We met Rooney (SSR's Alex) at his foster’s house and right away our other male, Guinness, relaxed around him and laid next to Rooney. We knew then that he was our boy! Rooney was so adorable, like a little teddy bear, and he had just the right amount of goofy and sweet. He is a such a cuddler and has a sweet disposition. We just love him! He gets along great with Guinness and Molly, our other GSDs, and our 2 cats, Bella and Abbey. It was really helpful to know before going to meet him that he did well with cats and other dogs. Our pack would not be complete without him.

 

We’ve had Rooney about 5 months and while he is a super sweet, willing to please, smart boy, we have faced some challenges. Shortly after adopting him, we realized he had some big fears of being left alone. We worked closely with our veterinarian and also sought out a behavior therapist to help us help Rooney work through some of his anxiety. We are still working on it, but he has improved and we think starting to realize he is home and we will come back. Through working with a trainer, we also discovered he was most likely not treated very nicely by some people in the past. He will cower if he sees us with something over our head, with anything long that has a handle. He also will cower if we get too excited and raise our voices. We are working through these fears and doing our best to make sure he knows that no one will ever hurt him again.

 

When we were facing some of our challenges with Rooney, the SSR adopters page was a great resource and community for support. Everyone was helpful with suggestions and reassurances that sometimes the adjustment period can take longer for some dogs than others. This really helped us to stay patient with Rooney’s acclimation to being home and to trust that in time he will be okay. 

 

We couldn’t imagine a better fit for our pack and love him to pieces. There isn’t anything we wouldn’t do for him.