Benji ::adoptED::
In August of 2020 tropical storms turned into a typhoon in South Korea. Benji was found abandoned on a mountainside road with his siblings during a break in the storm. Their rescuer saved them at just the right time as the typhoon worsened the next day. He brought them home and was committed to caring for the puppies and finding them homes.
In September Benji was adopted by a local family but sadly their child was allergic to him and he was returned shortly after. His siblings flew to adopters in Washington D.C. later that fall. Benji continued to live with his rescuers (who run a small rescue out of their home) ever since his adoption didn’t work out. He befriended a lot of other foster pups during his stay and slowly gained confidence with new experiences and new people. In May of this year his rescuers took in foster kittens and Benji quickly fell in love! As Benji grew older his rescuers noticed that his leg appeared deformed. His ulna likely stopped growing at a young age while his radius continued to grow. This could have been caused by a growth plate injury, malnutrition prior to rescue, or was inherited. His bizarre ear is just an adorable mystery though!
We’d love to see Benji adopted by a family who already has a young, dog-friendly cat or is willing to adopt a playful kitten! He seems to light up when a cat pays attention to him. See his foster journey in South Korea here.
A FEW OF OUR FAVORITE Benji THINGS FROM His FOSTER FAMILY…
Benji is a sweet, sensitive pup with mismatched ears and a lot of love to give. Our favorite things about him are his silly daily habits, like how he makes the funniest “ow” sound with varying degrees of intensity every single time he yawns, how his idea of playing with toys is rolling on top of them like he needs to wipe his scent on them, or how he grooms his fur like a cat after walking through the rain. But, I think the best and silliest of all might be how he is coordinated enough to fly down our staircase, completely passing over some steps, when he’s excited but will also constantly trip over those same stubby legs when walking back up the same stairs. Benji can be very shy around new people to the point where his whole body is shaking with fear, but once he trusts you, he will want to be by your side forever. He is a low maintenance dog who pretty much just wants to be babied by someone all day long.
Benji is very respectful of other animals. He and our 10 year old dog have gotten along great since day one. Interestingly, Benji refuses to play with him or even play fetch at the same time as him. He’s used to being around small dogs, so I think playing with a 50lb dog is a bit too intimidating for him. That being said, our dog has definitely helped boost Benji’s confidence since Benji will often follow his lead if he’s too scared to do something on his own (like walking up to greet someone he has never met before). Benji really, really loves cats. Since he grew up with a cat in his first foster home, I think he assumed that all cats want to be his friend and play with him. Unfortunately for him, our two cats are old, grouchy, and quickly showed Benji they are not interested in him. Overtime they’ve grown to tolerate him and even nap near him, which is very unlike them! Benji is particularly fond of our foster kittens and is very sweet with them. He always perks up when he’s around the kittens and will wag his tail nonstop while giving them a few quick face licks. I know Benji would love nothing more than to have a young, energetic, dog-loving cat in his forever home!
When Benji first arrived, he slept soundlessly in his kennel every night, but when the second week rolled around and he was feeling more comfortable in our home, he started crying incessantly. It turns out all Benji needed to be happy in his kennel was a comfy bed with some blankets and to have his kennel pressed up against my bed with no distance between us. Ever since then, he is back to being perfectly content in his kennel and doesn’t even mind if you sleep in. He’s also gotten pretty good at waiting to hear “YES!” to be let out of his kennel in the mornings, even if the door is wide open. As soon as he’s released, he will race up to the living room and greet anyone who’s awake with tail wags and kisses.
Benji is fairly food motivated. He always eats his meals and might even need a slow feeder eventually because he can really snarf his food down when he wants to. He loves treats but tends to lose interest in them if he’s feeling nervous. He knows his name and has decent recall. He quickly learned ‘sit’ although he doesn’t always choose to listen to commands out of nervousness.
A FEW THINGS Benji IS WORKING ON FROM his FOSTER FAMILY…
Although Benji is excellent in his kennel at night, his day time kennel training is still a work in progress. Every afternoon Benji is given a peanut butter Kong or Lickimat and spends about an hour or so alone in his kennel. He will usually cry off and on for maybe 10-15 minutes until he finally settles down. I think Benji could easily develop separation anxiety since he isn’t the biggest fan of being left alone and he forms a very close bond to whoever his main caregiver is, so continuing his day time kennel training in his forever home will be very important!
Since Benji was trained to use potty pads in South Korea, he was a bit confused when he first arrived in Portland and had a few accidents the first week. He picks up on new things pretty quickly and soon realized what the backyard is for. Over the past few weeks, we’ve gotten Benji’s potty schedule figured out and he’s pretty consistent with it for the most part. I’d consider him to be fully potty trained, but he sometimes needs a little extra encouragement to poop outside on days when it’s raining. If he’s refusing to go potty when he needs to, that’s a good time to work on his day time kennel training. By the time his hour in the kennel is up, he’s usually ready to go outside again.
As mentioned above, Benji can be very shy around new people. The first time he met a new person at our house, his whole body was shaking. Since then, he has improved somewhat with meeting new people in our home. He’s gotten to the point where he no longer shakes and will greet them with a few kisses if they extend their hand to him, but that’s about as far as his interest in new people goes. He is a very, very affectionate dog with people he trusts, so he definitely has the potential to be a much more social dog if his adopter is willing to put in the work by providing him with opportunities to have positive interactions with new people. Benji is definitely more wary of men, but the more time he spends around them, the more he has realized they’re not so bad. If there happens to be a man in Benji’s forever home, he should be prepared to be Benji’s main caregiver in order to gain his full trust!
Benji has decent leash skills for a shy dog. While he does like being outside and loves smelling every blade of grass and fallen leaf, he can get overwhelmed fairly easily by loud noises or new people. The only time I’ve ever seen him act like a flight risk is when we walked by a basketball court and he was terrified of a man dribbling a basketball. Other than that, he mostly just pulls to walk faster. On a typical walk he usually starts out pulling on his leash and then eventually gets comfortable enough to walk right by my side. But by the time he’s ready to get back in the car and leave, he starts pulling again. Benji really needs an adopter who can continue to expand his small world. The more time he is able to spend exploring new places and experiencing new things, the more his confidence will grow.
THE IDEAL FAMILY FOR Benji WOULD HAVE THE FOLLOWING:
A playful, dog-friendly cat or kitten to be Benji’s bestie.
A fenced yard.
Another small, friendly, and already trained dog in the home or access to friendly dogs for frequent hangouts & walks to grow his confidence.
Patience, time to train, consistency, and lots of love!
Benji’s Details:
Breed: Beagle Mix
Age: 1.5 years old
Sex: Male
Size: 22lbs
Color: White/Brown
Spayed/Neutered: Yes
Microchipped: Yes
Vaccinated: Yes
Medical notes: Benji has a deformity in his front left leg. He will need a forever family who prevents impact on his leg and is prepared for a dog with early arthritis as he ages.
Housetrained: Yes, but there were accidents in the early days
Site: Wildhearts Rescue
Location: Foster home in Portland
Intake Date: 10/17/2021
Good with cats: Yes, very much so
Good with dogs: Yes
Good with children: Possibly older children (9+) with a very slow introduction
Good with adults: Yes, with a slow introduction