Jasper, a Golden Doodle, arrived a week ago from Iowa. A Good Samaritan rescued him and his two brothers from a puppy mill where they were soon to be euthanized because they "... were too old to sell ...". Jasper is six months old.
When we took him to the vet to get him up to date with examinations and shots he weighed in at 47 pounds. The vet said that he looks quite good but could use a few more pounds. We're working on that. He ate lightly for the first two days but he's now eating better.
As a puppy mill dog he didn't know home-related things like doors and stairs. He certainly didn't understand a leash. If you put a leash on him he would sit and wouldn't move. For the first couple of days his movements into and out of cars and buildings were more coercion than cooperation.
Just a week later and we are walking twice a day on the leash and doing amazingly well. He's a very smart dog. When we first came home we walked around the house and came in to the lower level which is a walk-out. Jasper stayed downstairs and was afraid of the stairs leading up. Foster "mom" went upstairs and left him downstairs with me. He tried to climb the stairs but just couldn't do it. He ran over to the walk-out door and squeaked. Not wanting to suffer the consequences of ignoring a dog who was squeaking at the door I leashed him up and we went outside. He led me around the house and up to the front door. He had never gone thru that door but he had figured out that he could get to "mom" that way. Like I say, he's a smart dog.
He's learned to walk on a leash, he's learning "sit", he's mastered the stairs and he's getting pretty good at responding to his name. He's also never had an "accident" in the house. For a puppy mill dog we are very impressed. He is also calm for a six-month-old puppy.
He's not thrilled about going into a dog crate but he doesn't violently oppose it either; he just prefers not to. But we crate him at night and when we leave the house for short periods. He'll cry a bit but he's getting better about it with each experience.
Jasper is scheduled to be neutered on Wednesday. That will be the last step to getting him ready to go to his "forever home". If you think that a Golden Doodle is in your future you should give Jasper a close look.
| Mixed Breed | Born: January 2011 |
| Male | Weight not specified |
Status: Adopted
Jasper, a Golden Doodle, arrived a week ago from Iowa. A Good Samaritan rescued him and his two brothers from a puppy mill where they were soon to be euthanized because they "... were too old to sell ...". Jasper is six months old.
When we took him to the vet to get him up to date with examinations and shots he weighed in at 47 pounds. The vet said that he looks quite good but could use a few more pounds. We're working on that. He ate lightly for the first two days but he's now eating better.
As a puppy mill dog he didn't know home-related things like doors and stairs. He certainly didn't understand a leash. If you put a leash on him he would sit and wouldn't move. For the first couple of days his movements into and out of cars and buildings were more coercion than cooperation.
Just a week later and we are walking twice a day on the leash and doing amazingly well. He's a very smart dog. When we first came home we walked around the house and came in to the lower level which is a walk-out. Jasper stayed downstairs and was afraid of the stairs leading up. Foster "mom" went upstairs and left him downstairs with me. He tried to climb the stairs but just couldn't do it. He ran over to the walk-out door and squeaked. Not wanting to suffer the consequences of ignoring a dog who was squeaking at the door I leashed him up and we went outside. He led me around the house and up to the front door. He had never gone thru that door but he had figured out that he could get to "mom" that way. Like I say, he's a smart dog.
He's learned to walk on a leash, he's learning "sit", he's mastered the stairs and he's getting pretty good at responding to his name. He's also never had an "accident" in the house. For a puppy mill dog we are very impressed. He is also calm for a six-month-old puppy.
He's not thrilled about going into a dog crate but he doesn't violently oppose it either; he just prefers not to. But we crate him at night and when we leave the house for short periods. He'll cry a bit but he's getting better about it with each experience.
Jasper is scheduled to be neutered on Wednesday. That will be the last step to getting him ready to go to his "forever home". If you think that a Golden Doodle is in your future you should give Jasper a close look.
Jasper has been adopted. He went home yesterday with his new family. The two twin girls were thrilled and Jasper was thrilled. I don't think that he even glanced back as he hopped into their car to go off to his new home. It was obvious from the first day we met him that he loved children so to be owned by twin girls (and, oh ya, their parents, too) was just everything that he could have hoped for!
Jasper spent a day at our daughter's farm on Saturday. He met our daughter's purebred Golden Retriever, Salty Dog, and two cats. He and the cats did a nose-to-nose sniffing but that was the extent of the interaction; he and the cats were mildly interested ... and then they moved on to other things.
Jasper was quite interested in the chickens. He didn't take chase but it looked like he might if he weren't on leash. He was really curious about the goats. After all they were about his size and shape. When he started toward the goat enclosure, however, his nose met the electric fence. The rest of the day he avoided all white fences, whether or not they had an electric fence attached. He learned his lesson in just one encounter. Salty Dog got zapped six times before she learned to avoid the electric fence. Does that mean that Jasper is six times smarter than a purebred Golden Retriever?
Jasper also became the center of attention for our granddaughter who is two and a half. She gave him cookies, gave him a bone and then took it out of his mouth. She led him around by the collar and by leash. He happily participated in all the fun with tail wagging. He just loves to get attention from kids and he is very good with them.
And, just so you know, his favorite toy is the Mallard Duck with a squeeky.
So, let's review:
Good with kids.
Good with cats.
Good around other animals.
Magnificent profile.
Six times smarter than a Golden Retriever.
It sounds like you'd better get the application process started to adopt Jasper now.
