Maree

Wonderful news--Maree is not pregnant, so she and Candy were adopted out together to a wonderful family. The girls had attended the Chuck and Don's event, and luckily an amazing family decided that they wanted to adopt the girls together because they are so bonded and need each other. Maree is keeping her name, and Candy will be changed to Kelsee. Congrats to their new family! I hope they will enjoy them as much as we did. Girls, you're home... forever home.

Candy and Maree have moved to their new foster home and they are doing great. The first night they were nervous about the stairs but the next morning they were adventuring up and down the stairs with coaxing. Candy and Maree are great with kids. While at Chuck and Don's they were greeted by kids of all ages and did wonderfully with them all.

Candy is the kisser of the two and she loves to share her kisses with anyone. Maree doesn't care for other dogs getting in her face but she tells the dogs appropriately to back off.

I can't get over how tiny these two are and how cute they are. They are the ideal looking golden that everyone always wants. In time they will flourish into the happy go lucky goldens that they were meant to be.

Candy and Maree have been invited to help represent ragom at Chuck and Don’s in Bloomington this Saturday! They are looking forward to meeting lots of nice people and hope to get lots of petting and kind words.

The girls continue to be very busy learning about life as housedogs. They are still very good in the house and have maintained their perfect record on housebreaking. At home they are quite happy to follow me around and get petting while observing the activities of the day. I am even starting to see some silliness and wiggling all over with the tail wagging. I tuck them into “their” bedroom at night with the babygate and they sleep through til morning. If we are in a fenced backyard they will usually come when I call them. I am starting to see some bounciness and goofiness. In many ways they are like puppies in that the many many things regular housedogs know, they don’t know yet. They enjoy a short leash walk but have no concept of how it is done, so there is much zigging and zagging, even when I use a coupler on their leashes.

They have enjoyed visiting other dogs in their backyards and so yesterday my 82 year old neighbor and I decided we would try the dog park-- with leashes!!! The girls will usually get into the car pretty well with help, and they ride very quietly in the back, wondering where they are going.

When we got to the dog park I kept them on leashes because if they are startled they would probably run in a panic and I was afraid I would have trouble getting them back. Candy especially is just terrified of loud noises, and she curls up and looks ashamed if you give her any kind of correction even in a pleasant voice. So it was a pretty crazy start to the dog park. My brave neighbor said she could take Candy’s leash and I took Marie’s. After about 10 minutes of aimless panic and tugging on their part, we started walking around the perimeter with them. I asked every person we met to pet them and fuss over them. After a few minutes of seeing how happy and relaxed the regular dogs were, they started to get the hang of it. They really started enjoying the smells and activities, even though you could tell they were also very confused about where they heck were they and what were they supposed to do and would they be left here or what???? By the end of our time there (about an hour) Maree was able to have me drop her leash for a few seconds and when I called her back she started to do it and loved the praise. Good GIRL!! Candy was more scared—if you call her she seems afraid to come, but even she started getting much better. Good GIRL!!

The natural tendency is to think you need to avoid those experiences that are scary to puppymill dogs, but in fact you need to do just the opposite—keep exposing them to new situations with lots of love and praise for every brave thing they do, so that their zone of comfort gets bigger. By the middle of our time there they would smash their smiling faces into the legs of whoever was petting them. They are both just starved for all the love and attention they can get—then again, many people would say that is typical of the breed! Candy also gives lots of quick little licks on your hand or the legs of your pants when she is anxious and wants reassurance. Both girls are hoping to have the chance to smash their faces into lots of friendly humans at Chuck and Don’s on Saturday.

Both Candy and Maree have become very happy girls in the last couple of days, because they are together again. They gain so much confidence and are so happy to be together that we would like to see them adopted as a pair. Candy is a bit more outgoing at first but Maree, in her own quiet way, is just as loving and likes to come up to me and wait for petting.

Both girls are still very timid and sweet, but each day they do a little bit more to show they are getting happier and are ready to see what this big world is like. They are both clean — no potty accidents in the house. They are both very tolerant and ignore my cats. They have started eating in daylight in front of me and taking treats. They are quiet and enjoy strolling around the yard together — a fenced yard would be important for them since they will not come when called yet, and if something scared them they would probably run.

Last night they visited the RAGOM alum Bishop at his house for a happy dog party, and they had a very good time exploring the back yard, running in circles together, and taking their first-ever leash walk around the block with Bishop. They gain a lot of confidence from watching another dog who is happy and well-adjusted, and they take their cues from him. Both girls have started coming up to me on their own in the house, asking for some petting before resuming a nap on the doggie bed. They always sleep cuddled up together, and they sleep through the night until morning. They have so much love in their little Golden hearts — the right kind, loving, gentle home will have a lot of joy watching these two continue to bloom.