Kody 09-317

back to Adopted Dogs

Profile

Kody came to us two weeks ago from SD where he was a breeding dog.  He is our first foster dog with RAGOM and I don’t believe we could have gotten a more perfect dog.   First, it is no wonder that he was used for breeding for so long – he is absolutely beautiful.  He is 7 years old and a healthy 75 pounds.  We brought him to vet and he is now UTD on all shots and was neutered on Friday.

 

In the two weeks he has stayed with us, we have learned so much about him.  First and foremost, Kody is incredibly sweet.  While he was very shy and timid at first, it took only two days for him to come out of his shell.  He now wants to be with us all the time (he follows us from room to room) and is content to simply lie at our feet.  Yet, once one of our resident dogs gets even a hint of attention, he comes over to make sure he also gets petted.  He loves being around our two dogs and they have helped him to learn how to be part of a family.   He has also become very attached to our dogs, especially our “baby” who just turned one – probably because she is the one who gives him the most attention.  All three dogs sleep in our room at night on their respective beds and when we wake up in the morning, he goes around and wakes the other two to come down.  He will not come down until they are also ready to get up.  He also curls up next to both for his naps.  He will definitely need to be in a family with another dog.   Not only does he love being with them, they actually are really helping him to learn what is like to live in a house. 

 

We just got back from taking him up for his first trip to our cabin.  This was an incredible experience.  He ran for hours straight and loved being in the water (although he wasn’t swimming yet, he would go to shallow area and simply sit and watch all the action).  He stayed close to us and the other dogs the entire time and never showed any desire to run off. 

 

Kody is a very special dog who will bring incredible love and devotion to any family that is lucky enough to adopt him. 

 

Kody

 Kody

 Kody

 

 

 

At a Glance #09-317

Golden Retriever Born: October 2002
Male Weight not specified

Status: Adopted

Profile

Kody came to us two weeks ago from SD where he was a breeding dog.  He is our first foster dog with RAGOM and I don’t believe we could have gotten a more perfect dog.   First, it is no wonder that he was used for breeding for so long – he is absolutely beautiful.  He is 7 years old and a healthy 75 pounds.  We brought him to vet and he is now UTD on all shots and was neutered on Friday.

 

In the two weeks he has stayed with us, we have learned so much about him.  First and foremost, Kody is incredibly sweet.  While he was very shy and timid at first, it took only two days for him to come out of his shell.  He now wants to be with us all the time (he follows us from room to room) and is content to simply lie at our feet.  Yet, once one of our resident dogs gets even a hint of attention, he comes over to make sure he also gets petted.  He loves being around our two dogs and they have helped him to learn how to be part of a family.   He has also become very attached to our dogs, especially our “baby” who just turned one – probably because she is the one who gives him the most attention.  All three dogs sleep in our room at night on their respective beds and when we wake up in the morning, he goes around and wakes the other two to come down.  He will not come down until they are also ready to get up.  He also curls up next to both for his naps.  He will definitely need to be in a family with another dog.   Not only does he love being with them, they actually are really helping him to learn what is like to live in a house. 

 

We just got back from taking him up for his first trip to our cabin.  This was an incredible experience.  He ran for hours straight and loved being in the water (although he wasn’t swimming yet, he would go to shallow area and simply sit and watch all the action).  He stayed close to us and the other dogs the entire time and never showed any desire to run off. 

 

Kody is a very special dog who will bring incredible love and devotion to any family that is lucky enough to adopt him. 

 

Kody

 Kody

 Kody

 

 

 

Updates

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Well, it's been over a year since you heard from me, the Buster, and a lot has changed. My pal and partner in crime, Tigger, went wherever pirate dogs go after they travel the rainbow bridge. He was somewhere between 15 and 17 years old, and had been with my forever mom and dad since he was 2 or 4 (no one knows how old he was and he always gave different answers, as a running joke). So now it's just me and Sunny (a 2004 Ragom rescue, who came to live here in 2005), soaking up the love here. Sunny is still the boss but I am the one who outruns her every time Wendy or Mike throw us a ball. She has to be content to retrieve herself, which she does with a smile. She never stops being cute or pretty, that one. She even wags her blond fluffy tail in her sleep. It's true...we have it on video. I prefer to run and bark in my sleep.

I've been doing a lot of learning this year, mostly in the area of not freaking out at every strange noise (even my dog tag jangling on my food bowl was scary there for a while). Some things have helped lots, such as going for walks (I am excellent on the leash) and being exposed to lots of different people and things. Mom says I am really amazing around kids, and they seem to love me. And what's not to love back? They give pets and hugs and sometimes drop tasty treats. Kids smell like cookies and dirt. Best combination for a human, ever! I've attached a photo of me hanging with Sunny and two of my cousins during a slumber party. Boys are not usually allowed, but they made an exception because I am so super sweet. I didn't move much from that mattress all night--those kids really know how to make a good puppy pile. I don't understand why we don't have a bed in the middle of the living room floor all the time.

I am kind of glad we don't have kids here 24/7, because I really like my naps. I let people know when they are keeping me from napping by giving out a big, breathy (sometimes groan-ish) sigh.

I also found that it's great to have favorite toys. Tigger used to shred soft toys into little tiny bits, so we didn't have them before. Now I have several. My favorites are those unstuffed ones. I had two squirrels but they lost their appeal after I un-squeakered them (it's a tricky operation, but I am quite skilled at squeakerectomies). Now I have a stuffed duck and a flat unstuffed fox that I like to take to bed with me, even though I know squeaky toys are not allowed in the bedroom. I sneak them in. Sometimes Sunny will step on them to bust me. She doesn't like the squeaky toys and I am careful not to make them squeak much when she is around. Otherwise, she takes them away from me. She will even take them up onto the couch and protect them under her head, and not give them back, no matter how politely I beg . I have photo evidence of this.

I say she is being mean and she says I am killing the toys. I try to explain that they are TOYS and therefore dead. But I don't argue too much. She's kind of bossy for a big fluffy pretty thing, and I would hate it if she stopped giving me my nightly face and ear bath. It's SOOO relaxing.

I have a new talent! My mom's pregnant friend came for a visit. Her baby was giving her a hard time, kicking around. So I snuggled up next to her, put my paw on the kid (well, on her belly because the kid was inside) and magically the little pesky guy calmed down. I am a baby whisperer! I was quite interested in the little guy--you can't see him in the photo but I sure could hear him! He's on the outside now, I hear, and I can't wait to meet him. Mom says he has to get a little bit bigger before we meet face-to-nose.

We're gearing up for the summer here. Mike and I took hours cleaning up the yard last weekend...all the snow hid a record number of land mines. We got it all cleaned up and I did a complete inventory of all the outside toys. I have not one, but TWO favorite balls. One was AWOL all winter...wonder where it went and why did it come back on its own? What was it doing while it was missing? Was anyone else drooling on it? These are the things I ponder as I mouth each of them, in turn. Once in a while I try to sneak one of my outside balls inside, but I usually get caught before I get past the mud room. I don't understand the reason for all the rules, but I am a very good boy so I obey them. Most of the time.

It's getting late here, so I need to hide my duck in the bedroom soon. Gotta get it in there early and hope they don't notice. That's the trick. May your summer be full of treats and swims and naps in the sun. Ours will be!

- Kody & Sunny

Friday, January 1, 2010

Hi, Cody here!

I just want to wish you a super great 2010. I can't believe how awesome my 2009 was and thought I'd give you the highlights.

Well, I spent most of the year with my super-amazing foster family and their pack of Goldens. Then I tried to go and live with some very nice people but it wasn't a good match for us. You see, I spent the first six years of my life in a puppy mill, so there are some things (like crates) that I just can't stand. I have some other odd quirks from that experience that I am sorry to say made me different--and probably harder to have at home--than your average golden.

So I thought that I would be chilling out with my foster family forever, and then along came the Schweigert's. The head of their family is a guy named Tigger. He's somewhere around 14 years old--even he doesn't know for sure because he had been abused and abandoned by the time he was around 3 and the Schweigerts found him. So Tigger (who lost his tail and left eye somewhere along the way--he says piracy but I don't think that's true) came to check me out. He brought his girlfriend, Sunny, along. Tigger and I are big orange fellows, but Sunny is this beautiful blond princess. She told me she was a Ragom dog and that she had been in a puppy mill, too. We understood each other pretty well right away, but she is very shy and was a little suspicious of me because Mike and Wendy were giving me a lot of attention. Mike and Wendy are Tigger and Sunny's forever parents. Tigger and Sunny told me about their lives as we played, and I decided that Tigger was definitely "best bud" material. We even snuck off while Mike and Wendy were talking to my foster mom and dad. We were trying to score some stolen treats but Wendy noticed Tigger was gone and came looking for us.

So I went to the Schweigerts, and it was a little scary...especially the car ride. I don't remember much of the first few days except that Wendy let me snuggle up to her as much as I wanted (she stays home during the days) and I spent every evening with Mike in his man cave, which was fun. Tigger kept throwing toys my way...they have a lot of toys at the Schweigerts. Wendy noticed that I didn't like to chew much. She took me on a car ride to the vet's and they said I was in awesome health except that I had managed to crack four teeth--probably from chewing on wire when I was at the puppy mill. I had also never heard of dental care before I came to Ragom. The vet said they see a lot of that in puppy mill dogs. So I got all checked out (even my heart, which sounded funny I guess but came out fine with a different test) and then it was time for me to get my teeth fixed. That didn't feel so good afterward but they sent me home with some nice drugs, which was OK. Mike and Wendy say that if anyone asks about my teeth, to say I lost them when I was a professional hockey player. I like that story and intend to use it. I suspect that's how Tigger came up with his piracy tales. The great news is that after all these trips back and forth to the vet, I learned that car rides are FUN. I jump in and out no problem now, and I really like to sit up when we stop and look at the cars and trucks and things around us. Also, the driver will always give me a chin scratch if I politely put my head on his or her shoulder. I am fond of chin scratches.

After my mouth healed up and Sunny was done making sure I knew she was boss of me (she's kind of spoiled, if you ask me), things really started to get fun. We went for walks in the park, usually taking a rest at Mike's fire station before heading back. I was scared of that place at first but there are nice guys there sometimes and they give me lots of pets, so now I am a part-time fire station dog. Most of our outside time is in the back yard. I learned to dig from Tigger and discovered a new skill: using my big front paws to roll back the grass. I really only do it because I'm so excited about playing with whatever toy I have between my paws. And sometimes the toy goes shooting out behind me and it's like I threw it for myself. Isn't that clever? But Mike says I have to stop that because he likes having some grass in the yard. We will be discussing this again in the spring, I think.

I now have super outooor skills and knowledge. I know how to retrieve myself if Sunny gets to the ball first (not often...I am FAST) and that jumping up into the hammock is not a good idea (there are holes that your feet can go through). I played in the water in the kiddie pools with Tigger and Sunny. Tigger will actually put his whole head underwater to get a sunken toy. I think that is crazy. I also invented a little bit of a mean trick on Tigger. He's kept on a run most of the time so he doesn't try to do too much (he has arthritis and will play until he can hardly walk) while Sunny and I have the whole of the fenced-in yard. Well, if Tigger sees me with a toy he will bark at me until I bring it to him. He will keep up the barking for a really long time, which is very annoying. So I've learned to put the toy JUST out of his reach (he can get it if he stretches and uses his paws) and then I watch him struggle a bit until he finally snags it. As soon as he has my old toy, I swap with one of the toys within his area. We can keep the game up for hours. Sunny does not approve.

It was around November that I earned my new name of "Buster." Mike says I am a really good dog, but then all of a sudden I switch into "Buster Mode" and tear up the yard or jump around the house or try to sneak attack Sunny so she will play with me. I do get a little crazy happy sometimes but I've never destroyed anything that wasn't a toy, so that's OK, right? I mean, is it that unusual for a dog to jump OVER the coffee table to land on the couch? It was the shortest distance between where I was and the only available spot. And when they made two huge piles of leaves in the yard, was it THAT funny that I jumped right into the middle of one and peed, and then immediately jumped into the middle of the other one to "leaf" my own pile? I liked those leaf hills. They needed to be marked properly. Sunny did not approve, of course, but Mike and Wendy laughed pretty hard.

When the snow came I had to conduct a huge search and rescue missionp for all the yard toys. It was important business. Wendy had a hard time getting me back in the house for a few days. I learned to run and scoop snow up in my mouth at the same time. Of course, there were a few accidents along the way but nobody saw we wipe out and land with my feet in the air (well, maybe I heard Mike and Wendy laughing in the house but they laugh a lot). Sunny taught me to make snow angels and that it is NOT nice to jump on her while she is making her angel. I also started letting Sunny wash my face and ears (like she does for Tigger) in the evenings after dinner. It's kind of relaxing and makes her happy. We also sleep together on her big dog bed. I have my own bed but I like curling up with her more. She's really fuzzy and makes a good pillow. I think she approves of me now, in a general way.

Tigger scared us all by getting sick right before Mike and Wendy had to go on a trip to see Mike's parents. He went to the vet's for several days and Sunny and I were very worried. He was gone and then Mike and Wendy had to go (they told us he would be fine but would stay at the vet's) and then a friend of Mike's came and took care of us. I liked the guy but I wanted my parents and Tigger back. Well, a few days later they went straight from the airport to the vet's and brought Tig home to us. We were so happy to see each other! He was a little weaker than normal, but after a few days of couch time and me passing toys back and forth with him, he was his usual pirate self. Mike says it's my job to learn as much from Tigger as possible, even though what I learn usually turns on my "Buster" switch. Apparently that's OK with them--they laugh at my antics (I'm considering a career in standup comedy) and when I get too crazy they say "whoa" and I try to chill out.

We had our own big party here a few days ago. Wendy put pretty things around our necks that she had knitted--each one was unique and special for us. We posed nicely for a picture that I've attached. That's Sunny on the left, and then me, and then Tigger. Wendy and Mike gave each other things wrapped in paper and then, in between their exchanges, they gave us new toys and some treats! I couldn't believe it. We dogs all took turns mouthing the new stuff. There were Kong toys and these really cool stuffed things that were supposed to be super durable but with three excited Goldens on them, we managed to do some minor damage the first day. Tigger and I particularly liked the stuffed pink pig so we double-teamed it, as you can see in the picture. We pulled its tail off together. Then Tigger moved on to another toy and I claimed the pig by putting a paw over it, but keeping my eyes out for more treats at the same time (Wendy got a pic of me doing this). In the end there was just too much excitement and we all fell asleep with a toy under our chins. I chose to use a new ball as a face-rest (see attached). Then we spent the rest of the day playing outside in the new snow or hanging out watching holiday movies.

Mike and Wendy think I'm weird because I watch TV. And not just for a few seconds or when there is an interesting sound--I mean I REALLY watch TV almost as good as a human does. I know there are not actual people or animals in the TV now (there were a few discussions about putting my paws up on the entertainment center and making some nose prints on the screen) but I still like to watch. It's pretty. Wendy says it will rot my brain but they watch mostly Discovery and Science so I think I'm good. I have a theory I would like to discuss with Stephen Hawkings as soon as I ponder that last equation a little more...watch for my name when they announce the Nobel Prize winners next year.

So, that was my 2009. Not bad at all, eh?

I am so grateful to Ragom for saving me and for Patty and Gregg for fostering me, and for the Schweigert's for giving me my forever home. I could never say thanks or wag my tail or smile enough to match how happy I am that I became a Ragom dog.

May all your 2010's be as full of awesome things as I'm sure mine will be.

Love,

The Cody Buster