BELLE

Belle is a sweet, well-mannered girl with a calm demeanor. She is not an attention-seeker and can be somewhat reserved at first, but with time, plenty of back scratches, and perhaps a tasty treat (string cheese is a winner!) she warms up nicely.Belle enters a car carrier enthusiastically and travels well in the car (especially after a hike). She is 8 years “young” with plenty of stamina to enjoy a walk or hike. On our 3.5 mile hike, she started off at an enthusiastic pace, eager to explore a new place but without strong pulling. Although she was largely focused on walking (we made very good time), she did take the time to stop and sniff when something interested her. In time, she adapted to our pace and would sometimes stop to wait for the slower one in our “pack.” She seemed very comfortable negotiating the hiking path terrain and bounded over small and moderate obstacles. Birds and squirrels were only a mild interest to her, and she was easily back to walking.Belle meets people with little fanfare – she is very polite and doesn’t jump up, keeping “all four on the ground,” consistent with her calm nature. She often walked with a slack leash past many of the people we saw. We only passed a few dogs -- she showed some interest in meeting or playing with them, but did not lunge, pull or bark and was easily convinced to resume the walk.After our hike we sat on a blanket with Belle enjoying the beautiful weather. She enjoys being brushed, petted, and scratched and will “lean in” for more scratching and petting. After a while (motivated in part by string cheese), Belle cuddled up against us and rolled over for tummy rubs.