Meet Otis! This sweet big boy has come so far out of his shell since we got him. Otis was saved from the euthanasia list at the Maricopa County shelter. He was placed on the kill list for being afraid and shut down in the shelter. He has not shown any aggression and was just scared. Otis was found as a stray with a couple other dogs, and as expected he is doing great with two other dogs in his foster home. He’ll sit on the couch or bed next to them and loves the company. He has decompressed a lot, but we think he would do best with dogs that respect boundaries since he can get a little overwhelmed at first. Once he’s more relaxed, he will play with others!

Otis is pretty timid with new people, and will hide behind his foster who has become his safe space – his new owner has that kind of special love to look forward to! For new people, food and treats are your best friend in winning him over. He walks on a leash well without too much pulling. If Otis gets spooked, even just stopping to talk to him calmly gets him to realize he’s ok. He really likes to get out and go for walks, he’s just still easily overwhelmed. He was definitely never socialized enough as a puppy, but he is making progress and will only continue to improve over time now that he is safe.

We think Otis would do well in a home with other dogs that would help him gain confidence. Ideally we think Otis would be best with other dogs that are medium to large – he hasn’t shown any outright aggression to little dogs, but he doesn’t seem to like when others are too in his face so we just don’t want there to be any risk at all for a tiny dog. He is a big boy himself, close to 80lbs!

Otis has so far been a gentle giant with humans, allowing all handling and a bath with his new foster with no issues at all. We are not recommending very young kids around Otis because he is more skittish and fearful and we don’t want him to get overwhelmed. Older dog-savvy kids would likely be just fine for him. Once he opens up, he really is an amazing soul. His foster just adores him and feels lucky to be trusted enough to see a side of him that no one else does – yet! Fill out an application if you’d like to meet this gorgeous guy!