10 year old Willy has been through a lot of changes in the past 14 months. His lifelong owner died and when family couldn’t keep him, they found an adoptive home for him. Unfortunately the young, resident dog doesn’t love Willy. He has started fights with Willy and only once has Willy reacted to defend himself. Willy is in need of a new home and certainly, he’d appreciate that soon!

Willy is a 65 pound mixed breed. His owner calls him a Border Collie and Keeshond mix. Willy is said to act much younger than his age. He is very active, going for walks up to 5 miles, 2-4 times a week. If you can’t go that far, he’d probably enjoy daily, long walks. Willy should have a  home where his exercise routine can be continued. He does have leash aggression, however, and while his current owner has been working on this, his adopter must be able to continue this work and be strong enough to manage him. Willy does just fine with stairs and getting into the car to go for a ride.

This sensitive boy has a chill side too. He is content to hang out on the couch or find a comfy dog bed to lounge in. Willy has never been left completely alone; he has always had the company of a human or canine. Because he can be an anxious sort of fellow, Willy would do well with someone who is either home more often than not or has a calm, friendly dog to buddy up with while the humans are away. Because he’s had some upheaval recently, our hope is that his adopter will be patient with him and give him the time he needs to settle in and feel secure.

Willy is not going to be a dog park type of dog. He gets nervous when dogs run around, barking. We can imagine him being happy with a dog his age or a little older that is welcoming and mellow. It is unknown how Willy would react to a cat or children as he’s never been observed around either. Our guess is he’d be OK with kids 12+ who aren’t too loud and are respectful and kind.

Willy can manage up to 5 hours without a potty break. At this time a dog sitter comes to let him out when his person is at work. Ideally he’d not have to hold it too long. Willy loves to look out the window and watch what’s going on but he will bark at passersby! Willy must have a home with a securely fenced yard as he has been known to “bolt” when given the opportunity.

Willy sounds like a really nice companion dog. He’s ready to find his true forever home. Willy is located in Woodinville, WA. For contact information please email: referrals@olddoghaven.org

This is not an ODH dog; we urge prospective adopters to do their own evaluation.