy and so wanting just to stare into your eyes and search for love and reassurance. So that is what we did I stroked his face tenderly time and time again and spoke softly to him. I told him just how special he was and to know what a lovely lovely boy he is. He go over-excited with the lead and lost himself in a fenzie and I had to shout him out of it and he switched back to the lost soul. Needs company and more company and walks and more walks to find himself.
 
 
 
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James083
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KarlHi Karl. you are such a friendly soul. I hope you get over that sniffle you have, and find a loving home soon 
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Gilka
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Good luck Karl. You give the gentlest staffy kisses ever. You are a sweetheart.
xx
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xxlynne
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Karl travelled very well in the crate today. He waited patiently whilst I dealt with the 'character and a half Raj. Then Lovely Karl came out and charmed all. Poor lad, but Emma's heart is engaged and he will soon put on weight and that fur will soon begin to improve. 'Welcome home Karl'!
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EmmaSemple
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Poor Karl. I was very sad to meet this boy today.  Underweight and with a dry and harsh coat. There are signs of dead coat waiting to be groomed out and when you stroke him he is bristly.
We have started him off with a wormer in case any little visitors are taking the nutrients that should be for him and he has been put onto Arden Grange dry food to try and improve his coat. He is a darker coloured dog and should gleam. Instead he has a very dull and lifeless coat. He is also getting cod liver oil tablets to improve his coat.
He seems a shy boy at the moment (not around food though  ) and was very meek and mild this evening like butter wouldn't melt. Give it a couple of days and he will be running rings round us. 
Emma
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EmmaSemple
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I actually think I love this dog. He must become our mascot and never leave! 
Emma
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xxlynne
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(Schh Emma YOU are our Mascot!)
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ali12345
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I think someone has swapped Carl
He has settled so well and is such a bouncy happy chappy! Restrained in his bounciness and easy to handle. Managed to give him a good brush while we were waiting to get through reception. He did enjoy it and I managed to get some of his old fur out so he should be more comfortable.
He joined us for lunch at the cafe and after wanting everything settled while we ate and had a few bits for being a good boy. Lots of cuddles before we set off again.
Alison
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xxlynne
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Karl was second vax'd today..
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EmmaSemple
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Karlos has hit the madhouse!
He is an excellent dogs with other dogs. Very playful but also respectful. All the cats are out at the mo, but next test is what he thinks of them. 
Emma
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EmmaSemple
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Cat/rat/ferret/hamster test passed.
Sadly he failed his toilet roll tube test. Ripped it into a million pieces he did! This may make homing him harder. 
Emma
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ali12345
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What a star
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EmmaSemple
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Not a great pic but...
This was at work this afternoon. I will try and get some quick snaps of him at home.
Emma
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Sharonr - Admin
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| Quote: | | Sadly he failed his toilet roll tube test. Ripped it into a million pieces he did! This may make homing him harder. |
That's OK ... he will also appeal to all those recycling, eco friendly tree huggers out there, after all he just made himself part of the process!!!
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Gilka
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| EmmaSemple wrote: | Not a great pic but...
This was at work this afternoon. I will try and get some quick snaps of him at home.
Emma |
One word - WOW!
I can't believe that is the same dog, what a stunner.....
xx
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ali12345
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Saw this lovely boy with Emma's gang today - he looked very happy
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EmmaSemple
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We are doing very well here.
Karlos continues to play well with the other dogs and although he has shown slight interest in the rats, he was more interested in detroying dog toys.
Karlos' only real fault is that he has to be crated when not supervised otherwise he will chew things, but he is only a puppy really and just has to be guided. We have a good way of dealing with this by swapping one of his toys for whatever he has that he shouldn't have. That means that he will not learn to guard things that he has because it is an agreement between us that if he releases what he has then he will get something much better. He has shown no guarding issues, but when you try to take anything off of him then he treats it as a game and tries to play tug-of-war which is not what I want at the time!
I have no doubt that this was the reason that he was dumped as he has no other issues at all.
Emma
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EmmaSemple
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This dog is such a character!
He has proved himself over and over again as a dog with a superb temperament and lives happily with other dogs (in fact I would say that he MUST live with another dog.) He can get over excitable with cats, but there is no aggression there. He just barks a bit and then is easily distracted.
We are still working tirelessly with his habits of picking things up and he has learnt the swap game very quickly and has trained me well. He deliberately finds something now, brings it to me and drops it at my feet expecting a treat. So I need to consider the next step now as he will randomly pick up anything and in fact search for things to pick up knowing that if he releases that he will get a tit-bit!!!
Karlos would live with children, but my concern is what he could find to chew up (toys etc.) He is not food possessive, toy possessive or anything else possessive. He also has the greatest respect for other dogs and will never start a fight or continue a fight. Luckily for my Chihuahua cross as he often leaps at him to tell him off...although Monty has no teeth so he can't actually do anything. Karlos just backs off and carries on with another distraction. This is even if there are treats on offer so it shows what a great nature he has!
Karlos and Danny who is doing lots of work in our house currently
Emma
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newie244
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KarlI met Karl/Karlos for the 1st time today, what a lovely chap. He was in a kennel with Emmas 'Cool Crew' so it was a bit of a challenge getting him out, after an initial struggle to get the harness on he settled down and we were off.
On the walk he was like walking a young labrador, his nose was almost stuck to the ground and he was interested in everything. He wasn't bothered by the traffic passing us or the cattle, he showed a bit of interest in one of the chickens at the farm, but 'leave it' did the trick and we were off again.
At the halfway point, he was fussed and watered, he does seem to like a fuss, and when I was putting things back in my bag he walked round behind me and sat down leaning against me back-to-back.
A real character.....
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EmmaSemple
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Karlos has had to deal with alot these past couple of days. The whole house and garden are being taken apart and he is stuck right in the middle of it!
Our reward based training is working slowly and he is chewing less and less of 'our' things and concentrating his efforts on 'his' things.
Karlos is a very cuddly and snuggly boy. He loves to have a snuggle on the sofa and will normally be found laying near to you, no matter what you are doing.
Emma
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EmmaSemple
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...plus I have had to split him and one of my cats up permanently. The cat took to chasing him about the house.
Emma
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Bud
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LOL...........now that i would love to see
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xxlynne
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Karl is being met on Saturday...Charming Karl
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newie244
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KarlKarl came to lunch with me and Sue today, in the kennel the harness went on quickly, on the walk he was very eager, quite pulley to start with.
After a short while he calmed down and walked very well the rest of the distance to the cafe, he wasn't troubled by traffic flying past us at all.
At the cafe he sat with me very well, didn't jump up to the seat and certainly didn't pester for food, the walk back was very calm.
He is a lovely dog who is keen and energetic, he responds well to a firm handler but will try and do his own thing if he can.
He deserves his chance, and I hope his new family can bring out the 'little angel' he obviously is
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ali12345
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Waved goodbye to Karl today going off to his new home
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xxlynne
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Nicola and Mike came with Bella today hoping and praying Bella would accept Karl. Well it took 2 secs, then "I think I rather like you t-h-o-u-g-h- I a-m- a l-i-t-t-l-e n-e-r-v-o-u-s!"
Karl played it just right acknowledging Bella but then focusing on winning over his to-be future owners. That took about 5 secs, only because they were watching Bella's reactions.
 
Happy Families!!!!
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Gilka
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Fantastic news, have a lovely life Karl, you deserve it.
xx
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NikkiL
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Karls new Mummy hereKarl is wonderful and having the time of his life, each day brings new experiences and more improvements from him
I dont have a lot of time to post now, but I will be back later with lots more to say
thankyou to everyone involved with rescuing Karl, and bringing us together,
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NikkiL
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KarlWow
What a rollercoaster we have been on since Saturday
the journey home from the kennels was a nightmare, and seemed to take forever and the heat was awful. Karl was a real gem and hardly made any fuss at all, although he did try coming over the back of the seats for a cuddle once or twice. lol
We got him home and first of all he went berserk, I have never in my life seen anything like it. He did a complete wall of death around the first floor of our house at about 900 mpt. he literally cleared the chairs, over the back of them, up and down steps etc, knocking both us and Bella for six in the process. He then proceeded to spend the rest of the afternoon/evening chewing anything and everything he could get his paws on, including some rather nice cushions which he tried to shake to death and then refused to handover - even when offered a treat - obviously he has good taste in soft furnishings. 
Oh yes, dont forget the washing line he demolished with all the clean laundry with it
Took him for a walk once the day had cooled, where he pulled quite hard to begin with, but soon calmed down.
About 10pm we were knackered and frankly had enough for one day so put Karl to bed in his crate, where he proceeded to howl and bark for about 10 minutes but stopped when he realised we were ignoring him (we by then had passed out with nervous energy induced exhaustion)
Next morning, new day, everyone felt better.
We decided that Karl should be tought the "leave" command on a reward based system, so that he is rewarded for leaving things alone that he is not allowed to touch, rather than simply swapping. He is learning this well, and it is a valuable command I feel, as we are now able to get him to Leave the logs (we have an open fire), the cushions, Bella etc (not quite the washing line yet though) on command.
His walking on the lead improves daily, and he is now able to walk steadily on a fairly short lead, although a long way off walking to heel really nicely
Bella is accepting off him although she is fed up with him "bundling" her in the garden when she goes out last thing to do her business, so we have a rota for that. lol
Although I work from home my study is upstairs and I was concerned about going back to work on Monday and wondered what to do with regard to Karls destructive tendancies. - my worst nightamare would be to speak to a client on the phone for an hour then come downstairs to find the house trashed.
I decided to just go for it and give both dogs the run of the house and garden and see what happened. Fortunately Karl didnt let me down and spend most of Monday lying at my feet one side, with Bella on the other side.
Today, yet another improvement. the pushing, barging and rushing headlong is improving. In fact, wonder of wonders I left my study to go downstairs and make a cup of tea and Karl didnt even bother to come with me, unlike the last few days when he has pushed me out of the way several times in order to get there first.
I have also taken to scattering some kibble about the garden, when he feels bored he goes out on a "treasure hunt" for a few minutes which seems to take his mind of killing the furniture/chewing and digging.
Karl is happy and well and proving to be a nice addition to our fur-family, albeit perhaps a bit green at the moment. He is off to the dog groomers on Friday for a bath so fingers crossed he behaves himself.
I really cannot believe how much his behaviour improves and how much he is settling and calming, literally every day. - its almost as if he goes to bed, ponders on the days events, processes the information and then acts on it - just like a human. lol.
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Sharonr - Admin
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I know its not meant to be funny ... but can't help myself
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NikkiL
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SPONSORED WALKJust a quick update - no photos Im afraid
Karl completed a 10 mile sponsored walk on sunday along with myself and Bella
he was impeccably behaved both on the lead and off - and socialised well with approx 600 other people, various dogs and children, including a ride on a crowded bus
We intend to do the same walk next year, and this time RR will be the recipient!
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xxlynne
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So pleased Karl continues to be such a good dog!
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NikkiL
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KARL HAS AN IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTWe are all proud to announce
LAST NIGHT, KARL DIDNT USE HIS CRATE!!
Lately he has whined when I put him in it at night, and I sensed he had "outgrown" his need of it and would prefer to remain with the pack overnight.
He slept soundly at the foot of our bed all night, making no concession for it being the weekend and waking us up with his tail drumming agains the radiator at precisely 7am this morning.
the corner of the duvet cover looked like it might have been erm "sucked" a bit but no damage done. lol
I am so happy, I lay there listening to everyone sleeping last night just glad he could be with us, and not stuck downstairs in his cage.
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xxlynne
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Oh this is what we like our dogs as part of their pack! I bet he is chuffed!
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NikkiL
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Thanks Lynne,
Thats what we like too, and definately the reason that we have dogs, Im a bit embarrased to admit but Bella has slept in between us on the bed since day one.
Karl is too big and farty for that, but Its nice having him in the room
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