Lhasa

Age: 5

Available Date: 11/13/11

Updated 11/4/11

This beautiful boy’s rescue story began out on the West Coast, where  a Southern California rescue group pulled him, gravely ill with pneumonia, from a local shelter. He recovered: miracle #2. Miracle  #1 is that the group found him at all, since he was actually listed as a Lhasa Apso. ??! Here in Texas, we’ve seen Goldens listed as Labs and Irish Setters, but confusing a Golden with a toy breed is a new one on us! But the name “Lhasa” stuck—especially since he has a long, flowing coat that almost touches the ground under his tummy.

Lhasa was soon adopted by  a nice lady, but when she moved to Central Texas, she found she no longer had the space a big dog needs to roam and play.  She made the difficult decision to surrender her lovely Golden, so he could be placed with a family who can give an energetic boy the room and attention he needs.

Lhasa’s foster mom says:
Lhasa is about 5 years old, though he doesn't know that—he has the energy of a 2- or 3-year-old!  He is dark red with a very nice “blocky” head, about average height and maybe a touch overweight.  When he lies down, he crosses his front legs in the cutest position.  In the morning, he greets me by my bed with a true Golden SMILE.

This dog has received, and is used to, a LOT of attention! He’s a snuggle bunny. He loves being brushed and raked and pampered.  He loves being right next to us & is very interested in what the people  are doing: he lies close to us while we work in the office and follows us wherever we go in the house.

He does not jump up, but will sit nicely in front of you and tap you with his paw to get attention.   He likes to explore the backyard, and will retrieve a toy, but he's not quick to drop it for you to toss again.

We have two other Goldens, a 5-year-old boy and an 11-month-old  girl pup.  After nice slow introductions, Lhasa has done very well with both dogs.  He will wrestle with the puppy, but does have his limits, and he’s good about using just the right amount of a firm growl to let her know when he’s done.  He has a bit of a jealous streak, so when either of the other dogs gets attention from a human, he will interrupt and get right in the middle of the action, wanting his share.

We can't tell if Lhasa has had much training, but he will sit for us.  I have worked a little bit with him on treating and positive reinforcement.  He quickly learned not to use teeth when accepting treats, so I think he is highly trainable.  He has good recall and responds nicely to an "uh-uh" when we catch him being naughty.  And so far, “naughty” consists of minor things, like humping the other dogs.  He is really a very well-behaved boy.

Lhasa’s previous owner reports that he is great with older children (ages 10 and 13), but he doesn’t do well with cats.  They tend to be a big distraction to him. (Imagine that!) This guy is not a couch potato! He needs a home where he’ll get good exercise and the chance to run around—and of course, he wants and needs plenty of affection & to be a part of the family.

Lhasa is wonderful! I keep saying the family that adopts him will be VERY lucky.