Dear All,
First of all please note that any adoption will need to go through the association that Aston came from. I am posting on here to give him extra visibility.
I have finally decided to put Aston up for adoption again. It boils down to one main reason. Him and Lexi my lurcher just do not get on that well and it is exhausting managing it long term. Lexi is too rough with him, so they cannot play together and she struggles to tolerate him particularly in the evening.
Aston is a gorgeous 19 month old Podenco. Anyone adopting him needs to be aware of his strengths and weaknesses in order for the adoption to be successful.
Aston is an incredibly affectionate dog, a real cuddlebug. He is playful and very funny, like many Podencos. He is good with children and can live with cats (Will need to be introduced carefully first of course). He bonds with people quickly and easily. Anyone looking to do Canicross or agility or just lots of long walks will find an eager companion in him. He gets on well with most dogs and I think he would be best off living with another or other older dogs. Ones who will still want to play but are also capable of telling him that enough is enough. He does need a longer or two medium length walks a day to be happy and he loves nothing more than to play tug.
What you need to be aware of though is that he does have a strong prey drive and cannot go off lead (Maybe this can be overcome by training but I really have my doubts). He needs a secure garden otherwise will be off on a jolly and go hunting. He can be reactive towards cars and bikes and wants to chase these. He can also bark when he sees other dogs on lead but this is frustration and not aggression. All of these things can be worked on and improved, but his reactivity is far worse as he is quite on edge and not very settled living with Lexi. Away from Lexi he is much, much more relaxed. He has stayed with a dog sitter a few times and she loves him to bits too and not noticed any reactivity. He is a good guard dog and will alert you to anyone coming to the house. He will settle down and be quiet when told to inside. But anyone adopting him needs to be aware that he is not the quietest dog and he does have a loud bark for a medium sized dog that is on the smaller side.
Please send me a direct message if you are interested. I think he will be the most loving super dog in the right home. Experience of sighthounds, or someone looking to take on a project will be really rewarded with the most faithful, loving companion.
Ps for those of you who read one of my previous posts about Lexi being ill, the latest is that the fine needle aspiration came back negative for a tumour so that is a relief but we are still waiting on the results of the in-depth ct scan analysis. When the medication she is on is reduced her eye starts to swell back up again.
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Such a pity to have the psychological aspect of being rehomed a second time. As well as what might have gone before. Unfortunately short term the poor thing’s stress might mean some of the borderline difficulties you’ve made progress on, will return.
The real villain of the piece… no chance of rehoming, I suppose?
Thought not, (ducking bricks being thrown!!)
Do you mean Lexi? I have amended the post a bit for a truer reflection of the situation.
I have tried trainers, a behaviourist, and a vet behaviourist. Over the course of the last 14 months I have really tried. I actually think that having seen how quickly Aston adapted at the pet sitter/home boarding place, that he will settle somewhere really quickly if he is given that chance.
In the meantime I can manage the situation here for as long as needs be.
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Hi @almondbiscuit,
Firstly I would like to say that I think you have a huge heart in recognising that rehoming is required.
It is a difficult choice and can sometimes feel like failure but from what I have read, you have tried every possible solution.
Unfortunately I cannot take him as I already have 3 dogs, all with their problems and behaviours, and they have similar problems to Aston including the prey drive and lead frustration. I totally understand where you are coming from.
I will follow this thread closely and if I can think of a suitable home environment amongst people I know well with the right ‘cv’, I will be in touch.
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Thank you so much for your kind response. It is not a decision taken lightly. I am just trying to get him to the best possible place and that involves being totally honest about everything so people know the whole picture.
Best wishes
Marijke
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I totally get it. It is a decision that I thought that I might have to make with my 3rd dog but thankfully things have improved sufficiently that the situation is manageable. That is not always the case as with Aston. I have not managed to curb the prey drive or the lead frustration despite years of efforts.
The ‘entente’ is primordial and Lexi needs her space and peace otherwise other problems may develop.
Aston will find the home he needs and can be himself in. It may just take a little time for it to come 
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Sorry to read your post Marijke,
You obviously want to do the very best for your dog, but unfortunately we can’t help, things here are already stretched. It’s been raining all day, our animals have been stuck indoors, bored and and our miniature poodle has spent the day trying to beat up the cats (meanwhile the cats try to sneak up and gobble the poodle’s biscuits).
What a proud, beautiful dog, good luck with your search for a new home.
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That must be a really tough decision to come to and all credit to you for putting his needs first…and Lexi’s
I’m involved in a very limited way with several border collie rescues (donations of food and money and sharing) and one rescue will always take back any failed placements even many years down the line should circumstances change and an owner become incapacitated due to ill health etc…
There are often campaigns to bring collies and collie crosses from Romania (and Ireland) and just occasionally I wonder where is the local Romanian rescue (and Irish rescue) and why can’t they rescue and rehome in the local area as it would make bounce backs easier to handle…???
Years ago we had an rspca lurcher along with our border collie…Our rspca rescue lurcher hated and was very aggressive towards men but loved the kids…and as a sight hound presented different challenges to a herding breed…We put a sign on the gates as instructed by the rspca…” rspca rescue do not enter unattended”…the best I can say is that we managed him until he died at 11 but it would have been a whole lot easier if people including indirect family had just respected the sign on the gate…one even went so far as to deliberately antagonise him when he thought he was enclosed and then got bit when he escaped…
I wish I could help you but I’ve got my hands full with my 3 and my youngest just turned one…
All paws crossed here for Aston 
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Just a thought…
Might it be worth putting Aston’s details on the U.K. podenco rescue pages…???
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Thanks for your replies. The association responsible for him is based in France (even though he is from Spain) I will ask them about it but for the reasons you mentioned above they may prefer to keep him in France.
Somewhere without a long journey would be best I think.
