Ginger 09-143

back to Adopted Dogs

Profile

Ginger 09-143 came into our lives in April 2009, arriving from a South Dakota home she shared with 4 other dogs and 5 children. We had three different birth years given to us from the vet's she had seen, but we figure her to be either 5 or 6 years old. Ginger is a beautiful golden red purebred GR who is an absolute sweetheart! When she arrived she was suffering from seizures and it was unknown if she had been receiving any medications for this. After consultation with our local vet it was determined she would be best off without medications as Ginger had adverse reactions to the meds that she had received temporarily upon her arrival to us. Ginger's seizures continued about one every week or two for the next few months with her worst being 4 in one July day - poor thing! We then made the decision to adopt Ginger as we previously had McGuire, a GR that lived for 18 years with monthly seizures.

Ginger spent the summer getting to know the water and woods where we live, which is a great place for any dogs to live. We found out that Ginger loves to explore but always stays within eyesight or earshot, and she took her duties as a protector from squirrels, deer, and other such threatening species pretty seriously. Ginger is completely trained to retrieve and even understands hand signals, and she knows all of the basic commands also. She walks well on and off leash but likes to dash ahead a bit then stop and wait for us to catch up. She loves to ride on the boats and check things out from dock level. Surprisingly she did not know how to swim so we had to teach her and she prefers only to wade about mid-leg deep, which we're fine with as we don't have to deal with a wet dog all the time!

Ginger loves everyone of all ages and loves to hang around the shop and does not mind loud mechanical noises but does not like gunshot noises, nor fireworks. She does okay with thunderstorms and such as she'll find a bed somewhere to lay on. Yes, Ginger does sleep on either a couch, bed, or chair but she'll wait for your approval to do so. She does not like rotating ceiling fans but is fine with them when they are off - go figure! She rarely counter-surf's and doesn't care about the dishwasher or trash. Ginger gets along well with other dogs once she gets to know them and doesn't mind cats except for a black cat my sister has and she just barks at that one. Ginger rarely barks at all unless she spots something she's not sure of outside or unless she's playing hard with another dog. Ginger is fast - like greyhound fast. Ginger has a hunter's nose and knows how to flush grouse and is always the first one to spot a deer or wolf or other critter. Ginger loves to cuddle and be petted and has the infamous GR nose nudge she uses to get out attention. As I write this she's laying on my feet and letting me know she wants to go outside.

Ginger is both house and crate trained and doesn't mind being in her crate at all. She has the complete run of the house and occasionally has an accident when left alone for more than 8 hours. We recently left Ginger at a relative’s for a week and for some reason she had a couple of accidents in the house after she had been outside for a while so she was placed back in her crate when she came back in and she was fine then. Ginger has been a country dog all of her life and we think she doesn't completely understand moving cars so she'll need some training in this area. She loves car rides and if there's an open car door somewhere she'll jump in it waiting to go somewhere. When in a fenced area Ginger will run around looking for an exit and when none is found she does OK but she can jump a short chain link fence. Ginger would like benefit from a fenced yard. Ginger has not run away at all but does get distracted by other animals occasionally which we're pretty sure comes from wanting to interact with them. Ginger has two friends here she plays great with and her favorite is our son's bulldog.

Ginger's seizures have continued to decrease significantly and she has not had one since December so hopefully this continues. The seizures last for about 5-10 minutes and then she shakes them off and away she goes! Ginger will need a family who will be patient if a seizure does occur and she appreciates a small treat afterward. After much discussion and painful thinking we believe Ginger has become a remarkable GR and is ready to be placed with her new furever family. It has been a difficult decision for us but our roles as Fosters is to help mend them while they find their new furever home - Ginger just took a bit longer then our other GR's! Ginger is truly a sweetheart who'll brighten lives everyday and melt hearts everywhere.

At a Glance #09-143

Golden Retriever Born: October 2003
Female 52 lbs

Status: Adopted

Profile

Ginger 09-143 came into our lives in April 2009, arriving from a South Dakota home she shared with 4 other dogs and 5 children. We had three different birth years given to us from the vet's she had seen, but we figure her to be either 5 or 6 years old. Ginger is a beautiful golden red purebred GR who is an absolute sweetheart! When she arrived she was suffering from seizures and it was unknown if she had been receiving any medications for this. After consultation with our local vet it was determined she would be best off without medications as Ginger had adverse reactions to the meds that she had received temporarily upon her arrival to us. Ginger's seizures continued about one every week or two for the next few months with her worst being 4 in one July day - poor thing! We then made the decision to adopt Ginger as we previously had McGuire, a GR that lived for 18 years with monthly seizures.

Ginger spent the summer getting to know the water and woods where we live, which is a great place for any dogs to live. We found out that Ginger loves to explore but always stays within eyesight or earshot, and she took her duties as a protector from squirrels, deer, and other such threatening species pretty seriously. Ginger is completely trained to retrieve and even understands hand signals, and she knows all of the basic commands also. She walks well on and off leash but likes to dash ahead a bit then stop and wait for us to catch up. She loves to ride on the boats and check things out from dock level. Surprisingly she did not know how to swim so we had to teach her and she prefers only to wade about mid-leg deep, which we're fine with as we don't have to deal with a wet dog all the time!

Ginger loves everyone of all ages and loves to hang around the shop and does not mind loud mechanical noises but does not like gunshot noises, nor fireworks. She does okay with thunderstorms and such as she'll find a bed somewhere to lay on. Yes, Ginger does sleep on either a couch, bed, or chair but she'll wait for your approval to do so. She does not like rotating ceiling fans but is fine with them when they are off - go figure! She rarely counter-surf's and doesn't care about the dishwasher or trash. Ginger gets along well with other dogs once she gets to know them and doesn't mind cats except for a black cat my sister has and she just barks at that one. Ginger rarely barks at all unless she spots something she's not sure of outside or unless she's playing hard with another dog. Ginger is fast - like greyhound fast. Ginger has a hunter's nose and knows how to flush grouse and is always the first one to spot a deer or wolf or other critter. Ginger loves to cuddle and be petted and has the infamous GR nose nudge she uses to get out attention. As I write this she's laying on my feet and letting me know she wants to go outside.

Ginger is both house and crate trained and doesn't mind being in her crate at all. She has the complete run of the house and occasionally has an accident when left alone for more than 8 hours. We recently left Ginger at a relative’s for a week and for some reason she had a couple of accidents in the house after she had been outside for a while so she was placed back in her crate when she came back in and she was fine then. Ginger has been a country dog all of her life and we think she doesn't completely understand moving cars so she'll need some training in this area. She loves car rides and if there's an open car door somewhere she'll jump in it waiting to go somewhere. When in a fenced area Ginger will run around looking for an exit and when none is found she does OK but she can jump a short chain link fence. Ginger would like benefit from a fenced yard. Ginger has not run away at all but does get distracted by other animals occasionally which we're pretty sure comes from wanting to interact with them. Ginger has two friends here she plays great with and her favorite is our son's bulldog.

Ginger's seizures have continued to decrease significantly and she has not had one since December so hopefully this continues. The seizures last for about 5-10 minutes and then she shakes them off and away she goes! Ginger will need a family who will be patient if a seizure does occur and she appreciates a small treat afterward. After much discussion and painful thinking we believe Ginger has become a remarkable GR and is ready to be placed with her new furever family. It has been a difficult decision for us but our roles as Fosters is to help mend them while they find their new furever home - Ginger just took a bit longer then our other GR's! Ginger is truly a sweetheart who'll brighten lives everyday and melt hearts everywhere.

Updates

Friday, February 26, 2010

Ginger has been adopted by the "L" family who live in the Twin Cities area. Ginger immediately became friends with everyone she met including visiting Lab "Bauer", and two resident cats. Ginger is indeed an extraordinary Golden, as her journey to adoption began March 24, 2009, coming to RAGOM from South Dakota. Ginger was given a loving and patient environment to overcome her frequent seizures and other challenges she had. In the last 5-6 months Ginger became a completely different GR - comfortable, calm, loving, and the best companion anyone could have. Ginger's new journey begins by taking Therapy Dog classes, from which we're sure she'll graduate from the top of her class, and will then begin her therapy duties working with young adults and children who face difficult times. As Fosters, we cannot be more proud of her "don't give up on me" attitude, and we're grateful for the opportunity to have been part of her life for the past 11 months. Great things indeed happen to those who wait.

 

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Ginger is a 6 year old PB Golden Retriever beauty who weighs about 63 lbs. Ginger visited our friends Dr. Katy and Dr. Deb at the Garrison Animal Hospital on Friday 2/19/10 and received the usual warm welcome from the resident cats, dogs, tortoises, and other critters. Ginger is up-to-date on all her shots and Dr. Katy was very impressed with Ginger and how well behaved and calm she is. Ginger received and returned lots of affection! We discussed Ginger's seizure history and as the last one was more than two months ago perhaps she is growing out of that phase - Ginger's seizure history has improved tremendously over the past six months. Ginger is ready to meet her new furever family.