Charlie - BIO (Adopted 12/31)

CHARLIE - (status:  no longer available - found a home 12/31)

Age:  approx. 1 year old
Gender:  Female
Breed:  Pitbull Mix - presumed Shar Pei
Weight:  approx. 40 lbs.
Color:  black with white paws and nose
Spayed:  YES
Rescued:  July 2012 - has been with a foster family since then, getting healthy

Current Medical Condition:  all medical issues have been resolved, but still taking Ivermectin as a longer term treatment for (non-contagious) Demodex.  Skin and coat markedly improved and will continue to restore.  

Personality:  goofy, dopey, loving.  I vote her most likely to get bitten on the nose by a snake.  She is fascinated by butterflies, feathers, and will literally levitate when surprised.  She snorts like a pig, likes to carry around my reading glasses when they fall off my head, and chomps ice cubes.  She makes me laugh every day.

Socialization:  Very good-natured and definitely people-oriented.  She wants nothing more than to be with you.  She is friendly with other dogs (though tends to gregariously jump into play before the sniffing ritual is complete).  She is kitty-curious, but since she is always on leash, I don't know whether she is "cat-compatible" or not.  Child-friendly (I have a 4-yr old).

Training:  She knows:  SIT, DOWN, SHAKE, STAY, COME, GO TO BED.  She is good on-leash (I use a Gentle Leader so she doesn't pull), and we sit and stay when other dogs go by to practice impulse control.  She is either outside or crated, so while she is crate-trained (doesn't go potty in her crate), it is untested in house.  I suspect she would do fine in a house if she is let out to potty or taken for walks regularly.

Bad habits:  as every puppy does, she likes to pull stuffing out of her bed, or chew on something.  I make sure she always has chew toys.  She jumps up on you when excited, which can knock over a small child, so she still needs to learn to stay down.

Background:  I found her in July 2012 on the streets near LaBrea/Stocker in Los Angeles, with her mother, and took them (in exceptionally poor health) to a vet.  They were then transported to a shelter in South Central.  I adopted them from the shelter the day they were scheduled to be euthanized, because I knew that with medical attention and TLC they would make wonderful pets and deserved a family.  I have been fostering them since then.  I can't keep them myself because our dog is aggressive toward other dogs on his 'turf'.