Elijah and Goose

Hello! I'm Elijah. My ex-service dog Goose and I are looking for somewhere to live in the Northern suburbs.

I currently have two jobs: I work as an education presenter at a wildlife sanctuary, and a crew member for an environmental restoration company. I'm most of the way through a bachelor of Conservation and Wildlife Biology at La Trobe, where I will resume my studies next year (part-time).

I get up at 5am on weekdays to walk Goose and go to work, but I do my best to sneak around quietly and not wake anyone up!

I come from a long line of autistic people, and I do have a favourite plant to smoke that helps me chill out in the evenings. I keep to myself around that time so I can de-compress. Life for me revolves around nature, music, dogs, and deep human connection.

I have always loved playing piano, bushwalking, supporting my local scout group (go 9th Brunswick!!), and researching the area's flora and fauna. I usually spend around two hours a day walking Goose. I spend lots of time with my two younger sisters, but I'm not a super extroverted person. I like to go along to Friends of Merri Creek events when I've got the time as well.

I enjoy cooking and I'm working on expanding my repertoire of recipes a bit at the moment. I'm currently trying to perfect my recipes for vegetarian lasagne and gluten-free burritos.

Having grown up involved in a rural intentional community, I'm very accustomed to the social and hygienic expectations of complex shared living arrangements. I've also learned to make friends across the dinner table with people from all sorts of backgrounds and walks of life! I hold myself to a very high standard of housework and cleanliness; I've worked as a cleaner before so I bring some 'professionality' to that particular responsibility.

I bring a wealth of gardening and landscaping knowledge, as well as the ability to identify every living organism in the backyard (not sure if that's useful though). I specialise in indigenous plants, but I'm down for any kind of garden improvements!

I'm a pretty routined creature, so Goose and I can be very predictable and reliable to live with. I've lived in sharehouses before and always loved it!

As for Goose:
Goose is a 5 year old purebred Golden Retriever. Goose was my service dog up until last year, when he failed his re-assessment exam. He does not bark in the house unless someone is taunting him with a ball, and he is very polite. Goose will gobble up any food that is at his head height, so the food motivation is something to be aware of. Because of his service dog training, he will cuddle anyone and attempt to provide 'deep pressure therapy'. He can be easily taught to not go in certain parts of the house - for example, the kitchen or the bedrooms. He is exceptionally patient with kids, disabled people, and overwhelming environments. Goose knows that he's not allowed on the furniture (because he's much too hairy). I wash him every couple of weeks and brush him daily to minimise the fur shedding. Goose is generally an inside dog, and he gets his silly time out at the park during our walks. I tend to give him an enrichment activity if I'm out for a long day, so he's usually busy chewing on a toy or sleeping. Goose loves having doggy housemates too. He finds a way to make friends with any dog he meets, and has no behavioural concerns with other dogs (i.e. resource guarding or aggression)

The vehicular situation:
I share a ute with my dad, which serves as my commuter vehicle during the work week. I enjoy using it to help other folks out with things like moving house or gardening. Goose rides in the tray, which he hates, but he is too distracting to sit in the cab!