Bentley

MEET BEN! Its a long read, but its worth it!

Ben is a beautiful, purebred Maremma Sheepdog, as such he is a very LARGE dog and does have a very strong personality! Please read all about the Maremma and Ben's personality before you enquire so you can ensure you are prepared and ready to consider adding Ben to your family.

BENS PERSONALITY:
Ben LOVES his humans and loves to come inside for a cuddle in the lounge or to just lay on the floor at your feet and guard you, he loves to play tug of war with a rope toy however, you must be very strong to play with him! Ben also loves to play fetch with his squeaky pig toy. Ben is very protective of his home (Ben is a general property dog and has had no specific guardian training with livestock but has been living with livestock and chickens and does also do well with them). Ben will bark at every stranger who approaches the home/his yard at first and then if he realises they are not a threat, he will happily go back to his bed, he is not fond of strangers petting him/approaching him (this is typical of his breed) and will look to his owners for reassurance and to feel comfortable. Ben loves belly scratches, he will roll over for a belly rub and will sit for hours for a brush and due to their double coat, daily brushing is required to keep his coat from being matted. He LOVES water and loves to swim in his dam, he will swim in any weather!

Ben needs a home with someone who is very experienced with dogs especially large and livestock guardian breeds and needs someone who will understand and respect him, his unique strong personality and his needs, someone that will earn his trust as he may be standoffish and quite nervous to begin with and will take some time as Maremma are extremely loyal to their humans, that being said they also adapt quite well to being rehomed and are able to form new bonds.

Ben is not suitable around wandering cats (however Bentley does come inside daily and is respectful of the cats inside the home in their territory) or other small animals such as rabbits (due to his guarding instinct) and is ideally looking for a home with a yard or property where he can do his daily duty of monitoring and checking out the perimeter and barking at any "threats", the maremma uses its voice to guard and ward off predators.

Bentley's foster parents have recently had a baby and he is doing well with her and adjusting to life with a baby, he has also regularly been around a 6 year old and 12 year old child, both who he enjoys playing with!

- Ben has experience living with goats, cows, chickens and alpacas and will happily protect their paddocks but has had no specific training with livestock guarding. Ben is not aggressive towards the chickens or livestock and happily guards their paddocks.
- Ben is also happy to be a couch potato and lounge around with his owner all day.
- Bentley has never shared/lived with another dog before so we are unsure how he would go however he has had playdates with other dogs of varying breeds and ages and has played well. We feel he can be introduced to another younger dog if he is allowed to be the alpha.
- No outdoor/wandering cats (unless you keep the cats away from me e.g. indoor cats, i am respectful of cats when I am inside the home with them in their territory, but i will chase them away & bark at them outside).

-Ben is desexed, microchipped and up to date with his vaccinations.
-Ben comes with a lifetime promise that he will always be welcome back to foster care with his foster family if for any reason it does not work out with the new home.
-Ben comes with a 4 week trial to give him enough time to settle in and find out if its a perfect match.

If you give Ben a chance to love you, you will be rewarded with his lifetime of loyalty, love, companionship and fun.