Abbey - 8 year old female Labrador Cross

April 22nd, 2008

Abbey is a gentle and good-hearted 8 year old female Black Labrador cross with a ripply coat. She arrived at Derby RSPCA Centre when her last owner, who owned a very large number of dogs, found herself no longer able to cope with so many animals.

She is a warm and friendly dog who loves to be stroked and to be around people, but is just a little timid at the moment because her whole world is in a state of change and many things are new to her. She is used to living with dogs rather than with people, but is obviously very keen to become better acquainted with the human race. She simply needs to gain a little more confidence.

Abbey isn’t very familiar with the idea of going for a walk, so she needs to do it very slowly and quietly so that she doesn’t get alarmed. She finds heavy traffic and sudden sharp noises rather unsettling at present and can sometimes look a little worried when she’s out and about, but she is already learning and should adjust quickly as long as she gets plenty of walks.

Abbey would be suitable for a calm, gentle and loving household where she would be allowed plenty of time to adjust to life and where her new owners have experience and understanding of dogs.

She will require plenty of exercise and to lose a little weight, so an active but non-rowdy home would be the right place for Abbey. Any children living in the household would need to be aged 7+ and very kind to animals.

Abbey is used to living with dogs and seems to ignore cats, possibly because she has never met any before. She has had very little training, but is a pleasant and intelligent dog who should be reasonably swift to learn. She is a real sweetheart - and all she needs now is a happy new home with patient, loving, caring, dog-friendly people.