OLIVE
10/04/2017
Female
Large : Larger than 45 lbs.
Pointer Mix- Sleek cream jacket with light brown dappling; brown ears and mask around face. 61lbs
HISTORY: Olive was brought in as a stray with her mom and sister while still a puppy.
Smart and Sassy!! Who doesn’t love and respect a girl who knows what she wants and is not afraid to ask for it? Olive is all of this and so much more!! This solid framed, sleek jacketed lady is pure joy to watch as she runs like the wind in one of our fenced in areas! Paying little attention to the toys scattered about hoping to be noticed, Olive is much more interested in being near her person and in particular getting much needed and yes, deserved belly rubs. Olive, while an active breed and a big, strong girl, is a loving companion dog and craves / prefers to be inside and comfortable and with her people in a safe, structured and nestled -in environment. She loves her walks and enjoying time outside sniffing around, but loves the creature comforts of snuggling and living inside with her humans.
A Word from Olive:
Me? You want to visit with me? Awesome! I think? …Well, as long as we go for a walk! I love the woods! There are so many smells there! Don’t forget some treats! Whoa…you don’t want me to go that way…okay, I can live with that! What’s that? Woof, woof! Oh, it’s okay, just a squirrel…”
…Okay, I am getting used to you, and you seem really nice. Can you scratch me here? Ooooh, and there? Aaaah! What? You want to take me home? Oh my…that sounds wonderful! Can we do cuddles on the couch? Okay, but let’s take this slowly!”
What Olive Needs in Her Home:
This lovely lady will be at her best in a home with structure and steady routine headed up by confident, loving humans with prior dog experience. She needs lots of human attention and cannot be an afterthought, bustled all around, crated or ignored. The setting would not work and Olive will regress, be unhappy and this may set up a situation for failure. She needs someone who will not let her run the house, and who will foster an environment where she will feel safe. She is very complicated, extremely smart, but delicate, and needs a consistent, predictable, steady but soft approach to her, particularly in settings she is unsure of or not accustomed. She may enjoy the company of another pointer or hound, but is best with no children or cats. Her journey to her forever home should be done carefully, and she should be given time to adjust before meeting other dogs in the household, or the neighborhood friends that will surely want to see her. She previously had a habit of resource guarding and would not let you touch anything belonging to her, but extensive training has curbed that tendency, and we have not seen that behavior here at the sanctuary for a long time.
Dec 2025 Update From Trainer Wen: Recently I decided to give Olive a spa day. Mani-peti, massage, the whole shabang including cucumbers. Needless to say, the cukes were a fail. She happily tossed them off and attempted to eat them as a snack. Who wants a salad when they are expecting cookies? I then proceeded with the massage. At first Olive seemed unimpressed, however about 10 minutes in, she started to melt into the table. She was so relaxed that I thought she had fallen asleep, so I stopped. Wrong, she looked up at me as if to say I want more. After Olive had her massage, it was time for the mani-peti. I thought Olive might object, as some dogs do not appreciate their feet being handled, and many don’t like nail trims. To my surprise, and with a little moral support from her dear friend Sue Scott, Olive willingly handed me her paw. She was a proper lady for the entire process. After spa day was over, I packed her stuffed treat ball pockets with cookies for her to enjoy at her leisure.
Fall Update 2025: Recently dog volunteer Margaret and CFC dog trainer Wen decided to go to Valley Street in Scottsville to ask some of the local businesses if they would allow us to hang flyers promoting some of our adoptable sanctuary dogs. They decided to take Olive, one of our CFC puppers still looking for her forever home to join us. They knew she would draw attention with her stunning good looks and excellent social skills. As she approached Margaret’s car, it seemed that Olive knew that today was going to be unique. She climbed aboard and settled in for the ride. Olive’s eyes were lit up as they got closer to their destination. She quickly queued into the smells wafting from the local eateries and looked at her humans with anticipation. She would not be let down. Margaret and Wen both knew that Olive is a passionate consumer of all things food and promised her she would get her reward when their mission was completed. Olive showed excellent leash manners, and behaved like a gem. Once their mission was complete Olive was hand fed a cheeseburger for lunch and took a short walk in a field to end the day. Olive is still patiently waiting for her forever family to complete her journey.
