Benny

Profile

"Welcome to the Golden Life." -Kathy and Hailie W

"Good luck finding your forever home, from Patch 10-223." -Michelle H

"Hugs from Sandie." -Karin S

Introducing Benny, a dashingly handsome purebred Golden Retriever!  Benny was lovingly surrendered to RAGOM by a family who loved him very much.  It was a difficult and emotional decision for them to make, and one they put a lot of thought into.  They knew RAGOM had the resources to help Benny with his medical needs and we thank them for entrusting us with the care of their sweet boy.  Benny sends you a great big kiss and wants you to know he's doing okay!

Benny turned 2 years old on June 6th. He had his wellness exam this past week and tested negative for heart worm and Lyme disease, which we always like to see!  He is on monthly preventatives and is due for his vaccines in September.  He currently weighs 75 lbs. and needs to lose about 10 lbs.  He is getting lots of walks and play time in the yard and he and Foster Mom are having their own Biggest Loser competition!  Benny is on a grain free food because he suffers from some allergies, which is very common in Goldens. This past February, Benny had a seizure.  Over the next several months, additional seizures followed and he was diagnosed with Idiopathic Epilepsy. He was brought to the emergency vet on two occasions after he had several cluster seizures in a row.  They administered a sedative and kept him overnight for observation.  After the frequency of his seizures increased, he was placed on daily medication in an attempt to control them.   It's important to note that because he has epilepsy, his seizures will never completely go away.  However, the hope is they become less frequent and more controlled.  Benny's last seizure was on July 16th.  He is currently prescribed Phenobarbital and receives two 68 mg tablets 2 times a day (for a total of 4 tablets). He is also prescribed 1500 mg of Potassium Bromide daily, which he takes in the form of 3 chew-able tablets with breakfast. During his wellness exam, the vet was concerned his current dose of Phenobarbital might be too high for his weight.  He has a follow-up appointment the 2nd week in August, where his Phenol levels will be checked and his liver and kidney values will be assessed.  At that point his dosage may be decreased slightly.  Watching Benny on a day to day basis, we believe it's possible his dose is too high.  He often acts "loopy" and a little unsteady, almost as if he closed the bar down and had a few too many cocktails!  There is a great website dedicated to canine epilepsy, and we encourage you to check it out if you're interested in learning more about it.  It is www.canine-epilepsy.net .  On his current dose of medication, Benny's Phenobarbital costs approximately $50 a month.  His Potassium Bromide costs about $65 a month for chew-able tablets.  However, your vet can special order capsules from a compounding pharmacy, which reduces the cost to approximately $30 a month.  Please keep in mind that prices do change periodically and there could be times where you would pay more.  Benny may also require more frequent blood work throughout the year due to his condition.

Now - on to some fun stuff!  Benny is a happy, silly boy who loves to play!  He loves to empty the toy bin every night and loves to play chase with our dogs in the yard. He has a happy go lucky personality and gives the best kisses!  While Benny likes other dogs, he LOVES people!  We joke that his name should have been Shadow!  He follows us from room to room and likes to be wherever we are.  It's not uncommon to step out of the shower and have to step over him because he is sound asleep on the bath mat!  He just loves to be wherever you are.  His love and adoration for Foster Dad can be seen in this video .  

Benny loves to "talk" to you if you're not paying attention to him. How dare you have a free hand and not give him a pet!  Of course, we are always happy to oblige!  One issue we are trying to work thru is him sleeping thru the night.  Between 12:30 and 2:30 AM, he gets restless and will start "talking" to us.  If we ignore him it progresses to barking and it lasts for a couple of hours.  He does better sleeping in bed with us then he does separated in his crate or baby gated.  However, it isn't a complete problem solver and we're hoping this behavior decreases as he gets settled in even more.  During the day we baby gate him in the bathroom when we're gone.  While I suspect he'd do just fine with free roam, I don't want to take the chance that he'll have a seizure near the stairs.  When we come home, we have to wake him up as he's sound asleep on his favorite blanket - even though 2 of our dogs bark as soon as they hear the garage door, Benny is oblivious!  He is house trained and has not had any accidents - good boy, Benny!

We've been lucky to witness Benny's love for water.  And when I say love, I mean he LOVES the water!  When I water the plants he loves to stand under the hanging baskets in case any water drips out of the bottom.  Of course, he has also been known to drink it straight from the watering can!  When we get the pool out he doesn't even wait for it to fill up before he jumps in.  During a recent trip to the lake, he surprised us by jumping off the dock to retrieve his toy.  He would have stayed there all day if we let him!  I'm pretty sure this handsome boy may have been born in the water!  

Are you waiting to hear what Benny's forever home looks like?

• A fence is NOT required.  He lived on 6 acres in his previous home and was boundary trained. He loves his people so much that he sticks close.  
• He doesn't potty on leash, so a townhouse or condo would not be an option for him.
• Benny is good with kids but can be a little mouthy or grabby when excited. He also loves to chase when they run (just like he does with our dogs!) For these reasons, he would do best if the children living in the home were 10 years or older.
• Another dog is NOT required.  Benny is used to being an only dog and I think he'd love to soak up all your love and attention!
• The family that adopts Benny needs to be patient and help him thru his barking sessions in the middle of the night.  There will be times when you'll wake up tired!
• Most importantly, Benny's family should be committed to providing the medical care he needs for the rest of his life.  His medication can be expensive and he needs a family committed to taking the best care of him, no matter the cost.  He will pay you back in kisses tenfold!  

If you think Benny might fit into your home, please contact your placement adviser.  He is looking forward to meeting you!