Rory – 1 year old male Golden Retriever cross Spaniel

Rory is a 1 year old male Golden Retriever cross Spaniel.

Rory was found as a stray and dumped in a local kennels in Cyprus before he found his way to us. An adorable, energetic and excitable boy in good health, we felt certain that Rory must have come from a home but sadly no one came to claim him and so he began the journey to find a new family.

Unfortunately, it’s not worked out as planned. Rory arrived in the UK a few weeks ago and sadly the resident dog has become very stressed and is not adapting well to his arrival.

We’ve therefore started the process to try and find Rory a new forever home. Due to the reason for rehoming we would also be open to considering foster home offers.

Rory is only a year old, so still a baby really. He is suspected to be a Golden Retriever/Spaniel mix and is an extremely friendly boy who believes everyone is his best friend, including the vet.

He doesn’t show any nervous behaviour around people and will jump up excitedly to say hi when meeting someone, but after five minutes will settle. He is a very sociable dog and confident dog.

Rory has done really well with training and is obviously a smart pup. He learns new things quickly and is very motivated by high value treats. He knows commands such as sit, paw and lie down, and understands cues such as bed and pee pees.

His family have also been working hard on crate training to give him a positive place to settle which has worked well, so we would recommend this continues.

He has only been in a home environment for a few weeks but has already learned so much, so with continued training there’s no question that Rory will keep flourishing.

Rory has also picked up lead training really well. When he was first rescued he used to pull like a steam train, but now he’s much calmer, with the exception of his morning walk when he’s excited and got lots of pent up energy, or when he’s exploring somewhere very new.

Rory loves to sniff, and wants to get to all the smells as soon as he can to explore nose first, so in new environments he can get a bit giddy. In familiar settings however he is actually very calm and easy to handle. We also think that given his keen nose he would really enjoy scent work.

Sniffy walks are his favourite and tire him out more than just throwing a ball for him as he gets to really engage with his surroundings. He is also great in the car so it’s easy to explore new places with him.

Rory currently lives with another dog and although he seems to love him and wants to play and be around him all the time, the feeling is not reciprocated. Rory seems to struggle to read social cues and body language at times and doesn’t recognise when the resident dog needs space.

With a dog of a similar energy to Rory, he would probably do really well. He always shared a kennel in the shelter and he’s used to being around other dogs so he does enjoy their company but is definitely confident enough to be the only dog in the household too.

Rory likes toys that require a bit of concentration such as a Kong or puzzle toy, but also enjoys rope toys that he can tug and shake. He has no issue letting them go, or dropping them if you hold one end and ask him to. Being a young dog, he will try and grab anything he can to run through the house with it for fun – kitchen roll, packaging, shoes, etc.

He has never chewed or damaged anything he has run away with though, he just likes to carry it around and hold it, a trait common in both retrievers and spaniels!

Rory would make an excellent companion, particularly for a fairly active family who lives in a semi-rural area. He would love a home with a garden as this is what he is used to now, and he will continue to make fantastic progress with more focus given to his training. He is super smart so it would be a shame to not tap into that.

Because Rory can be bouncy we think a home with children aged 8+ would be best, and we think he’d be better in a home without cats. Homes with other dogs will definitely be considered but the characters must be right for the dynamic to work between them, as we don’t want a repeat of this situation.

Rory’s current family have to consider the needs of their resident dog but they’re really gutted to be making this decision. They feel Rory is a brilliant dog with so much potential and has shown such loving, loyal and clever traits in a short period of time.

He is so keen to please and would be the perfect companion in the right home.

Rory is currently based in Surrey and is looking for a new home as soon as possible. He has a clean bill of health and we are able to accommodate meetings for any interested families.

How big? Medium
How old? Adolescent (around one year)
Male or female? Male
Living with kids? I can live with children (8+)
Living with dogs? I can live with other dogs
Resident dog required? No
Living with cats? I’m looking for a home without cats
Where can I live? I’d like an active, semi-rural home with a garden
Where am I from? Cyprus, now in Surrey (UK adoption fee applies)