My name is Axle!

Please meet Axle. This beauty is a 3-4 year old Vizsla mix. Up to now his life has been chaotic and lonely. We are looking for a home that has the room and patience to work with this wonderful guy. The lady that has him now has done wonders with him so he has improved but still needs a little more guidance. Please read his story below from the lady that has him now. If you are interested in adopting this wonderful dog please email us ASAP. The lady that has him is NOT his foster home and can not keep him any longer. She stepped up for another rescue group out of Atlanta that said they would take him. She agreed to keep him for a few days until they could make arrangements to get him. They backed out and told her they didn't care what she did with the dog, including taking him to a shelter. Great rescue group huh? Regardless, this lady can't keep him and he needs a home asap. Please read his story below and email fureverangels@aol.com if interested. Please put "Axle" in the subject line.

He is excellent with other dogs and children, but loves to chase kitty's and critters. He needs to be in a home with other dogs, he does not do well alone. He is house broken and he sits on command. He is very smart and needs some additional training. Since he has been with us he has learned that he can no longer sleep in the bed with humans. He is now learning about kennels/crates and boundaries. He has no food aggression, but is high energy so he will need room to run with his pack. Fully vetted, very healthy, a beautiful coat and extremely loving. PLEASE SHARE and help us find Axle a permanent home as soon as possible.

Axle's History:

He was adopted as a puppy by a hunter and was raised in a large pack of like 20. When he was older and was introduced to gunshots he freaked so the hunter gave him up to a friend and his girlfriend. At one point during this time he jumped through a glass door trying to get inside because of fireworks. The Boy/Girlfriends split and Axle went with the girl. The girl got a new boyfriend and he had a small dog. Small dog didn’t like axle and would attack him. Axle was put outside and chained to a tree. After about 6 months he got loose and Animal Control picked him up. The girl decided to leave him there. Her friend, who is now the surrendering owner, was upset that she was going to leave him there so she went and bailed him out and took him. That was almost two years ago. She did not think things through very well. She is a single mom, a full time student with a part time job. Her son is 9 and plays sports and she has a boyfriend she likes to spend the night with. Needless to say she has no time for a dog. Since I have known him, he has gotten loose many times. Animal control knows him very well. Many times I would catch him and put him in my yard till she came home. Last month he got loose and chased one of the neighbors’ kitties into the road and she was killed. We noticed all the shades in the rental house were destroyed. My neighbor saw him whining through the window as he pawed to get out. He had been slowly destroying everything she had. She was leaving him alone from 8:30 to 5:30 and then would feed him and leave and return in the am. Dec 16th, my husband was home and working in the yard. I came home and my husband was super concerned, I stopped to listen and you could hear him in there destroying it. I entered the house through the back door and found he had ripped bi-fold doors off in the laundry and had torn out the sheet rock at the front entrance and was pulling on wire etc. I removed him and put him in my yard with my dogs. When she arrived home she had told me that she had already contacted a rescue but they couldn’t take him. She was ready to surrender him.

Since he got along with mine I told her I would help and he could stay here until we found a rescue that could take him. Two days later my husband decides to take Axle to the neighbors to see if he got along with his dog, he says Scotia needs a friend. Axle finds her bone in the yard and bam, a fight breaks out. I get there and am trying to help and I got bit by Scotia. 5 stitches in my right index finger. That following week Axle and my two did great. I could feed them all in the same room. They all played together in the back yard. The next weekend my husband was in the back yard playing with them and some toys and our Rhodesian mix attacked Axle. I then separated Buddy and Axle and Molly spent time with both. The surrendering neighbor fully vetted him and I boarded him over Christmas as we traveled. Two days after our return Molly and Axel played outside all day, played hard! That night I wanted to sit in the Hot Tub for 15 -30 minutes. I put buddy in the back room and got dressed and when I returned to the kitchen, Axle and Molly were involved in a huge battle. I have no idea where that came from. It was violent and I was alone. My husband is truck driver. I had just had my stitches out and had to bust them up by myself. I busted my wound. I managed to separate them and kept them separate until New Year’s eve and I chose to board him again. I picked him up yesterday and the surrendering owner kept him last night. We are working together to give him a chance.
Since he has been with me he has learned he cannot sleep in the bed and now he sleeps right next to me. He is housebroken. He comes, sits, stays and gives paw on command. I have also successfully crate trained him. However, I have not left him in there unattended. I do think I could now leave him unattended, just haven’t tried. Since he has been unable to run freely he has calmed down considerably in three weeks. He was out of control. He responds to discipline well and would probably do really well in a structured disciplined environment.

The surrendering owner says she has never seen Axle fight any other dog, that he has always been excellent with other dogs. I feel like this is an issue with my dogs. Buddy never has been very good with other males and molly just follows Buddy because he is her Buddy and that is all she knows. She had become more authoritative when Axle returned. A rescue friend says anyone taking this dog needs to head caution in this area. I am not an expert so I agree.

He is sweet, likes curl up on your lap. Likes to please and wants to be a part of a family. If I didn’t already have 2 large dogs, I would keep him. My problem now is keeping everyone separated in this small house. The weather is getting cold and I won’t have the backyard as a separation space.