Kobi (Spencer 10-068)

Profile

I would like to introduce you to the newest member of the RAGOM family…Spencer!  He came to us as a stray from a shelter and is estimated to be about 4 years old.  I might even guess a little younger because his teeth are quite white.  I can’t believe that anyone would let this one go.  He is the most beautiful, dark golden with curly tail feathers that you have ever seen!  He has a personality to match—what a love bug!  We picked him up on Sunday afternoon and he met our resident dog, Savannah, without any issues.  Right away he saw how “hot” Savannah is, but I’m pretty sure that’s because he hasn’t been fixed yet!  We will get that taken care of very soon.  We have a pre-op appointment tomorrow, but I don’t think there will be anything to prevent him from getting fixed within the next week.  I’ll tell you more after tomorrow’s vet visit.  He looks and acts to be in very good health.
 
After arriving to our house, he quickly found the toys…and he loves them all!  He is also a gentleman in releasing them, but sometimes he needs a little help as we haven’t quite gotten the hang of “drop it” yet.  Speaking of commands, he doesn’t know ANY, so we are starting to work on that.  Dog obedience is a MUST in his forever home.  Since he was a stray, we are trying to learn our new RAGOM name, Spencer.  He will come to claps and noises. 
 
He is on a tie out at our house and it took him a good day to figure out how to not get tangled up.  The first couple of times out, he would do circles, entangle his back paws, and topple to the ground!  For this reason and the fact that he doesn’t really respond to any commands, I would say he needs a physical fence in order to keep him safe.  He wants to stay close to people and comes up to nudge for pets.  We are working on not being “too” needy.  He’s starting to get it. 
 
During the day, he stays in the crate and does fine—not a peep.  Of course, he might need a little “treat” persuasion!  We hang out during the afternoon and evening, then he goes back into the crate at night.  The crate is in our room, so we don’t hear a peep from him then either.  He is definitely a “people” dog, so will need to sleep near his forever family, not on another floor level or in a mudroom.  We keep him in the crate because he has not earned free roam with us yet.  I think with time and boundaries, he could be trusted with free roam. 
 
Tonight, he had his first brushing all over and did fine.  He really likes to be brushed under his chin and chest.  After the brushing, it was off to the bath we went.  He jumped right into the tub—following me—and did pretty well throughout the ordeal.  I could tell he wasn’t a super fan, but show me a dog that is!  Now he’s drying and I will get some pictures of his beautiful coat soon.
 
I will write more as we get to know him and after our vetting appointment tomorrow.  I will also get some more pictures up soon.  If you would like to meet this sweet, beautiful, lovebug, please let your placement advisor know. 

 

At a Glance #10-068

Golden Retriever Born: February 2006
Male 70 lbs

Status: Deceased

Profile

I would like to introduce you to the newest member of the RAGOM family…Spencer!  He came to us as a stray from a shelter and is estimated to be about 4 years old.  I might even guess a little younger because his teeth are quite white.  I can’t believe that anyone would let this one go.  He is the most beautiful, dark golden with curly tail feathers that you have ever seen!  He has a personality to match—what a love bug!  We picked him up on Sunday afternoon and he met our resident dog, Savannah, without any issues.  Right away he saw how “hot” Savannah is, but I’m pretty sure that’s because he hasn’t been fixed yet!  We will get that taken care of very soon.  We have a pre-op appointment tomorrow, but I don’t think there will be anything to prevent him from getting fixed within the next week.  I’ll tell you more after tomorrow’s vet visit.  He looks and acts to be in very good health.
 
After arriving to our house, he quickly found the toys…and he loves them all!  He is also a gentleman in releasing them, but sometimes he needs a little help as we haven’t quite gotten the hang of “drop it” yet.  Speaking of commands, he doesn’t know ANY, so we are starting to work on that.  Dog obedience is a MUST in his forever home.  Since he was a stray, we are trying to learn our new RAGOM name, Spencer.  He will come to claps and noises. 
 
He is on a tie out at our house and it took him a good day to figure out how to not get tangled up.  The first couple of times out, he would do circles, entangle his back paws, and topple to the ground!  For this reason and the fact that he doesn’t really respond to any commands, I would say he needs a physical fence in order to keep him safe.  He wants to stay close to people and comes up to nudge for pets.  We are working on not being “too” needy.  He’s starting to get it. 
 
During the day, he stays in the crate and does fine—not a peep.  Of course, he might need a little “treat” persuasion!  We hang out during the afternoon and evening, then he goes back into the crate at night.  The crate is in our room, so we don’t hear a peep from him then either.  He is definitely a “people” dog, so will need to sleep near his forever family, not on another floor level or in a mudroom.  We keep him in the crate because he has not earned free roam with us yet.  I think with time and boundaries, he could be trusted with free roam. 
 
Tonight, he had his first brushing all over and did fine.  He really likes to be brushed under his chin and chest.  After the brushing, it was off to the bath we went.  He jumped right into the tub—following me—and did pretty well throughout the ordeal.  I could tell he wasn’t a super fan, but show me a dog that is!  Now he’s drying and I will get some pictures of his beautiful coat soon.
 
I will write more as we get to know him and after our vetting appointment tomorrow.  I will also get some more pictures up soon.  If you would like to meet this sweet, beautiful, lovebug, please let your placement advisor know. 

 

Updates

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Great news!  Spencer (now Kobi) got adopted yesterday.  His new family will spoil him like crazy—which I love—but will also take him to training—which is awesome!  A big “thank you” to the V Family for allowing Kobi to be a member of their family.  I know he will love you forever.  We only had him for 2 ½ weeks, but just as most goldens do, he took our heart.  We will miss him, but know he is in a wonderful furever home!  Love you always, FM, FD, and Savannah (the cone-head sister)

 

 

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Well, Spencer went to the vet yesterday to get neutered.  I think he was really happy when Foster Dad dropped him off, but looked like a deer in the headlights when Foster Mom picked him up!  I know he was thinking “What just happened?  That was NOT okay!”  Oh well for him!  They said he did great.  They even scraped that little bit of tartar off of his teeth, so now they are super white!  He has to take it easy for 10-14 days, with the first 3-5 being the most important.  So far, he really hasn’t wanted to do much.  He just walks around with the cone on his head, knocking into EVERYTHING.  It’s pretty funny.  It’s actually “double” funny since our resident golden also has a cone from a minor surgery last week.  Two dogs, two cones!  I've attached a couple pictures.  One of Spencer sporting his cone fashion statement and another of both dogs with their cones, eyeing the neighbors cat as it walked by.  It was pretty funny to see two cones moving at the same rate as the cat crossed their line of sight. 
 
Now we’re just chillin’ on the deck.  Spencer with his rawhide and I with my laptop!  I’m pretty sure life doesn’t get any better than this.  Do you want a dog to chill out with on your deck, go on a walk, or any other springtime activity????  Spencer may be your guy. 

 

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

So we’ve had this sweet puppy with us for a little over a week now.  I told you I’d give an update after our vet visit.  The vet said he’s a really nice looking dog.  His ears are clean, skin looks healthy, hips look great, teeth are near white (a little tartar), and weight is great (at 71.8 pounds).  The girls in the front were “ooing and aahing” over him.  Pretty sure he’s a chick magnet!  And he was loving every minute of the attention they gave.  He will go in tomorrow for his neuter (3/17).  I don’t think he knows what’s coming yet.  After we pick him up, he’ll be on strict exercise restriction for about 5-7 days. 
 
So let me tell you what I’ve learned about Spencer in the past week.  He LOVES people.  He follows me around the house and wants to be petted a lot.  We are working on not being too pushy with our requests!  It’s hard for him, since it is clear he has never had any formal training.  He is starting to get “sit”, but that is still not 100%.  “Down, come, stay, drop it” are all coming as well, but Spencer is not the quickest learner.  He will learn, but it will just take a bit extra time.
 
Last week, we had another foster for a few days.  Spencer was not a fan.  We thought maybe with a few days to chill out that it would get better, but it didn’t.  Both dogs were pretty stressed out, so we found another placement for the other foster.  Spencer is much happier to have his house back with just the resident dog.  Some dogs just don’t get along.  After seeing how he was with the other foster, I wanted to try him out meeting a few other dogs.  We took him to the RAGOM Volunteer meeting this past Saturday.  The location was very cramped, so I was worried how he would react around all these other dogs.  He did great with many other dogs.  I think his forever home will need to be very aware to Spencer’s dog body language because I would  not call him a dog that loves ALL other dogs.  He will also need obedience training to help continue to set boundaries in his forever home.  You can’t let your guard down with that sweet golden face! 
 
Since he’s getting neutered tomorrow, Spencer will not be able to be at the Petsmart event on Saturday.  He will be resting to meet his forever family.  Is that you?  If so, contact your placement advisor to set up a meeting.  Spencer would like to wish everyone—Irish or not—a Happy St. Patty’s Day.  You know he’s screaming “save me” from this crazy FM!!