23-027 Thor , a 1-year-old un-neutered male, came into Rescue with sisters 23-029 Serabi  and  23-028 Snow . All three of the dogs were taken to  Academy West Animal Hospital  for vetting – they all needed everything.  Thor  was placed with an adopter in Phoenix and her dog  Enzo . Sadly,  Thor , who was not house trained, continued to pee in the house and the adopter didn’t feel like this was going to be the best fit.  AGR  then found a home with an adoptive couple in Mesa.  Thor  rode quietly to their house and gingerly came out of his crate once he was there. He never took his eyes off the adopter man, who is tall, and tried to get away from him; he was not much better with the adopter woman. The cat was very interested in  Thor , and  Thor  seemed to take some comfort from another animal. The adopters are committed to helping  Thor  succeed. It will take time, though. Great fit, even if  Thor  didn’t know it at the time. The next day the man said overall they are doing well, and the adopter woman related: 

Thor  warmed up to Scott this morning! Slept in his crate all night . One pee in the house but he is going in and out the dog door on his own now without coaxing. Cat is still watching him; she hisses if he gets too close. 

The adopter man said:  Thor  decided to attack his food today and is warming up. He’s doing well, has a yeast infection so we we’re giving him medicine. Feeling much more comfortable at home. Playing and not scared of me.  Thor  had an hour-long walk this morning, met a dog on his walk, learned how to use the doggie door and rolled around in the wet grass much to his pleasure .

They have renamed him  Tucker . Comments from the adopter man: 

I'm happy to report that  Tucker  is feeling so much more comfortable in our home. He's gotten over his fear of men to trust me completely. Every morning we go on about an hour walk – at 5 a .m. in the summer – and then we play with him several times a day. He loves our backyard, with the  covered patio, couch, and our pool. For the first couple of weeks,  he seemed fearful of thresholds but now he happily comes into the house when we call him. He's a wonderful dog, and both his and our experience is only going to get better with time. He starts training this Saturday which is another plus. We're very happy to have him. He and I have become best buddies. He's still wary of strangers, but there's no aggressiveness at all. We're hopeful that over the next few months as he feels more comfortable in our home he'll open up to people he doesn't know. 

Patience, consistency and persistence are the keys to successful training!