Tucker 13-418

Profile

In addition to LOVE this dog has the following requirements:
Entered Foster Care Fence Kid Friendly Another Dog Cat Friendly
 12/8/2013 Required 10+  Optional  No
This is the most recent information available; however, it may change as we learn more about the dog.

Tucker is a lovely copper-colored neutered male golden retriever who arrived at our house a week ago full of energy and with a very engaging smile.  At three years of age and 80 pounds, Tucker is strong, playful and always ready for a good time.  Tucker came to us accompanied by a full box of goodies -- his family had clearly loved him and supplied him with all the right leashes, food, training treats, and toys.  Unfortunatley, his family was going through a divorce and could no longer keep him but knew that Ragom would take good care of him.

Tucker is very smart - in addition to sit and down and the routine kinds of things, he's very smart about meeting other dogs and respecting their space.  He took his time meeting our resident dogs and within two days had settled into the household sharing toys and fitting into the daily routine.  He is a great snuggler and waits to be invited up on the furniture, a lovely trait.  He would prefer to sleep up on the bed with us but is also very good about getting into his kennel for the night as well.  He has been to the vet and is current on all his shots and tested negative for heartworms.  He is a big baby about getting his toe nails trimmed so we're spending extra time playing with his feet and working on making that a more positive experience for him. Tucker keeps an eye on his people and we've now learned to keep an eye on him too!  Turns out that Tucker is an expert-level counter surfer so we've already started working with him on that.  He loves to be groomed and petted and absolutely loves to go for a ride.  Because it's been very cold and the sidewalks are slick, we haven't taken Tucker for any serious walks yet.  He's very strong so we're going to work with him on leash manners and also try to get him more exercise so has a chance to burn off some of his energy and lose a few pounds at the same time.  His owners indicated that Tucker has a very strong prey drive so at this point we do not feel that he is a good candidate for a household with cats.  His strength and energy would not necessarily be a good match for a family with small children although he does seem very interested in children.  At this point, we think Tucker would do best in a household with a fenced yard where he would be safe and no bunnies would be there to tempt him. We'll have more to share about Tucker in the next few days! 

At a Glance #13-418

Golden Retriever Born: June 2010
Male 82 lbs

Status: Adopted

Profile

In addition to LOVE this dog has the following requirements:
Entered Foster Care Fence Kid Friendly Another Dog Cat Friendly
 12/8/2013 Required 10+  Optional  No
This is the most recent information available; however, it may change as we learn more about the dog.

Tucker is a lovely copper-colored neutered male golden retriever who arrived at our house a week ago full of energy and with a very engaging smile.  At three years of age and 80 pounds, Tucker is strong, playful and always ready for a good time.  Tucker came to us accompanied by a full box of goodies -- his family had clearly loved him and supplied him with all the right leashes, food, training treats, and toys.  Unfortunatley, his family was going through a divorce and could no longer keep him but knew that Ragom would take good care of him.

Tucker is very smart - in addition to sit and down and the routine kinds of things, he's very smart about meeting other dogs and respecting their space.  He took his time meeting our resident dogs and within two days had settled into the household sharing toys and fitting into the daily routine.  He is a great snuggler and waits to be invited up on the furniture, a lovely trait.  He would prefer to sleep up on the bed with us but is also very good about getting into his kennel for the night as well.  He has been to the vet and is current on all his shots and tested negative for heartworms.  He is a big baby about getting his toe nails trimmed so we're spending extra time playing with his feet and working on making that a more positive experience for him. Tucker keeps an eye on his people and we've now learned to keep an eye on him too!  Turns out that Tucker is an expert-level counter surfer so we've already started working with him on that.  He loves to be groomed and petted and absolutely loves to go for a ride.  Because it's been very cold and the sidewalks are slick, we haven't taken Tucker for any serious walks yet.  He's very strong so we're going to work with him on leash manners and also try to get him more exercise so has a chance to burn off some of his energy and lose a few pounds at the same time.  His owners indicated that Tucker has a very strong prey drive so at this point we do not feel that he is a good candidate for a household with cats.  His strength and energy would not necessarily be a good match for a family with small children although he does seem very interested in children.  At this point, we think Tucker would do best in a household with a fenced yard where he would be safe and no bunnies would be there to tempt him. We'll have more to share about Tucker in the next few days! 

Updates

Wednesday, December 25, 2013

We’re really enjoying getting to know Tucker.  He is flourishing and is a happy-go-lucky boy who is inquisitive, affectionate, and playful, but also enjoys a good nap and snuggle time.  He’s learned the ways of our resident dogs and knows who wants to play and who doesn’t.  He enjoys his toys and becomes *very* excited when presented with his tennis ball.  He would benefit from more exercise than he’s getting right now – last night he tried to romp in the house, squirmed around on his head and rolled over on his back and flailed around as you might expect from a young energetic dog.  When Tucker gets excited like this, he likes to gently mouth soft objects which makes me think he might really enjoy a stuffed toy but in our multi-dog household we find those don’t last long.  Tucker doesn’t appear destructive unless he finds that candy wrapper you threw in the waste basket.  Although he counter surfed when he first came to us, he’s learned that isn’t acceptable behavior but that doesn’t mean we necessarily trust him with Christmas dinner yet!

Tucker is a slow eater with very good manners.  Right now we have him on a weight management diet so he can lose a few pounds.  He is also getting one tablet of generic Zyrtec in the evening to see if that will help reduce the scratching that he does in the early morning.  It seems to be working but we intend to try him out on a different food if he’s with us much longer to see if he’s reacting to this particular food.  It isn’t a big deal – we just want to make sure he’s comfortable and there are so many good foods to choose from!  We’ll be taking him to our favorite pet store later this week to see how he does in that kind of environment and with all those distracters and inviting toys. 

We’ve found that Tucker responds very well to a positive tone of voice and really is eager to please his people.  He’s very strong with a fairly short coat, nice feathering on his legs and a gorgeous expression.  He’s very visual and likes to spend time looking out our front window watching what’s going on across the street, watching the birds in the trees, and even watching TV.  We’ll continue to keep you posted as we learn more about this handsome boy.