Madison

Updated 1/18/11

It must be Spring because Madison has just been blossoming. Where’s that shy, reclusive, introverted girl who arrived in our home just a few short months ago? She’s been replaced by a little gem who continues to amaze us.  She has made brushing very difficult recently—she won’t stop wagging her tail. I talk to her while I brush her and that tail is wagging nonstop the entire time. I think she’s really enjoying her one-on-ones  and her “me” time now that she knows what to expect with our grooming sessions.
 
Then tonight……

Background: I brush all our Goldens’ teeth every night. They basically fight to be first. After the first one’s teeth have been brushed, I announce, “who’s next?” Then the next one shows up on the rug: “My turn, please!” And it goes on until all five are done. They all enjoy it so much (don’t tell them it’s so healthy for them!). Well, Madison has been curious about this ritual from afar until recently. She once got in line, so I gently introduced her to the toothbrush and paste. She didn’t seem to get what was supposed to be fun about it, and decided she didn’t really want a part of it. Many nights she would lie on a dog bed in the kitchen and watch. Well, tonight she decided to get in line, so, of course, I put her at the head of the group. She actually let me brush her teeth for about a minute. Now that’s progress!!!! We’ll see how she does tomorrow night. But for such a shy little girl, this was another breakthrough!!!
 
Just thought I’d share this Golden moment!

Updated 1/14/11

What a difference  a few months have made for this girl!

Every day is a new adventure for Maddie and we are just amazed at her progress! She’s still on the timid/shy side,  but each day brings a little progress. She has no problem wriggling in between  five other Goldens to get her place for a treat. Everyone gathers round and waits their turn for nighttime treats. No grabbing, no growling, just wait their turn! To eat dinner ALL together in close proximity and in the company of five other Goldens is truly amazing; no one bothers anyone else.

Today we were in the hot tub and took the dogs out with us. Maddie decided to explore the surrounding area on her own. Boy, was she brave... we just watched in wonderment as she did so. She had so much fun... another step in her progress. She absolutely LOVES her  walks, where she feels free and happy--life is good! On our rambles on our property, she will run ahead and play with the other dogs, especially on cool, crisp mornings... she has so much energy on those days. She typically won't play with the others inside, but get her outside and she gets frisky! It's just so rewarding to see these little changes in her and see her come out of her shell.

She’s lost weight since coming to our home and is svelte and fit. She doesn't move an inch when getting her ears cleaned, and her tail wags the entire time she's  getting brushed

The best home for Maddie would likely be a couple with no children, as she doesn't  like loud noises and likes routine. She is still on the timid side and gets startled easily. She should’t be left alone for long periods—she needs the reassurance of her family. It would be ideal if you have room in the car for a furry “road warrior” – she loves going out with her foster dad on his rounds, and covers about 400 miles a week. Wow! She’s a great copilot to have beside you in the car, and a great companion to have beside you on the sofa at home, too!

Updated 10/18/10

Madison is progressing well. She must be wherever we are. We think she gets frustrated with us—she is such a couch potato and we don’t sit for an extended period of time, so she’s forced to get her exercise following us from room to room! As we indicated in our last report, she continues with her thief antics. She steals bags of dog treats. Robb made a placebo replacing the biscuits with a soft, squishy bean bag heating pad into an empty bag of biscuits, but she saw right through it. Nonetheless, she found this to be a comfortable pillow. She takes it from the pantry shelf and places it in her den and rests her head on it. Typically Madison will steal a bag of biscuits and place them on the sofa next to her; but this morning, she carried the bag of biscuits (mind you, it was a full unopened bag, which weighs 4 pounds) upstairs and then came back down shortly with it in her mouth. That’s one tough girl and jaw! Attached is a photo of Madison resting on her biscuit bag—talk about “comfort food”!
 
Madison still loves her walks. I guess for her, they are the epitome of freedom: fresh air, no boundaries! Since we walk the dogs on our fenced-in property, she is not leashed. At the start of our walks, she bounds ahead with the others, never out of sight—free, happy and not a care in the world, then suddenly realizes, “whew, I’m a little tired—that was work,” and follows in behind us. She is such a good little walker and it’s such a joy to see her at her happiest, except of course, when she wakes us up in the morning in her giddy little way!

Updated 9/23/10

Considering where she started, Madison has made TREMENDOUS progress in a short period of time and has become much more outgoing (compared to when she first came to us). She has a ways to go, but her progress has been wonderful—so much so that she is ready for just the right forever home.

She is  EXCELLENT in the car, EXCELLENT & very calm in the house, GREAT on lead—she loves her nice, slow walks! She has been the most wonderful girl and gets along so well with our five Goldens. She eats with the five in close proximity and shares treats when they all gather around and there is no quarreling.

We had a bad storm recently—lots of wind, thunder and lightning, so an excellent opportunity to observe her reaction. Her response: “Storm? what thunderstorm???”

One funny  thing about Miss Madison is that she’s a hoarder. She has stolen shoes, a 4-gallon bucket w/lid and a canvas bag containing groceries (yes, two very heavy items!). She takes these to her den or pulls them up onto the sofa. So cute! Doesn't destroy or chew them, just hoards! She loves her sofa time and considering her past, we can't deny her this luxury.

Sweet Madison needs a very calm household with a VERY patient forever family. She takes her time with everything: coming when called (yes, she does come to you, but SLOWLY, as she must really think about it), eating, walking (she walks SLOWLY). She gets very nervous if voices are raised; she needs calm, positive  energy in her family environment. We think she needs the companionship, leadership and mentoring of a good pack leader dog, too. With the right support system, we know she will do fine.

Update: 9/15/10

Writing up webstories for our GRR dogs is hard. No matter how we try, it isn’t easy to paint that perfect picture that shows how funny, sweet, endearing, brave, clever, silly, adaptable and completely individual each rescue Golden is…  or to explain just how great it is to see dogs with health challenges—and we see them all!—become stronger, prettier, and as healthy as we can make them.

And when it comes to puppy mill dogs like 6-year-old Madison and 5-year-old Mikayla… how can we ever put into words how wonderful it is to watch them opening up & learning to accept the carefree existence every Golden deserves? Dogs like these face special challenges as they adapt to a new world that is so very different from what they’ve known so far. They’ve gone from a grim, shut-in  existence—confined in stacked crates in a concrete-walled enclosure, with no toys, no play, no affection, and not even a name of their own—to living in homes where they can snooze on a soft sofa, walk on grass, play with toys, and, most important of all, get all the care and love they’ve missed out on all these years. The switch from a shut-down, narrow world to one where everything is “on” and open can be overwhelming.

Luckily—for them and for us!—two  very special GRR foster families are helping these girls adjust to the wide world. Patience, a calm & relaxed atmosphere, and a wonderful canine & human “support staff” – it all adds up to progress, step by step.

Maddy and Mikayla’s GRR story began in late August, when a caring lady who’s always on the lookout to help dogs in need spotted an ad: “Goldens free to  good home.” The girls had recently changed hands at a puppy mill auction, where their original owner had unloaded them due to their “low productivity” – and now the advertiser, who initially planned to breed them anyway, had changed his mind. Worried that the two might wind up in yet another puppy mill, we needed to act fast. By the very next afternoon, the dogs were settled safely at the clinic, though bringing them in wasn’t easy. “They were frantic & pulling hard on lead to escape us or avoid us—just extremely fearful.  When together, they huddled in a corner.  We took it slow, being super cautious so that they couldn’t escape, pull away or chew at their leashes. At one point, Mikayla wiggled away and dove under the SUV; we had to pull her out as she clung to the concrete. You can see the streak of oil on her nose in the photo.”

Madison’s story…

At the clinic, strawberry-blonde Madison was intially too stressed to eat or even to potty—her poor bladder was so distended the staff at first thought she must be expecting! Within just a day, though, she astonished everyone by starting to warm up. She came out of her kennel without persuasion, and even wagged her tail and seemed to enjoy gentle petting from the staff and visitors. “She is really sweet,” said the vet. “She seems to be coming around well emotionally.”

And a few days later, after spay surgery and recuperation, she was ready to make the trip to her foster home—where a Welcome Wagon of FIVE GRR Goldens was all set to show her the ropes.

August 30: When Micki and I picked up Madison, we brought our ambassador, Nelli, along to welcome her into her new wonderful world. Madison actually positioned herself so that her chin could rest on the console and she could get attention from Micki and Nelli while we made the 1 1/2-hour drive back home. Considering her time in a vehicle during her life has been almost nil, she took to the road like Charles Kuralt!
 
Upon arriving home, we brought out the rest of the pack one by one. Everyone got in their cursory sniffs and introductions were complete. We learned that Madison has a fully  functioning tail as we saw it wagging numerous times at things she found wag-worthy! It was time for the pack’s evening walk, and Madison seemed up for the challenge—she wagged that tail when we asked “Do you want to go?” We tried to turn her around early, but she wanted to stick with the rest of the guys—she’d only go back if her new buds came with her.

She wasn’t interested in eating, but she did watch Micki brush everybody’s teeth (yes—all five), was observed wagging her tail and even approached Micki several times during the process. She also ventured tentatively into the living room with the rest of the family later on. Overall we are really encouraged!

September 7: We’ve had Madison for one week now and her progress is amazing… though she certainly has a ways yet to go. She loves her “den” (her crate) and feels very safe there, and as much as we try to coax her out, she’ll stay put --  UNLESS you pretend to hook her up to a leash (or actually do it). Then she comes out instantly—no tugging required! She does love those walks and does very well with a leash. As you can see from the photo, we use the buddy system on our property so no one wanders too far. We pair/hook up the 6 dogs with like walking partners and they stick together. This system has proven invaluable for teaching the new pack members the rules of walking together; it’s our hands-free training! This weekend’s project was to give all six dogs baths. Everyone feels so soft now, and Madison’s fur is far less coarse. She did quite well and doesn’t mind getting brushed either.
 
After dinner, we all gather in the living room and call everyone in for family time. Here comes Madison to join us. Her favorite spot is on the sofa where she makes herself comfortable, as you may be able to tell from the attached photo. She’s using Tina’s butt as her pillow (that’s why we call Tina her “best butt-y”!). But she gets along very well with everyone.

Madison is smiling more and her tail wags more and more. She’s picking up on the routine, so this week we should make great strides now that she is learning she is safe and loved. She is not a barker….she’s barked once since she’s been here (whatever it was certainly must have been barkworthy!).

That brings you up to date on our little girl. She is doing very, very well.

September 13: Madison blossoms! Madison is adjusting beautifully. With each day she’s a little less shy and withdrawn. She is comfortable with her routine, so we decided it was time to draw her more into the family by closing off her safe haven (den/crate), where she’d always retreat. She still has the pantry for her “escape hatch,” but it’s not as secluded as the crate. Anyway, the plan is working really well. She now comes into the living room more freely to spend time with us. Mealtime is another advance just this week. She’d been anxious when eating, so we’d been feeding her segregated from the others. But as she’s been growing more relaxed, we figured it would be fine to let everyone eat in the same room, and hooray!—everyone did wonderfully and now she eats right alongside the rest of them. When the dogs gather for treats, she is right there with the others, edging her way in. She really has taken a liking to Odie, our 2-year old boy. At first, he would wiggle in when we were petting Maddy, as he was jealous of the attention she was getting. We made sure to share the love with him—and now when I call Maddy, she doesn’t come right away, but HE does! so she follows his lead and comes to see us.

Maddy is the cutest thief…. she loves to steal a shoe; just keeps it with her and doesn’t chew it. Tonight we went to feed the dogs and Robb couldn’t find the tub that we keep the dog food in (it was empty as he needed to fill it before feeding). He had no idea where it went. Come to find out it was sitting on the sofa in the living room--the “thief” stole it (don’t know how she did it or when)!

She is SOOOOO happy in the morning when she wakes up. She is ecstatic and wiggles and smiles and goes crazy. Another day to enjoy the good life, I guess. She lets us brush her and remains very still when I clean her ears (in fact I think she prefers getting her ears cleaned to brushing—how’s that for an amazing dog!).
 
Maddy is such a good dog—no accidents, doesn’t bark (has only done so one time, so we know she can!), walks well on leash, gets along with every dog personality. She’s a soft-natured, quiet gal and storms do NOT bother her in the least (not even the violent one last week). Of course, given her history, she MUST have a great deal of patience & understanding wherever she goes, and a calm household and pack leader. If we must raise our voices to one of the dogs, she cowers—so we quickly tell her it’s OK. Around Madison, it’s important to be positive, happy, & calm – because she can pick up on anxiety, and she’ll share it!
 
Whoever gives a forever home to Madison is one lucky person. She is such a sweetheart, and she deserves only the very, very best from now on.
 

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