Benny has been with us 6 months, he’s been adopted and returned 4 times.

Benny has fear aggression, whatever trauma he endured in his past has been deeply embedded within his psyche. And that’s a tough thing to deal with.

For 95% of the time Benny is a happy little guy, he loves to play, loves cuddles and is a big smoocher, especially in the mornings. He loves to sit on foster dad Bills’ lap, and snuggles up tightly to foster mum Giulia in the evenings on the couch. He has a soft spot for foster sibling Jayda and if he had a choice he would be glued to her side, if only he could I’m sure he’s thinking……

But the other 5% of Benny’s time he is unpredictable. Take him by surprise and this feisty guy will take you on without any hesitation, and that’s a scary situation for anyone to be in.

We have sought help from a trainer. We’ve had Benny assessed by our vets. We started him on medication in the hope Benny would relax, and that small percentage of time that Benny loses it, well we hoped, and continue to hope, that Benny will be able to keep calm and behave in a manner that is safe for everyone.

Euthanasia has been a word that has been spoken to us, that Benny has learnt behaviour that is not a good thing and likely he will never get over his fear of whatever it was that causes him to freak out.

Having had dogs that bit me, and Sean, for the duration of their lives while we cared for them, I know out there is a person just like us, a person that will never give up on Benny. It’s about learning how to navigate around the situation, ignoring Benny when he’s fired up, yet also not giving in to his dominance.

He’s not for the owner that wants a cute little dog that sits on their lap, Benny needs a strong owner, one who will teach him boundaries, yet still love him and care for him.

His unpredictable nature makes it much more difficult to rehome Benny. We have the tools to make a difference in his future, he’s only 6 yrs old – his daily routine is, and needs to be, a lot of time and patience, he needs space when he’s resting, if he wants to get away into a different room he needs to be left alone.

We think Benny would do best with a male, no kids, a bigger dog if that’s the case. Someone who enjoys a quiet life, and is willing to be Benny’s partner in life.

If you know someone and they want to talk further about Benny’s needs we’d love to hear from them 💛
sweetpawsdogrescue@gmail.com