Meet Alfred: An extra-large dog with an extra-large heart
Hi, I’m Alfred. I’m a sweet, sensitive, fun-loving, gentle giant patiently waiting for my ‘fur-ever’ home at RSPCA Wacol. I’m a 4-year and 1-month-old staghound, so I’m not a puppy, but I’m not old either. As a staghound, I’m known to have quite a calm temperament – as you would expect.
The RSPCA Wacol team is super nice to me, and they have gotten to know me quite well. Seeing how adventurous, energetic and outgoing I am – and that I’m easily motivated by food and toys (especially balls) - they recommended to me that I join the sessions at Happy Paws Happy Hearts.
I’ve got to say, I’m so glad they did because I absolutely love spending my time at Happy Paws Happy Hearts! I help facilitate positive experiences for socially isolated people living in Australia. Seeing how calm and goofy I am, I have helped some participants overcome their fear of large dogs.
I’ve also helped participants practice their harnessing and dog walking skills. I’ve also learnt a few ‘adoptable’ tricks of my own, such as how to sit, lie down and roll over. I’m pretty chilled out and easy going, but my dream family would be active with older kids (teens and older). I would also prefer to have siblings my own size – little dogs, cats and other critters just aren’t my style.
I attend a range of sessions, from Care to Explore. Participants in the Explore Program wrote me a resume describing what an awesome pet I would make, which I was really flattered by! This is how they learn to write their own resumes, using me as the ‘paw-fect’ example. Check out my resume here.
Helping the humans in my life has been so rewarding, and I have grown and learned myself over this time become a happier and stronger doggo!
Update: Since writing this Paws & Hearts story, Alfred has been adopted after several months at the RSPCA Wacol. We wish him a lifetime of happiness with his new family, and we will miss him!