Copper

Profile

Copper is a very sweet male 9 month old purebred golden retriever. He was an outdoor dog and is getting used to living the good life indoors. He has not had much training and is a big puppy, weighing 63.5 pounds. He is neutered, up-to-date on vaccinations and heartworm negative. Copper has been in foster care for about a week and although he has only lived outdoors, we would say he is mostly potty trained. He will go to the door when he needs to go out, but he drinks a lot of water and needs to go out frequently as he is still a puppy.

Copper is still getting used to living indoors; when he first arrived he didn’t know how to go up or down the stairs, or how to jump but he quickly mastered the stairs and has discovered that he loves snuggling on the couch or in bed.

Copper is a very energetic boy, and requires a good amount of exercise. He gets along great with our 18 month old resident dog, they play all day long. Copper definitely was not used to being on a leash but has adjusted great and walks very well using an easy-walk harness. We take him on walks each day totaling about 3 miles as well as play fetch in the yard.

Copper has not displayed any resource guarding; we can take toys (or shoes) from him without any problem, as well as reach into his bowl while he is eating. He is still a puppy and still learning what is okay to chew on, he loves antlers and trying to destroy soft toys, but will occasionally pick up a shoe or blanket and carry it around also. He does mouth a little but is easily redirected and responds very well to ‘No’.

We are working on crate training Copper. He is fed in his crate and will willingly go in but once the door is closed he will bark for 15-20 minutes before he settles down to sleep. We have left him for a full work day and he does just fine after the initial barking. We will be trying some more things in the coming days to try to get him more comfortable in the crate.

In Copper’s forever home he would love to be an only dog and get all the attention, but he would do fine with another energetic dog to play with as well. His surrendering owner reported he is good with cats but we have not had a chance to test that yet. He does well with kids also but due to his size and energy level we recommend a home with children 10 years or older. Copper would benefit from doing obedience classes to continue learning commands as well as build his confidence and bond with his new family.