Hi everyone, Belle here again!  I am really doing wonderful and am eager to share a few wants and needs with you on my wish list for my forever home.  I am definitely ready to find myFurever Home, so I thought I would lay it all out there for anyone who is looking for a wonderful new family member.  

My Dream Home Needs List:*creatures of the human kind to give me lots of love and attention*picked up socks, dish towels or things I may want to steal*another medium to large confident dog*food, water and a dog bed*occasional treats*tennis balls*patienceMy Dream Home Wants List:*fenced in yard preferred or I will need to be on a long lead line to run and play*multiple extra soft dog beds, preferably one in each room*daily brushing sessions – these are my favorites!*gigantic box full of tennis balls*read a bedtime story to me*stylish seasonal collars*use of furnitureSince I am laying out all this information, I better be completely honest with you and disclose a list of my good and bad habits too.My Bad Habit List:*bark when my humans come home (Hey, I can’t help it!  I am SO excited!!)*throw my paws on my humans any chance I get (Working hard on this!)*when walking on a leash I zig-zag and throw my paws on my walker (Working on getting more confidence when outside of the house!)*shred socks, towels or blankets when no one is looking (So fun!)*eat really fast (I eat in my crate so I don’t worry about other dogs.)
My Good Habit List:*house trained and do all my business outside*sleep well at night on a dog bed next to my human’s bed*go into my crate on my own when my human is leaving*roll around in the grass and snow (Okay, so this is a good or bad habit, depending on how dirty I get.)*am now very relaxed inside my human’s house (I get a little nervous outside of the house still or in a new place.)If you could be my new family, please click on the Adoption tab on the side of the page and let RAGOM know you may be the family for me!  I can’t wait to meet you! 

A special thank you to Laura K for your donation and icon on Belle's page!!   Awesome donors like you help RAGOM to continue their mission and allows dogs like Belle to get great medical care.

A few weeks ago, Belle saw Dr. Rose at the Animal Emergency and Referral Center of Minnesota and had an echocardiogram.  The great news is that a heart arrhythmia was not heard, but Belle does have a rare type of heart murmur called a diastolic murmur.  The other good news is that Belle does not need any medications at this time and has no restrictions at all due to this murmur.  It is recommended that once a year she has a recheck with a cardiologist and an echocardiogram, just to make sure that if anything worsens it is caught early so medications could be used.  This was all very good news!  A special thank you to Dr. Rose and your clinic for the discount you gave to RAGOM during Belle’s visit.

Belle has gotten into a bit of trouble recently.  She decided she would try to taste her bedding in her crate one day and ate a large piece of it…completely gone.  That was a week ago already and unfortunately, it has still not gone through her system. Hoping and praying it works its way out so we can avoid a surgery and that no blockage occurs.  Right now she is still eating and drinking perfectly and is very perky, so it is just a wait and see game.  

Belle is really doing fantastic right now!  She is very comfortable in our house and greets new humans with a great deal of enthusiasm.  She runs to the door when she hears someone coming and likes to let us know how happy she is with some happy barks a lot of tail wagging.  Even strangers get greeted in this enthusiastic way. I cannot recall the last time she looked nervous in our house at all – which is great progress!!  Belle has also gained free roam overnight and likes to sleep next to our bed on her dog bed.  As soon as she hears my alarm go off, we hear her very loud Happy Tail Wag…which can only bring a huge smile to your face as you are trying to wake up.  

Belle does great on a leash going outside in a familiar area now and LOVES to roll around in the snow, catches snowballs and overall really enjoys her time outside.  Belle also loves to be with our other dogs and just generally enjoys their company. She will run around with them in the backyard and loves to be a close bystander when they are playing inside, but never quite gets into all the action yet. She enjoys playing fetch with a human and with herself. 

Belle is absolutely ready to meet her forever family and is a wonderful dog.  She may be 8 years old, but she certainly doesn’t act like she is 8 and has a lot of energy.  She is a wonderful family member and while it will be very difficult to see her leave, it will be oh so rewarding to see her with a family to give her a lot of love.  Belle’s only real requirement is that she needs another medium or larger sized dog in her new home to help her adapt and give her confidence.  If you might be the family for Belle, please let us know!  We would love to talk to you more about her and answer any questions you might have!!  Even if you are not an approved app but are interested in Belle, please contact RAGOM and let them know.  They will put you in touch with us if it is a potential match.  

Belle has had a few very busy weeks!  Belle continues to do well and is adjusting well to her daily routine.  She will go out on a leash to do her business without any issues with me, but during her holiday travels she has shown that new places and new people bringing her outside do make her a bit nervous and uneasy.  She does adapt with time and patience though and is learning to trust new situations more all the time.  Belle LOVES To run and play in the snow.  She really enjoys to "snowplow" her face into the snow and then rolls around. For this reason, a fenced in yard would really be a plus, but she is also adapting to a really long leash while she runs and plays here too.  When she is outside, she can startle easily and then reacts without thinking, meaning she has the potential to run off.  For this reason, her adoptive home will need to make sure she is always safe and either leashed or in a fenced in area when she is outside.  Belle is doing just fine on a leash, but a tie out or what I call a zip line can not be used with her.  These two things completely scare her at this time.  She is learning to walk a bit better on a leash in a known area, but will circle you or scamper around when she hears a loud car drive by or something else startles her.Inside Belle is wonderful.  She like to lounge around, but also has times where she will play and be silly.  She really likes tennis balls and other toys when they are thrown a few feet for her.  She enjoys following our two dogs around, but when they start to wrestle, she is more of a bystander at this point.  She is often seem throwing a ball to herself and then catching it when no one else is in the room!  Belle does not get scared by loud noises or action inside the house.  She did great over the holidays with new people and new places, considering this is all new for her.  Belle likes to demand her attention and is definitely a velcro dog.  She throws her paws up on you and makes sure her presence is known!  She is a bit too pushy and it is something we are working on.  Belle will take all the attention she can get and is always where the people are.  She does this with new people as well and is not afraid when others enter our house.   She does listen when we firmly tell her no and and then will go and lay on her bed.  Belle did see a heart specialist and the news was all good.  I will explain some more specifics in a future update, but for right now there are no medications needed and it was just recommended that she revisit the specialist yearly.Belle has had her share of medical problems in the past 2 months...she was spayed, then developed a hernia and an infection.  She had a terrible skin infection allergies to deal with.  Then Belle had constant loose stools, likely from her food and stress.  Finally it was discovered that Belle had a type of worm living in her bladder.  Yep, you read that correctly....a bladder worm.  This is fairly rare and not something that is seen very often.  The great news is that her skin is doing fantastic and has responded well to diet changes.  Her bladder worms are being treated and she will be finished with that by the end of this week.  Belle is also all healed up from her spay and hernia.  Finally, Belle is finally having normal stools...something we really celebrated here!  Belle is currently taking benadryl daily to help her allergies. She also is taking one dose of trazodone in the evening to help her settle in for the night and be less anxious.  This has really helped her. Belle was thrilled to have the Wika family sponsor her in memory of their golden Sydney.  With all of her medical bills, this has really helped.  Any donations for Belle's care would really help RAGOM be able to continue to provide great care for dogs in need and we couldn't do it without all the amazing support RAGOM gets.  Thank you to all of you who have donated to help dogs like Belle learn all about the golden life!Belle is ready to find her forever home to live out her retirement years and enjoy all the great things any dog should!  She is an absolute joy to have in the house and a family will be very lucky to have her as their new family member.  If you would like to talk to us to learn more about Belle and if she may be a fit for your family, please let your placement advisor know.  If you are not yet an approved applicant, that is okay too!  Just email RAGOM and let them know you are interested in Belle.