Kai was trying hard to survive on the streets in Antigua. He was likely between 8 and 10 months old when picked up. He had developed a severe flea bite allergy and consequently a very high “ick” factor. His hair began to fall out, and his constant scratching caused scabbing and a skin infection, which made him smell terrible. When dogs start to look like this, they are generally dumped to fend for themselves. No one wants them around, so life becomes very, very difficult for them.
We spotted Kai a couple of weeks before he finally came in to the rescue, but couldn’t catch him. He was extremeley shy and fearful. But after a couple more weeks of trying to fill his belly, he was weak enough to finally catch. He had become a regular at our feeding station, and volunteer Tana Bailey managed to catch him (with quite a struggle) on March 4th, 2015.
Kai was checked out by our vet, but aside from the usual parasite load (both internal and external), malnutrition, and a severe skin infection, he seemed fine. We had him neutered and put him in quarantine after vaccinating him, and after 10 days he joined the “porch pack” and lived with the older dogs while recovering. He rejoined the younger dogs at the end of May, 2015.
Kai was very fearful and hand shy at first, but within a couple of days with us he warmed up and became a very affectionate, playful dog. He is feeling good now, and his skin is healed and his coat is grown back in thick, lush and shiny. He has put on weight and is doing very well with his training. Kai trusts us but even so if we grab at him quickly when he isn’t expecting it or he feels threatened, he panics and can become defensive. He calms quickly with voice reassurance. He can be nippy with new people when they come into the play area, so we recommend introducing him to new people when they come over.
Kai has recovered beautifully and now has a thick, soft coat of hair. He is no longer so afraid of people he knows, and has good basic obedience. He enjoys his clicker training sessions (he loves food!) Kai walks nicely on leash, but he can be reactive when on leash towards some dogs if they are reactive or if he is with other reactive dogs. On his own in town he is great. He is wonderful off leash and has an excellent recall.
He is playful, affectionate, and would be a great only dog. He makes friends with other dogs easily, and plays well with almost all dogs. Kai loves older children, but has not had a lot of exposure to kids younger than seven with us. Due to his reactivity and nippiness we would not recommend a home with children for Kai. We would recommend a quieter home with adults as he can still startle with rapid movements. He would do best in a home with experienced owner/trainers. If placed with another dog, the second dog should be a very calm, non-reactive one. Kai will feed of another dog’s reactivity or barking and become more reactive himself.
