24-004 Waylon , a Golden/Lab mix, has had an unsettled young life. First known as  23-066 Johnny , he was surrendered at age 5 months with his littermate,  June , in August of 2023.  June  was placed right away.  Johnny  was accepted as a foster dog, but the family could keep him for only a couple  weeks. While they had him, they observed that he did not know what to do with toys or balls (sad). He was then transported to an adoptive couple in Phoenix. They renamed him  Waylon , and everything was reported to be wonderful. However, after about 3 months, they contacted us with worries about  Waylon's  behavior. He seemed to be very anxious and would whine and pace all night – they were not getting much sleep. They couldn't crate him because he broke out of the crate, damaging both the crate and his nose. They saw him through his neuter surgery in February, then asked that he be rehomed. Since their adoption had been finalized, we gave him a new intake number when he came  back to Rescue.  Waylon  then spent some time as a foster again, and for a couple weeks was happy playing with the foster's resident dogs. The foster mom gave us some valuable observations: 

Waylon  has ZERO respect for personal space. He will jump when he wants and move to where he wants on top of anything. Since I knew he didn't like the crate, when I had to go out, I put him in the bathroom. He did a lot of howling and scratching, but by the time I came back 1-1⁄2 hours later, he was quiet. I think he just doesn't want to be alone. I had him in the pool to learn the steps. It is a bit cool yet but I think he liked it. We will try more each day – a tired puppy is a good puppy. He has a Lab's webbed feet and is like a torpedo when he swims. He looks mostly Lab. He is about 65 lbs and very strong, also strong willed. He needs much more basic obedience, although he will sit nicely to take treats – he is very food-motivated! As long as he is either on the bed or next to another dog, he sleeps soundly. Maybe he was taken away from his mama too soon or misses his sister – who knows, it's only a guess. 

The foster mom transported  Waylon  to his new family in Peoria with their three children, and two other dogs. That was the ticket! They renamed him  Tars  after a TV character and reported that he has calmed down some and loves playing with the younger of his new canine friends,  Kaitos . The adopter commented: 

My husband and I have always had 3 dogs and, coincidentally, we have 3 kids. After losing two dogs to old age, we decided to adopt our dog  Kaitos  to keep our lone dog company. Little did we know that he was higher energy and needed a pup companion that could match his wild-child behavior. Then we met  Tars ...and  Tars  can hang! In the first couple of weeks of having him with us we realized he was the perfect fit for our family. He plays so well  with our dogs that we even call him and  Kaitos  two peas in a pod, because everywhere one goes the other follows.  Tars  is very  food motivated, smart and affectionate. One of my favorite things  about him is how he insists on sleeping with us on the bed with his little head on my pillow.  Tars  and  Kaitos  are having lots of fun playing. After play,  Tars  gets on the couch and just snoozes, belly up. The dogs love go for walks together. We are so lucky to have found him! 

They are obviously very happy with  Tars , formerly  Waylon  and  Johnny . Three times is the charm – what's one man's trash is another man's treasure!