Hey Guys,

Jack here,

I wanted to send an update to let everyone know that I am doing great! I have been very busy lately. In fact, I just got home from the dog park where I had fun playing with the other dogs. I have been going on several walks a day and have also been helping Dad rake leaves and get the yard ready for this winter.

With all my energy Dad decided we needed professional help so, we are now enrolled in obedience training. Dad made the decision after he found me standing on the kitchen table (just like in the RAGOM application). I jumped up there to watch Dad make the back fence escape proof. Apparently, I wasn’t supposed to jump over it.

We have attended two classes and Dad feels good about the progress we have made. I no longer jump on people, sit nicely while riding in the car, rarely bark at the neighbor dogs, listen much better when off leash, and no longer pull when walking around the neighborhood. These are all big improvements for us and Dad is excited about our continued progress!

I went hunting in North Dakota for a couple of days last week and Dad said I did great! I ran/worked really hard and everyone said that I’m a natural hunter. Plus, I had fun chasing pheasants around the countryside!

I want to thank FM and my sponsors for their support. It means allot to know that so many people care about me.

Thanks,
Jack

P.S I sent a picture of me playing Soccer in the back yard.

We are happy to announce that Jack has found his forever home with his new dad, Pat!  Jack will be packing his bags and moving back up to Minnesota.  It’s a good thing his winter coat is starting to come in, he’s going to need it!

Jack has been such a wonderful foster for us and we will definitely miss him a lot! He is everything a great dog should be.  There are so many things we love about him.  He has the most loving personality and is always willing to give a kiss or snuggle.  Even though he can be very high energy, he loves to just hang out with the family.  He has the most amazingly soft and silky fur, and the way it shines in the sun is stunning.  The way he’ll back up to sit on my lap if I’m sitting on the floor.  How he curls up in a tight little ball when he sleeps, and how excited he gets when he sees his “Ducky” or “Foxy” toys.  How his whole body wags when he sees my daughter get off the school bus.  We could have easily become foster failures with Jack, but we know that we found a wonderful forever home for him.  We also know that we can help more dogs by fostering than adopting.  Very special dogs like Jack just make it a little more difficult to let go.

This past weekend we took him camping and Jack had a great time.  Before we even got out of the car he spotted the water and we could see the excitement in his eyes!  We walked along the sand bars (the river is very low) for a few miles and Jack enjoyed all of the new and exciting smells.  We had him on a flexi leash so he could run around, but still be safe.  Jack did go in the water a few times, but was really too busy to bother with swimming.  We are lucky enough to have 2 state parks within 15 minutes of our house, so we spent lots of time this weekend enjoying the fall foliage, fresh air, warm temps, and beautiful sunshine.  On Sunday we decided to go for a hike in the woods instead of walking along the river.  Jack loved running through the leaves and spending time with us.  He absolutely loves to run around outside. 

We have been bringing Jack with us whenever possible, and he is getting a lot better in the car.  He’ll try to get in the driver’s seat when he gets in the car, but will jump into the back seat and wait for me to put his seatbelt harness on.  He will then either lay down or sit and look out the window when we are driving on the highway.  In town he gets more excited and tries to go from window to window and to the front seat, but the addition of the seatbelt harness has really helped with that. 

After our eventful weekend, Jack is a very tired dog.   Right now he’s laying on his back on the couch with his head in my lap and his legs up in the air.  (He’s not spoiled at all!)  I’ve included a few pictures of Jack at the river this weekend.  Jack is camera shy so it’s rare to get a picture with him looking at me, but the pictures show that he was having a great time and enjoying the fresh air.  My favorites are the one where his ears were blowing in the wind and the one where he is sitting in the pile of leaves in our backyard. 

A special thanks to Jack’s sponsor, Ellen, and his anonymous friend who donated to Goldzilla in Jack’s name.  We really appreciate your support!

Jack had a major flare up of his allergies this week. He was fine when I left for work one morning, and when I came home he had licked all of his feet raw and scratched at his body until he had sores. He even licked and chewed at his paw pads until they were split open and oozing. Poor guy!! His vet has put him on steroids to calm everything down, antibiotics, a new ear medication, an allergy shampoo, and Jack has to wear the dreaded e-collar when we aren’t around to watch him. The steroids have worked their magic, and Jack is finally starting to feel a little better. He is a lot more comfortable and no longer limps when he walks (due to his sore feet.) Starting next week we will taper the steroids and see how he does. It is possible we will be able to completely wean Jack off of them, but it is also possible he will need to be on a low dose until the allergy season is over. Jack is also on a grain-free novel protein (bison) food and will probably need to stay on this food or a similar food.

Jack will most likely have seasonal allergies every year, so it is an important thing to consider when thinking about adding him to your family. Sometimes things will be fine and the allergies can be easily managed, but sometimes he will have flare ups and it could result in costly vet trips to get him feeling more comfortable. He also needs his medications on time, so that is another thing to consider. He currently gets medications twice per day, as well as a bath every 3 days. It doesn’t take a long time, but it is more work than a dog without allergies.

We have continued to work with Jack on his manners. We don’t allow him to be in the kitchen when we are eating or cooking, so he has been doing very well with sitting and staying during dinner time. I also make him sit and “wait” for his dinner. Jack will counter surf if given the opportunity, so we make sure we don’t keep anything out that he would want. Jack is very smart and learns quickly. He does best when he has something to do (we use dog toys with hidden treat areas (which we fill with his dog food) and other things to keep him occupied. We haven’t been able to exercise him as much because of his sore feet, and he’s had a lot of extra energy. He’s definitely a dog who will need a daily walk (or two) - rain, shine, or snow! We’ve been playing with him and walking him in the grass as much as we can, but being outside in the grass seems to make him a lot more itchy. We wipe his paws and body with a wet washcloth when he comes in to help remove some of the allergens from his coat.

Because of his allergy issues, we’ve been bathing Jack every 3 days. He’s so good about it! He will jump right into the bathtub, stand still while I lather him up, and he will even wait patiently while we wait for 10 minutes to rinse. (The shampoo has to sit on his skin for at least 10 minutes to be most effective.) I use this time to give him a doggy massage, and he loves it! I use the hairdryer to dry him and he doesn’t mind at all. He’s amazing!

Jack has gotten to go to doggy daycare a few times and he absolutely loves it! He’s gotten to play with other dogs all day and even go swimming each time! Jack was in doggy heaven! Everyone there loved him and commented on how gorgeous he is, which of course we already knew! After a long day of playing, Jack was a very tired dog. He would love to be able to go to doggy daycare or the dog park frequently in his forever home.

We are having a blast with Jack! He is such a wonderful dog. He loves to be with me and will follow me from room to room in our house. Jack has discovered the fish tank, and he will sit and watch the fish swim around. He loves to play with his toys! He will pick one out of the toy basket and throw it up in the air. Then he will fling himself on the toy and roll and rub his back all over it. He’s too funny! Jack has a great time though! He has a few stuffed toys that he carries around and doesn’t destroy, but he also has destuffed a few toys too. His favorite toy is his squeaky duck. Whenever he’s excited he will have the duck in his mouth and his whole body quivers with excitement. He also carries the duck to bed, and he would take it outside if I let him.

We are still working on clearing up Jack’s ear infection. We go in for a recheck next Friday, so hopefully it will be cleared up by then! He is wonderful while I clean and medicate his ears. We also think Jack might have some mild seasonal allergies. He has been a little itchy lately, so we’ve been giving him an antihistamine recommended by his vet twice daily. This really seems to make him more comfortable. A 2 month supply for the otc allergy med is around $6. I just put the tablet in with his food and he gobbles it up. I haven’t seen any skin irritation, sores, or hot spots on Jack, so his allergies really aren’t that bad. I can definitely relate to him right now, the pollen counts have been really high lately!

We spent last weekend at my sister’s house dog sitting her 8 year old Boxer, Tacoma. Both dogs got along really well, and Jack LOVED having a huge yard to run around in. He did great with free roam in a strange house.

Jack doesn’t get on furniture unless invited when we are home. He does, however, sleep on the couch while we are gone during the day. He will sleep on the bed for awhile at night if invited, but he would rather sleep on his dog bed on the floor. Jack will bark if someone is at the door, but has otherwise been quiet. He has a very deep voice, making him sound a lot bigger than he is! We did have an issue with Jack getting into the trash can one day while I was at work. We came home to find the entire contents of the garbage can spread out all over the kitchen floor! It reminded me of the RAGOM home visit question about what you would do if you came home to find your dog on the kitchen table. Before I could even say anything, (I was so shocked when I opened the door!) Jack hung his head and went to lay on his bed in my room. It was like he knew he had been naughty and he put himself in a timeout! The garbage is now kept where Jack cannot get into it. Something must have really tempted him, though there really wasn’t much that was edible in the garbage that day. He also thinks that the recycling bin is his toy box. He loves to carry around paper towel rolls!

Today I am confused! Just when I was going outside to do my morning business in the fresh Spring air, out of the sky came these things that I thought only came during Winter! I do not think it was that white stuff from dandelions....Oh well, it was fun to run and play outside with them all around me. They all went home by the end of the day and things look more normal now.  Foster mom and dad were not too happy with any of us when we came in. If it was all white on the ground, it should be all white on the floor when we walk on it too, shouldn't it? I am confused! Bedtime buddies...........

On a cold, windy, snowy day, I found the perfect thing to do!  Foster mom and dad are VERY surprised I am still living with them! I am OK with that, and they are too, but it sure would be nice if I could find my fur-ever home pretty soon. You know how impatient I can get sometimes!

Jumpin' Jack Flash has not lost any of his energy while we have had him as a foster! Oh, how he loves to run- even in the back yard- but he prefers the park for much longer distances. Fortunately, Jack responds very well when he is called to "come!". He also likes to wrestle with the bigger dogs when in the house, but has also taken an interest lately in chasing any of the four cats on occasion.  

Jack is much improved with his jumping on people, getting better on keeping off the counters, but still working on "stay". He remains on free roam 24/7 and is totally housebroken. He stays with the chew toys and does not do any destructive chewing on other objects. He has proven to be a well-mannered host to 2 other fosters (little ones) and 3 small dogs were visiting for the weekend. He even helped in the training of a dog who successfully passed her assisted-therapy dog evaluation yesterday!

Jack loves attention and petting, especially if one of the other dogs is getting it at the time when he is not. He loves to pull up a chair or sit on the steps and watch out the windows to see the world around him when the other dogs are resting. By the end of the day, he is ready to lay on the couch and rest nicely with everyone else watching the re-runs of his favorite show, The Dog Whisperer.

How lucky am I (Jack-#11-075) !!?? Surrounded by a couple pure Goldens (or, at least, mostly Golden)! Can you guess which one I am? My mom was an Irish Setter and my dad was a Golden Retriever. Foster Dad says I look Irish, but inside I feel like a Golden.

I still do not have the "stay" command down just right, but I am working on it. There were two seconds for foster dad to take this picture of us. Good thing he is fast! (He is almost 500 years old in dog-years!) 

Everyone thinks foster bro Gunnar is pretty dark for a golden retriever (he's the one on the left). My foster sis Maren (on the right) is medium colored for a golden, but she has grey hair, just like someone else I know. Maybe, just maybe, I might have a little Irish Setter coloring to me!

Have to get ready for the St. Patrick's Day parade now. I have my green collar, but I sure would like to find a hat so I can be color-coordinated. My BIG day will be here soon, but my BIGGEST day EVER will be when I find the perfect fur-ever home for me.