Fries is on our Call to Action list due to high levels of excitement/arousal that caused issues in her former home, and are difficult to manage in the shelter.

Fries shared her previous home with a young child and an older individual, both of which she was too strong for and has knocked over. On one occasion, Fries was startled and bit her owner on the leg, though the exact circumstances are known. Fries’s second bite incident occurred while she was being surrendered. As her owners attempted to load her into their vehicle, she bit the older individual on the arm. The damage from both of these bites was extremely minor, and we believe her behaviors may be rooted in a lack of fulfillment and overarousal rather than aggression, and Fries has been very amenable to handling for shelter staff and volunteers. However, managing these behaviors requires a dedicated adopter, making her more difficult to place.

While Fries is reported to have done well with small dogs in the past, and has been friendly with large dogs while in our care, she becomes extremely excited at the sight of other dogs, even at a distance. She barks, pulls on the leash, and will even run into fences trying to reach them. Again, she has been in playgroup successfully, and these behaviors appear to be rooted in excitement to go say hello. Going on walks with Fries may require a physically strong individual to manage her. This limits her handlers at the shelter and her opportunities to get out of the kennel. In a home, management and consistent training may help lower Fries’s stress levels and reactivity to other dogs.

We believe that Fries is an extremely energetic, active young dog, who is sweet at heart but is not being fulfilled. Unfortunately, we often see dogs like this decline quickly at the shelter. They spend most of their days kenneled, building up even more energy, and it’s impossible for us to meet their needs here. Knowing that her mouthiness has already led to two bites, we urgently need to find placement for Fries with an adopter, foster, or rescue. We want to see this girl succeed, so to help her adjust to a new home the shelter will sponsor a series of training sessions with a local trainer for foster or adopter.


If interested in adoption, please email animal.care@ventura.org.
Interested in fostering Fries? Please apply at vcas.us/foster and apply at vcar.foster@ventura.org to let us know you are specifically interested in Fries A865186.

Rescue groups can reach out to vcar.rescue@ventura.org.

Thank you.