Cassidy (ADOPTED!) is a very happy, good natured dog, who loves everyone she meets, both people and dogs (male, female, young, old) alike. She is a compact 35 lbs. and about 12-18 months old. This little girl is full of personality and has a sense of humor! She invites everyone to play and interact with her, and plays very nicely with other dogs. When she's excited to meet you, she will greet you with a cattle dog hug, by getting on her hind legs and softly placing her front paws on you for a hug, Cassidy is much cuter in person than in her photos!
For a young cattle dog, our girl has a moderate energy level. She will need daily exercise and activities to keep her brain occupied. She loves to play ball, and will jump up into the air to catch it, and bring it back to you. Cassidy is extremely observant and intelligent! Lightning fast learner! She also is very eager to please and loves to be praised. Cassidy is also very big on treats! I realized how incredibly bright she is, when after just a single 10 minute photo session, using treats to get her to look at the camera; followed by a very long day riding in a car, enduring a traumatic bath, etc., at the end of our big day together, when she saw my pull out my camera again, she immediately sat in front of me and gave me a big "it must be time for a treat" smile.
She does very well when told to sit, stay, and lay down - and of course expects a treat for obeying so well. Her foster mom is continuing to work with a more reliable "recall." She is excellent when the front door is open, and does not try to run out or rush the door. When someone is at the door, and she is told to "stay," she will wait for the person to come inside, and then happily greets them.
She is generally calm, but still being young, she sometimes gets a short burst of gleeful puppy energy, running, bobbing and weaving to show you her puppy play moves, and then she's calm again. Cassidy is also a very quiet dog. She doesn't bark at anyone or anything on walk's. She will bark an alert when the door bell rings or there is a knock at the door or a strange sound from the TV. If she hears other dogs in the neighborhood she may give a bark, but stops when she is told.
As a cattle dog, Cassidy will follow her person/people wherever they go. During the day she lies on her bed, or hangs out near other members of the household. She likes to have a chew toy or a ball, and will sit on her bed, happily playing with her toy's. Although Cassidy likes chew toys, balls, and Frisbees, she is NOT a big chewer. Does not chew on furniture in the house. She is interested in and will take socks and shoes, if left lying around for her to find. Outside in the yard, she is fine and does not dig.
When it's time to go for a walk, while she and her canine foster brother are still inside the house, getting their leashes on, Cassidy likes to take the other dog's leash in her mouth and try to pull him along. However, once outside, she walks side by side with him. She may initially pull at the start of her walk, but after a minute, she settles down. She sometimes zig zags sides to smell (grass, tree's etc), and to do her "business."
Cassidy doesn't know cats and is curious, but good around them. She may try to approach to meet, but does not bark or stalk. The first night at her foster's, one of the indoor cat's deliberately stalked and attacked her. Cassidy did not attack, but barked her displeasure at the cat. She will not chase the other cats, but will try to chase and bark at the one cat that attacked her. We have not yet seen her around young children.
She hasn't shown any strong herding tendencies, although she does use her mouth to try to get you to play and engage with her. She does NOT nip, but will roll her mouth over your feet and then roll onto her back, to get you to pet and play with her.
Occasionally, when she's excited and playing, she may gently mouth or lick your feet. If you wear fuzzy slippers, she thinks it's fun to "attack" (mouth) the slippers. Correction sounds or reprimands work well to get her to stop. We have NOT seen any food or resource guarding or aggression.
Cassidy rides well in a car. She prefers to sit or lie on the floor in the back seat area. She will not sit or lie on the seats. Our girl is pretty much housebroken, and almost there. Cassidy is crate trained, and will sleep in her crate all night, if it is in the same room as at least one other member of the family. As a cattle dog, who wants to be with her pack, she will fuss if you isolate her in another room in a crate. Once she is reliably potty trained, she would love to cuddle and sleep with her person or another dog.