Wilson

#14-026

At A Glance


  • Age: 20 years, 2 months
  • Breed: Mixed Breed
  • Gender: Male
  • Location: N/A
  • Status: Adopted

Profile


Sponsored by:

Anonymous
"Best Wishes to the Cutest Little Dog in Ragom Land."


 

"Best wishes." -Anonymous

"Loving fan!" -Mary R

"Greetings from your friend, Brie." -Sandy M

"With love and best wishes from Beau 14-117." -Ann M


In addition to LOVE this dog has the following requirements:
Entered Foster Care Fence Kid Friendly Another Dog Cat Friendly
 3/20/2015OptionalAge 8 + Optional. but preferredNot tested 
This is the most recent information available; however, it may change as we learn more about the dog.

 

4/7/2015:

I would like to re-introduce you to our very special boy, who re-joined his prior RAGOM family on 3/20/15.  Wilson was adopted by an absolutely wonderful woman approximately one year ago, and she gave him the life that all foster families dream of for their foster dogs. He was loved, cherished, and spoiled absolutely rotten, and as much as she gave to him, I'm sure he gave her every single bit in return. Unfortunately, her health took a turn for the worse, and she was no longer able to care for sweet Wilson.  She and her family made the very difficult decision to return him to RAGOM, and my heart just aches, knowing how hard it was for her to do this.  I want to assure her that we love her boy as much as we ever did, and that he will remain with us until we find him the home that is just right for him.

I have so much to say about him that it's hard to know where to start!  Wilson and I have been very good for each other these past two weeks. He was very sad when he returned to my home, and I could tell he missed his mom and everything about his life with her. So many times each day, he'd look at me with that adorable little face, and seemed to be asking, "don't you know what we do now, lady?"  On my part, I was grieving the loss of my prior foster, Red 14-202, the "Old Pirate," and wasn't sure if I could open my heart to another foster dog right away. However, it didn't take long for our family to realize that if Wilson was going to come back, he was most certainly going to come back here!

Though things have really turned the corner now, Wilson did struggle when he was first returned to us, and any new family will need to know that it might take him a similar period of time to adjust to their home.   Instead of being the silly, smiley boy that I remembered, he was very sad and flat.  He didn't want to eat, and spent a lot of time quietly observing all of us - which we just let him do, until he felt safe again.   We've also learned through his adoptive family that he did struggle with some separation issues.  Wilson was not in foster care with us very long the first time around, so it's not surprising that we are learning new things about him. I work from home, and when gone, there are 3 big dogs here for company - we simply never had any issues with him feeling lonely.  His adoptive mom was retired and was with him the bulk of the time, but nobody can be home absolutely all the time, and he did have difficulties when left alone.  Though we never had any accidents in our home, he apparently had them most of the time when his mom was gone, and she chose to deal with it by providing him with a potty pad, which he totally respected.  Given that he is a very small, as well as a smart dog, that was a very workable solution for them.  When he returned to us, he also started having accidents when we left the house, which surprised me, though maybe it shouldn't have - he had gone through a lot of change.  Though I'm still on my toes about it, I'm happy to say that he has not had any for the past week.  I too am home most of the time, but I think the main difference is that he has a lot of company when we are gone, and he has bonded very tightly with my 3 dogs again.   Because of that, I do feel that not only will he need a family where someone is home more often that not, but I also feel he will need another dog in the home.  He doesn't play, but he thrives in the company of my dogs (and yes, there are 3 dogs sleeping in a row in the 2nd picture!) 

So - now for the good stuff!   Wilson returned to us completely UTD, newly groomed,  and with a car load of his personal belongings.  RAGOM dogs always go in for an initial vet check, and he passed with flying colors and was started on his seasonal preventatives. He weighed in at 40#, so still is a wee little bundle of energy. If you've read his bio from the beginning, you'll note that his age was initially stated to be 13, and we've switched it to 11.  None of us every believed he was anywhere near 13 (look at my old video above, and believe me, things haven't changed a bit!), and that was just a guess by a prior shelter.  His adoptive mom vetted him regularly, and that vet put him at 10 or 11 maximum.  When I brought him to the vet, they said he was somewhere over 9, nowhere near 13, but maybe around 10-11. Nobody knows for sure, and he can't tell us, but that is just going to be our best guess.

He is back to being what I consider the true essence of Wilson - always smiley, slightly silly, and above all else, totally devoted to his humans. Wilson still LOVES to walk, and still dances and prances when the leash comes out. We typically do about 2+ miles per day, but my husband has done 3-4 miles with him on the weekends, and he can do that just fine too.   It will be extremely important that Wilson go to a home that will consistently walk him, as that is one of his great pleasures in life - just playing outside in a fenced yard will not be enough for him.  His excitement when it's walk time just makes me laugh, and if you're someone that enjoys walking, you will totally enjoy doing it with Wilson.

Like any wonderful dog that is a bit older, once Wilson is done with his exercise, he  contentedly curls up right at my feet for a nice, long snooze.  Even better, if you happen to be on the couch, that's where he prefers to be, and he will edge as close as he possibly can be.   He sleeps like a rock all through the night, and since we get up kind of early around here, we often have to wake him up to get him moving for the day.  He came with a nice, big bed from his adoptive mom, and sleeps on that right next to my side of the bed.    This leads to Wilson's next need in his forever home - he will need to go to a family that has no problems with him being on the furniture, and he will also need to be able to sleep in the bedroom next to his people. 

His manners are terrific, and he is as obedient as they come.  He's also a very bright dog, and you'll immediately notice his intelligent, sparkling eyes - they're a real attention grabber. He knows how to sit, lie down, and shake, and for all I know, there might be a few more tricks out there. I do think he might be a bit hard of hearing, but I'm not sure whether that is selective hearing yet or not.  He loves car rides, and he loves treats! As stated above, he is awesome with other dogs, and we've had no trouble with big, small, or all sizes in between on all of our walks.  I do not know how he is around cats, and will get him cat tested.  Kids are still a bit of an open area for me, and I will need to explore that a bit further. He lived a fairly quiet life for the past year, and lives a relatively quiet one here, so I'm just not sure how much commotion he would be comfortable with, but we'll try to get that figured out.

Wilson will be making his return appearance at Brooklyn Park this upcoming Saturday 4/11  from 11-1! If you're free, please come out to meet him, as well as all the other great RAGOM dogs that will be at the event!   He'll be the adorable little guy that is more than happy to offer you his paw for a treat!

Original Bio (2/8/2014):

Meet Wilson, the petite golden mix who doesn’t know he’s 13 years old! We’ve discovered so many positives about this guy. He loves to go for a walk or ride in the car and is always ready for either one. I walk him with a flat collar and he sets a good pace. We’ve only been walking ½-1 mile. I think he can do more. He loves to be outside and isn’t bothered by the snow and cold. An excellent car passenger, he sits in the back seat and looks out the window and jumps in and out of the car on his own. Wilson goes up and down stairs without problem. Meeting the two smallish dogs next door at the 4-foot chain link fence is fun, he says. Our small resident dog (RD) and Wilson get along just fine and will share a dog bed. Wilson respects her signals that she doesn’t play. Wilson knows sit (he sits quickly), shake and down and takes treats gently. No inappropriate chewing or counter surfing. He’s taken a Kleenex out of a small wastebasket and dropped it when asked: solution – wastebasket no longer in reach. He follows me room to room and will lie nearby until we move elsewhere. In the morning, if he wakes up before I’m ready he puts his chin on my bed, and then goes back to his bed with a sigh and waits. Wilson got a clean bill of health from the vet, except for a mild-moderate elevation of one liver enzyme. The vet says this is non-specific and often seen in older dogs, no further testing needed. His other liver enzymes, kidney function and the rest of his blood work were all normal. Wilson takes no medications. He’s not shown interest in any toys or balls.

Wilson had 2 pee accidents within 24 hours of arriving. I figure any dog that traveled 11 hours in 6 or 7 cars gets a free pass at first! He didn’t eliminate in the house for the first few days (we were home with him), then for several days he did pee and left 2 poos when we started leaving him and RD home alone. This stopped after those few days – seems he was adapting to our schedule and the changes in his life. So I’d say he’s housebroken but may revert to some accidents with stress and change. He ‘holds it’ overnight for 8-10 hours and goes to the back door when he wants to go out. He’s had free roam here. We’re acclimating him to a kennel so that can be an option also.

Wilson was surrendered to a shelter in Missouri when his owner was unable to care for him due to her own health issues. She’d had him for 5 weeks after getting him from a family member’s friend. He waited in a foster home in Missouri until he got a ride to MN. (A big THANKS to RAGOM and PAWS transporters!)

Wilson will do best in an adult only (or maybe older teens) home and with “mellow’ dogs. His paperwork said he “doesn’t like energetic dogs in his face, but not aggressive”. We’ve not seen him with such a dog. When he meets the neighbor dogs nose to nose through the fence all tails are wagging, no barking. Our RD mostly “co-exists” with any other dog in our house so she and Wilson are getting along. At the vet he did not like being held/restrained around his face for procedures. Vet reported no nipping or snapping, but he was skittish and wanted to be released. It will be best for him not to receive sudden hugs or squeezes to his face and to be in a home where other dogs respect his “face space”. We regularly care for our infant granddaughter and Wilson gets excited and bouncy at the sound of her cries. He’s approached with tail wagging and soft mouth and wanted to ‘mouth’ her. While we can manage this, it’s not his ideal situation, and we don’t want to stress him. So Wilson will be moving soon to another RAGOM foster home – more to come as his journey continues.

   

Sponsor Wilson

Dog Updates

You Recently Viewed