# Rescued Golden Questions



## Brandy's Mom (Oct 5, 2005)

First, welcome to the forum! Anyone who has the heart to take an abused dog -- not even of their preferred breed -- is alright by me! And who knows? You may become as maniacal as we all are about goldens. 

They can be excellent warning dogs!!! I'm on my third golden, and all three have alerted to us to anything unusual. 

But Goldens do have a different temperment than what you may be used to. They live to please, and their spirits can be easily broken. As a consequence, it may take them longer to mend emotionally. So watch for baby steps. It could take 6 months to a year before you see the type of dog he was born to be. 

Also, he may never want to play fetch. Our last golden was never interested in the game. But she was the best companion we ever had! 

Practical advice: get down on the floor with him as often as possible. Feed him some of his meals by hand. Spend lots of time brushing and grooming him. Always approach him very slightly from the side --and try to avoid coming at him from above or from directly in front. You'll also want to get him neutered. 

Also, it's important to set your household rules and boundaries now. Let him know you are the benevolent leader. 

Once he does learn to trust you, and knows what you expect from him, you will never find a more loyal friend. 

BTW -- what's his name? Can we see a picture?


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## mblondetoo (Jan 9, 2006)

Welcome to the site. Congratulations on your rescue boy. We also have a rescue, Tabitha, female and was about 9 months old when we adopted her. She has a few skeletons but appears no abuse. She quiet at first, showing no real interst towards anything but her own needs. After several months though she has turned into a great "protector of the house" and sounds like a pitbull when someone comes or something strolls through her yard. We had a family of turkeys (real ones!) walk through last night and it was comical! It is possible to act protective.

Some goldens don't really think fetch is all that great and there are exceptions to the rule of loving fetch. Tabitha plays a few minutes and then is bored. You are right , they need a job whatever it might be. I think you first need to gain your dogs trust and friendship. He might like a stuffed toy rather than a fetch toy. Give him his own special stuff. Tabitha was in a shelter and rescued and brought to this town to a lab rescue and placed with other dogs. She got a bit beat up from the looks of the fresh cuts on her nose. She is good with other dogs but still scared when they come running. Daycare worked well with her. She got to meet the dogs but there was much more control over dominant dogs trying to hurt her. Soon she realized she was now a big girl and stood up for herself.

First I think you need to neuter him. I'm sure eveyone else here will agree. A vet check would also insure there are no other problems. Maybe then even take him to a few obedience classes and get him socialized. Daycare really helped us too. Right now he is in a new place and lifestyle. Give him lots of love and I think it will all fall into place. Good luck. Hope to see some pictures.


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## Brandy's Mom (Oct 5, 2005)

Mblonde -- great ideas! You reminded me...they need special things -- but introduce them slowly and don't overwhelm them. 

When we first rescued Jenna, she showed no interest in a new bed that we had bought for her. After a month, we ultimately put it in a closet. 

About 9 months later, we splurged on a very plushy bed more suited for her senior age. I coaxed her to it. laid with her a few minutes, and the dawning expression on her face was: "Is this really all FOR ME?" She smiled and snuggled into it. And she's slept on it every night since then. 

It was one of those turning points when we could show her she truly belonged with us, and she acknowledged that she finally understood that she was part of our family.

Another great idea is obedience school. It helps to forge the bond between owner and golden.


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## Denali and Gretzky's Mom (Jun 26, 2006)

Congratulations on your new addition!

Our rescue, Gretzky, has been with us for almost two months. He barks at anything and everything that is unusual to him...which is a lot of things. Our other golden, Denali, doesn't bark at anything unless the other dog barks first. Every dog is different in this area. 

Denali isn't a fetching dog either. He might go for it once or twice, but that's it. Gretzky loves to fetch however and will bring it back until he's tired out. We have used a lot of treats and tried to teach Denali to fetch, but he's just not interested.

Brandy's Mom and Mblonde have wonderful advice! They helped us get through some tough times with Gretzky. They are wealths of information.


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## sashac (Mar 13, 2006)

Congratulations on your new family member!!! It's so exciting to first bring your Golden home! I am so happy to hear that you saved him from a bad situation - he is going to adore you for being his protector. 

Everyone has already given such good advice - advice I've used myself in working with my older rescue. Goldens can definitely be good guard dogs - my Charlie barks whenever the front gate opens, and boy it is a SCARY bark. I pity the poor FedEx man who is forever bringing me my online shopping purchases - I can tell that he runs out of that gate, even though Charlie is safely indoors!!! 

BUT, I wonder - the first priority should be getting him to trust you, because if he is already scared, "training" him to be on guard and watchful for things he needs to warn against, may exacerbate his nervousness. He may start to think - "Uhoh, even my owner is scared - this is definitely a bad situation!" and potentially become fear aggressive. Once he totally trusts you though, then he'll know that he's warning, just to please you, not because he needs to be scared. He'll realize he's doing a good thing. I hope that made sense. 

Charlie is also a very scared dog, but in a more aggressive way. He had been on the street long enough to learn he had to preempt anything in order to really protect himself, so he gets jumpy at a lot of noises, especially if he can't see where they are coming from. That means barking and growling. At first, we thought it was good, but then we realized that he was just scared. So now, when he barks at a noise outside, I walk outside, briskly, talking to him, acting like nothing at all is going on, so that hopefully, he starts thinking, "well i guess that was a false alarm, apparently nothing scary here"!. It's hard and time-consuming, but you've got yours right at the beginning and can start right away instilling the right messages. 

I guess, I'm just thinking - it's so easy to give the wrong message, because we see the world through very different eyes, and Goldens especially are so sensitive to training and learning with us.


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## monomer (Apr 21, 2005)

Its always wonderful when someone rescues a dog in a bad situation... but its unusual to find American Bull Mastiff, German Shepard Dog AND Golden Retriever all in the same posting. Your new Golden will never be anything like the other two breeds' reputations allude to (highly protection oriented). Goldens (actually just like many other breeds) can vary quite a bit by personality but usually they do NOT make for a good protection or attack dog and also have a different temperament than a GSD. GSD are known to be 'one man' dogs... Goldens however like to 'spread it around' so to speak... more of a 'love sponge', that's the allure of the breed for most of us. So please, I hope you do remember to keep your expectations for your new Golden along lines the fit into a Golden's character... they are usually considered a good family pet and a fun loving goof-ball. I've known people who have rescues and it does take time for the true personality to emerge... once you get a 'fix' on this, you can now tailor your training methods to better suit yourself and the dog. The one piece of advice I would like to offer is make sure you get 'your dog' (does he have a name yet?) out to socialize, under your guidance of course... and spend as much time with him as possible, especially these first few weeks together (though I'm wondering if that would even be possible as you seem to be working 3 jobs!... forgive me for asking but when do you sleep?) ...you need to immediately start building a bond with him and as you show yourself as someone who is highly predicable, even-tempered, fair, and one who will protect him, he should in turn want to come to you and be with you (stick and all).


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## jeffreyzone (Feb 8, 2006)

Dang. I guess I can give up on my dream of helping Dottie earn any Schuzthund titles, then. :-D


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## jeffreyzone (Feb 8, 2006)

But seriously, this is all good advice. Good luck with your new Golden companion!


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## katieanddusty (Feb 9, 2006)

All the advice has been good. Also (sorry if someone already said this, I honestly just scanned the posts), correction-based training might be too much for him so you might want to look into training with positive reinforcement. Clicking with your Dog by Peggy Tillman is an excellent book.

"Nothing in life is free" is also good, it's basically good for all temperaments across the board, just make sure she's out of the crate enough. http://www.goof.com/~pmurphy/NILIF.html


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## AlphaMail (Jul 31, 2006)

Wow!! What a response. I guess I have to clarify a few things from my first post.

*“Brandy's Mom” *
“They can be excellent warning dogs!!!” 
That is what I am hoping for. My Shepard was a “Warning Dog.” It is all in how you train them and what you allow them to do and not do in my opinion. 13 years, and he never bit anyone, and was friendly to anyone that I was friendly with, especially kids. I don’t need a guard dog, I have guns for that. Also, I have two little girls: a 16 month old and 1 ½ month old and I don’t want an aggressive dog. I just hoping he will bark if he hears anything outside while I am at work. 

“But Goldens do have a different temperment than what you may be used to. They live to please, and their spirits can be easily broken.” 
My Shepard was so close to being human that it was scary. Although, I already see a ton of differences.

“Also, he may never want to play fetch.” 
He will play fetch, I know I can get him loosened up over time. I have a lot of patience, and naturally, us big guys usually do. He is already getting “peppier” by the day. I think he is realizing that, although I am firm and scary maybe, I will not hit or strike him. Even if he is bad. He will learn.

“Practical advice: get down on the floor with him as often as possible.” 
Good idea, I did not really think of that one.

“Feed him some of his meals by hand.” I did this the second night. The first night, he was throwing up and diarrhea all over the house. I just cleaned it up and kept taking him out. Pretty much every 2 – 3 hours all night. He was sick and I can tell he is house trained, so I can’t punish at a sick dog. I fed him some boiled rice and lean beef, but I had to slowly hand feed him, closer and closer to his dish until he realized it was his for the taking. His vet visit today was very good. He is very healthy, and he either ate something bad, or was nervous. 

“Spend lots of time brushing and grooming him.” 
I am going to defer this action for my wife. The dog already is clinging to me, and I want him to cling to her a little more. My prowess is automatically making him cling to me as the “Alpha”. 

“You'll also want to get him neutered. “
This is a very hard sell to me. I don’t agree with this procedure. I will tell you a quick story, and then maybe you can understand why. My Shepard was never fixed. He was very obedient, so he never “did it.” I never had any problems, and he never had any health issues because of it. I think the “propaganda” of health reasons for dogs is promulgated by the tree huggers (no offense) who want to prevent people from letting their dog’s accidentally impregnate another dog, which increases the likelihood of dogs being put down. Sorry, but if you are a good owner, this is never an issue. I took my Sheppard to the vet when he was about 3, and the assistant went to take blood. The doctor grabbed her arm and said, “You can’t use that one, you have to use the “larger” needle.” She said, “I have the same dog, and mine is bigger. This is the same size we use on him.” The doc said, “Yeah, but this dog is not neutered and his skin is thicker, you have to use the bigger needle.” ENOUGH SAID.

“Once he does learn to trust you, and knows what you expect from him, you will never find a more loyal friend.” 
Although, I will not push my expectations to hard on the Golden, I don’t know if any dog in my life will compare to Samson, my Shepard. But, good thing is, he died where he was happy, with daddy at “work” - One of my jobs working the Guard House at the 55 and older development I live at for free in exchange for security work.

“BTW -- what's his name? Can we see a picture?”
Well, it is worn out, but Charlie is his name. I said he looks more like a Barney, but my wife insisted on Charlie. Picture will be coming.


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## AlphaMail (Jul 31, 2006)

*“mblondetoo” *

“He might like a stuffed toy rather than a fetch toy. Give him his own special stuff.” 
That will be the next trip to the store. I spoil all my kids rotten. Oh, and my wife too, but not with material things.

“First I think you need to neuter him.”
I already covered this one. NO. Sorry for disagreeing, but I agree, we can disagree.

“I'm sure everyone else here will agree. A vet check would also insure there are no other problems.”
I did this today (day two of being in his new home). He was sick, so I was not going to waste any time on that one. The doc said “Pepto” and he looks very healthy. The previous owner was breeding him, and supposedly kept up on the shots. But, I don’t trust that, because when I asked her what his name was, she just stared at me. Crack and alcohol tends to blur your judgment.

“Hope to see some pictures.” 
Soon….


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## AlphaMail (Jul 31, 2006)

*“Denali and Gretzky's Mom” * 
“He barks at anything and everything that is unusual to him...which is a lot of things. Our other golden, Denali, doesn't bark at anything unless the other dog barks first. Every dog is different in this area.”
Well, I will work on that by barking myself when I hear some odd noise or someone knocking. This worked in training my Shepard my catch phrase “Watch him” or “Who is it?” 

“Denali isn't a fetching dog either. “
I learned last night, that when I run, he loves to chase with me. He gets very excited, but still afraid of me when I stop. But, I am used to that from Job #1


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## AlphaMail (Jul 31, 2006)

*“sashac” *

“I am so happy to hear that you saved him from a bad situation - he is going to adore you for being his protector.”
I run into many strays, but I broke down this time. It must be because I have kids now. I think they weakened me. Darn girls. He is already coming around. These dogs learn very very quick I am finding out.

“BUT, I wonder - the first priority should be getting him to trust you, because if he is already scared, "training" him to be on guard and watchful for things he needs to warn against, may exacerbate his nervousness.”
That makes a lot of sense. I am not rushing or pushing. I want him to feel comfortable with me before I start trying any of that. I barked at someone last night, and it did scare him. So, that can wait. Once he realizes that my home is his home, he should come around. I give him tons of love and affection. That is one of the reasons I think my wife married me. “Idle hands are the devil’s workshop.” She has gotten more back, neck and foot rubs than most people get in a lifetime. 

“I hope that made sense. “
Yes, it did.


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## AlphaMail (Jul 31, 2006)

*“monomer “ *

“but its unusual to find American Bull Mastiff, German Shepard Dog AND Golden Retriever all in the same posting.”
Grin..

“they do NOT make for a good protection or attack dog”
That is good, I WILL NOT train an attack dog. I just hope, maybe he will bark at someone outside, to make the wife feel safer when I am at work.

“So please, I hope you do remember to keep your expectations for your new Golden along lines the fit into a Golden's character... they are usually considered a good family pet and a fun loving goof-ball.”
That is why I decided to take him and surprise my wife. I think he will be good for the girls and my wife. She wants a “lap dog.”

“(though I'm wondering if that would even be possible as you seem to be working 3 jobs!... forgive me for asking but when do you sleep?)”
Ahh.. that. Well, I guess I can spill the beans about this one. I am a police Sergeant, and work the midnight shift from 7p to 7a, 4 nights on 4 nights off. On my 4 nights off, I work the guard house at this 55 and older (sorry, 55 and better) community in exchange for a free place to live. Then 2 days on my days off, I have a pressure cleaning company that I go out and work for about 6 hours each 2 days that I go out. Sleep? Hahahhaha… I will have plenty of time to sleep when I am dead. 4 to 5 hours a night (if the new baby lets me on my semi-nights off). Why do I do all this? I want out of south Florida. I rented my house, moved in with the older folks in a nice, big townhouse with it’s own little backyard. Dog park 100 feet out my front door for the community. And, I can bring him to “work” with me at the guard house. The owner is a dog lover, and she was very upset when my Shepard died. She lives a unit away half the year, and she was gone when he passed. She has his “girlfriend.” A female Shepard. She is a dog lover, so I can bring him all over this place. Back on target. Because I work these jobs and sleep seldom, my wife was afforded the opportunity to change carriers. She is now an RN. And, she got to stay home with the girls. And, I bought 10 acres in NC. And, I just closed on a loan to build a 2200 square foot cabin (with the basement). I have a 5 year plan. Then I will move. Then “Charlie” will have a huge yard, and I will have to train him all over again. Lol But, the biggest bonus, when I move, I will only have to work one job. Then, I can spend more time with my kids. Sacrifices now, for a better tomorrow.

“ ...you need to immediately start building a bond with him and as you show yourself as someone who is highly predicable, even-tempered, fair, and one who will protect him, he should in turn want to come to you and be with you (stick and all).”
Except for the stick, I already established the bond. Oh, did I mention that I am a Rieki healer? So, my warm, healing hands work wonders on dogs. They get attached very quickly to me for some reason. I might scare him just from prowess. Being 6 foot 4 240, can sometimes intimidate the best of them. Plus, I growl. ;D


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## AlphaMail (Jul 31, 2006)

I will keep you all posted on how things are going with Charlie. 

I thank you all very much for your insight and wisdom. 

I hope I can find this kind of help when that big oaf of a Mastiff becomes available for me. I am sure I am going to have some “hiccups” along the way, and I can tell, you guys will all help me out. 

Thanks again.

P.S. I will try to get a picture out later tonight.


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## AlphaMail (Jul 31, 2006)

*“Katieanddusty” *

“correction-based training might be too much for him so you might want to look into training with positive reinforcement. Clicking with your Dog by Peggy Tillman is an excellent book.”
I definitely agree that he will need “praise-based” training. But, the last thing you will ever catch me with, is a clicker. Like I had posted earlier, “Idle hands are the devil’s workshop.” I would wear that clicker out, and the dog would be so confused, that he would probably eat the clicker to prevent me from clicky clicky clicky clicky. Unlike my Shepard, who I had to establish the dominant role early on due to his alpha strength, this one will and is already responding to praise. It is amazing what little scratchies can do. Hmm.. this is why my wife married me I think.


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## Lucky's mom (Nov 4, 2005)

Well, I tend to agree with you on the issue of Neutering, though my past dogs did fine neutered and spade. Any info I see.....I'm always wondering how really credible it is and just what are the real motives. 

I've seen a few articles against neutering before dogs are fully grown....and they tend to make sense....and since they specify bone health.......

we're waiting until Lucky is a couple of years and thus fully grown......


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## katieanddusty (Feb 9, 2006)

AlphaMail said:


> But, the last thing you will ever catch me with, is a clicker. Like I had posted earlier, “Idle hands are the devil’s workshop.” I would wear that clicker out, and the dog would be so confused, that he would probably eat the clicker to prevent me from clicky clicky clicky clicky.


I've only had a dog eat the clicker once, and that was when my Lab was 2 and I had the clicker and treats in the same hand (oops : ) I really encourage you to at least look into it. No one should write off any training method before they have an understanding of the science behind it.


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## AlphaMail (Jul 31, 2006)

*Pictures*

See the Attached Pictures I have posted.


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## Brandy's Mom (Oct 5, 2005)

Ahhh, Charlie is a field golden! You'll do fine together. AlphaMail, you already sound very wise and loving. Charlie is one lucky guy. Glad to hear he's healthy. 

Brandy is my first field golden, and I can pretty much assure you Charlie will be an energetic partner in your job.


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## jeffreyzone (Feb 8, 2006)

AlphaMail said:


> I think the “propaganda” of health reasons for dogs is promulgated by the tree huggers (no offense) who want to prevent people from letting their dog’s accidentally impregnate another dog, which increases the likelihood of dogs being put down. Sorry, but if you are a good owner, this is never an issue.


You've got a great new Golden companion. I really like the red ones.  I've no doubt that you are a very responsible dog parent. And we can agree to disagree about neutering for health reasons. I don't want to change the nature of this thread, as this topic has been discussed often on this forum. 

But I received yet another e-mail today from a desperate animal shelter in Georgia (Stephens County) that has a 95 percent kill rate. *Ninety-five percent!* 

They are preparing to ship a group of animals to the University of Georgia to be used for research purposes this week, and so the call has gone out to rescue groups around the state. So, all the talk about spay and neuter may sound like "propaganda," but the sad, pathetic fact is that there are a lot of people out there who are incredibly lazy, irresponsible, and just plain stupid when it comes to looking after their animals.

The results show up in shelters all across our country, and local governments spend a lot of tax dollars on what amounts to a destructive "solution" to the problem. Rescue volunteers take the band-aid approach, but we cannot expect to counter the effects of free-ranging, intact animals. I won't even start on the way that puppy mills and backyard breeders lend to the burden. Bottom line is, our society as a whole is doing a lousy job of policing itself in regard to controlling their intact animals. They either need to heed the education and do the right thing or be subject to law.

As a police officer, you know a lot more about the dark side of society than I ever will. If everyone would just behave responsibly, we wouldn't need laws or police forces. But expecting such behavior is unrealistic. In the case of the animal overpopulation problem, we need strong laws and help from law enforcement. I don't see any other way to resolve this problem.

Of course, you and your German Shepherd set a fine example for everyone who met you. You did a lot toward educating the public about being responsible. That's what it's all about, and it would be great if everyone would just be responsible.


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## AlphaMail (Jul 31, 2006)

"If everyone would just behave responsibly, we wouldn't need laws or police forces."

NO WAY... Don't you dare try to take my free donuts. Them's fightin words. 

Every utopian attempt ended in tragedy. We need a little bit of "evil". How else would be entertained? Am I joking? Do you watch the news? Enough said.

This is what I mean. In your response to the "propoganda", it contained more propoganda. I chose to leave my dog intact. 

"But I received yet another e-mail today from a desperate animal shelter in Georgia (Stephens County) that has a 95 percent kill rate. Ninety-five percent!"

This has nothing to do with me or my dog's health. I chose to be responsible. I chose life. I chose not to cut them off. This is why it is great to be in America. We still get to make some choices.


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## jeffreyzone (Feb 8, 2006)

Indeed. Enough said indeed.


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## AlphaMail (Jul 31, 2006)

"If everyone would just behave responsibly, we wouldn't need laws or police forces."

NO WAY... Don't you dare try to take my free donuts. Them's fightin words. 

Every utopian attempt ended in tragedy. We need a little bit of "evil". How else would be entertained? Am I joking? Do you watch the news? Enough said.

This is what I mean. In your response to the "propoganda", it contained more propoganda. I chose to leave my dog intact. 

"But I received yet another e-mail today from a desperate animal shelter in Georgia (Stephens County) that has a 95 percent kill rate. Ninety-five percent!"

This has nothing to do with me or my dog's health. I chose to be responsible. I chose life. I chose not to cut them off. This is why it is great to be in America. We still get to make some choices.


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