Meet Hank, a beautiful, 10 month old male.  Hank came to RAGOM from a shelter, where he was surrendered by his owner.  Hank previously lived on a farm where he was given free roam.  Apparently he roamed a little too far, and the owner decided to surrender him to the shelter. 

Because Hank grew up wandering around on a farm, he wasn't given training or obedience, so he has some behaviors to work on.  For example, Hank wants to jump up on anyone, any dog, anything.  We are slowly (I hope) breaking this habit, but it seems like he's been used to doing this for quite awhile.  Hank is also slowly learning the "sit" command.

It is especially important for Hank to learn good doggie manners, because Hank is ENORMOUS!  Hank is 88lbs, but pretty skinny, in fact we can see his ribs from certain angles.  Most of Hank's weight must be in his legs because he is a very, very tall boy.  We think of him as a gentle ( and jumpy) giant!

Right now, we've only had Hank for a little over 24 hours, so it's hard to tell what his energy level is like.  So far he's been extremely energetic, however after spending who knows how long in a shelter, and boarding after that...it's normal for any dog to have a few days worth of pent up energy.  Two days from now we should have a better idea of what his true energy requirements are.

Last night Hank went on his first walk, and despite being very unhappy about the Gentle Leader, he did pretty well over all.  Once he is a little more comfortable with the Gentle Leader, it should be fairly easy to walk him.  Hank has spent most of the past 24 hours playing with our resident Goldens, who are 14 months and 10 months old.  Hank was very well behaved meeting both of them.  He met some cats in a cage at the vet's today, and was very curious, but backed away quickly when one of the kittens swatted at him.  At the vet's, we found out that Hank has roundworms, so he's had his first dose of medicine, and will need a follow up dose again in 2 weeks.  Other than that, Hank's exam went very well, in fact he even gave the vet a smooch!  The vet said that you will see the coloration that Hank has in Goldens from time to time (light colored eyes, and pink lips, mouth and eyes) but other than disqualifying Hank as a show dog, it doesn't change anything about him...he's still all Golden!

I couldn't end Hank's first bio without mentioning how very sweet Hank is.  Hank obviously loves and wants human attention and affection, but he just isn't sure what he needs to do to hear "good boy Hank!"  He's slowly learning that being calm and sitting earns praise.  Yesterday while our two residents were rolling around on the floor, sharing a toy, Hank sat looking at them...trying to figure out how to join.  Hank is no stranger to playing, but it's obvious he doesn't know what fetch, or toys in general are.  He seems to still be getting the hang of being petted, but I have no doubt that he likes what he's seeing about this affection thing.  

Hank slept in a crate in our bedroom last night and did very well.  He hasn't had any accidents inside, so we're pretty comfortable saying he's house broken.  Although Hank hasn't chewed on any toys, just this morning he's been working away on some bones around the house, so hopefully we can introduce him to a whole new world of chewing wonders!

Hank is going to need a home that is willing to teach him all the best manners, and give him adequate exercise.  He will repay any home with love and adoration, and promises that all the work will be worth it...and we agree!!