Boomer

Updated 7/9/10

What you need: A tall fence, willingness to snuggle
What you get: Boomer! Or, to be more detailed, a dog who is:
* Wonderful with kids and likes to be around them
* Completely reliable indoors, with or without the family at home
* Willing to assist in wearing out any other young active dogs in the home; happy to wrestle with, sit on, jump around with, and play bitey-head with the most vigorous puppy
* A good boy on leash
* A willing swimmer
* A good boy at the beauty parlor
* A great cuddler!
* A true Golden Houdini, hence the need for a tall fence.

To sum it all up: He’s great! I wish we could keep him.

Updated 6/18/10

Boomer had a big yard, a pool, a shady patio, and a busy family who just didn’t have enough time to spend with a social dog. “The yard is nice,” thought Boomer, “but I’d really like to hang out with people, too.” Besides his good looks, this young Golden is blessed with a clever brain, so he soon figured out that, hey, if I lift latch (A) with my nose, then quickly press on board (B) with my paw, gate (C) will pop open, leading to Wide Open Spaces (D)!  If on occasion the gate was locked, Boomer moved on to his contingency plan, which entailed clambering up onto hot tub cover (E) and lightly leaping over fence (F). The only hitch was Boomer’s nosy neighbor, who called Animal Control as soon as he saw a familiar red form strolling down the street on his meet & greet missions. And all too soon, Boomer was busted!

After about the 9th “loose dog” fine, Boomer’s family called GRR. “He is super loving and friendly and AMAZING with kids. He needs a family who is very involved with him, who will spend time with him every day, take him for walks, show an interest in him so maybe he won’t want to get out so much,” said his Dad.

Of course, his foster family loves him: “Boomer is great dog, so sweet and gentle. Very submissive, and very friendly. He has a really wonderful disposition and is friendly with our Golden and very gentle with our 3-year-old daughter. He has never knocked her over, even when he’s excited. He loves to cuddle with you and would like to be with people about 90% of the time—when not snuggling he would like to be near you on the couch, or on the floor by your feet. He is a bit of a couch potato and doesn't run very fast or very hard. He loves to be brushed, and he needs a lot of it because he is a furry little guy! He will sit still through the entire brushing.  He seems quite happy to be with a family who loves to love dogs! I think he's enjoying all the attention he's getting around here.”

However, old habits die hard, and Boomer  can’t help exploiting his Houdini Dog skills when given the chance:

He loves to explore and he really is an escape artist. When out back for a short while, he found a vulnerable spot in our fencing, pushed at it, made a gap big enough to squeeze through, and  presto! He popped into the neighbor’s yard. Then he waited patiently for me to come and get him (he was only on the other side of the fence for a couple minutes)… but if he had been left there for more than a few minutes,  he might have found his way out of THAT yard. So this guy needs a good yard for play and exploration, BUT one with a tall fence with no weak spots or gaps, a consistently locked/chained gate,  and no launch pads! My hope is that he is just so used to escaping that he needs time to learn there is going to plenty of  fun and attention on the “IN” side of the fence, so no need to roam. He needs a family who will give him lots of attention, and who likes having a Golden keeping them company. He likes children (after all, they give lots of pets!) and would be a great dog for a family with small kids. Any home that will make him an inside family member and take advantage of his loving, companionable personality will be ideal – and very lucky to get such a wonderful dog, too.