Tucker - Staffie, Dog (2 Years) FOSTERED IN TENBURY WELLS

Oh brilliant news obout Tucker, Phil & Ria I know you can do this to help rehome Tucker, you are stronger than me, I would just be glad to have him back, and cuddle him to bits. I love him sooooo much I just could not do your job , can't wait to see the special boy tomorrow...

... I have spent a couple of hours on the phone with Kate tonight (with Phil screaming for his dinner in the background ) going through Tucker's day. We did really well today except for the short lead walking, which basically was a disaster. Tucker did a great impression of a two legged walking dog, with a slight lean towards the left! With Kate's blessing we are returning to the harness and short lead on the extender, and some extension on the burgage tomorrow while he pees and poos, and then back on his short lead. He has to earn this privilege though!! With a five to ten minute talk with Jo on the burgage while he sits quietly with no staffie backchat and a calm wait while we chat and basically ignore him. We usually manage at least 10 minutes chat with Jo discussing Tucker's progress, so I'm sure we'll do the time! See you tomorrow Jo.

Ahh, short lead work is the kicker with Nico too! He can do it brilliantly, but he gets distracted by leaves or has too much energy to focus and ends up in front. Yesterday evening he did a Tucker and went up on his hind legs trying to get at me on our evening walk, because he couldn't see me and wanted to check I wasn't a psychopath walking towards him and Dad!

Off topic, though, Tucker's thread has really opened my eyes to the Staffie breed. I've always been brought up believing in 'deed, not breed' so i've never believed their bad press, but for some reason they've never really been on my radar. Perhaps it's because i've got a big dog fanatic as a father(he's a massive dog lover, but the larger breeds, esp the working breeds are the apple of his eye)...

My two uncles both have staffie boys, and they're a dream with very young and boisterous kids - they put up with so much, then leave the room and are very sweet. Even my Mum, who is not easily won over by animals, adores them. The other staffie, Boy, has decided to wait on top of the sofa & watch the cars go by and wait for my uncle to get back from work - he's known in the neighbourhood and if he's not seen in the window for even an hour, my uncle and Nan are both interrogated over it!!

I hope anyone thinking of rescuing a staffie would read Tucker's thread and give the breed a chance, because everyone I know who's had a staffie or has had contact with one has said they're a very sweet, people orientated dog as long as they're treated right, which is the same for any animal really. Good luck Tucker!!! (& Ria & Phil and of course Phoebe!)

Ria I did not see you with tucker to day I was really looking foward to see him, I must not make to much of a fuss with him then, when i do see him. I can't help it I him so much, well carry on the good work I am bound to see you both soon.

Hi Jo,

We went out for our usual walk today and waited around until 12.15pm but had to make our way back as I had an unexpected viewing back home at 1pm (for the house, not Tucker ). We did stop on one of the benches and try a conversation with eachother, to test his whingeing, but it must have been the seat where most people stop with their fish and chips, because both he and Phoebe were busy sniffing away under the seat!

We usually leave the office at noon and are in the Burgage by 5 past, unless we are running late. Hopefully see you tomorrow.

He was doing so well on his heel walk too!

.. and every day brings us one step forward.

I have been using a mixture of collar, harness and canny collar with Tucker, to keep it varied and depending on the level of heel work I need him to perform and the time available. He is improving all round. We have actually cut the morning walk to 40 minutes, because an hour going over hilly countryside with him walking to heel is very tiring for both of us. We cut all the play while out, and concentrate on his heel work. There is no doubt he knows who is the pack leader, but there are times when he couldn't care less! To make up for the shorter morning walk, we now have a walk on the common on the way home, again on a short lead for the time being. It's great now that the lighter evenings are here, and we're not leaving work in pitch darkness. That's the problem living where there are no street lights. Night walks are impossible.

Today I put him on the extender and kept calling him back. He was perfect. As Kate says, don't let it become a battle. Small victories are important, but more importantly, we all have to keep our cool.

So where are we seeing the big improvements? Definitely on the ball throwing. He loves it with a passion, and would happily play ball all day. I have limited it to the garden and it's actually a massive pleasure throwing the ball for him now, because every time he brings it back he drops it to be thrown again. He will play ball at the drop of a hat. We had a house viewing today, so I've been at home and every couple of hours I've been playing in the garden with him. When the viewers came to the door, I let them in, and went and fetched Tucker from the garden (he was stood at the back door waiting for me to throw the ball again). I clipped his lead on, brought him in and popped him into his crate in the lounge. There was a bit of staffie back chat, but a couple of commands to settle, and he plonked himself down and had a snooze. After half an hour of showing the people round, I left them to have a look on their own and came down to take Tucker into the garden for another play. While he played, he completely ignored the viewers, and even at one point I was talking to them on the deck and Tucker had dropped his ball at my feet and was patiently waiting for me to throw it again. He made no attempt to jump up - his whole focus was on the ball. Unbelievable!

At work, he has been brilliant. No following me every time I get up. I tell him to settle on his bed and wait, and he does just that. I have left the child gate open and curiosity got the better of him when I was downstairs for over half an hour, so he came down, but I just said in a stern voice, "Back to bed" and off he went back upstairs.

The car travel has been mixed. The first few days he was fine. A bit of a grumble, some half hearted turns, but overall nothing too bad. Last night, he let himself down. We left work and I wanted to go to the supermarket on the way home, so we left him in the crate and popped into the Spar. When we came out, five minutes later, we could see him in the distance spinning in the crate, with the windows starting to steam up. We managed to calm him, but he wasn't entirely calm on the drive home. Still a work in progress, but when you compare it to three months ago, you have to recognise the massive improvement.

We have not left him since he came back, although I am making use of the crate more when we leave the room. As he is not allowed upstairs at the moment, I put him in the crate when we go up for a shower after our morning walk. I have taken to putting the camera on him and observing what he does. Sometimes he just snoozes and other times you can see him listening to the sounds as we move about upstairs. There was one slight indiscretion and a crate pad was ripped but it is repairable. When I come down, I open his crate but tell him to wait, while I carry on getting ready for work. I have about a 90% success rate, which again is pretty fantastic. I also have dog beds and blankets dotted all round downstairs in the house, so that I can instruct him from one to the other as I move around the house, if I want him to come with me. We've not had a problem with him bursting out of his crate when I come down in the morning and open the crate since the first day.

The waiting for his food is varied. He always leaves it, but he doesn't always ignore it. If he is too distracted by it, we go back to square one until he shows complete calm. Some nights he has had to wait over half an hour before he gets the okay to eat.

Visitors are definitely more calmly greeted. We stood outside the sweet shop in Teme Street chatting to the proprietor (whose car Tucker so unceremoniously spun like a loony in just a month or so ago) and she was so impressed with his calmer manner. There was no whingeing. The fire extinguisher man came to service the units at the office and Tucker kept all four feet on the ground as he was stroked. I met Jo in the Burgage yesterday, and it was Phoebe who was the pain, not Tucker. Jo could certainly see the improvement.

We will work a bit more on the separation this weekend. I would like to build up to a four hour session, just to make sure he can cope with that without getting too anxious and hurting himself or my furniture! Ann Parker is coming to visit for a coffee on Sunday, so hopefully she will definitely see the comparison between now and the day we picked him up from FDR while he was spinning in his buster collar. That seems such a long time ago now, and we all have to remember just how far Tucker has come since then.

What a lovely start to my day reading that. Well done all involved, so so happy I know there is more work ahead but you have really done so well, could cry for for future before now its WOW what a life to look forward to!

I had a fantastic opportunity to see Tucker's progress with my own eyes this weekend as a bunch of us enjoyed some really good time at Ria's. Where should I start? I think I will start with a super excited WOW WOW WOW WHAT A CHANGE!!!!! Tucker was VERY WELL behaved. He was calm around us and his manners upon our arrival were immaculate. No jumping or mouthing, no real spinning just a wonderful dog. He has come such a long way since I saw him for the first time at the kennels. He retired to his crate when told to do so and remained calm inside. He and Phoebe played ball with us and really enjoyed running around. When it got late and he had enough of playing he came asking for a bit of fuss and then retired to sleep, happily interrupting our conversation with his heavy duty snoring .

As if I was not already seriously impressed by all his progress I was in for even a bigger treat in the morning, watching Tucker with his food! After working up some serious sweat in the morning, chasing a ball up and down the garden (that is Tucker, doing all the chasing, not me ), it was time for breakfast. Tucker was told to go to his bed where he was to stay whilst Ria prepared food for him and Phoebe. Was he a good boy? He was! He stayed put until called over to eat. He happily ate all of his food and proceeded to play a little bit of ball with us (just a tiny little bit of ball under the kitchen table ).

It has been absolutely wonderful to see this boy come such a long way. His response to Kate's training has been amazing and it must be really rewarding for Ria and Phil to see all their hard work finally paying off.

I will be shortly uploading some pictures of Tucker enjoying himself in the sunshine, please have look at this great boy as he really deserves that special home he can all his own .

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.263970943691218.65121.100002349431880&type=1&l=350192eb7a

Wow!! What a difference a few weeks makes.

First of all, the food. Tucker knows the drill now. Sometimes he keeps his paws crossed that I won't notice his longing glance at his grub as it sits there waiting for him. No such luck. I might be pretending to carry on with my chores while he settles, but I am watching every move, . He is incredibly controlled, and now knows my little wink of approval that lets him go and get his grub.

We've re-introduced playing with his ball while out on his walk, but only if he's earned the privilege by doing a few minutes of basic obedience training. Again, he is incredibly well mannered with sit, lie and wait. If at any time he gets too rough with his play or won't leave the ball immediately, it's game over.

The car travel is varied. Some times he is very good, other times he is whingey and inconsolable. Last weekend we tried a journey without the crate and with me sitting in the back of the car with him. Not a peep. Settled down alongside me and plonked his head on my lap. On the way back I sat in the front and clipped him in on the back seat, and again he was fine. I have bought a new seat cover for my car, and we will try the travel minus the crate this week and see how he is.

He has slept well in his crate and is really controlled coming out in the mornings, so again a big tick on that.

He is back to where he was with his walking to heel, but the harness has long gone and he is on the ordinary collar. I did introduce the canny collar when he was being particularly pully, but I gave it up when a friend with an out of control GSD asked what it was, and I lent it to her!! She has reported back that it's better than any halti she has tried (and been eaten by her dog) and she is now in total control of her powerful dog (I would still like it back though, , but I'm hoping she's put her order in to eBay for a replacement).

Now onto visitors. Last weekend we had friends over for the evening. They let me know when they were five minutes away, and I popped Tucker into his crate with the door open. When they arrived, I closed the door and told him to settle, which he did. They came in and we went straight into the dining room to eat, leaving him in the lounge. A few minor whinges with a couple of verbal corrections from afar and he settled down. An hour later, we returned to the lounge, and I let Tucker out on his lead. Once he had settled, I did controlled introductions. He did go for our friend's hand, but only to lick it. We brought him back to settle at our feet, and when he was completely settled we let him off the lead. In the end, he actually settled on the sofa next to me, and went to sleep (sorry Kate, but we have allowed him back on the sofa for a cuddle when he is really well behaved, but again if there is any sign of bad manners he's sent to his own bed). Our friends could not believe the transition, and were starting to ask whether they thought he might be a good prospect for their mother. I had to say no. No matter how good he seems, he has to go to a bullbreed savvy home. We cannot let our guard down with him. This is not a five minute fix. This is long haul, ongoing training.

This weekend was a real test. Four friends for dinner and to stay over for the night. What a good boy he was. A bit of excitement at times, but nothing uncontrollable, and for most of the time we were having dinner, he was settled in his bed snoring contentedly, at times drowning out our conversation with the volume. This morning he showed off his ball skills in the garden (he is really fantastic at jumping high for the ball, but really rubbish at actually catching it!). Nina got some cracking shots of him. At breakfast (his and ours) he behaved with impeccable manners. When everyone was ready for the off, we had the front gate open and Tucker was happily mooching about on the driveway. Phoebe, as always, was on the lead, but Tucker was off lead. Steve asked if we weren't worried in case he scarpered, but that's the thing with Tucker - he is so loyal, and the last thing on his mind would be to make a run for it. He is just so happy to be close to his people. He can now even watch as car doors are opened without the uncontrollable lunge to jump in and spin. A quick, sharp command to sit alongside me, and I was confident that he was safe while they all manouevered on the driveway. I did pick him up to give them a wave off with his paw (another task that Kate had set me to ensure that he is calm and in control - the picking up, not necessarily the waving off!).

So, it's now Sunday night, and Tucker is settled alongside me gently snoring and dreaming about what a wonderful weekend he's had with his new friends, heaping bucketfuls of praise on him. He's one happy boy. Now the search is on to find him the right forever home.

Here's one of Nina's lovely photos showing Tucker doing what he loves best:

I also had the great honour to spent last night in Hotel Baxter and whilst I enjoyed most delicious food made by Mommy Ria I witnessed a calm and well mannered Tucker sitting in his bed in the same room with us while we were dining. Please see proof in the pics below.

On our arrival he was perfectly controlled by Ria and stayed really calm. It was amazing. Allover I can only underline what Nina already wrote but I wish to add that

If I would not have known of his history I would not have noticed that he is a rescued dog. Quite the opposite: I would have thought "Gosh, what a well mannered dog and so calm".

No kidding- his behavior is remarkable and better than the behaviour of most of the dogs I met in my life. I would dare to say that the average dog in british and german households is probably not as well behaved as Tucker is now.

If anybody can offer Tucker a home where he is not left allone for long times and does not need to spent an awfull lot of time in the car he wil make a pet people wil become jealous about.











Congrats to Ria, Phil and Kate.

There are improvements with the separation anxiety too.

We can now leave Tucker in his bed at the bottom of the stairs while we go up in the morning to shower and dress after our morning walk. He makes no attempt to come upstairs unless he is invited, and will patiently wait until we come down.

At work, he has been incredibly good, staying on his bed in my office if I go downstairs to make the tea or go to the loo. Even when I pop out to the bank or the Post Office, he no longer cries or tries to follow me. Most of the time, he is actually sitting right behind me up against the floor to ceiling window, tied up in the vertical blinds trying to grab each ray of sunshine. It can get a bit of an obstacle course if he and Phoebe are vying for the best spot, but a quick point to their bed and an "off you go!" and both of them will move sharpish.

Last week we even had a two hour meeting downstairs and left Tucker in my office and he didn't move. I took him for his lunch time walk, then settled him back in the office while I went to meet people for a quick lunch and the staff reported that he didn't make a sound. That is such a massive relief, because before I couldn't trust him to leave him with the staff as he would become quite destructive and spin and bark.

At home, we have left him in his crate on two occasions. The first time, we had to leave in a hurry with no warning or preparation. I put him in his crate with just the piece of carpet lining the base and an old duvet cover that he likes to ruck up and make a pillow from. I removed his bed cushion. I set the camera on him and we left. When I watched it back, I could see that he was very anxious in the first ten minutes. He could obviously hear us getting the car out of the garage and backing it onto the driveway. During this time, he was crying quite loudly and starting to spin a bit. When we drove off the driveway, he started to bark, and then suddenly turned his attention to the carpet, ripping a large corner of it into shreds (it was a very thick piece of carpet, so this was no easy task) and then turning his attention to the duvet, which he tore the corner off. After a few more cries and barks, he settled down and went to sleep. We were out for just under two hours.

The second time, we knew we were going out, so we prepared him for our departure. First of all I played ball with him in the garden for ten minutes, which really wore him out. I then put him into his crate, but left the door open while I pottered about the house. He was corrected if he tried to follow me, and told to settle in his crate. After 15 minutes, I quietly shut his crate and we left without saying anything to him. When I watched the video back I could see that he didn't actually move from the spot at all and slept for the entire two hours that we were out.

We will continue to increase the time he is left. There is no doubt that he is less anxious at being a bit more independent, although I would never trust him at the present time to leave him with the run of the house (I'm still waiting for the return of my sofa cushions, and there's no way I would give him the opportunity for a second taste of leather!).

In the car coming to work this morning, I had replaced the crate with a new back seat cover and clipped him in. He found his Kong bone that still had some peanut butter in it, and we didn't hear a peep out of him for the two and a half mile journey to work. The Kong is now empty, so it will be interesting to see how he does going home.

There is no doubt that Tucker is improving in all areas. He will make someone a most wonderful companion. He so wants to please and he is a fabulous dog. If you are interested in meeting him, please get in touch. Despite the massive improvements, there still has to be strict criteria for rehoming Tucker:


•He must have bullbreed savvy owners


•No young children


•Not left for more than three or four hours occasionally, not regularly


•Be fully committed to continuing his training


•He does get on fantastically well with other dogs, but it would be in his interests for his new owners to be able to give him 100% commitment and time, so another dog in the house would not be ideal, although not impossible

Sounds to me as if you had a fantastic weekend & what great strides Tucker has made, I know what hard work it is now that I have Robbie who is so needy, it makes you appreciate how lucky we are with our own dogs who just await our return, but I am finding out the terrific rewards you get when small steps are made, a trip to the loo without a shadow & a happy contented boy with a lovely waggy tail when you return just makes your day, so I am sure that someone looking for a great companion is just around the corner for Tucker.

Talk about stereotyping a dog!!

Tonight I was on the way home and as Phil had been out all day at a meeting and was likely to be another hour or so, and as our lunchtime walk had been spoilt by the most unbelievable downpour of hailstones, I thought we would stop on Oldwood Common for a good walk and to try out the new balls I had bought for Tucker. I spotted a friend, Dick, with his dog Daisy in the distance, so I thought I would catch him up, so Tucker was chasing his ball in Dick's general direction as I was jogging along with Phoebe trying to catch him up. Dick had his headphones on (and is quite deaf too), so there was no point in shouting him, so I just continued to run. Tucker overtook Dick, and I watched Dick do a bit of a double take, and spin round to see who Tucker was with, almost with a scowl on his face. He then saw me waving, smiled and took off his headphones. Now Dick is a retired army major, so like me he likes to call a spade a shovel. His first words were, "I was just turning round to see what bloody Chav had that staffie running round!" "Dick!!" I exclaimed, "Don't judge the breed, judge the dog!" As we walked along together, Tucker was running backward and forward,sniffing Daisy and chasing his ball. Dick said, "So, what's the background to this one then?" and I told him all about Tucker's background and behaviour. We were approached by an unaccompanied Rottweiler, with no collar. As he approached, I called Tucker back, and he came straight to my side. The rottie came over and they sniffed eachother, and Tucker just acknowledged him and carried on. We then approached another dog (with it's owner), and again I called Tucker back, and he came straight to my side. I just said "stay with me" and he stayed close until the dog had passed. At one point, Tucker had moved quite a distance on with Daisy, and I had to give him quite a loud call, as he was a good 100 metres ahead. Immediately, he turned round and came straight back. "Bloody hell, Ria! He's fantastically well behaved! I'm impressed! Much better than Daisy!" Said it all really.

I can't praise this dog enough. He is such a wonderful boy, and I have to say such a credit to Kate and myself. I am really proud of his achievements, and I really think whoever ends up giving him his forever home is going to be so privileged to share their life with him.

Phil was in a crowded park with the dogs on Saturday while I was running an errand, and a few people actually said how impressed they were with Tucker's ball play. He is so focused, and nothing will come between him and his fun.

He stays put now where I tell him to if I need to leave the room. At work, I am now happy to pop to the shops and leave him in my office with the staff in the main office. We still haven't done a four hour separation yet, but that might happen this weekend if we pop out shopping. Fingers crossed, but I am confident that he will do well.

What an absolute joy to read, Well done Ria, you should be proud of yourself, and Good Luck lovely Tucker.

It's the idiots that have let this breed and so many others down. To quote our trainer, 'we are the brains of the outfit, and until we get it right, Fido has no chance' - looks like you've all got it spot on with Tucker!

What beautiful photos, Tucker looks so happy

Love these pics, my daughters and I love nothing more than searching the net looking for pics of smiling Staffies, and these are up there with the best x

met tucker for the first time yesterday,what a beautiful dog.He was playful,social and well behaved.Somewhere out there is that special new owner.i wonder who.

Tucker continues to thrive in foster, and is still looking for his forever home. Here are some photos to remind you what a fab boy he is:

In the absence of the forum for the past 7 months, Tucker has become a star of Facebook, and you can follow him at the following link:

https://www.facebook.com/AHomeForTucker?ref=hl

Please Like his page to get him as much publicity as possible - believe it or not, he is available for adoption