Harold 12-368

Profile

Sponsored by:

Sam 07-690
"In memory of my foster mom, Joyce Nelson. Thank you so much---Sam"

 

November 21, 2012

Welcome a new boy to RAGOM. This is Harold! He was found living along the interstate in Missouri, taken to a local shelter and is now in our care. His age is guessed to be about 8 but we cannot say for sure. He was very shy about going in and out of the door to go potty and also of stairs but he has slowly gotten used to them. He was neutered this past Tuesday and they discovered a mass on one of his testicles. The vet said the tumor was encased and they got it all. They do not believe it was cancerous and his prognosis is good!! He barely weighs 45 pounds so he needs to gain a good 10-15 pounds to cover the ribs and hip bones that are very noticeable. The vet said that he has some broken off teeth but they don't seem t bother him. He does know how to sit and doesn't seem to have an aggressive bone in his body.

Harold is a great dog. He loves to be near you and if you get up, he also gets up to see what you are doing. He sleeps through the night next to our bed and has free roam of the house during the day. We had a problem with him marking when he first got here but between us watching him and him getting neutered, we have not had a problem. He tends to startle easily and can be a little skidish when we reach for him but that seems to be lessening. He gets along well with our dogs and doesn't bother our cat. In fact, he seems to be a little afraid of her and will walk away if she comes near him!

He is fine with other dogs but I think he would be happy being an only dog too. If you are interested in talking to us about this wonderful boy, please contact placement.

At a Glance #12-368

Mixed Breed Born: November 2002
Male 50 lbs

Status: Adopted

Profile

Sponsored by:

Sam 07-690
"In memory of my foster mom, Joyce Nelson. Thank you so much---Sam"

 

November 21, 2012

Welcome a new boy to RAGOM. This is Harold! He was found living along the interstate in Missouri, taken to a local shelter and is now in our care. His age is guessed to be about 8 but we cannot say for sure. He was very shy about going in and out of the door to go potty and also of stairs but he has slowly gotten used to them. He was neutered this past Tuesday and they discovered a mass on one of his testicles. The vet said the tumor was encased and they got it all. They do not believe it was cancerous and his prognosis is good!! He barely weighs 45 pounds so he needs to gain a good 10-15 pounds to cover the ribs and hip bones that are very noticeable. The vet said that he has some broken off teeth but they don't seem t bother him. He does know how to sit and doesn't seem to have an aggressive bone in his body.

Harold is a great dog. He loves to be near you and if you get up, he also gets up to see what you are doing. He sleeps through the night next to our bed and has free roam of the house during the day. We had a problem with him marking when he first got here but between us watching him and him getting neutered, we have not had a problem. He tends to startle easily and can be a little skidish when we reach for him but that seems to be lessening. He gets along well with our dogs and doesn't bother our cat. In fact, he seems to be a little afraid of her and will walk away if she comes near him!

He is fine with other dogs but I think he would be happy being an only dog too. If you are interested in talking to us about this wonderful boy, please contact placement.

Updates

Sunday, March 24, 2013

 

This is a final update to one of the most amazing dogs to walk this earth. While all fosters touch your heart, there are those that go right to your soul and sweet Harold was one such dog! Perhaps that is why it has taken me several days to do this post as my heart is broken in so many pieces.

He bravely fought everything that was thrown at him the past 4 months while in our care, but even the bravest dog has his limits. This past week he was unable to keep anything down and was rapidly losing the weight we struggled so hard to get on. We had scheduled to do a barium test on him this past Thursday to see if there was some kind of a blockage causing his food to come back up. But when we got up Thursday morning, it was obvious that he was very weak and his eyes told us he was tired and ready to make his trip to the bridge. We knew that whatever awful thing was taking this sweet boy away from us, was something that we could not cure so there was no need to put him through another test. He had been through so much the past couple weeks that we couldn't bear to put him through any more. So we held him, told him we loved him and what a good boy he was and kissed his beautiful face as he left on his journey to the bridge. We know he is healthy, happy and free of pain and reunited with the others who have gone before. I hope that in the 4 short months we had him he felt enough love to overcome any horrible past he may have had.

So, rest in peace my "sweety pea" and know that we will all be together again soon! What a blessed day that will be.

Monday, January 28, 2013

Hey all….. Sir Harold here! Wanted to bring you all up to date on my vet visit last week. I gained a little over 1 pound in the past two weeks but my red cell count was still at 35%. Mom and the Dr. were happy with the weight but not the blood so the Dr. looked at my thyroid. He thought it was a long shot since I don't really have the symptoms and a low thyroid almost always goes hand in hand with being overweight but guess what? My thyroid numbers are low! So, I am on a low does of Thyroid medicine and cutting back on the Prednisone. I don't have to get rechecked for 2 weeks but have to go in weekly to check my weight and make sure I maintain the 50 pounds I am at. Good thing I love to eat because I get lots of food and treats in a day! Once in awhile I get a finger by mistake……...
I also discovered last week that I like to play ball!! Mom puts my foster brother in his kennel cause he is a "ball hog" and won't leave me alone. The ball she throws has a squeaker in it and I LOVE make it squeak over and over and over again!! Mom says that I am pretty good at bringing it back even though I don't make it ALL the way! But that is ok cause she can use the exercise too!! And she always laughs at me when I run to the house after doing my business outside and she says she is so happy to see me start acting more and more like a healthy dog. I have to admit…….. I am happy about it too! I have to say thank you RAGOM for taking such good care of me!! This life sure beats living alone along the highway and I am finally starting to believe that there are good humans in the world!!
Gotta go cause it is time for dinner! I will drop a line this week and let you all know how my weigh in goes! Fingers crossed!!!

Monday, January 28, 2013

Merry Christmas to the Golden Seniors! From Anonymous Merry Christmas to the Golden Seniors! From Anonymous

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Sorry for such a long time between updates but we had some computer issues. During that time Harold also had some health issues and we are trying to get them figured out. Harold was becoming more and more lethargic and started to not eat. We took him to the vet and discovered that his red blood cell count is very low due to his body attacking them. He is being treated for Immune mediated hemolytic anemia. This consists of high doses of prednisone in order to lower his immune system and give his body a chance to make more red blood cells. While the prednisone made him FEEL much better the red cell count was not improving so they put him on antibiotics to cover any infection that might be going on. We will take him in again this week and have his blood tested again with hopes that the red cell count is improving.

I will do another post later this week when we know a little more. Please keep this sweet boy in your thoughts and if you are able to help out with his medical expenses by sponsoring him, that would be great!

Sunday, December 9, 2012

Sorry for the delay in updating Harold's page but we have been trying to work through some pain issues that he has. When he came into our care he was on Rimadyl, a med used to control pain. After the Dr, looked at the leg giving him a problem (an old knee injury and some arthritis) he tried putting Harold on an 81mg asparin and some joint medicine. Within hours of taking him off the Rimadyl Harold was having an extremly hard time getting around. We watched him for a couple days to see if it would improve but it did not. He very seldom got up and when he did he had a very hard time getting around. We put him back on the Rimadyl and by the end of the day he was moving with much less problem. So, this sweet boy will need to continue to take the Rimadyl and joint medicine to keep him comfortable and able to get around.
The good news about this boy is that he is a total love bug!!! His perfect home would be one with little or no steps. After a couple tumbles down the 4 steps going to our bedroom, he has decided the living room is a good place to sleep at night. He did well with my 4 year old grand son but would prefer a quiet place to lay his head as he scares easily. He gets along with our 2 year old resident golden but had to "talk to him" when he wasn't interested in playing. So an older less energetic sibling would be best.He is continuing to slowly put on weight. About a pound per week! Amazing what 2 good meals a day will do!!! Just look at the smile on his face!!