ADOPTED!

Meet Stella! She’s a medium-size chocolate Labrador Retriever, approximately five years old, with a beautiful, soft coat. Stella came to WCLRR after Her owner abandoned Stella and another lab (Gunner) in a vacation home. Stella tested positive for heartworm but has completed the heartworm treatment and tested negative. She’s ready to find her new family!

Stella is a medium-energy dog. Heartworm treatment requires dogs to have limited activity for several months. Stella had to spend most of her time in her crate during her heartworm treatment. However, she enjoys playing outside, fetching balls and sticks.

Stella is also quite happy to hang out with her people watching television or napping together! Stella can barely contain her excitement when she sees her leash – she loves going on walks and would make an excellent hiking partner.

Stella enjoys playing with hard chew toys but quickly destroys soft toys. Her new family will want to make sure she has plenty of Kongs, Nylabones, and other hard toys to play with. The other thing Stella loves is food! Her family is teaching her the “wait” command when putting her food out and uses a slow feeder bowl.

Stella has been known to counter-surf, so her new family will want to keep counters clear of dangerous items. Stella knows the “sit,” “wait,” and “crate” commands. She is house-trained and uses the doggy door to go outside.

Stella hasn’t had any accidents in her foster home. She is also crate-trained and will go in and wait for her treat when she hears the “crate” command. She sleeps in her crate through the night and waits for her people to get up in the morning.

Stella loves being with people and being the center of attention. However, sometimes she gets so excited to meet people that she can’t contain herself and jumps up to give them lots of kisses, so her family will need to help her learn to meet people calmly.

Stella has been around children and teens and behaves well with them. However, Stella lives with two male dogs, and they know that she is in charge! Stella does not share her toys with the other dogs and gives them a bark to tell them they need to move out of her way on the couch. She will also bark at other dogs while on a walk; her family will teach her to be calm when she sees other dogs.

Stella’s ideal home would be with a family that is home most of the time to give her the attention she deserves. She would be fine with other dogs comfortable with her strong personality or as an only dog. She has not lived with small animals but has tried to chase squirrels, so she may not be a good fit for a home with cats or other small pets. She loves walks and would be a great hiking partner, but her family will need to work with her on leash manners. Heartworm can cause severe health problems.

Stella’s family should keep her on preventative heartworm medication and ensure that she is vaccinated annually to keep her healthy in the future.

Stella is spayed, is current on her vaccines, and is microchipped.