# Introducing Atlas!



## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

Congratulations on Atlas, he's adorable. 
His big sister Ella is a pretty girl. 

Really enjoyed the great pictures!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

I can't post more than 20 photos at once (not kidding when I said I'm making an effort to document puppyhood!). Here's a separate post with more pics of week 1.



It's amazing how similar some puppy toys look to human toddlers' toys. My little nephew wanted to steal this teething ring.


"What do you think you're doing in our house?"


A trip to Home Goods to get some fresh air and meet some strangers - we found even more dog toys to take home. Toy basket's getting pretty full with both his and Ella's toys; we're going to rotate them every week to keep things interesting.


Playtime!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

CAROLINA MOM said:


> Congratulations on Atlas, he's adorable.
> His big sister Ella is a pretty girl.
> 
> Really enjoyed the great pictures!


Thank you! I think they will be quite the pair when he grows up.


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## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

The picture of him watching Ella retrieve is so cute, he'll be retrieving in no time.


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## Coastal Pup (Jan 30, 2021)

Eeeep! The picture of the two of them on their appropriately sized beds is adorable. Atlas sure is a cutie, and Ella is so beautiful! Great job documenting, you can definitely tell that he’s a little bigger in some pictures than others, they really grow so fast. Hopefully big sis can help show him the ropes so you can have more time for pictures!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Coastal Pup said:


> Eeeep! The picture of the two of them on their appropriately sized beds is adorable. Atlas sure is a cutie, and Ella is so beautiful! Great job documenting, you can definitely tell that he’s a little bigger in some pictures than others, they really grow so fast. Hopefully big sis can help show him the ropes so you can have more time for pictures!


Thanks, he loves his Coolaroo. He will just carry toys up there to hang out with. He actually likes Ella's big Coolaroo even better, to her confusion. Fortunately they both fit on the big one just fine, for now...


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## MushyB (Oct 31, 2018)

I LOOOOOOVVVVEEEEE his mohawk!!! And the photo of him running towards you with the ear flaps full out.....LOVE!!! What a darling little guy to add to your family; congratulations!!! Can't wait to see more photos!


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## JulesAK (Jun 6, 2010)

Awesome! Congratulations, he is so cute. They look like they will be fast friends. 
Jules


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## nolefan (Nov 6, 2009)

Oh my LORD! The cuteness of Ella and and Atlas playing bitey-face together is too much  Ella looks SO happy with him, that is just the best! Congratulations and good job with the photos, don't neglect videos either and be sure to print at least a few in an album you can take out and look at. My kids have been going through a phase recently of looking at old home videos and it's way better to have even a few that are easy to just watch without a hassle. I wish I'd done better with print photos and saving videos in one place. Keep the photos coming, so glad you all are having fun


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## Lovin'Goldens (Feb 17, 2021)

Atlas is adorable! Love all the pictures! He and Ella are sure to have a strong bond.


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## Fallenskies (Dec 19, 2020)

These are SUCH great pictures! Absolutely beautiful!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

MushyB said:


> I LOOOOOOVVVVEEEEE his mohawk!!! And the photo of him running towards you with the ear flaps full out.....LOVE!!! What a darling little guy to add to your family; congratulations!!! Can't wait to see more photos!


Haha I didn't even notice it, but he does have a little mohawk. We love those floppy ears of his!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

JulesAK said:


> Awesome! Congratulations, he is so cute. They look like they will be fast friends.
> Jules


Thanks, we were surprised at how quickly the two of them became comfortable around each other.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

nolefan said:


> Oh my LORD! The cuteness of Ella and and Atlas playing bitey-face together is too much  Ella looks SO happy with him, that is just the best! Congratulations and good job with the photos, don't neglect videos either and be sure to print at least a few in an album you can take out and look at. My kids have been going through a phase recently of looking at old home videos and it's way better to have even a few that are easy to just watch without a hassle. I wish I'd done better with print photos and saving videos in one place. Keep the photos coming, so glad you all are having fun


I love their bitey faces. Ella is so gentle and tolerant with him and never bites down.. we're lucky. Yes we have been taking video clips to look back on in the future. A friend had a little desk calendar made of her dog's first year photos, which I thought was a great idea. We may do the same in the future with all these pics. That's sweet that your kids are looking at old home videos! It's hard to remember to take the videos in the moment, but they're always worth it later.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Lovin'Goldens said:


> Atlas is adorable! Love all the pictures! He and Ella are sure to have a strong bond.


Thanks, I am looking forward to seeing their bond develop.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Fallenskies said:


> These are SUCH great pictures! Absolutely beautiful!


Thank you!!


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## whemtp (Oct 18, 2009)

That is great. Thanks for sharing all of your great photos and I hope to see more in the future as he grows. Best wishes with the new pup and it looks like your older girl is enjoying his company too.


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## aesthetic (Apr 23, 2015)

Oh I love him!! He is a doll. Is Ella's the large Coolaroo? Both of mine fit on one, even though the puppy is 9 months!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

whemtp said:


> That is great. Thanks for sharing all of your great photos and I hope to see more in the future as he grows. Best wishes with the new pup and it looks like your older girl is enjoying his company too.


Thank you, she is enjoying having a puppy around for the most part. Although my husband and I noticed a couple white hairs on her face recently and joked that it was from the new addition. She is so patient with him.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

aesthetic said:


> Oh I love him!! He is a doll. Is Ella's the large Coolaroo? Both of mine fit on one, even though the puppy is 9 months!


I actually had to look it up and check - we got it in 2018 and I can't believe how well it's held up. Yes it's the large. Great, I'm glad it will fit the two of them for at least a few more months. Ella actually fits on the small too, although I'm not sure how comfortable she is.


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## Rundlemtn (Jan 16, 2015)

I'm so happy for you! He is so fluffy and cute! Your photos look awesome!! I especially love the one of him running towards you ears flapping. Looks like that new camera was a great investment!! Can't wait to see him as he grows 😍


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

3Pebs3 said:


> I'm so happy for you! He is so fluffy and cute! Your photos look awesome!! I especially love the one of him running towards you ears flapping. Looks like that new camera was a great investment!! Can't wait to see him as he grows 😍


Thanks, they're a combo of iPhone and mirrorless camera pictures. The running one was on the mirrorless cam. I'm still very much figuring out how to use the mirrorless camera, so a lot of the times the iPhone shots actually come out better for me.. it's a work in progress. I'm enjoying the photos on Summit's thread!


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## Rundlemtn (Jan 16, 2015)

rosegold said:


> Thanks, they're a combo of iPhone and mirrorless camera pictures. The running one was on the mirrorless cam. I'm still very much figuring out how to use the mirrorless camera, so a lot of the times the iPhone shots actually come out better for me.. it's a work in progress. I'm enjoying the photos on Summit's thread!


Thank you! I watched a lot of YouTube videos about how to use my camera. But, nonetheless, sometimes the phone is more convenient, so mine too are a compilation of both devices


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## AlexanDOG (Jan 4, 2021)

Your new puppy is so adorable and sweet, congratulations!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

AlexanDOG said:


> Your new puppy is so adorable and sweet, congratulations!


Thank you!


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## summerhill (May 21, 2020)

rosegold said:


> We were excited to bring home a little boy puppy last week. With our first girl, we were too sleep deprived to take many photos of her puppyhood. I decided that wouldn't happen this time around, so we are documenting with lots of photos and videos. The fluffy little puppy stage goes by so quickly and we don't want to miss any of it.
> 
> I can already see Atlas growing in just a week's time. This guy is so confident and up for anything. He is quite the little observer; I can see his head whipping around and taking in everything in his environment. We are looking forward to see him grow!
> 
> ...


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Atlas is now 11 weeks old. I can't believe he has been home with us for 3 weeks already. His limbs seem to grow longer every day. He's sleeping from 930pm to 5am which we are very grateful for, and we've settled into a nice routine. 

This week we introduced jumps, carrying metal articles, and a new training tool - a "Treat and Train" (remote treat dispenser invented by Sophia Yin). I've never used anything like this before and am excited for the potential uses.


We kept the jump at ground level for now.




Ella wanted to try...



Not quite, girl! 

Probably should have started her off a bit lower 


We've been giving them their own space intermittently throughout the day. I say sit and they simultaneously plop their butts down; it's the cutest thing.



This guy literally has grown up with a silver spoon in his mouth heh



Their favorite time of the day.. playtime! I can literally see them doggy trash talking each other.







We got a smattering of snow again. Atlas has been very interested in getting at the ice chunks which translates to more potty breaks.



Intro session to the treat and train:




Peekaboo!


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## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

Atlas is growing so fast. 
Great pictures of him and Ella.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

CAROLINA MOM said:


> Atlas is growing so fast.
> Great pictures of him and Ella.


Thanks. Yes he is- I'm looking forward to seeing how much he weighs on his next vet visit. We just had to open up his crate divider yesterday.


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## GoldenDude (Nov 5, 2016)

Love the pics! Both your Goldens are adorable!!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

GoldenDude said:


> Love the pics! Both your Goldens are adorable!!


Thanks! We feel lucky to have the both of them. Although now I am spoiled and can't imagine life without two of them ha.


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## gr56 (May 11, 2019)

Is that one of the treat dispensers you use with a remote? I forgot who’s training videos I was watching but it looked like it did wonders. Took a while for the puppy to get how things worked. Aka Treats only dispense when you do commands correct.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

gr56 said:


> Is that one of the treat dispensers you use with a remote? I forgot who’s training videos I was watching but it looked like it did wonders. Took a while for the puppy to get how things worked. Aka Treats only dispense when you do commands correct.


Yes it is remote controlled. It is a bit of an investment but I have heard a lot of good feedback regarding it. It’s incorporated in Connie Cleveland’s videos and in Sophia Yin’s videos since she was the inventor. I’ve seen other trainers use it in their videos as well. 

There’s a whole step by step of introductions they have you do for the puppy to understand how it works. People have gotten pretty creative in developing potential uses for it in training. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## nolefan (Nov 6, 2009)

Oh my HEART!! These photos are a treasure... he is even cuter now than he was at 8 weeks - how is that possible???? He's really precious. I'm so happy for you!!! Love seeing what you're working on and the simultaneous sit photo was my favorite until I saw his face through the railings. Thanks for sharing


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## sallylah (Jan 28, 2021)

They are adorable!! BFFs for life! Wondered what your best advice is for that first night home? We pick up our boy Finn on Friday and we cannot wait!! Congratulations!!


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## Lovin'Goldens (Feb 17, 2021)

OMG these pictures are just TOO cute! I am in love with Atlas and Ella they are just so cute!!


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## I'm Elaine (Oct 27, 2020)

sallylah said:


> They are adorable!! BFFs for life! Wondered what your best advice is for that first night home? We pick up our boy Finn on Friday and we cannot wait!! Congratulations!!


Hi Sally! We are getting our boy Friday too and CANNOT wait to get my arms around him!


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## I'm Elaine (Oct 27, 2020)

Beautiful pictures! Love the one of Ella "missing" the bar! And little Atlas is just too cute for words! My boy is 7 weeks old and comes home Friday!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

nolefan said:


> Oh my HEART!! These photos are a treasure... he is even cuter now than he was at 8 weeks - how is that possible???? He's really precious. I'm so happy for you!!! Love seeing what you're working on and the simultaneous sit photo was my favorite until I saw his face through the railings. Thanks for sharing


Aw thank you! That's so kind of you to say. We are so attached to him already, just 3 weeks in. He has such a fun personality, confident and resourceful and up for anything. He also gives really good eye contact for the camera/cell phone lol so it's fun taking photos with him. Our other girl turns away when she sees the camera but I think she's starting to take cues from him now!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

sallylah said:


> They are adorable!! BFFs for life! Wondered what your best advice is for that first night home? We pick up our boy Finn on Friday and we cannot wait!! Congratulations!!


Congratulations, you must be so excited! 

I'd recommend having everything at home ready to go before you bring the puppy home -- puppy proofing, X pen set up, crate with divider, food and water bowls, potty treats, nature's miracle, clean towels, clean floors. And even prespraying the leash with bitter apple, having meals/food ready in the fridge/freezer, and clean laundry. Bc things will be hectic once puppy sets paws in. And frozen Kongs with small amounts of the puppy's wet/mashed food for crate times (we did a small spoonful).

First day would want to have a safe dog proof place like the kitchen gated off for the puppy, and crate for overnight somewhere that makes sense (ours was next to the bed). If you can do crate games for the first day's meals (feeding in crate, throwing kibble in crate), that'll make nighttime easier for pup, as will a frozen kong.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Lovin'Goldens said:


> OMG these pictures are just TOO cute! I am in love with Atlas and Ella they are just so cute!!


Thank you, we've fallen in love with our pair too!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

I'm Elaine said:


> Beautiful pictures! Love the one of Ella "missing" the bar! And little Atlas is just too cute for words! My boy is 7 weeks old and comes home Friday!


Haha she looked so confused when her leg hit it. Congratulations, you must be so excited!


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## Rundlemtn (Jan 16, 2015)

Atlas seems like one lucky pupper! Exciting to watch all you are doing with him!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

3Pebs3 said:


> Atlas seems like one lucky pupper! Exciting to watch all you are doing with him!


Thanks, I think he has an added dimension in his life with having another older dog in the house. Ella grew up in the city and met plenty of dogs, but we are in the suburbs now so I’m glad he has a canine buddy to teach him doggy etiquette. He is a pretty adventurous guy so it’s fun introducing new things to him!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## sallylah (Jan 28, 2021)

I'm Elaine said:


> Hi Sally! We are getting our boy Friday too and CANNOT wait to get my arms around him!


Hi Elaine! I know EXACTLY how you feel!! This is our first golden ... we've had beautiful shelties. I'm nesting like I did when I was pregnant! lol


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## sallylah (Jan 28, 2021)

rosegold said:


> Congratulations, you must be so excited!
> 
> I'd recommend having everything at home ready to go before you bring the puppy home -- puppy proofing, X pen set up, crate with divider, food and water bowls, potty treats, nature's miracle, clean towels, clean floors. And even prespraying the leash with bitter apple, having meals/food ready in the fridge/freezer, and clean laundry. Bc things will be hectic once puppy sets paws in. And frozen Kongs with small amounts of the puppy's wet/mashed food for crate times (we did a small spoonful).
> 
> First day would want to have a safe dog proof place like the kitchen gated off for the puppy, and crate for overnight somewhere that makes sense (ours was next to the bed). If you can do crate games for the first day's meals (feeding in crate, throwing kibble in crate), that'll make nighttime easier for pup, as will a frozen kong.


THANK YOU! Great advice!! Need to go pre-spray the leash -- had not thought of that!


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## jomiel (Feb 15, 2019)

Why is he trained to hold spoons? For dumbbell retrieves later?


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

jomiel said:


> Why is he trained to hold spoons? For dumbbell retrieves later?


Yes pretty much - in obedience, the scent articles they retrieve are metal, leather, or wood. Holding metal doesn't come as naturally to dogs as holding other types of materials, so introducing metal as a puppy can help with that. The spoons were a suggestion I received, since we don't currently have a metal article set.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Atlas is now 13 weeks old. We are so thankful that he is doing great sleeping through the night - we really love our sleep. So far no accidents for the past 3 weeks, although we still keep a very close eye on him in the house. 

Our new challenge - backyard weeds! He hunts them down as if it's his full time job. It's actually great motivation for us to get some spring weeding done.

We are waiting for teething to start; I read that boys start teething later than girls. I do remember our girl being more bitey at this age. I'm always keeping my eye out for good and safe chew toys.


Ella has decided that she is the rightful owner of all Atlas's Kong cozies. As they've been on sale recently, we got her an elephant of her own, and have added the Kong cozie rhino and alligator to our collection. One thing we've discovered that Atlas likes to do is to methodically rip out the fur of his toys and try to eat it. For some reason the Kong cozie fur is resistant to being ripped out by him, so it looks like these will be our stuffies of choice.

This toy will never go out of style!

They do love each other and are doing much better with settling and being calm around each other.


We try to keep him away from the dishwasher but this shot makes me laugh!


I can't believe how adultlike he looks in this photo. I'm getting glimpses of what he may look like when he gets older.


Maybe it's because of the car ride to get him, but he loves the car! It puts him right to sleep and here he is yawning.


He looked up at me after burrowing around for a toy, and I noticed he had a very "Hairy" Potter like dirt mark on his forehead LOL. 


I set up a home grooming table and have been introducing it slowly to him. He's been doing great!


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## AlexanDOG (Jan 4, 2021)

ELLA IS SO SWEET!!!!!!!! Prettiest Golden I've ever saw! Atlas is such a cutie pie!


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## Rundlemtn (Jan 16, 2015)

These are awesome photos again! He's doing so well! We have that same snake toy LOL! As someone who also drove a long way to get their puppy - Summit is the exact same about the vehicle. Loves it! And puts her right to sleep


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

AlexanDOG said:


> ELLA IS SO SWEET!!!!!!!! Prettiest Golden I've ever saw! Atlas is such a cutie pie!


Thank you, that’s so nice of you to say! Ella would agree with you, lol she believes she deserves all the admiration when we are out and about.

I think the two of them will end up being a very similar shade of gold when Atlas grows up, which will be neat to see.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

3Pebs3 said:


> These are awesome photos again! He's doing so well! We have that same snake toy LOL! As someone who also drove a long way to get their puppy - Summit is the exact same about the vehicle. Loves it! And puts her right to sleep


Thanks! Puppyhood is going much more smoothly than with our first, mainly due to slightly less clueless owners 

The snake toy is actually the one of the first toys we thought of to buy for Atlas. We remember how much Ella loved hers. Didn’t anticipate them playing with it together though.

And yes the car thing is a great side perk of the long drive for puppy pickup!


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## AlexanDOG (Jan 4, 2021)

rosegold said:


> Thank you, that’s so nice of you to say! Ella would agree with you, lol she believes she deserves all the admiration when we are out and about.
> 
> I think the two of them will end up being a very similar shade of gold when Atlas grows up, which will be neat to see.


That's great! I wasn't just referring to her fur color, I was also referring to her face! So elegant!


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## Lovin'Goldens (Feb 17, 2021)

Ella and Atlas seem like they are the best of pals! . Is it just me or is Atlas getting cuter as he grows? He is so cute and Ella is pretty as always!


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## nolefan (Nov 6, 2009)

Great photos!! He is still looking so great, the one of him with his paws on the gate is my favorite. Cracking up - the snake toy is the favorite at our house, our dogs play tug with it together almost every day. Keep the updates coming, so fun to see how things are going.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Lovin'Goldens said:


> Ella and Atlas seem like they are the best of pals! . Is it just me or is Atlas getting cuter as he grows? He is so cute and Ella is pretty as always!


Thank you. We're glad they are able to settle and be calm around each other now. I'm looking forward to seeing his growth this next month.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

nolefan said:


> Great photos!! He is still looking so great, the one of him with his paws on the gate is my favorite. Cracking up - the snake toy is the favorite at our house, our dogs play tug with it together almost every day. Keep the updates coming, so fun to see how things are going.


That's one of my favorite pictures of him too; I can see a lot of his sire in him and am hoping he inherits some of those good looks. 

Funny that your dogs play tug with it too! It's such a durable toy, definitely worth the price. This month will be exciting in that he's started puppy classes, and should get his final parvo shot in a couple weeks. I'm looking forward to being able to go out and about more with him.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Can’t believe another month’s gone by. This month has had lots of changes for 18 week old Atlas.

Our little buddy’s started teething and has all his adult incisors now. We haven’t seen any of his baby teeth laying around, I guess he must have swallowed them. I can literally FEEL the heat coming off of his gums sometimes and I feel bad for the little guy. We do freeze some toys and washcloths for him but I haven’t noticed him having a preference for the cold frozen toys over regular.

One very unexpected thing - he hasn’t bitten us once since we got him. I am probably speaking too soon! But with our first, our hands were COVERED with little scrapes, and I had to throw away a bag of clothes due to puppy rips. I suppose it helps a lot having a big sister to teach bite inhibition.

Potty training update: The day after my previous post where I said he hadn’t had any accidents in weeks, he had two pee accidents lol. None after that, but that is mainly due to us anticipating him. I haven’t noticed him giving us any signals that he has to go out.

Training update - Atlas graduated puppy kindergarten / AKC STAR. It was so nice to do training in a classroom with other dogs and people. We were really happy with our instructors and facility. At the end of the last class, they set up a full (!) rally course and had each puppy walk it in the middle of the other dogs. It was a bit much for Atlas. Lots of distractions and he was already exhausted after no nap time and the hourlong class. We managed to make it through the course but it definitely showed us how much more there was for these pups to learn. I guess that was the point!

Atlas also got his AKC Trick Dog Novice title this month. A simple trick but our favorite is shake (left paw) and paw (right paw) - love when he offers up that little paw to us. He is a little sponge for tricks and they’re fun to teach as games.

For Trick Dog Intermediate we’d like to teach the head tilt - he does it when he’s confused and I think it's so cute! 

Zonked out after class -


Our next class will be Family Obedience at our local kennel club. We hope to do competitive obedience classes there in the future. Ella is just finishing up her rally class this month too. Here is a fun training bag we had made for our two fur-kids. Whenever I look at it I smile.


I’ve noticed an increase in Atlas’s energy levels this month. So thankful that he has his big sister to run around with. The wrestling and chase with big sister do so much to burn off the excess energy.



Here he is in a “Settle” on his mat, while I do my best to cook dinner 



We have been loving this spring weather - in a way I'm glad that we took care of the house training, puppy shots, and basic commands while it was cold out. Now we can enjoy the nice weather and start proofing commands outdoors.



Atlas also had his first beach trip this month after getting all his puppy vaccines. There were so many new smells to explore, some not so glamorous like horseshoe crabs and dead fish. We’re looking forward to more beach walks as there are many nearby. I’d also like for him to meet more people as the weather gets warmer. One suggestion I saw on Life with Rune was to go to an outdoor shopping center. I thought that was a really great suggestion and we'll probably try it when we get a chance.


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## Rundlemtn (Jan 16, 2015)

Aww sounds like it's been an awesome month! I love that photo of the two of them on the beach. Congratulations on your Novice Trick Dog title! We are also working on our Intermediate now. Not sure when I will challenge it yet, as I am not in a super big rush or anything... 
It's so nice once they have all of their vaccines and you can start to explore more. It makes it a lot easier to get them exposure. Family obedience should be fun! Taking them to classes is so great for continued learning, mental stimulation and bonding. I'm always excited to go! Mind you, I tried rally with my older one, and it was not my personal favourite dog sport. Great photos! Can't wait to see what you get up to next month!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

3Pebs3 said:


> Aww sounds like it's been an awesome month! I love that photo of the two of them on the beach. Congratulations on your Novice Trick Dog title! We are also working on our Intermediate now. Not sure when I will challenge it yet, as I am not in a super big rush or anything...
> It's so nice once they have all of their vaccines and you can start to explore more. It makes it a lot easier to get them exposure. Family obedience should be fun! Taking them to classes is so great for continued learning, mental stimulation and bonding. I'm always excited to go! Mind you, I tried rally with my older one, and it was not my personal favourite dog sport. Great photos! Can't wait to see what you get up to next month!
> [/QUOTE


Thanks! The beach trip is something we had been really wanting to do after shots were done. 

Haha my husband shares your opinion about rally. He thinks agility is much more exciting. Maybe one day we will try it out.

Going to class is my favorite too. Haha maybe part of it is that I am a big nerd and part of me misses homework and school!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

It’s Atlas’s 6 month birthday! This month he had his first swim, finished CGC class, lost all his baby teeth, and caught up to his big sister in size 😆 Love this sweet boy so much.


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## cwag (Apr 25, 2017)

Happy half birthday handsome boy, you have accomplished a lot already.


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## diane0905 (Aug 20, 2010)

Such sweet photos! He's so cute. Congratulations!!


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## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

Atlas is a handsome boy.

Congratulations on his CGC and Happy 6 months!


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## Joanne & Asia (Jul 23, 2007)

Adorable boy!


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## Rundlemtn (Jan 16, 2015)

What a sweetie! He's so adorable! And looks like you're doing great things with him!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

cwag said:


> Happy half birthday handsome boy, you have accomplished a lot already.





diane0905 said:


> Such sweet photos! He's so cute. Congratulations!!





CAROLINA MOM said:


> Atlas is a handsome boy.
> 
> Congratulations on his CGC and Happy 6 months!





Joanne & Asia said:


> Adorable boy!





3Pebs3 said:


> What a sweetie! He's so adorable! And looks like you're doing great things with him!


Thank you! He’s such a happy little guy. We’re going to work on foundations for novice obedience next. This is totally uncharted territory for me and he’s so young that it’ll likely be slow going from here. But I’m excited!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Ha I forget how big he’s grown till I look at old pics. Wonder how Ella feels about that..









New leash holder from Etsy! With Ella’s purple girl leash. Technically Atlas was tan boy but we got him a hunter green leash. The artist really captured their expressions.


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## diane0905 (Aug 20, 2010)

Awww, I love the leash holder. She really did a great job! 

It's crazy how quickly they grow. Both Ella and Atlas are beautiful and look so sweet.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

diane0905 said:


> Awww, I love the leash holder. She really did a great job!
> 
> It's crazy how quickly they grow. Both Ella and Atlas are beautiful and look so sweet.


Thank you. It's amazing the things you can find on Etsy. Though I try to limit my browsing on there for the sake of my wallet lol.

Soon he will be bigger than Ella, that'll be so strange..


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## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

The leash holder is beautiful, it's great. 

Atlas really has grown, the pictures are great.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

CAROLINA MOM said:


> The leash holder is beautiful, it's great.
> 
> Atlas really has grown, the pictures are great.


Thank you. It makes the door area much neater too. Once Atlas is all grown up the painting won’t be accurate anymore. But can’t complain with a cute puppy face on the wall


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Here's our happy guy at 8 months. He's now officially bigger than Ella. We're having fun in a novice obedience class- he's still young and my husband and I are both inexperienced handlers. However, I can see his focus has improved a lot in the past couple months after taking classes here. I took him to a Show and Go for novice obedience last week for some ring exposure. I was so proud of him, he went through our routine (I opted to skip figure 8's and heel free) without a hitch! I did treat him, so we have a long ways to go, but he worked hard and was so eager to please.

Unfortunately broke my ankle this past weekend so won't be able to practice heels for awhile. I'm very sad that I won't be able to run around with my dogs for a couple months. 










Is there anything better than dogs and coffee!



















Obsessing over the ice machine.. it won't take long until he figures it out.









We don't encourage begging but his little face just looked so cute peeping over the table.









Kisses for sister

__
Sensitive content, not recommended for those under 18
Show Content


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## diane0905 (Aug 20, 2010)

Such beautiful dogs. Atlas is a cutie. You’re getting a year earlier obedience start than we did. I’m glad y’all did well at the Show and Go. They love ice. I crush it for mine sometimes. 

I’m sorry about your ankle! That would drive me nuts. I hope you heal well and as soon as possible.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

diane0905 said:


> Such beautiful dogs. Atlas is a cutie. You’re getting a year earlier obedience start than we did. I’m glad y’all did well at the Show and Go. They love ice. I crush it for mine sometimes.
> 
> I’m sorry about your ankle! That would drive me nuts. I hope you heal well and as soon as possible.


Thank you. We got very lucky in that classes were starting to open up right as we got Atlas. Finding a good place to train is so hard; I can't imagine dealing with finding a place plus the COVID restrictions from last year.

It's only 2 days in with the ankle and I'm already going a bit nuts.. I do love my independence. The dogs are being super sweet though. Ella is following me around everywhere, much more than usual, even waiting outside the shower for me, and Atlas somehow knows to be gentle with me. Sometimes I think humans don't deserve these beautiful sweet animals <3


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Snapped some photos in the backyard, now that my ankle is healing and I’m able to move around more. 9 months old and 60 lb now.


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## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

They're both beautiful!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

CAROLINA MOM said:


> They're both beautiful!


Thank you!!


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## A Golden to love (Mar 6, 2021)

They look so happy together. I love all the pictures


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## JulieCAinMA (Jun 19, 2020)

rosegold said:


> Ha I forget how big he’s grown till I look at old pics. Wonder how Ella feels about that..
> View attachment 883686
> 
> 
> ...


I love the leash holder! Can you share the Etsy shop link? Your pups are adorable!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

A Golden to love said:


> They look so happy together. I love all the pictures


They love racing each other around the backyard. Then they come in and collapse for a nap at the same time 😆


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

JulieCA said:


> I love the leash holder! Can you share the Etsy shop link? Your pups are adorable!


Yes! It’s the custom oil leash holder. I don’t see it on her shop currently but there’s a note about her reducing her items for the next couple weeks. I’d send her a message if you’re interested.








monicaacreates - Etsy


Shop Original Oil Paintings & More by monicaacreates located in Mt. Dora, Florida. Smooth shipping! Has a history of shipping on time with tracking. Speedy replies! Has a history of replying to messages quickly. Rave reviews! Average review rating is 4.8 or higher




www.etsy.com


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## diane0905 (Aug 20, 2010)

Ella and Atlas are both so cute!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

diane0905 said:


> Ella and Atlas are both so cute!


Thank you 💕


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## aesthetic (Apr 23, 2015)

They are so precious!!! I can’t believe how big Atlas is now!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

aesthetic said:


> They are so precious!!! I can’t believe how big Atlas is now!


I know, I don't know where my little fluff ball went. He's all legs and limbs. Finally grew into his big ears too


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## aesthetic (Apr 23, 2015)

rosegold said:


> I know, I don't know where my little fluff ball went. He's all legs and limbs. Finally grew into his big ears too


the saddest part of puppies growing up! Suddenly all the body parts just fit together again


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Enjoying a cloudy day at the park, followed by a trip to my parents’. I had him lay next to me on a towel at my parents while I had dinner.. as treats he got small pieces of my dessert- watermelon, apple, peaches, and cheese. He was in heaven!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

This guy just loves life! We just got some grass seed laid down and the sprinkler is his new best friend.









Assuming at 10 months old he’s at 85% of his adult weight, he should end up a touch below 75lb, right at breed standard.









Boy, is this guy happy happy happy. He even wags his tail in his sleep.









Now that he’s nearing a year I’m considering thinking about trials for next year - for Beginner Novice to start. We still have a lot to work on though, including sustained heeling attention with no treats or praise, lagging at fast paces and right circles, and a tendency to pace rather than trot. He does have a very green handler to deal with after all 😅
I ring stewarded at our nearby kennel club’s recent trial and was so impressed at some of the dogs competing there. I realized there that we need to get a soft crate. We got an elite field and are working on getting Atlas acclimatized to it.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Obedience class last night was fun. We did callouts on steroids, with frequent callouts and doing halts/about turns during fast and slow paces. This was all done through a minefield of stuffies and toys. Atlas did pretty well until he got to the big box of stuffies and I did an about turn right at them, pointing his face right into the box... he took awhile to catch up to me after that lol. I was thinking about when we did a similar exercise though, a couple months ago, and he was SO distracted. His focus is improving.

















We also did stand for exam with the judge having helium balloons strapped to her - love how creative our instructors are. Our homework is to work on fronts -- he still has a lot of trouble with crooked fronts. Someone noticed that Atlas brushes against me when he finishes, which is points off. I was grateful because (a) I never noticed his love-brush against my thigh, and (b) didn't realize that was a point deduction.

Tonight we are beginning therapy dog class. I want to get him and my older girl certified in our area. We meet inside Lowes. We also got around to filming his trick dog intermediate and he has a new TKI title!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Atlas at Lowes last night. We did mock therapy visits. It was a good opportunity to proof commands for him. Ella just soaked up all the love and attention; I'm so glad we're doing this with her as she really seems to love it. We did certify Ella for therapy in another city, but we had to move soon after.


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## diane0905 (Aug 20, 2010)

rosegold said:


> Atlas at Lowes last night. We did mock therapy visits. It was a good opportunity to proof commands for him. Ella just soaked up all the love and attention; I'm so glad we're doing this with her as she really seems to love it. We did certify Ella for therapy in another city, but we had to move soon after.
> View attachment 886273


He's so pretty! Precious also -- I love his sweet smile.


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## diane0905 (Aug 20, 2010)

rosegold said:


> Obedience class last night was fun. We did callouts on steroids, with frequent callouts and doing halts/about turns during fast and slow paces. This was all done through a minefield of stuffies and toys. Atlas did pretty well until he got to the big box of stuffies and I did an about turn right at them, pointing his face right into the box... he took awhile to catch up to me after that lol. I was thinking about when we did a similar exercise though, a couple months ago, and he was SO distracted. His focus is improving.
> 
> View attachment 886256
> View attachment 886257
> ...


Nice! Congratulations on the TKI!! Logan's kryptonite is anytime they have a metal bowl in the ring. He is so distracted by metal bowls. Hopefully, there will be zero of those in an actual trial.  In the room where we do callouts, we are surrounded and sometime almost impeded by dogs doing other things -- like dumbbell retrieves, directed jumps and such. We heel all around the action. I think I mess up my footwork more than Logan messes up his heeling.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

diane0905 said:


> Nice! Congratulations on the TKI!! Logan's kryptonite is anytime they have a metal bowl in the ring. He is so distracted by metal bowls. Hopefully, there will be zero of those in an actual trial.  In the room where we do callouts, we are surrounded and sometime almost impeded by dogs doing other things -- like dumbbell retrieves, directed jumps and such. We heel all around the action. I think I mess up my footwork more than Logan messes up his heeling.


Thanks! It really is nice to have distractions baked into the training environment. If we skip a week of class I definitely notice Atlas is more distractible. I was watching Connie's webinar about whether you're ready to compete, and one thing she'd mentioned to do before a trial is bad footwork on purpose, so your dog gets used to problem solving. If I use that as my criteria, I'm more than ready to go into the ring LOL.


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## diane0905 (Aug 20, 2010)

rosegold said:


> Thanks! It really is nice to have distractions baked into the training environment. If we skip a week of class I definitely notice Atlas is more distractible. I was watching Connie's webinar about whether you're ready to compete, and one thing she'd mentioned to do before a trial is bad footwork on purpose, so your dog gets used to problem solving. If I use that as my criteria, I'm more than ready to go into the ring LOL.


Me too. Very ready. 😅


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

At class yesterday I was happy to find out that a handsome young dog in our class just won his CH this weekend. The remaining three dogs in our class are Grand Champions, and two of them owner handled. They're all beautiful. We did recalls, sit/stand for exam, and figure 8's, with toys scattered throughout the ring. 

On the recall, there was a big slice of dried beef lung in a perforated container directly in Atlas's path. I was pretty sure he'd go for that instead of me. Sure enough he did. We tried it again with me saying leave it, and he did come towards me, albeit reluctantly. It reminds me of that saying, "What am I, chopped liver?!" Well I wish I was chopped liver to Atlas lol. I am going to try practicing recall around treats more this week. 

I found out my footwork on the Figure 8 is erratic and confusing Atlas. I looked back at the video and one of my circles was about twice as big as the other. Additionally, I get slower and faster whenever I feel like it apparently . For homework, I have two cones set up back and will practicing footwork on my own without him. 

A couple photos I snapped of Atlas out back yesterday. 

















And Ella, not to be outdone..


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## diane0905 (Aug 20, 2010)

Atlas is so handsome! Ella is a beauty too. It sounds like you are in a great class. My instructor suggested when we are training alone at the Columbia obedience club to put tempting food in containers with perforated lids for distraction. 

As for heeling, when I look at videos of me practicing alone with Logan it looks semi-decent. When I’m in class with an instructor behind me hollering commands, it can get ugly real quickly. 😅 They told me to practice often without my dog also.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Thank you!! It’s a great place to train. I’m glad we found it. 

Ah the callouts. At Connie’s webinar this Monday she mentioned what to do when you’re about to run into the gate and the judge still hasn’t given you your next call out. I honestly hadn’t even thought of that or thought that could happen. I think Atlas would just bust through the ring gates; I’d probably be in a heap on the floor next to him 😅


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Fun Halloween! We sat out front with candy and Atlas and Ella met all the neighborhood kids trick or treating. It was a great time to practice polite sits for petting. 












































We also did some training at the nearby beach. We started with recalls, then big figure 8s, sit stays, and command discrimination. We both moved differently when heeling on the wet sand - I’m glad we decided to work there today!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Atlas will be 11 months tomorrow. I can't believe he's almost one and he'll be aging out of this thread. Tonight we had therapy class at Lowes. We had a couple big distractions. One was a female 12 month golden who just joined our class and was interested in playing with Atlas. Another was working outdoors in the garden center - surprisingly tough compared to indoors and the parking lot. Practicing more there with him is on my to do list.

At the end of class Atlas took and passed his CGCA and CGCU. I was proud of him since he'd never been in the garden center before and the other puppy was close by.


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## diane0905 (Aug 20, 2010)

He's so sweet! Congratulations!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

diane0905 said:


> He's so sweet! Congratulations!


Thank you! I thought I'd sneak the test in since a lot of it is similar to what we're working on for Novice and therapy. Although I have to admit I saw the new golden girlie walking in and thought oh no, test is today. Thankfully we managed to hold it together.


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## Rion05 (Jan 4, 2016)

rosegold said:


> Thank you! I thought I'd sneak the test in since a lot of it is similar to what we're working on for Novice and therapy. Although I have to admit I saw the new golden girlie walking in and thought oh no, test is today. Thankfully we managed to hold it together.


Crazy question, Rosegold...where is Ella from? This is probably random, but in many of these photos, she looks like she could be my dog's sibling.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Ella’s from Goldstrike in Georgia. Her sire is Prism’s Bourbon and she has Prism, Goldruls, Amberac, and River Run behind her. Maybe just a coincidence that they have some resemblances. Your dogs in your signature are handsome!


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## Rion05 (Jan 4, 2016)

rosegold said:


> Ella’s from Goldstrike in Georgia. Her sire is Prism’s Bourbon and she has Prism, Goldruls, Amberac, and River Run behind her. Maybe just a coincidence that they have some resemblances. Your dogs in your signature are handsome!


Ahhh...ok, so no super close relation. It's her face! I happen to LOVE my boy's expression, but I saw your girl and I was like, HOLY MOLY! Love the eye shape, the dark eye color, the pigment...she really does look like she could be his sibling in many of your photos.  Such a pretty, pretty girl! LOVE her!

I also happen to love Robin's dogs...so that all makes a ton of sense. 

Your boy is also adorable...sorry to go off on a tangent, but I almost fell over when I saw her photos!


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## diane0905 (Aug 20, 2010)

rosegold said:


> Ella’s from Goldstrike in Georgia. Her sire is Prism’s Bourbon and she has Prism, Goldruls, Amberac, and River Run behind her. Maybe just a coincidence that they have some resemblances. Your dogs in your signature are handsome!


Logan just met a Golden Retriever last week who is from Goldstrike. Her name is Remy and she's in our competition obedience class. She's four years old and very sweet.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

Thank you! She has had those sweet innocent eyes since she was a puppy. She has the personality to go along with it too..


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

diane0905 said:


> Logan just met a Golden Retriever last week who is from Goldstrike. Her name is Remy and she's in our competition obedience class. She's four years old and very sweet.


That’s so neat! There are no goldens in our class currently but whenever I see one I have to ask what breeder they’re from.


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## diane0905 (Aug 20, 2010)

rosegold said:


> That’s so neat! There are no goldens in our class currently but whenever I see one I have to ask what breeder they’re from.


I believe your breeder is who evaluated Logan's tricks titles. Small world. 😃 It's the first time we've had Goldens and there are two -- Remy and a field Golden. I was wondering if Golden knew they were the same as him.


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

diane0905 said:


> I believe your breeder is who evaluated Logan's tricks titles. Small world. 😃 It's the first time we've had Goldens and there are two -- Remy and a field Golden. I was wondering if Golden knew they were the same as him.


Yes what a small world. She is the nicest person. Atlas definitely knows if there’s another golden around. He gets so excited. I think it’s because he grew up with an older golden sister.


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## ilovegoldens3018 (Oct 26, 2021)

rosegold said:


> Atlas will be 11 months tomorrow. I can't believe he's almost one and he'll be aging out of this thread. Tonight we had therapy class at Lowes. We had a couple big distractions. One was a female 12 month golden who just joined our class and was interested in playing with Atlas. Another was working outdoors in the garden center - surprisingly tough compared to indoors and the parking lot. Practicing more there with him is on my to do list.
> 
> At the end of class Atlas took and passed his CGCA and CGCU. I was proud of him since he'd never been in the garden center before and the other puppy was close by.
> 
> ...


Atlas and Ella are super cute!! If you don't mind me asking, where is Atlas from? We are also in the process of looking for a puppy. I tried reading through the thread but might have missed it. Love their photos!


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## rosegold (Nov 9, 2016)

ilovegoldens3018 said:


> Atlas and Ella are super cute!! If you don't mind me asking, where is Atlas from? We are also in the process of looking for a puppy. I tried reading through the thread but might have missed it. Love their photos!


Thank you. He’s from Starhill in Mass. They’re wonderful breeders and very conscientious and thorough. Health clearances for multiple generations back were more than covered, puppies were handled and socialized beautifully, temperament and trainability was exactly what we asked for, and communication is stellar. We feel lucky to have worked with them.


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## ilovegoldens3018 (Oct 26, 2021)

rosegold said:


> Thank you. He’s from Starhill in Mass. They’re wonderful breeders and very conscientious and thorough. Health clearances for multiple generations back were more than covered, puppies were handled and socialized beautifully, temperament and trainability was exactly what we asked for, and communication is stellar. We feel lucky to have worked with them.
> View attachment 890960





rosegold said:


> Thank you. He’s from Starhill in Mass. They’re wonderful breeders and very conscientious and thorough. Health clearances for multiple generations back were more than covered, puppies were handled and socialized beautifully, temperament and trainability was exactly what we asked for, and communication is stellar. We feel lucky to have worked with them.
> View attachment 890960


Love that, thank you so much for sharing


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