Adopted
Bella
is a super sonic
bundle of golden energy fueled by a nuclear power plant. Wow, can this girl run
and jump with joy. You can’t help but catch her happiness and be in a good mood
when you see this dog. She is a lithe, slim golden (50 lbs) with a short coat
and very fine features. This girl loves to play leap frog with our other two
dogs and enjoys a nightly “face wash” from one of our cats. She will do well in
a home with other dogs, providing they are used to “sharing” their environment
with other pets. Bella wants to play, play, play. We call her Bella the
Ballerina as she twirls, spins and leaps with the grace of golden.
Bella gets along well with cats. She is very passive in her relationships and even shares her dinner. Bella does not have a possessive bone in her body. She can be a little rough in her play with the cats, but she is learning to temper her enthusiasm with gentleness as we have several cats with varying degrees of dog tolerance.
Bella is trustworthy in the house, crate trained, and housebroken. However, if bored or left alone for long periods she will find amusements. She emptied a wash basket full of towels and deposited them around the house, but none were damaged. She’s a counter surfer too, but more out of finding something to do than pursuing food. I think she likes to pull things off the counter, as the noise of something falling, rallies the other dogs and a few cats and she has someone to play with.
Bella’s high energy level can make it difficult for her to concentrate if she is surrounded by distractions (other happy dogs). When alone, however, she focuses well on training commands particularly when rewarded with a peanut butter dog biscuit. She knows sit, wait (stay), down and walks well on the leash after the initial few minutes of the walk. I was very surprised how many commands she knew and responded to. She’s a quick learner too.
Bella is a jumper. She’s made a fast progression learning to jump “up” not “on” and we are working towards eliminating jumping in the house altogether. It’s so hard not to jump when you are so happy.
While Bella loves children, she will do best in a household with no children or older children accustomed to active dogs. She has a tendency to communicate with her “hands” and little ones could be scratched by accident. We are actively working to modify this behavior.
We don’t know yet if she likes water, but I’m certain she will. Bella enjoys being brushed and petted but is not overly demanding of affection. Overall she is an extremely very well adjusted dog with no “issues” that I can see. She just needs a little help in containing her happiness when indoors.
If you are looking for a snuggly couch potato to watch movies with, this is not the dog for you. Bella will need a family with an energy level to match her own and a family who is willing to include their pet in varied outdoor activities.
She will be 2 in March and comes to us form a Good Samaritan who
befriended her after her owners could no longer care for her. She gets this
update from her foster family:
Bella is terrific. All the basics, housebreaking, playing nicely with others etc are coming along. She loves cats. Our cat Jynx washes her face every night and shares her food bowl.
She's a delightful, goofy, happy, spirited young golden with TREMENDOUS energy and very little training. She knows sit and "wait" (stay), if you can catch her attention, otherwise, she a whirling, glowing gold blur whipping through the yard and the house.
I have found she desires eye to eye contact and if you ignore her bad behaviors she'll settle down more quickly than if you acknowledge her jumping and indoor hyperactively in any way (twirling in circle, jumping next to you, racing down hallways etc) in anyway. I don't allow any rowdy behavior in the house.
Bella can be a typical "bull
in a china shop" with good manners when she remembers them (we haven't tested
her with full run of the house yet as we've only had her two weeks). When she
is focused, she walks well on the leash but needs improvement. She sits, waits
(stay), and "downs". She loves to play with other dogs. I think her ideal
home would include a companion dog. It was a very easy introduction. She
doesn't have a possessive bone in her body and she just wants goofy play all -
the - time.
She's
a bright, petite girl with great potential but it will take patience and
consistency to help her understand her role in the house. She good with older
kids but is going to require a ton of attention and basic obedience to make her
a good canine citizen. She acts much more like a six month old puppy than a two
year old dog.
Watch for more as we get to know this sweetie better!
View Pictures Here