Hello ... please see my assessment of Polly at week 4 using the Ruff Diamonds format:
Context .. i a fostering Polly. House has a one dog (Rotty), two cats and one loud flippin bird who just wont go into the light!!!
Appologies for spelling, grammer errors below. I am submitting the following via blackberry.
SITUATION Dogs reactions
Person casually walks past dog while dog is eating (meal or special food) : Polly shows not issues around food though she does rush eating her food
Person tries to pick up bowl while dog is eating (meal or special food) : Polly is well mannered around food and will easily let you take her food bowl away from her
Person tries to pick up food that has fallen to floor while dog is trying to reach it : Polly used to rush to the treat but is much more calm. She has watched our other dog and now she reacts the same now, ie a gentle take from the hand
Person tries to touch or take away high value food that dog is eating or holding : At the start Polly held on to he chews (rawhide) however now she freely lets me take them away and give them back to here. Other members of the family have not tried this however I believe once she is accustomed to the 'family' unit (and a little bit of time and patience) I believe this should not be a problem.
Person tries to touch or take away a toy that dog is playing with : Polly used to grip hold of balls and 'clamp' down however now she releases them quick easily. We have not given her to many 'tugging' options to pursue as I have purposely not tried to promote any dominance aggression tendencies within her.
Person reaches hand towards dog : Polly has no issues with hands reaching towards her she perceives it as affection
Person reaches over dog’s head : Same as above
Person tries to put on leash and/or collar : Polly has no issues with having a collar and lead put on her in fact she relishes it as she recognises this as an indication to be going out
Person grabs at dog’s collar or neck : Polly shows no reaction at all either aggressive or appeasing
Person pulls on dog’s collar or neck : Same as above
Person hugs dog around neck : No reaction
Person forces hand into dog mouth : Polly is fine with this. I have purposely attempted to do this every couple of days, i.e. brush my hand around front and rear teeth, play with her tongue, etc. Then I give her praise. The idea being for her not to be concerned about people dealing with her mouth. Also I regularly 'play fight' with her and put my hand and arm in her mouth. She presses onto the skin very gently and I have never had a cause to be concern. The idea is also been to increase a stronger bond and trust between Polly and the family. I want to teach her dog to play gently rather than not at all. When she gets a little to 'energetic' and playful as short sharp "stop" is all that is needed for her to release and stand to attention.
Polly became a little excitable, no aggression shown
Person pushes down on dog’s back : I have not seen encountered this doing the same action. Person pushes down on dog’s rump : Polly resists going into the sit shows slight appeasing behaviours. This behaviour has receded over time as it is usually coupled with a 'sit' command.
Person tries to get dog to lie down by voice command : She is getting better … baby steps with this activity .. and baby steps we are taking
Person tries to get dog to lie down by physical pushing : No response. She freely moves out of the way.
Person tries to get dog to roll over on its back by physical manipulation : Not tested via command but many times I have rolled her over on her back. No issues encountered.
Person tries to groom dog’s head , torso, or legs (ie other than feet) : Polly very accepting of grooming, shows no unwanted behaviours
Person touches dog’s feet or uses comb or scissors on dog’s feet : Polly has no issues of her feet being touched, shows no unwanted behaviours
Person clips or tries to clip dog’s toenails : Not tested
Person tries to bathe dog, including towelling off after bath : Not tested
Person tries to open dog’s mouth : At first she was resistant but now she opens her mouth more freely.
Person stares into dog’s eyes : She winked ….no seriously she was very reluctant to maintain eye contact
Person shouts loudly near dog : Polly not bothered by that, looks in general direction shows slight appeasing behaviours
Person threatens dog with object such as newspaper or with hand : Not tested.
Person drops an object near dog : Polly wasn’t bothered, investigated the object showed slight appeasing behaviours
Stranger knocks on door or rings bell at dog's home : My rotty barks as the door bell being rung. Polly just copies my other dog but is not so animated as my own.
Stranger enters house : Polly was weary. Has growled at one visitor (he was @6ft 7 and just as wide!! ) but she rescinded very quickly once the visitor greated her with a treat and stroke of the head.
Stranger in house tries to pet dog : As
Stranger approaches dog in car : Polly seems to have no issues
Stranger approaches dog on street : Polly seems to have no issues
Another person touches or hugs person with dog : No issues
Stranger shouts loudly in dog’s presence : Polly seems to have no issues
Dog walks past familiar non reactive dog : Polly is reactive but quickly diffuses once the dog goes past. Only observed with distance @5 metres away.
Dog walks past unfamiliar non reactive dog : Same as above
Dog walks past familiar reactive dog : Polly will react
Dog walks past unfamiliar reactive dog : Same as above
Polly appears to be very nervous with new people, Polly appears to have very little training throughout her life, Polly is not an aggressive dog however it can be perceived that way given her nervousness, Polly is not good with cats. She has improved however I would not suggest the lucky owner of Polly to have a cat. Polly does have a very high play/prey drive. She does court human attention and I do sincerely believe her mental maturity is less than her physical age. I do believe she wants to 'bond' with he keeper and expresses her will to be close to the owner many time. Case in point when I sit on the floor with her with her body touching me, I move away, then she revises he position to a point that she again has physical contact with me. Also likes sleeping close to my son on his bed, when he moves in his sleep Polly then 'align' close to his new sleeping position. I believe one of the major issues we have, if you call it an major issue, is that she does not recognise her name. This is important in getting her attention with all the words being expressed in the home or outside. We are working on it … baby steps and all. She is a terrific dog and will be a great, loyal companion for someone. Just lucky own just has to be mindfull that she, in my mind, is mentally young; no cats, could do with doggy socialisation; off-lead and on-lead training (a must); and is keen to please even if the manner in which is aim to please is incorrect (i.e. jumping up for attention/affection). She mixes with my dog ok and with a toy poodle fine. Polly, I believe, just needs to find that lucky owner who will give the her the care, attention, patience and 'investment' to shape this girl into the 'polished' girl that evidently exists within her.
Last but not least ... she needs to burn off a lot of energy ... so I am going to tie her to my motorcycle and give her a bit of a run .............. only kidding .....going to tie her to the car instead as it might rain and I do not want to get wet ........
particurarly when she realised that none of them wished her any harm. She is a sweet girl who is a bit wary of life. With a kind and patient owner she will blossom 
