Sludge's story

　　Hello, my name is Sludge (after the dog in the "Nate the Great" books) and I am a handsome, 3-year-old golden -yellow male lab who weighs 71 pounds. My guardianship was given to DLRR because my owners wanted me to have a better life. They have 5 children under the age of 11--a very hectic household. I am fully crate and house trained. I know the commands of sit, down, roll over, high-five!, wait, go to bed, out, inside, go get it, dance around, and where's your ball? As you can see, my family spent a lot of time teaching me tricks. While my owners spent the time to train me rather well, the young children in the house were not taught the human skills such as "don't pull ears and tails" and "don't poke," and as a result I am timid around new people and sometimes anxious. My anxiety heightens when around a human wearing a hat, humans dressed in all black, and that evil appliance called "vacuum." While anxious, I still respond to my human leader's guidance. Foster mom says I am a lovely boy who just needs a little time to establish trust with my new family. Given my past,

　　I am looking for a home with older children, maybe, or a home with a dog sibling would be nice. Once I feel comfortable with a kind human, I will place my head in your lap for some loving. My foster family believes I have pretty good house manners. I am gentle when taking treats. I am trustworthy not to touch human items. Even though the house dog's preference is the couch, I have refrained from claiming a spot on any of the furniture. I do not dig in the yard. I am friendly to the resident cats. I have respected the indoor gate so that the cats can have some distance. I occasionally jump but immediately get down when advised. I am not hyper, unless it comes to my tennis balls. I LOVE LOVE LOVE to fetch! So much so that my human must regulate how long I play because I can get overheated. In fact, my foster family will put the balls out of my sight because I am rather obsessive with them. They do not like to have a saliva-soaked ball dropped in their lap. Go figure!

　　If you are interested in this dog, please fill out an application at Someone will call to schedule a home visit so you can become an approved adopter. Also, visit our Facebook page at /desertlab and follow us on Instagram (DLRR of Arizona) and Twitter (@DLRR). Thanks!