Mr. Bentley Bear had a GREAT Christmas. Someone was his angel tree donor and he got a brand new green squeaky ball, which might just be his new favorite. He went to two Christmas gatherings and it was the first time hanging out at someone else's house with six guests.

He was a perfect gentleman and he just LOVES car rides. He snuggles right up between our arms and just likes to be by us and look out the window. He turns into mush in the car, it's so funny. He loves adventure and walks.

Bentley is doing so well in a routine and surrounded by love. He is an excellent dog and we are really lucky to get to spend some of our life with him. We love him!

Just wanted to jump on and say thank you to whoever Bentley's anonymous sponsor was! I told him he has people rooting for him and he gave a famous Bentley smile.

I am so impressed with him lately. He is turning into such a good boy. I always tell him I know he was born good, but his circumstances made him harder to the world.

But now he has a family that he can trust and are dedicated to him even in his struggles—and he is truly starting to shine with that love and trust. I really want to find him the best home so that he can start to bond with his forever family and not have to start over ever again.

He is awesome!

Sweet Bentley Bear has lost some weight! He is looking trim and healthy. His favorite time of the day still is breakfast and dinner—and you won't forget when that is because he will remind you. He also LOVES being outside. He loves to watch the birds.

Bentley has turned so many corners; I trust him so much now. This morning he was laying his head on my leg while I did my makeup. It was adorable. He loves to be petted and talked to and he loves to play ball.

Just because of his bite history, we are still aware of his body language when we get close. But it is easy and we just have so much more trust with each other. That said, we still distance him from guests in the house. Ben's parents came to help redo our floors and he was wandering around and did just fine. But I don't want to push it. They knew his rules.

Bentley needs a home with no kids and with people who will give him the chance to build trust. We love him and we really want to see him go to the best home possible. We are very active and social, and he hasn't been stressful for us to navigate, it's completely possible for anyone.

Ben and I had no experience with dogs with some behavioral issues, and we learned about Bentley’s issues and triggers, we give him a good home, and we love and trust him. If we can do it, you can too! Please give this sweet boy a chance.

Well, I have figured out Mr. Bentley Bear. He just needs people who will invest in him, learn who he is and about his boundaries, respect those boundaries, and just build trust with him.

He has been with us for about a month now, and the trust we have with him today compared to Day 1 has grown considerably. He is such a loveable guy, and he deserves a home with someone who understands him. We love him so much.

Bentley has been bounced around a lot since he came to the U.S. He hasn't had an opportunity to stay in one place and really learn to trust someone fully. We are making huge strides, but since we are only temporarily fostering him, he will be making another move here before too long and will have to start the trusting process all over again.

What would be wonderful is if he got adopted before then—and then he could build trust with just one more family for the rest of his life. If you give Bentley a chance and respect his boundaries, you will fall in love with him. He is precious.

Bentley's rules:

• No kids.
• Must have a fenced yard because he just loves the birds and squirrels. It is so cute to watch him, but he would take off.
• Must be cautious with him when he has something valuable, like toys. He is very protective, probably because he never had toys when he was on the streets. When we allow him to have a ball, we pay extra close attention to where the ball is and our actions around it.
• He LOVES attention and being petted—but you have to watch his body language. If he starts tensing up or gives you a warning growl, you need to stop. But 98% of the time within 10 seconds he wants to be petted again. This has gotten really easy for us after observing him. He loves our attention and now that we have built that trust, it's easy to read him.
• He is a counter surfer and will find all food (and the trash can). You've been warned! Easy fixes. And it helps you keep your kitchen cleaner.
• When guests are over, Bentley should be gated or kenneled (he does well with both). For the safety of your friends and Mr. Bentley, he needs his own space when people are visiting. Again, I think it's a trust thing. He hasn't built trust with them and initially he loves the attention, but the minute he feels threatened (and your visitors won't know his quirks or signals) you could have a problem.
• He doesn't like his paws touched, or his ears if they are bothering him. He will let you know.
• He did really well at the vet. We did muzzle him because of said paw touching and building trust with strangers. But we rewarded with a lot of treats and he did just fine.
• Bentley does have a bite history, and you have to know that and be aware of it. It should be in the back of your mind when you're petting him. But I really do think that by knowing his boundaries and observing him it can all be avoided. I'd love to hear an update on how he is doing after six months when he has had time to learn to trust and love someone. I really think he is a good dog.

Things Bentley loves:

• He does so well with my two Golden girls. He would totally like to play with them if they were the playing type.
• He LOVES walks.
• He loves attention and pets.
• He loves smiling, wagging his tail, and being the cutest little bear you've ever seen!

This boy deserves a loving family—could it be yours?

Hello again from Bentley, who enjoyed a nice long walk with two of his RAGOM friends today. He was his usual happy, sunny, sweet, energetic self! He thoroughly enjoyed playing in the snow and checking for critters underneath the reeds. He definitely likes to dig in the snow!

Despite his estimated age of 9, he has so much energy and endurance. We walked for an hour and he definitely wasn’t ready to be done. Also, he is on track with his New Year’s resolution to lose weight! His ideal furever home will help him stay lean, healthy, and active by walking him daily.

This sweet boy has so much love to give—he wiggles all over when he sees you and his tail never stops wagging. Please consider giving Bentley the loving home he deserves!

Happy New Year from sweet Bentley, who is still waiting patiently for his ideal furever home. He is dreaming of a peaceful, calm life with someone who has compassion for all that he has been through on the streets in Turkey. His resilience and willingness to love and trust people is amazing, and as you can see in his gorgeous smile, he is full of happiness and love.

What this boy needs most is a simple life in a quiet home with someone who is content to just have him near; who will give him back-end rubs so he can do his wiggly dance (see video in a previous update below); who will understand that he had to grumble for food to exist in Turkey and is willing to let him eat in peace; and who will give him safe, fun, positive experiences at Bentley's own pace.

Bentley would be fine as an only dog or as a fur sibling to a calm dog that is content to just hang out.

Although his age is estimated to be 9, he certainly does not move like a senior dog! He loves his walks and would love a home where daily exercise is part of his routine. Losing a few pounds is one of his New Year's resolutions! 

Bentley thoroughly enjoyed his visit from his RAGOM friend today. As you can see in the photos, he is such a happy boy—his tail wags constantly, and oh, that gorgeous happy smile! He very much wants to sit beside you and be petted and rubbed. He is such a sweet boy.

And as you can see in the video, he sits politely for treats! He is very food motivated and could easily be trained with treats.

This sweet big fella will make someone a wonderful companion, and he would also be a great walking buddy. Despite his age of 9, he is very agile and energetic! (Did I mention that beautiful sweet Golden smile?)

As you can see, Bentley’s page hasn’t had an update for a while. Bentley has been busy. He was adopted last month, but sadly he was returned as it wasn’t quite the right fit for him.

RAGOM does not have a foster available for Bentley right now so he is staying at a boarding facility in Blaine, Minnesota. We have awesome volunteers who visit Bentley to spend time with him and give him walks.

Bentley came to RAGOM from Turkey (where he had been abandoned to survive on his own) and learned that if he gives a little grumble, he can keep his treats or food for himself. So that means he has some resource-guarding tendencies, which was the reason for his return.

We have found that with some fun positive distraction he will often give things up on his own. Or by putting down a scattering of more appropriate treats, he will drop what he has in his mouth to pick up the treats. We are also teaching Bentley how to “trade.”

Even though he has been in boarding, he always has a smile that goes all the way to the tip of his tail.

Stay tuned for more Bentley updates and pictures, so you can fall head over heels in love with him!

Bentley reminded me it was way past time for an update—he is doing great! He is also down to 85 pounds.

When he is happy, which is most of the time, his whole body wags. He loves going for walks, laying in the grass, and just being with people. Bentley also loves his ball. Although he doesn't like giving the ball to you we have figured out a way to play fetch.

We start with a pile of balls; he will usually go get the first one and come back. Then we throw the next one and he chases it and decides which one he wants to keep and then returns to us. At some point we have to go fetch the balls to start over!

Bentley did pretty well with fireworks and only got a little nervous with the really loud ones. He is also pretty calm during storms and just wants to be near us.

Bentley is a super, sweet guy who loves attention and hanging out.