I'm so pleased to share this update with you - I've gained some new insights about Casey that I want to share.

First, and possibly the most exciting, is that Casey absolutely loves to go for a walk. She does very well on a leash; she doesn't pull and doesn't trail behind. She walks right by your side, although she does change sides every once in a while.

She is very well-behaved on a leash, but the thing that is most important is that she is thrilled to get the leash on and actually bounces with joy as she leaves the house. It is very heartwarming to see this girl enjoy herself so.

We live out in the country, so there are no easy sidewalks to use.We walk on the edge of underused roads. She loves it! We always take a companion dog, and they are very easy to manage together. It makes me so happy to see how much joy she has for a daily walk.

The other thing we've learned is that Casey really does love her dog buddies, but she comes out of her shell a bit more when she's in a situation with fewer dogs. We have a pack of 4 dogs, but when Casey was on vacation a few months ago, she was in a house with just one other dog and she really seemed to do well.

While she must go to a family who has another confident dog, so far, she does best when it's just one other dog. Routine is still important for Casey; some things have not changed. She wants her food in the same place and still only drinks water when it's in a bowl outside. These are her rules and they are very easy to live with.  

Casey still follows us from a distance when we're in the backyard, but now that she's going for walks with us, she's more likely to follow closer than before. I think she's starting to trust us!

Last night, when the fireworks were going off, she went and huddled with the rest of the dogs. She was clearly stressed and wanted comfort, but was not destructive.  

Casey is a really special girl, and I'm hoping there is just the right family who can continue these daily walks and who has the patience to help her to continue learning that there are many good things in the future!

It's Casey here to tell everyone that I had a brand new experience this past weekend because I went to visit a lake, plus I walked on the trails around the lake! While I didn't get my feet wet in the water, I was curious and thoroughly enjoyed sniffing all the new scents this body of water provided for my nose.

I've been told we will be back to visit the lake again sometime soon. I was very tired once we got back home, so a long nap was necessary.  

I'm learning to enjoy emptying a Kong filled with peanut butter or frozen yogurt on a regular basis now. My foster family sure likes to keep my nose (and my mind) busy.  

I noticed I have some new sponsors on my webpage and I want to send a huge thank-you out to each and every one of them. I sincerely appreciate the love and support! 

Casey has been temporarily transferred to another foster home located in Iowa to see how she adjusts to a different setting. She has been a very brave girl and has accepted the change of scenery exceptionally well. She also recently had a visit to the vet's office, and all of her vaccinations were updated at that time.  

Casey has a confident resident dog to follow here, and they have become very good friends. She follows the resident dog and looks to the other dog for guidance in many situations. They have quickly bonded and enjoy each other's company. This reinforces Casey's requirement for another confident dog to be in any home with her.

Casey has begun to enjoy going on walks through the neighborhood. This is a brand new experience for her, and she is doing very well walking on a leash. She does not pull on the leash at all.

Another new experience for Casey was going for a short ride to get a treat. She sat up and looked out the windows during the drive.

Casey does best and thrives with a routine that is very close to the same every day. Inside the home, she has her safe spot where she stays quietly and observes things for most of the day, but she is willing to venture and explore more when she is outside in the fenced yard. She thoroughly enjoys rolling in the grass on her back.  

While many subtle changes and improvements are happening for Casey, she still remains unsure of human touch.  She does allow her new foster family to pet her, rub her ears, and massage her back briefly while she is laying in her safe spot late in the evening prior to bedtime. This is a huge step forward for this sweet girl.

Casey is a dog that requires patience, but she is one beautiful girl with a flowing, feathery tail and heart of gold.

Casey has made a big step - she's now spending most of her time with Foster Dad, Foster Mom, and our resident dogs, away from her safe spot. It's been a subtle but very important change.

She sleeps in the bedroom with us, watches television with us, and likes to be close to her dog buddies. She has a spot in the sunroom that she favors and is often curled up there napping. She has several other favorite spots in the sunroom, but definitely prefers that her people just stay seated, and then she can just settle in.

When we leave the house, we now see that she's playing with toys and interacting with our resident dogs. We've noticed that she has a new safe spot that's in our bedroom and we think that's a big step, too, since it took her a long time to venture into that room.

This last weekend, we adopted out another foster dog who was a sprite, energetic dog, and Casey clearly misses her. For a few days, Casey retreated to her corner, but she's now back to her routine. This was a good reminder about how important it is for these retired breeder dogs to have confident, social dogs in their forever homes.

Casey's new best buddy is our young male dog who really wants to play rough-and-tumble with her, but she's not quite ready for that. She tolerates a bit of bitey-face games and then walks away.

Another new thing - a small thing but still delightful - is that Casey has shown much interest in treat time. Our dogs know where the treats are stored, and if we make any movement to that cupboard, they're quickly lined up, waiting expectantly. Casey now approaches the group, but hasn't quite joined in. She will take a treat if it is placed on the floor, but she's still not ready to take anything from our hands.

She is still uncomfortable with human touch but is making slow progress. After a bit of panic, she now lets us comb her. You can tell that she's initially very frightened, but I think she actually enjoys it after she relaxes.

Casey has a lot more to learn and needs a family that is familiar with dogs who came from breeding facilities. She needs consistency, patience, and love. And a confident dog buddy, too!

Casey surprised us lat night. Our habit has been to put the leash on her, walk her into our bedroom where she can sleep with the rest of the pack. But surprise to us -- she walked in there on her own; in fact, she was there ahead of us.

While this might seem like a very small thing, for Casey, it's huge. And maybe this coincides with the elimination of all the meds she's been taking. It's hard to know.

Her progress is slow but steady. She absolutely loves one of our other foster dogs, and as soon as they're outside together, they do a bit of a happy dance to start the day. It really warms your heart to see this retired breeder dog develop relationships with the pack and to warm up to her people as well!

Casey is still a very cautious, timid girl. She loves her foster dad and is pretty suspicious of her foster mom. She puts her suspicion away at meal times, however, as Foster Mom is the one who feeds her and that is always a happy time.

Casey absolutely loves being outside with the rest of our dogs and does a real dance for joy each and every time they all go outside. She is still not comfortable walking the entire yard; she prefers to hang around the patio and that's okay.

If we put a leash on her, she'll gladly follow us around the yard, but it's not something she does on her own. She's made more progress, but still has some work to do.  

We started Casey on some new medications a while back and we're going to ask the vet to consider looking into another medication for her. We're convinced this gentle girl can make more progress and can someday enjoy the Golden life that is waiting for her.

Casey, with her spunky little mohawk hairdo, is ever so slowly adjusting to life in the country. She still favors her safe spot in the dining room, but lets us share the space each evening for dinner. If we bother her too much, she goes to her backup safe spot in the sunroom.

She goes out with much more ease now and comes back in as long as we're not close to the door. She comes in like a champ sometimes, while other times we give her more space.

She has a healthy appetite, and we're going to take her in to see if we've had any luck helping her drop a few pounds. I think the vet is going to be pleased with what she sees - Casey is still very tense in unfamiliar settings, but she's slowly improving.

One seemingly small change that I think is really significant is that she now tends to walk with confidence instead of slinky and tucking her tail. She's still easily frightened, but when all is fine, she does quite well.

Casey isn't quite ready to leave her foster setting. She needs a bit more time so she can trust people more. We'll keep you posted!