Meet Ralph

Ralph is only a pup, and yet he has already been rehomed twice. First to an elderly couple who could not cope with his size and kept him crated around the clock. Then, aged just 4 months, to someone with four dogs of their own, two of whom would not accept Ralph and repeatedly attacked him. He has been with his current owners for only 4 days, but although they can clearly see what a fabulous dog he will be (there are brief periods where he is playing with their 3yo spayed female dog) they are not equipped to manage this untrained, traumatised pup and he now needs to be urgently moved into foster.

At 9 months old, Ralph is totally untrained, so behaves very much like an 8 week old puppy both in and out of the house. He is extremely stressed (understandably given his history) and is constantly pacing, whining and barking, unable to rest. He is anxiously humping the owner’s other dog and it is difficult for them to disengage him from this. He is jumping at shadows, expecting to be attacked. He is unable to be walked at all at present, as he is terrified of other dogs (unsurprisingly). He presents with a significant escape risk (he's trying to scale a barbed wire fence to get to the cows on the other side). He is going to present a lot of challenges, similar we think to a puppy farmed dog, who basically just wants to get away/escape. 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.

We have spoken at length the his current owner. She is desperate for help, but also deeply compassionate and desperate to do the right thing for Ralph. She stressed repeatedly that he is NOT a "bad dog", that they have caught glimpses of the lovely, sweet boy he in fact is beneath the fear and stress, that in between the frantic humping he and their female doodle are having brief periods of play. For the first time since he arrived 4 days ago, this morning he lay down on the sofa alongside them to briefly nap - it was only for 15 minutes, but this is a significant small step for this traumatised boy. Ralph 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 traumas, and to become the dog he was always meant to be.

We expect Ralph will need to remain in foster (with our full support - we cover all 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 £500.00 will be payable)

Ralph at a glance

Age: 9 months
Breed: Bernadoodle (large, 30kg currently)
Neutered?: No. Ralph 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
Dog friendly: He wants to play with the family’s other dog, but lacks social skills and niceties, so could potentially live with ONE other dog. 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 need
Ideal home: Calm, experienced fosterers who have the time and patience to invest in undoing damage done and helping Ralph to become the wonderful dog he is meant to be
Current Location: East Sussex

Personality

Ralph 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 instead, until he has come down sufficiently from his current high levels of anxiety and hyperarousal. This said, his current owner is keen to emphasise that they have caught glimpses of the lovely natured boy he is beneath the fear. He is briefly playing with their other dog and has just started to seek them out to lay down and rest beside them. In every photo, he has a smile on his face! This is going to be an AMAZING dog for the right family!

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 patient who understands that confidence grows with positive experiences, and that these positive experiences can only be experienced when Ralph is ready (pushed too soon and we risk reinforcing his fears and anxieties still further).
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Ideal Home

Ralph currently needs a calm, settled home environment with experienced owners who will understand the needs of anxious dogs. 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). Ralph needs calm and an absence of pressure and expectation (even for “normal” dog activities such as walks for the time being) to enable his current very high levels of anxiety and hyperarousal to abate. Once Ralph 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 can be hired for daily exercise (we cover all expenses associated with the care of our foster dogs) Once Ralph 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 Ralph. Given his past, introductions to other people and dogs will need to be carefully managed, under our guidance and only when Ralph shows us that he is ready. We very much want to try to avoid having to move Ralph again, so he will be placed for fostering in the hope and with the expectation that this will then lead to adoption.


Ralph would do best in a home:

• With experienced, calm owners who are prepared to go at Ralph’s pace

• Where someone will be at home and Ralph 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 (12 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 Ralph 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 Ralph’s pace, and not try to rush him to do more than he is ready for (this is VITAL).

Training & Support

Support will be provided while Ralph is in foster, including guidance around his confidence building and training.

Foster Details

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

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

Apply

This is very urgent as Ralph is trying to scale a barbed wire fence to get to the cows in the field adjacent to his current owners garden. If he succeeds, the farmer has the legal right to shoot him. If you feel you can help Ralph, 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 Ralph in East Sussex before he comes into foster.

Should his fosterers wish to adopt Ralph, an adoption fee of £500 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.