| Mixed Breed | Born: May 2006 |
| Male | 77 lbs |
Status: Deceased
07.25.20 was a sad day as I had to put my beloved Clifford to sleep. Adopted nearly 11 years ago he was not only a family pet, he was my family.
Found as a stray in Missouri, RAGOM saved him from a kill shelter, despite at the time him having a severe case of heartworms. They found him a sponsor and a foster home.
Although a Golden Retriever-based rescue, Clifford didn't exactly fit that mold. This probably led to the fact he sat in foster care for nearly 4 months without any visits from potential families. Then I saw his big mug on the site and had to meet him. An initial visit at a rescue event followed by a home visit and finally concluding with a visit to his foster home, I was deemed worthy. (RAGOM is pretty serious about their adoptions).
They were guessing his age at the time to be 2-3. In fact, he hadn't even been cleared of the heartworms at that time so I was worried about him from the moment I brought him home...and despite all of that, bringing him home was the most rewarding thing I have ever done.
For the next 11 years there will be adventures and funny stories beyond what could be recalled in a single post. Cliffy, Clifford, Big Cliff or just plain Cliff is what he was frequently known as.
For 11 years he has been my co-worker as I have been primarily working from home all this time. No matter if it was 5 minutes, or an entire day every time I go into my office, his spot had to be under my desk. This often resulted in loss of leg room for me, but I never cared. I will probably miss this the most.
Despite his size, he was a teddy bear at heart. He was the dog I have been stopped multiple times for others to enjoy. The dog, while driving and his big head out the window created so many smiles from onlookers. I almost felt I was driving in a parade with a famous person.
There was the time he helped me get out of an upsell attempt by a home alarm salesman. (glass breakage detection) I remember pointing at Clifford and stating 'Go ahead, come through my house later tonight by breaking out a window. Let’s see how far you get.' (he moved on).
Over the years we have had some health scares with my boy, and I have always been able to get him whole again. (with help from my awesome vet clinic, Prairie Village Pet Hospital). Not this time. At 13-14 years old, age and cancer finally won. (as usual), and it sucks.
I was not ready to lose my pal. My pal that has been part of so many aspects of my evolving life. He loved walks. He loved the dog park. He loved treats. He hated storms and he really hated being snuck up on. (We would call this simply 'startle').
It's not even been 24 hours and I miss our routine already. The house feels incredibly empty and at the moment, I am not whole. Animal people will get that. I will miss him beyond words, and I have no idea what I am going to do with all this leg room under my desk.
He was a protector, he was all things that are good and this house without his energy and love....it will never be the same. I've also been reminded recently how warm tears are. Rest in peace my sweet boy...The dog that made me a better man.
Hello from Clifford!
Went to the vet last night for the HW test and it came back NEGATIVE!! We cannot thank Ragom and Clifford's FM enough for saving this wonderful dog.
We are so thankful to have Clifford in our family, cannot imagine life without him. We have had many adventures at the dog park & swimming, can't wait to see what winter brings!
Thank You Ragom,
Clifford & Family
From Clifford's forever family...
Hi Clifford Fans!
Clifford's first night with us went well. He slept on the floor beside the bed for an hour or so, then he moved to the living room. At about 2:00 in the morning he decided it was play time and I heard him running around. I think we will put his toys up at night :)
Clifford has been waiting patiently for our cat to come out of hiding. They met a couple times, and she was not very pleased to see him! He tried to chase her once, but seems to have lost interest since she is not playing back. He met the neighbor's Black Lab yesterday and had a blast playing tag with him in the yard. He has a lot of energy!
In an attempt to get rid of some energy we went to the Staring Lake dog park (great park!) He met several Dogs leash free and did wonderfully! I have left him alone in the house for a couple hours here and there and he does not touch a thing! The worst thing he did was curl up on the couch, but who can resist a comfy couch?
It has been about 72 hours since we adopted Clifford, and while we had some rough patches I think he is at ease now with his new surroundings. It is such a joy coming home to him and waking up to that big red head in my face :). We are having a fence installed soon so he can run free in the yard/woods. He has long legs that need to be stretched!
Clifford starts obedience classes on the 17th, we need to work with him on his leash manners, but really his new family needs the training. It sometimes appears as though he is walking (or dragging) me! Clifford will be at the RAGOM walk/picnic on the 19th and will hopefully have some improvement on the leash. After our adventure today at the Dog park I was able to walk with him using a regular collar and there was no pulling!
We are very thankful to have Clifford here, and can not imagine anyone ever letting him go. Thank you to RAGOM and FM for everything that you have done for him. He is so loving and so eager to be a good Dog. He will be going in for his HW test shortly, please keep him in your thoughts. We'll let everyone know how it goes.
See you soon!
Clifford & family
It’s official…Clifford went to his new family tonight. I couldn’t be happier for the “S” family. Congratulations!
Clifford would also like to say a special thank you to his sponsor in honor of Mary Jane Rizella. Without people like this, it would be very hard for RAGOM to continue it's great efforts to rescue and re-home these dogs. THANK YOU from the bottom of Clifford's sweet heart. He appreciates you and many more like you.
My, my, the summer has just flown by. For all those fans, I am so sorry I haven’t done an update on the Cliffman in a while. First let me start by saying a big “thank you” to all those people that came to meet us at the MN Paw event at the Golden Valley Humane Society a couple weeks ago. Clifford was there the entire time and loved getting all those hugs and kisses from everyone.
So, let’s talk about Clifford. Just as a reminder, I think the best furever home is one that has older children (at least 10 and older). Again, he is a very gentle guy and wouldn’t intentionally step on or knock anyone down, but he is a larger guy and doesn’t realize he can sometimes come barreling through. Even the adults have to watch out and be prepared. It’s just because he’s so happy to be around you, he doesn’t know how to contain himself. I love coming home through the door and his tail just starts thumping for me to let him out of the kennel. Once out, he jumps up and down with excitement. You can see the love pouring out of him.
He went to the same temp foster that he’s gone to a few times when we go out of town. A big “THANKS” to Bill again for inviting Clifford into his home. You might remember, Bill is the one that has a fence and a cat. He again did fine with the cat. The more I see Clifford playing with the free roam of a fence, the more I think his forever home needs one. He does fine with our tie out, but he is a totally different dog if he can run and get some energy out and just play. While at Bill’s, there were two German shepherds (one male, one female) that stayed for a couple days. Bill said the dogs had a blast. One would chase the other, then vice-versa. They wore themselves tired.
You may have remembered the storms that came through a couple weeks ago. I’ve said that he doesn’t like storms or fireworks. This is true. During these past storms, Clifford would wake up in the middle of the night and just shake. I would console him and that helped a bit, but he wasn’t fully relaxed until the storm had passed. I don’t think it is severe enough for him to take meds for at this point, but it would be something just to watch. If it was decided that he might need meds, it would be just to help him take the edge off and relax until the storm was gone. At this time, I just give him a little extra loving during the storm. I think he just doesn’t know what it is, so it gets him a little stressed out.
Our man Clifford is a heavy dreamer. You can tell he is in R.E.M. sleep because his whole body shakes. At first I didn’t know if something was wrong with him, but it turns out he’s just a heavy dreamer. What do you think he’s dreaming about? A frozen Kong? Maybe… Going for a car ride? Maybe… His furever home? Probably…
So it has almost been four month since Clifford began his heartworm treatment. He will go to the vet at the end of the month for his follow-up test. Keep your paws crossed that it comes back negative and he can officially begin his life as a happy, heartworm free dog! His forever home will have to promise to keep him on monthly heartworm prevention (as all dogs should be) so that Clifford doesn’t have to go through this painful treatment again. It’s just a simple $10 a month pill!!
Clifford does great on the Gentle Leader if he can just walk in front of you. He still struggles with walking at your side because he still likes to pull. He enjoys the walk so much that it’s hard to get his attention. He’s just looking all around as you walk. This will be something that his furever home will want to continue practicing daily. His furever home may also want to take him to obedience school. He does know his basic commands and does great (we are even learning some hand signals), but it’s a great way for his new owner to bond with him. Most dogs could use the training.
One last thing before I sign off…Clifford has started this fetish with wet towels. He just rubs up against them. It’s the weirdest thing. He doesn’t chew them or carry them around the house, just likes to rub all around them. It’s actually kind of funny to watch. Oh, silly Clifford! We love you with all of your quirks.
To summarize some of the things that Clifford needs:
I have included a couple pictures. One has Clifford using his nose to try to get food out of the Busy Cube. I use the Busy Cube to feed him most of the time. It gives him a little extra stimulation, slows down his eating, plus he loves it!! The other is of our time about a month ago at a friend’s house. She just sent the picture to me and I thought I’d add it. Thanks, Dayle. He looks so cute in this picture.
Clifford is planning on being at the Chuck and Don’s event in Lakeville next Saturday. If you would like to meet him, either let your placement advisor know, or come join us next Saturday. See you then.
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For all of those Clifford fans…come join us this Saturday, August 22nd, at the Golden Valley Humane Society starting at 10 a.m. RAGOM will have an educational booth for the MNPaw Adoption Day Event. I know you’ve followed Clifford’s story and you’ve seen his video, but until you have met him, you can’t appreciate how wonderful this guy is! Come see us Saturday…
What else is happening with Clifford? He went to Petsmart yesterday for a bath. I learned when I first got him back in May that I was on the losing end of bathtub baths and quickly decided that this task was better left to the professionals! When we arrived, I told the groomers that he wasn’t a big fan of the kennel, but forgot to tell them he also wasn’t a fan of water! Minor detail when talking about “baths”. They did say that after the first few minutes of the sprayer, he calmed down and allowed them to wash him. He did fantastic with the ear cleaning and the nail trim. Now he is sporting this new bandana and he smells super clean! When I picked him up, they did mention that they could have brushed and brushed him forever. I guess due to the summer, he is really shedding more than he did when I first got him. Oh well…he’s a dog! To love Clifford is to love his hair! I’ve attached a picture that I took this week of what Clifford looks like after he enjoying a rawhide. As you can see, some of it made it onto Clifford’s nose. What a goof-ball!!
Clifford and I hope to see you all out at the MNPaw event on Saturday. If you can’t make it Saturday, but would like to meet Clifford, just contact your placement advisor!
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Clifford had his first sleepover. Our former foster, Jazz 09-245, stayed with us for about a week while her forever family went on vacation. Clifford was sooo excited to see her again. They played and wrestled like no time had gone by. Jazz can hold her own with Clifford's big size, but Clifford is equally as gentle with a smaller 40 pound dog. Clifford begged me if she could stay forever, but I had to say "no"...3 dogs full time is a bit much for this foster mom! Oh well for Clifford. I'm sure we'll see Jazz-ma-tazz again soon!
Clifford and Jazz 09-245
Clifford would like to send a big “thank you” to Bill and Beatriz for opening up their home to him while we were gone this weekend. It turns out that there was a BIG storm and Clifford did okay. Bill said Clifford knew the storm was going on, but was able to just chill as it passed. Clifford did great with their cat. They probably won’t be best buds, but stranger things have happened, so you never know! While at their house, he loved to be where the people were, especially when they ate dinner! Clifford does that at our house too, so we are really working on “lay down” while we are eating. He’s starting to get it, but will need continued practice. Clifford was able to ride in the car with Bill every day and he loved it. If you just grab the leash, he starts to go crazy with excitement, so we are really working on him being calm before we put the leash on or open the door. This too will take practice. We have been going on walks in the neighborhood and he loves it. He’s doing much better wearing the Gentle Leader. I’ve attached a couple new pictures. We won’t be able to attend the Elk River event this weekend, so if you want to meet Clifford, please contact your placement advisor.
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Have you checked out Clifford’s video? I want to send a big “thank you” to Devon T. for taking the footage, editing it, and getting it loaded to Clifford’s page. It really shows how gentle he is and how well he has started to walk on the Gentle Leader!! That leads me to my next topic of discussion…why hasn’t he been adopted yet? Secretly, I’m not complaining because we ABSOLUTELY LOVE having this guy around, but I’m sure he wants to find his forever home. I hope the fact that he is currently heartworm positive isn’t preventing someone from wanting to meet him. Yes, he is still heartworm positive, but he has completed the treatment and has been on preventative, so now all we can do is wait. It just takes time (like 4-6 months) for the body to absorb the dead heartworm and become negative. There is no way to speed that up, but if you didn’t know his background, you wouldn’t have any idea what this dog has gone through. He acts like a typical, happy dog! Clifford had several people come visit him last weekend at the Slice of Shoreview event and the Burnsville event, so he wants to give a shout out to them. Thanks for supporting RAGOM.
We’ve had Clifford since Memorial Day weekend so let me review everything I know about Clifford:
-He’s 2-3 years old, 80 pounds
-Completely housebroken
-Great energy level-not too crazy, but will play
-Loves to play with other dogs. He will try to get a little fresh with some of the ladies, but will back off if told by the dog or by me. What can I say…he’s a ladies man!!
-He’s met one cat (that told him off), so a bold cat would be okay
-A little too curious about bunnies, so probably no rabbits
-Loves kids. He doesn’t get up in their face, but due to his size probably should be around older kids (10 and up). He did meet a 14-month old last week and did awesome. Even the kid did great when Clifford gave him an unexpected kiss!
-Doesn’t counter surf, get into the trash, or eat anything inappropriate
-Knows basic commands, but could use an official obedience class or two
-Has never growled at us and always gives up his toys with ease
-Tolerates the kennel. It has even become his prefers location to relax while we watch TV.
-Would love a fence to have free roam, but it’s not absolutely necessary
-Wants to be near you, but not right under your feet
-He’s a snuggler, JUST AN ABSOLUTE DOLL!
I have given Clifford a new nickname—“Gentle Giant” because he is just that. Don’t let his size scare you away from the great dog that he is. We just love him around here! If you would like to meet Clifford, just contact your placement advisor to set up a meeting.
So, Clifford hopes everyone had a great 4th of July with family and friends. We had a few people over and he did great until he started to hear the firework pops. He really got freaked out and went straight for the door. Once inside, he was fine and the fireworks didn’t bother him. I kept checking on him and every time, he was just chillin’ out on the couch. He would just look at me as if to say, “What? I’m fine.” I felt so bad for this little guy when I tried to get him to go potty for the last time before bed. He really didn’t want to go, but he trusted me so we went very quickly and back inside to the safe place. This just means his forever home is going to need to allow him to stay inside whenever there are fireworks and give him a little extra love that night.
He’s been having so much fun with our other foster, Jazz (09-245). They will play wrestle all day if I let them. They are best buds. They share the water bowl and drink at the same time, which is so cute. They even share their toys. Sometimes, they like to both carry around the same toy-one on one end, one on the other. Other times, they like to play this game called “Steal the Toy”. If one grabs a toy, the other always wants it just to take it—not because they REALLY want it. As soon as they get it, they drop it and move onto another toy. They are very much so like small children in that respect, so we are learning that “stealing” is not okay and that we must share!! They are both getting the concept, but that doesn’t mean they won’t try it again when I’ve got my back turned! It’s nice because they have never had an altercation over a toy.
When Clifford and Jazz are separated, Clifford is a totally different dog. He wants to know where his people are, so he will follow you around the house. Once there, he just relaxes and takes little naps. I think he has to save his energy for when the puppy comes out again!
If you would like to meet sweet, sweet Clifford, contact your placement advisor.
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Just a quick update on Clifford: In a nutshell, he’s awesome! We just love having this guy around. He’s so laid back and friendly to all people and most dogs he meets. Lately, Clifford’s been barking a bit at the neighbor’s dogs. I think it’s because he's on a tie out or sees them through the window and they are not, so he can’t formally meet them with the whole butt sniff thing. So far, he's gotten along with most dogs he's met.
Clifford is such a gentleman in the house. He will get off the bed/couch or lay down on the floor if asked. He knows basic commands “sit”, “down”, “out”, “leave it”, “drop it”. We’re still working on “come” and “stay”. He loves all kinds of dog toys, so he hasn’t chewed on anything inappropriate. We can even leave our closet doors open...I trust him that much! He very rarely jumps on the counter and only if there is something yummy up there he must investigate! He will always get down when reminded. He loves to ride in the car. He’s getting better on the Gentle Leader, but still pulls a bit. We even tried walking with a harness, but that didn’t work. He was walking me, not me walking him!! Back to the Gentle Leader for us!! He is completely housebroken and has started to go into his kennel on his own, just to chill! He’s come a long way and will make a wonderful addition to some lucky family. He does get a little sad when the people leave the house and will bark for a bit. I’m trying to help him by putting him in the kennel for short spurts while I’m home. It’s starting to help him relax, but he still does it some-especially when he's first in the kennel. This will take time and practice for him to understand his adult Mommy and Daddy will be back.
I tried to give him a bath in the tub a few weeks ago and he didn’t like that very much. It was difficult for me to try to keep the 80 pound guy in the tub, so I decided I needed professional help. He went to Petco yesterday for a spa treatment! I was worried since he doesn’t really like to go in the kennel and when he’s in there, he tends to whine/bark a bit. I thought for sure the Petco people would be calling me back to pick him up without getting treated, but they assured me he would be fine. Turns out the professionals are right. They said he did “great and had no issues”. He tolerated the bath, but wasn’t a big fan of the blow dryer until he got used to it. He came out of that wash feeling so soft and smelling so clean…and best of all…he was a rock star doing it!! I’m so proud of that guy!
Anyway, Clifford wants to wish everyone a Happy 4th of July! We’ll see if he likes fireworks! Here are a couple pictures of the sweet lug-a-bug. He totally thinks he's a lap dog, snuggles with his resident foster sister (Savannah), and loves car rides! If you want to meet him, contact your placement advisor.
Hey Everyone! It’s me Clifford.
I just want to say a big “thank you” to all of you that came to visit me on Saturday at the St. Louis Park Parktacular parade. It was a lot of fun. After the parade, we got to sit in the shade and enjoy all of the wonderful people that stopped by to pet me. I even let some really young children pet me and I did great. Lots of people commented on how big I was, but so gentle. That’s true!! I am super gentle.
Now that I’ve had my most recent vet visit, let me tell you a couple things I would love in my furever home. Even though I really like all kinds of kids, I would probably do better in a house without young, small children. FM says I’m a big lug and tend to just barrel into wherever I want. I wouldn’t mean to, but I would probably knock down young children. Let’s say around 10 and older would be great. I love most other dogs. I’ve only had one squirmish and that was on Saturday with another dog while food was out. We’ve gotten another foster in my house (Jazz 09-245) and I love that little puppy. She tries to mouth me and I try to mouth her. We roll around and have big fun while our older, much more mature resident just watches and thinks “Kids!” I’m not sure about cats. There are outdoor cats next door and I really want to check them out. I’m not sure if I would hurt them or not, or if I’m just curious. Foster Mom is going to try to get me cat tested at some point. I do great on the tie out here, but like all dogs, I would love a fence to run and play. I’m a great snuggler. Be prepared, I take up lots of the bed at night, but wouldn’t that be awesome in the winter? Oops, FM said “No winter talk!” I could also sleep on the floor. I love to play with tennis balls and can be entertained for hours with a rawhide. I did growl yesterday at that new Jazz while I was eating a rawhide. I thought she was going to try to take it, but turns out she didn’t want it. That’s the only time I’ve growled since I’ve been here, with or without a rawhide around. My FM can take things out of my mouth and can pull my food bowl away from me—not that I like it! I’m just very gentle. My size can be kind of intimidating, but I’m as sweet as a button. Since I have those heartworms still trying to work themselves out of my body, I have to take it easy. After all of that is behind me, I would love to go on daily walks. I’m getting used to the Gentle Leader, not that I have to like that either!! I act like a puppy while I play with my toys, but I am able to just chill as well. FM says I’m a good combination of energy. My FM is home for the summer—yeah! She has started to work on desensitizing me when she leaves me in the crate. I have never liked the crate, but with two other dogs, I have to go into it when FM leaves. When FM puts me in, I will whine a bit. I really just love my foster family and miss them when they are gone. FM says that’s all fine and good, but I need to work on just relaxing when no one is home. I’ve done really well with “sit”, “lay down”, and “out”. I was doing great with “leave it” until this little puppy came along. How do you expect me to “leave it” when that thing keeps trying to play with me? Now when FM says “leave it”, she’s actually talking to both of us!!
If you want to meet me, don’t be scared of the fact that I have heartworm. The vet said I have a very good prognosis. It’s true that I am still heartworm positive, but in a few months that test should come back negative. I sure hope my furever home gives me that preventative pill every month for the rest of my life. I don’t want to have to go through that again. Until next time…Clifford XOXO
Hey, Clifford here! Just want to give you an update on my last week. I know FM told you I had to go to the vet last Saturday, but I am doing much better. In fact, that Saturday afternoon my temperature came back down to normal and I've been doing well ever since. I have a really good appetite, am going to the bathroom well, and sleep like a baby. Apparently this heartworm thing just takes time, but so far I'm doing well. I go back to the vet on June 19th, so keep your paws crossed that everything is going in the direction we want. Next up, my weekly update:Even though FM tells me all the time that I am a great dog, I did do a few things FM was not happy about this week. First, I accidentally lifted my leg on my foster sister. I, personally, think it was an honest mistake...Tree? Dog? Who knew? Anyway, FM tried to get me to stop (cause she was making LOTS of noise), but once I get going, there's really no stopping until I am done. I'm pretty sure my Foster Sister, Savannah, didn't like it either. FM had to give Savannah a bath. Neither of them looked very happy, but I felt much better! Next, turns out I love steak!! Foster Mom and Dad went out to a nice dinner this weekend and brought home their leftover steak. They put it right there on the table for me. You guessed it; I sniffed, grabbed, and gulped that steak down. They were right, it was yummy! I've only been here two weeks, but they should know by now not to leave anything super enticing out for me. Let's not forget, I am a dog! Anyway, I'm pretty sure those were the only two things I did this week that might be viewed as unsavory. I am starting to feel very comfortable here. FM has started to allow me on the couch and bed, but only if I'm invited. I snuggle wonderfully and give lots of kisses. I do take up some space, so I only get to stay for a bit then I get kicked out. I've gotten so much better about getting in the kennel. I really prefer when FM and Savannah get in with me. My kennel is the nice, roomy kind. I highly recommend! We have gotten to the point where I don't have to be "bribed" to go into the kennel. I will actually go in first on the command "kennel", and then receive my reward. I'm such a good dog. I'm also getting better at sitting and waiting for FM to say "okay" for me to eat my food. I really just want to please my adult friends. Even though I don't look like your typical golden, I am as sweet as one! If you want to meet me, contact your placement advisor. P.S. I’m Sorry, FM. I promise I will leave your steak and Savannah alone from now on!! XOXO-Clifford
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