Lesa

Not even a week has passed and we have such good news to share about Libby. She was a wonderful passenger on her long journey to Montana. Placing her in the back seat with Chase, and Sage riding in the soft crate worked out perfectly. We were able to leash the back seat gals from the front so I could hand them off to Dave as he opened the door. And right from the get go all three got along well together as we stopped for potty breaks and then to spend the night at a hotel. She readily took care of her outside business and ate her food. 

Each day Libby is coming out of herself a little bit more. We just have to look at her tail as a barometer; and it's so nice to see it wagging and flying higher each day! Late this morning when the girls went out into the "dog park" Libby and Sage actively engaged in some serious play. Both were doing their puppy bows and they had a ball chasing each other around. Even our sedate Chase joined in the fun. I'd expect Libby will be dropping a few more pounds over the next couple of months if she continues this activity level.

As you warned us, she is startled by unfamiliar noises in the house but we're sure she'll relax with time when she sees the other two girls aren't bothered by the noise and she becomes accustomed to them. We also are still trying to sort out the optimum feeding arrangement. The older two wolf down their food and Libby appears to like a leisurely meal. So we've separated them at their meal times and it appears Libby would much prefer to eat with the pack. That too will sort itself out over time.

We did have to do some grocery shopping and other errands yesterday so we crated Libby for the four hours we were gone. It was evident that she enjoys the crate; so much so that once we returned home and brought them inside from their potty break she returned to the crate and spent a good amount of time in it. Ultimately we brought her out and closed the crate door so that she would find an open area spot to lounge in. Her favorite greatroom spot is on the dog bed by the fireplace. She also has a kitchen/dining room spot by the doors going to the four season room. And she has three spots in the mudroom area that she and Sage like to switch off in. I have a desk with my computer in this area so all three of the girls like to be there with me when I'm online.

Today was her vet check and everything went well. She did receive a leptospirosis vaccination and the initial series of her rattlesnake vaccination. She'll receive her second dose when our other two get their annual rattlesnake shots the 1st of May. Libby was extremely comfortable and inquisitive when she met Dr. Jason. So it was another positive experience for her.

Libby is responding to her new name and comes to both of us for ear itches, pats and kisses. She's such a gentle soul and we look forward to her continuing to blossom as she settles in. She reminds us of two other Goldens that touched our lives (a neighbor's rescue "Sammie" and our son's "Stone"), so it's kind of like having a little of them back with us through her. 

We want to thank you Cheerie, for all you've done for Libby in the months that you had her. Your gentle care is certainly making this an easy transition. Jen, thank you for considering and allowing us to become a part of Libby's life. We look forward to a lot of shared happy times together. We also are grateful for Nancy Hasbrook of Montana's Precious Gold Golden Retriever Rescue for facilitating this out of territory placement. Nancy has been extremely helpful with suggestions and tips from her years of involvement in rescue.

Enjoy the pics as we enjoy our girl!

Dave & Jean C

 Lesa now called Libby is now living the golden life in Montana with the C family.  She has two fantastic parents and two golden siblings to call her own.  Lesa will be missed as I so love those dark red goldens, but, I could not have dreamed of a better family to adopt her.  They will be sending me updates and they called the evening they returned home saying Libby had traveled very well and was sitting right beside their chair and perked up when she heard my voice.  I know all my RAGOMfriends, Judith her sponsor and her token givers are happy she will be so loved.  Kudos to our RAGOM vet for being open to drug therapy as she moved much quicker in transitioning to my home with the assist of medications to decrease her anxiety and fear.  

Congratulations to the C family!

 With Love, from your sponsor Judith

      Well there are lots of great things to say about Lesa.  First, she is free roaming all the time when I am home (though sometimes she feels more comfortable in the kennel) and up to 4 hours while I am gone with no potty issues and nothing out of place when I get home.  In fact it has she has been accident free for several weeks. Her kennel door is always open so she can go back to her safe place when she wants.  Second, she has discovered doggie beds and seems to like them very much.  Third discovery was a knotted chew throw to gnaw on in the comfort of a doggie bed.  For the most part she uses the doggie bed in the family room and exhibits a very relaxed behavior while there. 

      We are now working on sleeping in the bedroom with the pack and a gated doorway.  She has a choice of adoggie bed or an open kennel door as her sleep preference.  It takes her a few minutes to settle down ad she will pace and pant or come up to the bed for some strokes but she will get more comfortable once she realizes this is the routine at my house. 

     Lesa still prefers being in the house than outdoors but she is getting much better following the other dogs out into the yard instead of taking potty breaks on the patio.  Once she is done though she makes a bee line to the door to come inside. 

     The funniest moment was when I was doing some computer work and they were very noisy downstairs.  What I discovered was Lesa and my 20 lb. Finn on the bed horsing around.  When I entered the room she was looking right at me with the goofiest big open mouth grin as if to say  "Look at me ma" this is fun. 

     So Lesa has a family interested in meeting her and I am so excited.  We had a very long phone conversation and will be getting their home visit completed so they can come and see her.  

     Judith C. Lesa is sending you one of her goofy grins for her Valentine token.  You are a very special person in her new world of being loved and appreciated.

Lesa is progressing very nicely. She now heads outside pretty much the first one nose to the patio door. Potty habits outside are much improved but again if not supervised and has to go she will have an accident. She has achieved free roam for 1-3 hours only after observation she has potties outside and I am still in the house. She is kenneled when I leave the house.

Lesa is more comfortable coming outside the kennel and will approach for affection if you are in a sitting position. If you are standing and approach she will move away from you. She still has the "skitter" move for which she will rapidly move away from you as if frightened of something. She is shy and for some breeding females or males that last a long time with new situations and people she is not familiar with.

Lesa is eating 1 cup of dry Taste of The Wild with the meds just dropped in the bowl of food. She will eat treats if they are put in the kennel and we are working on treats from the hand which may take awhile.

Takota 14-414 was adopted so I anticipate she may withdraw a little as he was a typical puppy seeking playtime with anyone willing to put up with his puppy energy. Enjoy the new pictures as the one with her smiling with a chew bone is pretty awesome and the one where she is on the sofa.

Merry Christmas from: Byron, Larry, Brody and Betsy Bruhn

 Merry Christmas from a former puppy mill guy Champ 08-334. Enjoy the The Golden Life.

 One day at a time Sweet Girl-In memory of our sweet puppy mill girl Shondra 07-008

    Well sometime in the last two weeks the Fairy Behaviorist for Dogs has visited Lesa in the night while she slept and imparted some thoughts of wisdom.

     Lesa is now the first out the door to potty leading the pack nose to the patio door window..  And sometimes, like today, she responded to the word POTTY  GO AND POTTY (and she peed).  Happy Dance at our house

     Lesa now interacts with Takota, Finney, and Bridget in play games.  She remains reluctant to interact with a human in the absence of the rest of the pack but if they come to me she will also approach for pets.  Soon she will learn to approach without the other dogs for moral support.  Lesa also eats dry kibble and her Prozac is placed in some peanut butter on top of the kibble. No more moist food in her dry kibble.  She currently eats in her kennel.  Lesa still requires supervision due to the ingrained behavior to potty anywhere (if she has to go and is not kenneled) typical of breeder dogs.  She kennels up easily and has not required chew items with her here but in her adoptive home that would be a nice treat while they are at work.  She has not chewed the dog bed in the kennel but if you use a bathroom throw rug or towels she will chew those.  Lesa will whine/bark if she needs out of the kennel to potty if she is in the kennel at that time.  Ordinarily though she is not a barker in my home.

     Lesa is easy to bathe by just leashing her and walking into my walk in shower.  I have not used my dog hair dryer as it is very forceful and loud so we towel dry and I put some absorbent towels in her kennel to soak up the rest.  I will be working on the feet tonight to clip and get extra hair between her toes.  Her last clip was with my groomer and she did very well with her bath, drying, and toenail clipping.

     Lesa is sending many THANK YOU'S for her Christmas Tokens:

• Byron, Larry, & Betsy Bruhn lots of kisses for sending me this special gift.
• Champ 08-334 former puppy mill sweet muzzle licks for knowing how much courage, time, and patience it takes for all those little baby steps to be a great dog.
• Shondar family 07-008 how you must miss her and to give the gift of love and life to a puppy mill mama is awesome.

Foster-mom is speechless for these gifts represent so much more than just money when you have faith in the world of rescue and believe in the difference these dogs make to our human lives. Blessings on all of you, your families, and of course your furry children.

Enjoy her new pics.

Lesa was sad to see Ben leave with his new family before Christmas.  She regressed for a few days but has found new energy with current residents. I can't say she understands a 12 week old foster pup Takota 14-414.  She does a lot of sniffing but neither Lesa nor Takota initiate play with each other as of yet.  So far she plays best with resident Bridget and is more likely to come out of the kennel to play if I have left the area to go upstairs.  She still prefers her kennel as her private lounging area and still is not a fan of the outdoors.  If she does not leave the kennel spontaneously I tap on the kennel or have to reach in to get her to outside to potty.  Sometimes especially when the pack is excited she will join the crowd and run outside but will not always potty so the patio door is closed till everyone has a chance to get their business done. 

Even though Lesa has had her Prozac increased and she is calmer she remains reluctant to engage with her humans often choosing to walk in the opposite direction or into her kennel when approached.  She will allow me to groom her, go for walks, or just get some strokes but I have to do the approaching.  One night she came up to me in the family room next to the sofa for a long period (for her it was long) of time allowing me to give her some love and then she settled down next to the sofa right next to me.  I was surprised to say the least and know for her it took a lot of courage to do that.   Will try and get some new pictures soon. 

Lesa my social butterfly seems to do much better when Ben Franklin is in the picture.  I have been shutting the kennel door to help her get more comfortable in open spaces in the evening when I can monitor them both.  She really does not socialize with my dogs but sure loves playing with Ben. She has also tried out the dog beds in the family room and does not seem to care if another dog is on the bed with her. 

     Lesa still does not like being outside and lately I have been taking her outside on a leash, shutting the door to the three season porch and letting her loose in the fenced in yard to take care of business.  If I wait I have to turn my back to her or sometimes even go inside where she cannot see me so she will go into the yard.  

     Lesa is eating well one cup of dry combined with soft canned stew.  I put her med in the middle of the stew and she eats very well and never leaves the pill in the food bowl.  When Lesa was spayed she had lost 5 lbs. and we have not ventured into the vets to see where she is on her weight loss plan.  She looks thinner and her saggy belly appears tighter. 

     Lisa is progressing as I would expect.  She seems to have hit a wall with her progress so I will be talking with the vet. this week to see if we can increase her dose of Prozac.  Maybe then she will let her guard down and have the courage to go outside with the pack.  I have included some pictures of her and Ben Franklin enjoying some play time. 

    Miss Lesa is doing great since starting her Prozac.  She will run in and out of the house with the rest of the pack at least 90% of the time.  Her biggest obstacle is any noise outside in the yard when neighbors are leaf blowing/mowing/the big truck vacuuming piles of leaves, and of course the garbage truck.  The other day she did not like the noise the clothes dryer made so she paced in and out of her kennel.  All of these things will become normal as time goes by and she experiences them more and more and realizes they are not going to harm her.  It is hard to get new pictures as she moves so fast in and out of the house and loves to just hangout in her open door kennel all of the time.  She is very curious when not outside with the pack as I catch her peeking out of the doorway to see what everyone is doing. 

     Lesa has mastered stairs when I have her leashed to go outside or car rides for appointments and she gets in and out of the car very easily.  I am currently switching her to just dry kibble and she is not a big eater but that just helps her with the weight loss.  Lesa has yet to conquer coming up for pets or drinking from the community watering hole but in time that will happen too.  I have seen her jump excitedly and run in the yard when Ben Franklin emerges from his kennel and actually want to play.  So far she has not done this with my female residents or my small male dog.  Lesa is highly adoptable if you have the patience and love to share with this girl.  I think she may do better in a home with an existing male as apposed to a female as I watch her interact and have fun with Ben. 

     If you are interested in Lesa let your placement advisor know so we can schedule a time  for you to meet her.

Lesa has completed her vetting and was already chipped like her sister. Number sent to microchips. Her weight is down to 92 lbs. and some ounces. She is starting on Prozac 20mg/day. I will pay for this. Hopefully, it will help her pull up her big girl panties and start to see the world as a better place to explore. She is so afraid of the outside; she will only go to the bathroom in the morning with the pack. On-leash or off-leash, she only wants to head for the inside and her kennel. She will not eat a full cup of kibble and nibbles/grazes on a few pieces at a time.