Meet Ozzy, a nearly 5-year-old Australian Cattle Dog mix with a huge personality and an even bigger heart. This 55-pound bundle of energy is incredibly smart, active, and loyal – he’ll be your best friend and companion, always eager to join in on your adventures. Ozzy loves fetch more than anything and is happiest when he’s outside, running, playing, or going for a long walk. He’s also a water fan, happily wading on a hot day or playing with the hose.

Ozzy is very intelligent and picks up commands quickly. He already knows “sit” and “off” and is making great progress with “stay” and “down.” He’s housebroken, though he’s had a few marking incidents, which may be due to the presence of our two cats. Ozzy’s got a playful, spirited personality and is eager to learn, always looking to please and engage with his people.

We think Ozzy would thrive with a single, active owner who can appreciate his loyal nature and enjoy his energetic, protective spirit. He’s wonderful with other dogs but is reactive to cats, so a feline-free home would be ideal. That said, we’ve been working on training him not to react toward cats, and he’s making good progress, so with continued training, it may be manageable. He’s shown himself to be friendly with children, although we aren’t parents ourselves, so he may do best in a quieter home where his natural instincts are understood.

While Ozzy is a sweet and affectionate dog, he has shown some protective tendencies around his space or resources, which we believe may stem from past trauma. We’ve had Ozzy for almost 7 months now. Now that he has settled in, it seems he’s let his guard down. He has typical nipping when excited which hasn’t been an issue until recently. We’ve discovered he has some resource guarding issues that led him to bite me a few weeks ago. He was eating his poop outside and tried to bring it inside. It broke skin and bruised but did not require medical treatment other than I went to get it looked at and cleaned at urgent care. He has since again growled and looked like as if he was going to bite my or my husband forearm, usually when we ask him to get off the bed or go in his crate. We’ve been working with a trainer and he’s a quick learner and really smart dog, but the heeler attitude combined with the aggression and his strength and size is creating an environment I can’t tolerate.

He is always on his best behavior for sitters and guests, and has not shown aggression to anyone but myself and my husband. He is great with other dogs and shows no aggression to other dogs.

We’ve invested a lot of time, energy, and resources into giving Ozzy the best care. Since bringing him home, we’ve had him neutered, fully vaccinated, and started him in professional training to support his progress. We don’t take the decision to rehome him lightly, and we want him to find the best possible match.

We’re heartbroken to make the decision to rehome Ozzy, but we want to do what’s best for him and ensure he finds the right environment to thrive. We’ll be providing everything he needs, including two large crates, toys, leashes, harnesses, food and water dishes, and more. We’re also happy to assist with transportation to Ozzy’s new home, and there is a rehoming fee to ensure Ozzy goes to a caring and committed home.

If you think you can give Ozzy the structure and love he needs, we’d love to connect and learn more about you to make sure it’s the right fit.

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Email anniefranken22@gmail.com