Long Term Foster Needed For Benji - Reserved

AGE: 9 years

BREED:Yorkshire Terrier

SEX: Male

IDEAL HOME: a home with a garden

LIVING WITH CHILDREN: I cannot live with children

LIVING WITH DOGS: I prefer to be the only pet in the household

LIVING WITH CATS: I seem fine with cats

💙 Meet Benji 💙

🐾 Benji – 9-Year-Old Yorkshire Terrier

Benji is the sweetest little Yorkshire Terrier boy who is looking for a very special forever home. 💙

At just 9 years old, Benji has already been through an awful lot, and coming into rescue has been a huge shock to his world. We suspect Benji has probably lived a very sheltered life, possibly spending most of his time with the same person, so the sudden change of environment, people and routine has been incredibly difficult for him.

Kennel life has caused Benji a huge amount of stress. When he becomes frightened, overwhelmed or feels that he has no other option, he can display nervous and defensive behaviours. This has included going to bite and, on occasions, actually biting. This is something we need to be completely honest about when looking for his new home.

However, it is equally important that people understand the Benji we see once he feels safe.

Thankfully, Benji has formed a very special bond with a couple of our staff members. Once he knows and trusts someone, he is quite literally the biggest baby. He is affectionate, loving and very much a little velcro dog who wants nothing more than to be close to his person. It is wonderful to see the transformation in him when he feels safe.

Benji is certainly a ladies' man and is much more comfortable around women. He isn't particularly comfortable with men and his new home will need to respect this. We would go as far to say that Benji should not live with any men. Interactions must never be forced, and he needs to be allowed to build relationships at his own pace.

❤️ Benji Needs Someone Who Understands Him

Benji isn't a dog who can simply walk into a new home and be expected to settle immediately.

His entire world has changed, and we believe the stress of coming into kennels has knocked his confidence enormously. His defensive behaviour is his way of communicating that he is frightened and overwhelmed.

This doesn't mean we think Benji is a bad dog — quite the opposite. We think there is a wonderful little dog hiding underneath all that fear, and we are determined to give him every opportunity to show us just how lovely he can be.

His new owners will need to understand that trust cannot be rushed. They will need to read his body language, recognise when he is uncomfortable and give him the space he needs before he feels he has to defend himself.

Once that trust is established, the rewards are enormous. The Benji we know is affectionate, funny, loving and an absolute little sweetheart.

🏡 The Home We're Looking For

We are looking for a quiet, calm and experienced home where Benji can decompress and gradually learn that he is safe.

His ideal home would be with someone who:

❤️ Has experience of nervous or fearful dogs and understands defensive behaviour
❤️ Is patient, calm and consistent
❤️ Will allow Benji to build trust at his own pace
❤️ Understands and respects canine body language
❤️ Will never force physical contact or interactions
❤️ Is comfortable managing a dog who may react defensively when frightened
❤️ Can provide a predictable routine and a peaceful environment
❤️ Is willing to put management strategies in place to keep both Benji and visitors safe
❤️ Understands that Benji is much more comfortable with women
❤️ Can give him plenty of time and space to settle before expecting too much from him
❤️ Will continue positive, reward-based training and confidence building
❤️ Understands that his progress may not be completely linear

We feel an adult-only home would be most appropriate, ideally with one or two calm adults who aren't expecting an instant lap dog. Benji needs somebody who is prepared to earn his trust rather than expecting him to give it immediately.

He may benefit from having a calm, well-matched female dog in the home. Benji gets on well with female dogs at the centre. He can be a little nervous around them initially, but he will say hello and walks beautifully alongside them. Any resident dog would, of course, need to be carefully assessed to make sure the match is right.

Benji also walks brilliantly on the lead and has shown that he can enjoy his walks with the other dogs at the centre.

🚫 What Home Would NOT Be Suitable?

Benji is not suitable for a busy or chaotic household where there are lots of visitors, constant noise or unpredictable activity.

We would not consider a home where:

❌ There are young children
❌ Children regularly visit or stay in the home
❌ People are likely to invade his personal space or expect immediate affection
❌ There are lots of visitors coming and going
❌ His warning signs could be ignored or misunderstood
❌ Someone is looking for an easy, straightforward first-time dog
❌ He would be left to cope with situations that frighten him
❌ People believe that affection should be forced to make him "get used to" them
❌ Someone is likely to use punishment, confrontation or harsh handling
❌ There isn't the time or patience to allow a potentially lengthy settling-in period

Because Benji has a known history of biting when extremely frightened, his new family must take this seriously. This isn't something we would ever want to minimise. His adopters will need to understand that there is a responsibility involved in keeping him and the people around him safe while he settles and builds confidence.

At the same time, we don't want Benji's fear to define him.

💙 We See So Much Potential in Benji

Benji has been through enough, and we want to try our absolute hardest to find the right person for him.

We know that his behaviour in kennels may understandably put some people off, but we also know that the Benji we see once he trusts you is completely different.

He has shown us that he can form strong bonds. He has shown us that he can be affectionate. He walks beautifully on the lead, interacts well with female dogs and, most importantly, he still has the ability to trust and love people despite everything that has happened.

We don't expect Benji to change overnight. We simply want to give him the opportunity to feel safe enough to be himself.

We are looking for that special person who will look beyond the initial nerves, understand why he behaves the way he does and give him the time he needs.

Because once Benji decides you're his person, you have a little shadow for life. ❤️

Benji has been through enough. Now he deserves the chance to feel safe, understood and truly at home. 💙

Interested in adopting Benji? Call 01642 488108 or contact us.