11/16/06: Who else but RAGOM foster parents would see a Golden Retriever along a busy highway and stop to pick him up? Well, that's just what we did on November 6 when we were leaving Dubuque (which is about 3 hours from our home in Ames). He was eating road kill and without any collar/tags and no nearby town. We called the Humane Society the next day for the county that we found him in and left a description and our phone number....but have not heard anything.

This guy is a great dog -- he's had some loving at some point. He's housebroken, gets along great with our 4 Goldens and 1 cat, rarely barks, has no bad habits whatsoever. He loves his food but does not counter surf or guard his food. He walks nicely on a leash and comes when called. He likes to be wherever we are but is not pushy. We did take him to the vet within a few days as he seemed to have ear infections. The vet thinks he's younger than 5 even though he has some white on his face, he's been neutered, and very healthy except for ear infections and skin infections on his front paws. His ears have cleared up nicely with antibiotic drops and we're bathing his feet with medicated shampoo. He's very good about letting us do anything to him. He'll to back to the vet again to be checked for heartworm and get his vaccinations.

At first glance, he looks to be pure Golden. However, he has huge feet, no feathery fur on his hind legs, and the bottoms of his ears are rounded. He certainly has the Golden personality.....and he loves tennis balls! We're calling him Rocky for no special reason -- but he is a very special dog.