Sponsored by: Linda H.
Where to begin with Jake? His interesting, complicated past has helped make him the dog he is today, so I think it's important to explain his background here. I'll try to be brief!
Jake originally belonged to an older single woman who suffered from a heart condition. About two years ago, the woman collapsed and died from a heart attack, and unfortunately, she fell on Jake. He was trapped in the bathroom with her body for two days before anyone found them. For the next year, Jake lived in various homes belonging to relatives and friends of the family.
Then he settled into his most recent home with a family who had children and a small dog. They loved Jake very much and provided him with excellent care. A week ago, Jake experienced another upheaval to his life when he suddenly needed emergency surgery. They had taken Jake for a walk on some wooded trails, and he had picked up some burrs. On the way home, Jake decided to pull the burrs out of his tail. He was riding in the back of the car, and his tail was on top of a canvas book bag. In his enthusiastic ripping and eating of his tail feathers, he also ingested 18" of webbed handle from the tote bag. Not feeling well, he later ate grass and pine needles, which combined with the hair, burrs and handle to form a mass that obstructed his digestive system.
Facing a huge veterinary bill they could not afford, the family tearfully surrendered Jake to RAGOM so he could get the surgery that would save his life. I'm so very grateful they made this choice—other people might have simply had the dog put to sleep. Because of this family's selflessness, Jake has another chance at life. He's a wonderful dog and truly deserves the best.
Now a little about Jake's mysterious past... When Jake was sent to live with his most recent family, he came with a blue vest that said, "Companion Dog in Training." There were still old training treats in the vest's pockets. We don't know what kind of training Jake was receiving, nor which organization or individual was training him. The vest has been lost, so we can't track down more info on it. Was Jake being trained to help his original owner in some way with her heart condition? Or was the owner training Jake to perform some kind of service for someone else?
What we do know is that Jake walks very nicely on a leash, and when accompanying a stroller, he naturally stays next to the left side and does not wander. Perhaps he had been trained to walk next to a wheelchair.
He knows "sit," "come," and "stay." When it's time to put a leash on his collar, he sits without being asked. He loves to play fetch and will retrieve all day long. Despite the mishap that put him in the hospital, Jake generally does not chew inappropriately, nor is he destructive. He is afraid of loud noises—storms, vacuum cleaners, lawnmowers, etc.—as well as brooms. He is also fearful of some men and may bark at them.
Jake rides nicely in the car, does not get up on furniture, and is quiet in the house unless he hears a stranger or unidentifiable noise, and then he'll give a warning bark or two. Although we know he has chased and killed at least one rabbit, Jake has been a total gentleman around my cat. Freckle introduced herself to Jake by approaching him while he was lying down, sniffing his nose, giving him a lick on the forehead, then walking away as Jake watched in amazement.
Jake is the kind of dog who's handsome and cute at the same time. He's sweet and a little shy, and he's clearly giving Chaz, my resident Golden, the deference and respect that Chaz demands of all male fosters. Jake fit into the household instantly, with no disruption to our peaceable kingdom. He's an absolute gem, and the family or single person who commits to taking him home forever will be very lucky indeed.
Right now, Jake's health is our number one concern. He has a lengthy incision on his belly which, so far, he is not licking. However, he has scratched at it a couple of times with his hind foot. 
(To protect the incision, I wanted to put a tight-fitting tee shirt on him, but all my shirts are too loose. So I dug deep into the bottom drawers and found an old Hang 10 tee shirt from 1970's high school days, which Jake is wearing in the photos. Cowabunga, dude!)
Jake also has an injury to his back from his original owner falling on him. So far, he does not seem to be in pain from it. However, the vet said that the area is starting to develop arthritis, so Jake will need to be monitored for signs of pain as he gets older.
Otherwise, Jake is a healthy 5-year-old neutered male who appears to be a purebred Golden. He last weighed in at 77 pounds—about five pounds overweight—although he may have lost some weight during this past ordeal. He turned up his nose at the Science Diet that the vet sent home with him, so I have been feeding him boiled chicken and rice. For the next 7-10 days, he'll need to eat small portions, 4-5 times a day.
Jake will stay here at Chez Chaz Resort and Convalescent Hospital until his incision is healed, and then he will be available for adoption.
Needless to say, Jake's veterinary bills are significant. If you would like to defray some of the cost, please consider sponsoring this special, special boy. You can become a full sponsor by contributing $325, which you can pay by mail or online with a credit card. Be sure to put "Jake 08-430" in the notes area: Sponsor a Dog. Thank you!
| Golden Retriever | Born: June 2003 |
| Male | 77 lbs |
Status: Adopted
Sponsored by: Linda H.
Where to begin with Jake? His interesting, complicated past has helped make him the dog he is today, so I think it's important to explain his background here. I'll try to be brief!
Jake originally belonged to an older single woman who suffered from a heart condition. About two years ago, the woman collapsed and died from a heart attack, and unfortunately, she fell on Jake. He was trapped in the bathroom with her body for two days before anyone found them. For the next year, Jake lived in various homes belonging to relatives and friends of the family.
Then he settled into his most recent home with a family who had children and a small dog. They loved Jake very much and provided him with excellent care. A week ago, Jake experienced another upheaval to his life when he suddenly needed emergency surgery. They had taken Jake for a walk on some wooded trails, and he had picked up some burrs. On the way home, Jake decided to pull the burrs out of his tail. He was riding in the back of the car, and his tail was on top of a canvas book bag. In his enthusiastic ripping and eating of his tail feathers, he also ingested 18" of webbed handle from the tote bag. Not feeling well, he later ate grass and pine needles, which combined with the hair, burrs and handle to form a mass that obstructed his digestive system.
Facing a huge veterinary bill they could not afford, the family tearfully surrendered Jake to RAGOM so he could get the surgery that would save his life. I'm so very grateful they made this choice—other people might have simply had the dog put to sleep. Because of this family's selflessness, Jake has another chance at life. He's a wonderful dog and truly deserves the best.
Now a little about Jake's mysterious past... When Jake was sent to live with his most recent family, he came with a blue vest that said, "Companion Dog in Training." There were still old training treats in the vest's pockets. We don't know what kind of training Jake was receiving, nor which organization or individual was training him. The vest has been lost, so we can't track down more info on it. Was Jake being trained to help his original owner in some way with her heart condition? Or was the owner training Jake to perform some kind of service for someone else?
What we do know is that Jake walks very nicely on a leash, and when accompanying a stroller, he naturally stays next to the left side and does not wander. Perhaps he had been trained to walk next to a wheelchair.
He knows "sit," "come," and "stay." When it's time to put a leash on his collar, he sits without being asked. He loves to play fetch and will retrieve all day long. Despite the mishap that put him in the hospital, Jake generally does not chew inappropriately, nor is he destructive. He is afraid of loud noises—storms, vacuum cleaners, lawnmowers, etc.—as well as brooms. He is also fearful of some men and may bark at them.
Jake rides nicely in the car, does not get up on furniture, and is quiet in the house unless he hears a stranger or unidentifiable noise, and then he'll give a warning bark or two. Although we know he has chased and killed at least one rabbit, Jake has been a total gentleman around my cat. Freckle introduced herself to Jake by approaching him while he was lying down, sniffing his nose, giving him a lick on the forehead, then walking away as Jake watched in amazement.
Jake is the kind of dog who's handsome and cute at the same time. He's sweet and a little shy, and he's clearly giving Chaz, my resident Golden, the deference and respect that Chaz demands of all male fosters. Jake fit into the household instantly, with no disruption to our peaceable kingdom. He's an absolute gem, and the family or single person who commits to taking him home forever will be very lucky indeed.
Right now, Jake's health is our number one concern. He has a lengthy incision on his belly which, so far, he is not licking. However, he has scratched at it a couple of times with his hind foot. (To protect the incision, I wanted to put a tight-fitting tee shirt on him, but all my shirts are too loose. So I dug deep into the bottom drawers and found an old Hang 10 tee shirt from 1970's high school days, which Jake is wearing in the photos. Cowabunga, dude!)
Jake also has an injury to his back from his original owner falling on him. So far, he does not seem to be in pain from it. However, the vet said that the area is starting to develop arthritis, so Jake will need to be monitored for signs of pain as he gets older.
Otherwise, Jake is a healthy 5-year-old neutered male who appears to be a purebred Golden. He last weighed in at 77 pounds—about five pounds overweight—although he may have lost some weight during this past ordeal. He turned up his nose at the Science Diet that the vet sent home with him, so I have been feeding him boiled chicken and rice. For the next 7-10 days, he'll need to eat small portions, 4-5 times a day.
Jake will stay here at Chez Chaz Resort and Convalescent Hospital until his incision is healed, and then he will be available for adoption.
Needless to say, Jake's veterinary bills are significant. If you would like to defray some of the cost, please consider sponsoring this special, special boy. You can become a full sponsor by contributing $325, which you can pay by mail or online with a credit card. Be sure to put "Jake 08-430" in the notes area: Sponsor a Dog. Thank you!
Jake's stitches have been removed (yay!). He is healthy and happy, and now and at last he can be more active. We celebrated by engaging in a long game of fetch. You can see how much fun we had here:
And here's the really great news. Jake was adopted today! His new family drove up from Iowa, fell in love on the spot, and took him home forever. I'm so happy for Jake and the D. family and wish them many years of the Golden Life together.
Jake would like to send a big shout-out (or is it a "bark-out"?) to Katherine P., who has made a generous donation to help with his medical costs. WOOF WOOF! Thank you, Katherine, and sponsor Linda H, too!
Our little man Jake is doing fabulously well. He should be healed enough to have his stitches removed at the end of the week. He didn't want to show his whole belly to my camera, but hopefully you can get an idea from this shot just how extensive the incision was.
Jake's getting a bit antsy these days from his regimen of restricted exercise. I've been playing gentle games of fetch--rolling the ball across the room for him to retrieve. Jake's enthusiasm for the game is endless. He will bring the ball back again and again and again until I have to hide it and plead, "No more! No more! All gone! All gone, Jake!"
I'm happy to report that there's a family driving all the way from Iowa to meet Jake this weekend. I'm confident that they'll love him and will be taking him home forever—but keep your paws and fingers crossed for Jake all the same! Stay tuned.