Meet Oscar

Oscar is only a pup, just 9 months old, and yet he has already been given up four times. First to an elderly couple who could not cope with his size and kept him crated around the clock. Then, aged just 7 months, to someone with four dogs of their own, two of whom would not accept Oscar and repeatedly attacked him. Can you imagine the impact this will have had? Then to a couple whose garden backed on to a field of cows, which drove Oscar to distraction, and who gave him up after only 4 days. Oscar came into emergency foster 8 days ago, but due to his understandably very high levels of stress (his head must be spinning on its shoulders) and, in particular, his tendency to “steal” and destroy items around the house, his fosterers feel unable to continue and we now need to find another foster home for him.

At 9 months old, Oscar is largely untrained and it is evident he has experienced little of the world outside of a crate, and as a result he can easily become overwhelmed. He behaves very much like an 8 week old puppy both in and out of the house. He is extremely stressed (understandably given his history). He jumps at shadows and flinches at sudden movements (in particular a hand being extended towards him, which we feel tells its own story) and can be anxious of strangers, even at a distance. Every dog tells us their story. Although for an untrained dog he walks nicely on lead, he is not yet ready to be pavement walked as passing traffic, bikes, people, other dogs can all trigger a fear response and he will freeze. We will arrange for a secure dog field for him to have some off lead exercise whilst he is in foster. This is a highly traumatised large (30kg) pup, currently running on adrenalin and in many ways in survival mode, who now desperately needs a calm, experienced foster home where he will be given time and space to decompress before we can commence a gradual programme of training. It is absolutely imperative that his foster family commit to working closely with us and our behavioural adviser and IMDT trainer.

All this said, Oscar has shown himself to be extremely loving, bonding heavily with his albeit transient owners, which makes the multiple upheavals he has suffered even more heartbreaking. He sleeps through the night and can settle and rest for short periods during the day, although his current foster family describe him as “full on” otherwise, which is a typical presentation of a dog running on adrenaline and in survival mode (meaning his body's sympathetic nervous system is trapped in a chronic fight or flight response, flooding his system with stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol, and this will not and cannot abate until he feels safe.

Oscar is going to be an absolutely cracking dog for a family who are prepared to put the work in to helping him to get over his past traumas, who are prepared to advocate for him to ensure he isn’t overwhelmed, and to become the dog he was always meant to be. He is just a puppy and he has been through so much loss and trauma in his short life. He so deserves his happy ending.

We expect Oscar will need to remain in foster (with our full support - we cover all agreed expenses) for a few months before we can consider him ready for adoption. His foster family can then apply to adopt him, if they wish (and we very much hope, for the sake of this poor pup who has already experienced far more trauma than most dogs thankfully do in their lifetimes, that this will be the outcome) (An adoption fee of £400.00 will be payable)

Oscar at a glance

Age: 9 months
Breed: Bernadoodle (large, 30kg currently)
Neutered?: No. Oscar will be placed on a neutering contract as he is currently too young to be neutered.
Energy level: High.
Prey drive: High
Settles in the home: Not currently as too traumatised - Oscar needs to be given time to destress/decompress
Dog friendly: He could potentially live with ONE other dog, but he can understandably be fearful of other dogs and also lacks social skills. Any resident dog will need to be neutered/spayed, calm, bomb proof, and non-aggressive/non-guarding
Cats: Not cat tested but has a high prey drive
Children: 16+
Training level: High level of training needed once he has come down from his current high levels of anxiety
Ideal home: Calm, experienced, understanding fosterers who have the time and patience to invest in undoing the damage done, to help Oscar to become the wonderful dog he is meant to be
Current Location: CAMBRIDGE

Personality

Oscar is currently highly anxious both inside and outside the home. He cannot be treated like a “normal” 9 month old puppy currently. For example, walks will need to be avoided, with garden play and exercise in a secure dog field (which we will hire) instead, until he has come down sufficiently from his current high levels of anxiety and hyperarousal. Like many young dogs, he’s still learning about the world, and because of his past experiences he has experienced little of it, and is easily overwhelmed. He needs someone with an abundance of patience who understands that confidence grows with positive experiences, and that these “positive experiences” can only be experienced when Oscar is ready (pushed too soon and it risks reinforcing his fears and anxieties still further).
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Ideal Home

Oscar currently needs a calm, settled home environment with experienced owners who will understand the needs of anxious dogs and will be prepared to tolerate calmly and without admonishment his tendency to “steal” and destroy items he finds around the house (you will receive support with all aspects of Oscar’s behaviour). A home with few visitors or comings and goings (and for the first few weeks we ask that his fosterers avoid having visitors to the home). Oscar needs calm and an absence of pressure and expectation (even for “normal” dog activities such as walks - other than in a secure dog field - for the time being) to enable his current very high levels of anxiety and hyperarousal to abate. Once Oscar has had time to decompress, we will introduce a gentle training programme which his fosterers will be expected to work closely with us on delivering in small, incremental steps. Full support will be given every step of the way, and a secure dog field will be hired for daily exercise (we cover all expenses associated with the care of our foster dogs) Once Oscar has recovered from his traumatic past and has had the training he needs, we expect his needs to be similar to most other doodles, with lots of fulfilling, enriching walks (when he is ready), and we expect his energy levels and exercise needs to be high. Doodles can live for 14-15 years, so please consider this when applying for Oscar. Given his past, introductions to other people and dogs will need to be carefully managed, under our guidance and only when Oscar shows us that he is ready. We very much want to try to avoid having to move Oscar again, so he will be placed for fostering in the hope and with the expectation that this will then lead to adoption.


Oscar would do best in a home:

• With experienced, calm owners who are prepared to go at Oscar’s pace, led by our behavioural adviser/IMDT trainer

• Oscar takes and destroys items. Although we appreciate this is not an attractive quality, this can be trained out of him once he has had time to come down from his current very high levels of anxiety

• Where someone will be at home and Oscar will not be left

• Happy to continue his training

• Prior dog ownership experience is imperative

• With confident, calm, reward-based handling, and prepared to follow our guidance

• Where he can be the only dog preferably, although consideration will be given to ONE other neutered/spayed, calm, bomb-proof, non-aggressive/non-guarding dog

• Without cats

• An adult home, or with older children or visiting children (16 plus) provided they are calm and sensible

• You should have no holidays or nights away arranged for the next 2 months, unless it is suitable for you to take Oscar with you, giving consideration to his needs

• You absolutely do not need to be a professional trainer. Just someone willing to learn and be consistent, and who is willing to implement our training advice and to go at Oscar’s pace, and not try to rush him to do more than he is ready for (this is VITAL) You will get all the support you need.
  

Training & Support

Full support will be provided while Oscar is in foster, including guidance around his confidence building and training. His fosterers will be required to work closely with our behavioural adviser/IMDT trainer and to follow her advice

Foster Details

This is a foster to adopt placement, meaning you and Oscar benefit from training support whilst we all consider whether adoption will be the right thing for Oscar and your family.

All agreed foster costs are covered, and support is provided throughout. The goal is to find the right home for Oscar to calm and decompress for the first month or two, and to succeed long term.

Apply

This is very urgent. If you feel you can help Oscar, can offer to foster him immediately, please complete the application form via the button at the bottom of this page.

We cover all costs associated with the care of our foster dogs and provide round the clock support. Your family will need to meet Oscar in Cambridge before he comes into foster.

Should his fosterers wish to adopt Oscar, an adoption fee of £400 will apply

Info
DOODLES ARE HIGHLY SENSITIVE DOGS. THEY RESPOND BRILLIANTLY TO POSITIVE, FUN, REWARD-BASED TRAINING. THEY FALL APART IF SHOUTED AT OR SUBJECTED TO NEGATIVE TRAINING TECHNIQUES, AND WE DO NOT PERMIT THE USE OF PUNISHMENT OR HARSH TREATMENT IN ANY FORM.

Application & Vetting Process

Doodle Rescue is a small, volunteer-run organisation. Due to high volumes of applications:

• Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted—within 3 days of submission—via email.

• If you do not hear from us within 3 days, your application has unfortunately not been successful.

• We are unable to respond to requests for further information before an application is submitted, and we do not retain unsuccessful applications due to GDPR.

By submitting an application, you agree to our full vetting process, including reference checks and a home check.