Darcy Silver

Darcy Silver was picked up wandering the streets of Broken Hill NSW just a few weeks ago so has little history beyond his FFAR foster carers. He has adapted exceptionally well to suburban life settling in quickly to a new home and routine. Darcy is well toilet trained but otherwise lacks traditional doggy skills … but boy is he a fast leaner! Darcy is motivated by treats and has mastered ‘sit’, ‘wait’, ‘leave it’ ‘okay’ (release) and ‘come’ while he is quickly learning ‘mat’, ‘drop’, ‘up up up’ and ‘down’. He has figured out all the stupid contradictory house rules without any drama (allowed on the grey couch but not the yellow one, on the bed but only when invited) and will do pretty much anything for a warm hug and the chance to lick his human friends.

And lick he will! Gentle licks to check if you’re okay. Passionate licks with his powerful tongue to let you know he loves you. He will lick pretty much anywhere you let him.

Inside the home Darcy is a loving, affection and incredible calm companion. He’s not the type of dog to run zoomies in the yard, bark at shadows or go nuts when someone knocks on the door. If a bird catches his eye in the backyard Darcy he will furrow his gorgeous little foreheard for a moment then trot over to investigate. If he’s particularly comfy on his mat he probably won’t bother. Darcy loves to gnaw away at a good chew toy in his own time but has exhibited no signs of destructive behaviour or digging/scratching tendencies. When his humans are behind closed doors, occasionally he will create a little collection of shoes on his mat to nestle his head upon. Darcy really, really loves his humans. Darcy will need (at least) a small secure yard to stretch his legs and do his business but spends almost all of his time indoors. An apartment would not be appropriate due to his size.

Darcy has reacted predictably and consistently to humans of all ages, shapes and sizes. Sometimes cautious at first, it takes very little encouragement for Darcy to be staring lovingly into your eyes, woo you into petting him and start licking you back in thanks. Darcy does not tend to use his paws to interact but will occasionally jump up if he thinks he has been invited. He takes a particular interest to tradies wearing high-vis when out on walks in the neighbourhood.

Speaking of walks, this would be Darcy’s greatest development area. He had clearly never seen a leash when one was first put on him. He thought it was a great game at first spinning around the sidewalk but got the idea soon enough. At 29kgs Darcy is a strong boy and has recently started pulling so needs a strong competent human to continue teaching him how to explore the suburban world appropriately while on the lead. His foster carers haven’t experimented with any fancy collars or the like, so would suggest Darcy’s forever family take the time to work with a professional trainer to learn this fun new skill – he’s certainly got it in him.

Similarly, Darcy does not appear to have been properly socialised with other animals as a puppy. He becomes over-excited when he sees dogs in the park and can be single-minded about meeting them. If he gets the chance to say hello Darcy doesn’t know what is expected of him and can react unpredictably. Usually he will just sniff then try to play but occasionally he will growl aggressively so needs to be very tightly controlled. He has already improved considerably during is short time in Melbourne - starting to take cues from his humans and understanding when he is allowed to say hello and when he is not - but due to his age Darcy will likely never be an off-lead dog.

Darcy’s giant smile will steal your heart. He deserves a loving forever home full of doggy snuggles, opportunities to exercise twice daily on-lead and willing to invest time into his ongoing enrichment as a loyal and affectionate companion.