Federico and Lera – 6 and 3 year old male and female Spanish Hounds available for adoption
Federico and Lera are 6 and 3 year old male and female Spanish Hounds. Look at this handsome pair! Imagine how much fun you could have in the outdoors with them by your side! They would be great for exciting activities like mantrailing or just rambles in the countryside.
Both are Spanish Hound mixes. Lera’s Griffon heritage showing in her wiry coat. Bred for hunting these dogs have a strong prey drive and amazing stamina. Hounds are by nature affectionate and enjoy human company.
Fed (full name Federico) born 8/4/2015 was dumped at a shelter we work with in North Spain, unwanted by his hunter owner. A bag of bones, he managed to keep his head down and rubbed along with all the other dogs but struggled with being cooped up in a small run.
Fed travelled to the UK into foster where he stayed for three months unfortunately during the first lockdown. He was very nervous and unsettled in his new surroundings at first but soon adapted to the routine and enjoyed his walks and of course his home comforts.
Sadly, he went on to have 4 failed adoptions. In each case he wasn’t given time or space to adjust and decompress in his new home. Adopters didn’t follow our advice and predictably after a honeymoon period, he became stressed and demonstrated reactive behaviour, barking and lunging when he was anxious.
His foster Mum says: Fed is a big (30+kg) clumsy clown who loves a fuss and makes us laugh with his quizzical, almost cartoon face that he pulls. Such as when he met the robot hoover which then became a toy he loved to play with! At first frightened of the washing machine, he would then wait to grab something out of the drum and run away with it. If bathmats, towels, dirty socks went missing Federico would have taken them into the garden with one of us in hot pursuit.
What a welcome I would get each morning! This big lad on his back legs, paws on my shoulders rubbing his head against me. I made sure everything I did was done slowly, so he didn’t get anxious until he was used to it, like putting his harness on, asking him to move, cleaning his ears etc.
What became apparent was that in a home with another dog he wasn’t as anxious and showed minimal reactive behaviour. That is why after careful consideration we decided it is the right thing to rehome him with his buddy Lera.
We also know that in kennels he has never once shown any reactive behaviour which tells us that slow and careful management of his environment is key to him settling successfully.
Lera’s (born 29/8/2017) story is again that she was unwanted by her hunter owner. In the shelter she quickly came to love any attention from people, and is a playful and confident girl. She and Federico get on very well and have a shared kennel space. They are now firm friends and love their run together in the paddock.
Lera’s only tricky trait is her obsession with food, and need to be fed separately. She has been known to steal food out of other dog’s mouths! She will have known real hunger. An ideal home for this pair would be with experienced adopters who have dealt with anxious, reactive dogs before. Both dogs are strong and active, and will need adopters with plenty of energy.
Federico is happier in a quiet rural environment. Traffic and loud noises put him on edge. A large, well fenced garden would be ideal for them.
A possible scenario for them would be gradual transition from kennel to house, or if that isn’t practical then careful management of space within the home environment. We are looking for a home with no cats or children.
Adoption fee of £400 per dog is a contribution towards the cost of their rescue including microchip, passport, vaccinations, tests for Mediterranean diseases, neutering, parasite treatment and transport to the UK from Spain. We will also provide a behaviourist to support the adoption.
Federico and Lera are in North Spain but are ready to travel to the UK. Could you help Fed overcome his anxiety and welcome this lovely pair of dogs into your life?
