Izzy (Misty 08-485)

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It’s my pleasure to introduce you to Misty. Misty is a golden retriever mix who was rescued along with her puppies from a neglectful situation. (Thank you, Lynn!) Her puppies are Madison 08-486, Carson 08-487, Caden 08-488, Shylo 08-489 and Naomi 08-490.

Misty went to the vet yesterday and got a clean bill of health, other than her desperate need to gain weight. The vet estimated her age at 1-3, and settled on 2 as a reasonable guess.

There aren’t enough words to tell you how impressed we are with Misty. We just love her. Based on her tough start in life she has every right to be anxious, skittish, and mistrustful, but she’s the exact opposite! She’s sweet, affectionate, and adaptable. She’s working hard to get used to life as an indoor dog and she’s doing a great job. Nothing frightens her - with a quick introduction she’s willing to try anything that we ask of her. Such a brave girl! She’s also smart as a whip and she’s easily picked up the commands that we’ve taught her. Best of all, she’s a love bug. She just soaks up attention and she wants nothing more than to lean into you for a good long snuggle. She’s such a little sweetheart.

Like many single parents Misty sacrificed everything to make sure that her kids got a good start in life, and her poor body shows it. She’s literally skin and bones, despite having been well fed by her good Samaritan for the past few weeks. The fact that her puppies are all big and healthy despite their terrible start in life is testament to what a wonderful job she did and how much she gave up for them. What a good mom! Now it’s Misty’s turn to be taken care of and we’re working hard to get some weight on her. I can’t wait to see how beautiful she is once she’s healthy and filled out.

Based on what we know of Misty so far I think she could thrive in almost any sort of home. This is our wish list for her:

  • Other dogs are okay, but not necessary. Misty met our resident dog politely and happily coexists with him but doesn’t seem overly dependent on him. I think she’d be fine with or without a doggie friend. 
  • Cats are definitely okay. Misty sniffed one when he walked right under her nose but other than that she acts like they don’t exist. Even our skittish cat is willing to hang out in the same room with her.
  •  Kids are great. Misty met our school-aged neighbor kids and was wonderful with them and really seemed to love their attention. I think Misty would be fine with kids of any age, although you might need to keep an eye on little ones when they have food, as Misty is very food-focused right now.
  • A fenced yard is a plus. If all the other factors are good we’re willing to negotiate on this, but because Misty spent the first part of her life chained up I’d love to see her have the freedom to roam.
  • A family willing to finish up with housetraining. Misty is doing a wonderful job and really gets it, but she’ll need a consistent schedule to help her finish her transition from being an outdoor dog. 
  • Consistent, gentle obedience training. Misty has amazing manners for a girl of her background but she deserves the chance to polish her skills and be the best dog she can be. She’ll be so much fun to train – she’s so smart and so eager to please. Plus she’ll do anything if she knows there’s a treat involved!
  • A big fluffy bed and lots of bones and toys. After living in the cold dirt Misty deserves all the comforts a dog can have.
  • LOVE! Misty went without that for too long so she’s going to need extra to catch up.

    Are you ready to show a young mom how good life can be now that her tough responsibilities are finished? She’s done her job, her kids are raised and gone, and she’s ready to reclaim her youth and live the carefree Golden life. If you want the joy and reward of giving her that life then contact placementatragom [dot] org!

 

At a Glance #08-485

Mixed Breed Born: June 2007
Female Weight not specified

Status: Adopted

Profile

It’s my pleasure to introduce you to Misty. Misty is a golden retriever mix who was rescued along with her puppies from a neglectful situation. (Thank you, Lynn!) Her puppies are Madison 08-486, Carson 08-487, Caden 08-488, Shylo 08-489 and Naomi 08-490.

Misty went to the vet yesterday and got a clean bill of health, other than her desperate need to gain weight. The vet estimated her age at 1-3, and settled on 2 as a reasonable guess.

There aren’t enough words to tell you how impressed we are with Misty. We just love her. Based on her tough start in life she has every right to be anxious, skittish, and mistrustful, but she’s the exact opposite! She’s sweet, affectionate, and adaptable. She’s working hard to get used to life as an indoor dog and she’s doing a great job. Nothing frightens her - with a quick introduction she’s willing to try anything that we ask of her. Such a brave girl! She’s also smart as a whip and she’s easily picked up the commands that we’ve taught her. Best of all, she’s a love bug. She just soaks up attention and she wants nothing more than to lean into you for a good long snuggle. She’s such a little sweetheart.

Like many single parents Misty sacrificed everything to make sure that her kids got a good start in life, and her poor body shows it. She’s literally skin and bones, despite having been well fed by her good Samaritan for the past few weeks. The fact that her puppies are all big and healthy despite their terrible start in life is testament to what a wonderful job she did and how much she gave up for them. What a good mom! Now it’s Misty’s turn to be taken care of and we’re working hard to get some weight on her. I can’t wait to see how beautiful she is once she’s healthy and filled out.

Based on what we know of Misty so far I think she could thrive in almost any sort of home. This is our wish list for her:

  • Other dogs are okay, but not necessary. Misty met our resident dog politely and happily coexists with him but doesn’t seem overly dependent on him. I think she’d be fine with or without a doggie friend. 
  • Cats are definitely okay. Misty sniffed one when he walked right under her nose but other than that she acts like they don’t exist. Even our skittish cat is willing to hang out in the same room with her.
  •  Kids are great. Misty met our school-aged neighbor kids and was wonderful with them and really seemed to love their attention. I think Misty would be fine with kids of any age, although you might need to keep an eye on little ones when they have food, as Misty is very food-focused right now.
  • A fenced yard is a plus. If all the other factors are good we’re willing to negotiate on this, but because Misty spent the first part of her life chained up I’d love to see her have the freedom to roam.
  • A family willing to finish up with housetraining. Misty is doing a wonderful job and really gets it, but she’ll need a consistent schedule to help her finish her transition from being an outdoor dog. 
  • Consistent, gentle obedience training. Misty has amazing manners for a girl of her background but she deserves the chance to polish her skills and be the best dog she can be. She’ll be so much fun to train – she’s so smart and so eager to please. Plus she’ll do anything if she knows there’s a treat involved!
  • A big fluffy bed and lots of bones and toys. After living in the cold dirt Misty deserves all the comforts a dog can have.
  • LOVE! Misty went without that for too long so she’s going to need extra to catch up.

    Are you ready to show a young mom how good life can be now that her tough responsibilities are finished? She’s done her job, her kids are raised and gone, and she’s ready to reclaim her youth and live the carefree Golden life. If you want the joy and reward of giving her that life then contact placementatragom [dot] org!

 

Updates

Thursday, January 8, 2009

From Izzy's former foster mom:

Izzy (formerly Misty 08-485) and her family sent me some lovely new photos of her in her forever home. It sounds like Izzy and they are just thrilled with each other. Izzy has been having a blast playing with her new fur brother and going to the dog park to run and make new friends. She even proved her love and loyalty by coming immediately when she accidentally got loose recently. Good girl!

They summed it all up by telling me that Izzy is the best thing that's happened to their family. A true happy ending for all!

One more (very important) thing... Izzy's forever family saw the nice comment on her daughter Ruby's (formerly Naomi 08-490) page and they'd like to thank Ruby and her family for their kind thoughts. They'd love to have a mother and daughter reunion someday!

   

Friday, November 21, 2008

Misty/Izzy's family sent this photo of her snuggling with her new best friend Billy. I love how their paws are crossed - it looks like they're holding hands. What a happy, happy life she has now!

Friday, November 14, 2008

 

Misty continues to be a delight. Now that she's healed from her spay surgery she can have free roam with our resident while we're at work and she's done just great. No accidents or problems of any kind. Although she does have a funny habit of rearranging the throw rugs. She doesn't damage them, just moves them to new spots. I don't know if it's a game or a critique of my decorating skills.

Misty and our resident dog continue to play and play and play. They have the best time together. I still think she'd be okay as an only dog but she'll need regular play dates or trips to the dog park so she can get in her quota of doggie wrestling. Her FB lets her pin him sometimes and she always looks so proud! I also think that if Misty was an only dog she'd do best if someone was home with her for at least part of the day to give her some love and play time. She's still a young dog with a young dog's energy so it might be a challenge to get her enough exercise if she was alone regularly for long periods. But with another dog to entertain her she's fine for an 8-9 hour work day. Thanks to all the play with her FB she's usually tired by the time we get home.

As you'll see from the latest photo we can no longer say that Misty doesn't get on the furniture. FD couldn't stand it anymore and invited her up to snuggle with him, which Misty LOVED. I've never met a dog who loves to cuddle so much. Her favorite thing is to lounge against you on her back while you pet her tummy. I tried to point out that it isn't very ladylike but she didn't seem to care. :) She still doesn't get on the furniture without an invitation, though, at least in front of us. We have at least one clue about what happens when we aren't there, however. Those of you who have been through the home visit process will remember the infamous question about the dog on the dining room table. Well, yesterday as I pulled out of the driveway on my way to work I saw Misty standing in the den window, watching me go. The problem was that I could see all of Misty, including her legs, which meant that she was standing on the end table! I'm sure she just wanted a better view, and thankfully she didn't hurt the table or even disturb anything on it. If I hadn't seen her through the window there would be no way to know that she ever got up there. If she would do it in front of us so we could tell her "no" I know she'd never do it again, because she's wonderful that way. All you have to do is explain a rule and she's happy to follow it. I just didn't realize that we had to establish a "tables are not to be used as ladders" rule! But if that's her only mistake in learning how to live in a house, she's still an amazing dog. Meanwhile we're just grateful that she's light and agile, and since she didn't leave any sign she was on the table we won't worry about it. I just wish she'd used her tail to dust while she was up there!

 

 

 

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

 

Hello again, RAGOM friends! Misty here. I want to tell you all about my fun adventures. First, I went back to the vet and they said I'm healing well and doing great. I really like it there - they snuggle me and tell me how pretty I am. Then we went on what FM calls "errands." I don't know why she kept getting in and out of the car so much, but it was fun to go to all the different parking lots and look at all the people walking by. If she was gone too long and I got bored then I just took a nap. She told me I was a very good girl. I'm not sure why because all I did was enjoy myself and snooze a little, but I'm glad she was happy. The car is fun so I hope my forever family does errands too.

Then on Saturday we went on a really big errand to a store called Petco that had a gazillion dogs. I had no idea there were so many big gold-colored dogs in the world. It was amazing! Although FM told me I didn't use my best manners when we first got there. Sorry, FM. I was just really excited and maybe a little scared because I've never seen so many other dogs so I had to bark to tell them I was there. But once I met them and realized how nice they all were then I had so much fun. I loved meeting them all and FM said I did a good job of sniffing politely. See, I can remember my manners! I really liked meeting all the people, too. FM told me they were all there to see me and the other dogs and I couldn't believe it. We have our very own fan club! After I was done with all the petting I really wanted to get off my dumb leash and play with the other dogs but FM said that isn't allowed in stores. She told me someday when I'm adopted maybe I can go to something called a dog park and there will be just as many dogs and no leashes. I can't wait! I really hope my forever family will take me there after we do errands.

While we were at Petco I got to see my son Madison 08-486. I was so excited! I checked him all over and discovered that RAGOM is taking great care of him. I'm so grateful. There's nothing that makes a mom happier than knowing that her babies are in good hands. FM told me that three of my babies have already found their forever homes. Hooray! It makes me feel so good to know they're loved. Now we just need to find forever homes for Madison 08-486 and Carson 08-487 and then my work as a mom will be done. Will you please consider them? They're really good boys, I promise. I raised them myself so I know. A nice lady at Petco even took some pictures of us together so you can see how cute Madison is. How can you resist him?? Carson is just as cute too - check out his page! FM says since I'm such an awesome dog everyone can be sure that they'll be awesome dogs too, so please take a look at them. Thanks in advance from their loving mom.


We're adorable!

 

 

Thursday, October 30, 2008

 

Misty, or Misty May-Treanor as we call her in honor of our recent gold medalist, is doing great. She was great when she arrived but she just keeps getting better and better.

 

Misty was spayed on Tuesday and came through with flying colors. You would never know that she had major surgery. She seems to feel great and she's eager to run and wrestle like usual so maintaining her activity restrictions has been hard. The staff at the vet all raved about how sweet and cute and cooperative she was. She apparently remembered that Dr. V was the one who gave her the nasty bordatella vaccine a few weeks ago so she was a little hesitant with her (smart girl!) but the only sign of her anxiety was that she preferred to sit in my lap during the exam. She's such a good dog.

 

The vet also confirmed that Misty is even smaller than we thought. She feels that her ideal weight will only be 37-39 pounds. She's a pint-sized Golden! She has only a few more pounds to gain so she's down to three cups of food per day, and I think at a maintenance level she'll need only 1-2 cups. So no giant food bills in Misty's future. 

 

In other happy news Misty hasn't had an accident in over a week so I think we can call her 95% housetrained. She's always had free roam of the house while we're home and now she's graduated to having free roam at night too. She sleeps through the night by the side of our bed without a peep, although we do hear some quiet shuffling in the wee hours when she and FB trade dog beds. Apparently whichever bed you're not on is the comfy one... She still doesn't have free roam during the day but that's only because we need to keep her away from FB when we're not there to supervise to make sure they don't play too hard and accidentally rip out her stitches.

Speaking of stitches, Misty heard that her fellow foster Champ 08-439 is getting a lot of sympathy for his dreaded cone so she wanted to make sure that I included a photo of her Very Sad Face so she can have sympathy too. As you can see her Very Sad Face is quite effective and I almost gave in and took it off, but thankfully FD helped me remain strong and by this morning she had accepted the "lampshade look" and is going about her business almost like it's not there. She still hasn't figured out how to go through doors without bumping into the frame, but she's getting better.

I should mention that Misty is a busy girl. Not hyper, but just interested in the world and what's going on. She's definitely not a couch potato - she's always roaming around sniffing and investigating, looking to see if there's anything new and exciting that she needs to know about. It's not a problem, it's just that she's not a dog who prefers to sit back and watch the world go by. She wants to know what the world is up to! The great part about it is that because she's so interested in everything she has excellent focus. If you can provide her with something interesting (like a new command to learn) she's totally intent on her task and doesn't get distracted like some other Goldens I know (FB!). She's also not a Velcro dog. She's always happy to be with you and will hang around for pets and attention as long as you're willing to give them, but if she's tired or her people are busy with boring stuff she'll find a quiet spot in another room and take a nap or attack a chew toy. It's a new experience for me, but I like the fact that she's independent and confident enough to entertain herself. I should also mention that Misty doesn't get up on the furniture. I'm sure she'd enjoy being on it, especially to cuddle, but she hasn't asked and we haven't encouraged her in case her forever family prefers that she doesn't. So you have your choice of whether or not she sleeps on your sofa. Lastly, now that she's settled in Misty has started barking a bit. It's all normal stuff - when people walk by the yard or if she hears a concerning noise outside or something like that. It's only once in a while, but she's not a totally silent dog anymore. She also has the cutest little bark when she wants something. She literally says "woof" just like a human would say it. I've never met a dog who actually says "woof" and it cracks me up every time. She sounds like a person imitating a dog!

Misty 08-485 will be at the Coon Rapids PetCo event on 11/1 from 12:30 PM until she gets tired. She was just spayed on Tuesday and still has activity restrictions so I don't want to put her through too much.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Monday, October 20, 2008

 

Misty has discovered toys! She figured out bones and chew toys right away but she just didn't understand the point of all those round things and soft floppy things. Yesterday when we were out playing in the yard the light finally dawned, and it was so cute to watch her learn to chase after balls and Frisbees. The expression on her face was pure joy - she was so happy to discover that all these things are made for having FUN! To her foster brother's delight she even learned to play tug with him, although we have to hand her the other end of the rope because she isn't sure it would be polite to grab it on her own. She still isn't quite sure what to do with stuffed toys but I'm sure her FB will show her how to de-stuff them soon enough. Misty is so smart and is soaking up everything we care to teach her. Her recall is fantastic and she comes running 100% of the time to either her name or a whistle. In one week she's learned to sit for a treat, when she wants to go in or out a door, and when it's time to eat. Next we'll work on "down" and "stay." It's so much fun to train her - she makes us feel like stars because she learns everything so quickly and easily. I think she would do really well in competitive obedience or agility if her forever family wants to do that with her.

Misty got a home spa treatment so she's soft and clean and fluffy. I could tell she wasn't crazy about the bath but she cooperated completely and was very easy to bathe. She LOVES to be brushed and will settle into your lap and fall asleep, so you can cuddle and groom at the same time. Bonus! Right now her coat is pretty scruffy but with good nutrition it should grow in thick and luxurious (her feathering is filling in already) so she's going to require regular brushing. Good thing she likes it so much. She was also an angel about having her toenails trimmed - I've never had such an easy time with a dog before.

We've been having fun making guesses about Misty's heritage. So far the consensus seems to be that she has a bit of terrier and perhaps a little shepherd or collie. Her undercoat is red and her top coat is light blonde with a few strands of dark brown, and of course she has the brown around her face and ears. The overall effect is of a petite golden retriever who went to a salon for very expensive highlights. Ooh, la la! Misty is also a really great size. Our resident male is on the small side and she's a little smaller than him, which is perfect. Big enough to be fun but not too big to pull into your lap for a good cuddle. Also when she sprawls across the kitchen floor there's still room to walk around her!

As you'll see from the new photos Misty is a champion cuddler. She likes nothing better than to snuggle in and she's impossible to resist - she even got our neighbor to come over and lend her his lap for an hour. She's not pushy about it, though, and if you're busy with other things she's content to play with her foster brother or find a chewy until you have time for her again.

Misty is a really great dog and she's ready and waiting for her forever home. I tell her that her special family is out there looking for her and that they'll find her soon, and that when they do she'll never be hungry or lonely or scared again. She's so excited to start her new life and shower her new family with love and snuggles and show them what a good girl she is. Are you Misty's special new family? If so contact placementatragom [dot] org