Chester & Casey

by: Erica

I've only every had Golden Retrievers, even in childhood. So when my husband and I were ready to get a puppy to befriend our aging golden, it was a no brainer: we were Golden Retriever smitten. Those expressive eyes and dopey smiles, c'mon. So we bought a puppy through a reputable breeder and waited three months on pins and needles for him to be ready to come home. We chose a name for him the first time we saw him. He was a Chester, through and through.

The day we brought Chester home, he was already showing signs of having health issues. After a vet visit on his first day home, he was diagnosed with an auto-immune disorder that caused him to have allergies to grass and/or other pollens. The vet declared him "Bubble Dog" and insisted he should remain inside all the time. Over the next two months we took him outdoors a few minutes at a time each day. Eventually, Chester was able to stay outdoors for longer periods of time until it stopped being a problem for him altogether. All the time indoors and having to completely reinvent potty-training caused Chester and I to bond in way I never had with any other dog. He became my surrogate child: following me from room to room, pushing doors open with his nose to check on me. We developed our own secret language/understanding that befuddled my husband. I would interpret Chester's needs for my husband like I could read his thoughts. The most distinct memory I have of Chester is that when he wanted my attention he would rear back on his hind legs, in the sitting position with tail extended backward, and put his front paws on my leg and nip at the air. I was a sucker for this. I would almost always drop what I was doing and give him full attention. We had a name for this position, we called it "roo-ing" because he looked like a kangaroo.

Then, at nine months of age, Chester began vomiting daily. Taking him back to the vet, he was found to have juvenile lymphoma and we had two fleeting days with him before his short time on earth was over. I was devastated. We erected a small memorial to him with paw prints, favorite toys, and pictures. Oh, the pictures. Hundreds of them.

For two years I thought nothing would ever replace Chester. Then, in the late spring of 2009 a friend that fosters golden retrievers for a golden retriever rescue said she had just the perfect golden for me. Hesitantly my husband and I drove the sixty miles to her home to check out this "perfect dog". He was hyper and slightly neurotic, but she was right, Casey was perfect for me. :) We decided to rescue Casey who had had a terribly unstable and sad past. When we brought him home he fit right in. We noticed right away that so many of his mannerisms were very similar to Chester's and loved Casey all the more for it. Then, about a week after we had him and Casey began settling in, we returned from a walk and I was relaying the events to my husband. I felt a set of paws on my thigh and looked down to see Casey nipping at the air and roo-ing just as Chester had done so many times. 

So while Chester's story may not have ended with a happily ever after, Casey's certainly did and he daily reminds us of why we will forever be sold out for golden retrievers.

Happy

by: Heather D.

When I was a kid, I moved in next door to a family that had two Goldens and a St Bernard. I wasn't particularly interested in dogs, but I wanted to meet the Goldens. When I got the chance to, I was introduced mostly to Happy, a beautiful light colored Golden with the longest, thickest tail feathers I have ever seen. The other Golden was called Bucky, but I bonded the most with Hap. 

Happy was crazy about being brushed. As soon as I showed him the brush he would be so happy and lie down to be brushed. And I brushed him for hours. With each stroke, I bonded more with him. 

I also trained him, though looking back he trained me more. He taught me how to train a dog--he was so patient and wise. He taught me to not get angry, he would just ignore me if I was frustrated with him. And he wasn't afraid of anything. 

Happy loved fetching in the water, not so much on land. I remember throwing water balloons in the stream for him to fetch, and he never broke one, he had such a soft mouth. Once he accidentally dropped one on a rock, and was shocked when it disappeared.

I got to enjoy Happy for a year and a half, then my family moved far away from him. I was heartbroken, but a year later I got to visit my boy again for two weeks.

He remembered me. I was so happy to see him and he was to see me too. He remembered the days we spent together, me brushing and training him, and teaching each other. I spent those two weeks loving Hap, not knowing they would be the last time I saw him. I cried hard when I had to leave him.

Months later he stopped eating, and the vet found an obstruction of porcupine quills in his stomach. They took those out but he still didn't improve. Happy died 2 months later, from an unknown cause though the vet suspects cancer.

It hurt me to hear that he died, that I would never again see the dog that introduced me to the incredible love that is dog. I miss you and love you dearly, Hap. Thank you for all that you taught me, you are an incredible dog!

Our latest Golden hails from the great white North! Her Mom's story really touched our hearts, and we hope it will do the same for you.

Claire

by: Amy Vervoort

Our Golden Retriever, Claire, was a long awaited member of our family. After waiting years to adopt her, when I knew last year we were settled enough to have plenty of time for a dog. She was born on November 6, 2008, and came to us on December 30, 2008. 

She has brought so much fun and joy into our lives, and we would not be complete without her.

I was a single mom, with my now almost twelve year old daughter, enjoying working at our local university in the English Department. I had pretty much given up finding a partner, and had been quoted as saying, "who needs a man when you can have man's best friend". That was when I decided to adopt Claire, and made arrangements with a local breeder for a female puppy from their next litter. In the time between making those arrangements and when the pups were born, I met the most adoring man, and Australian living in northern Canada - who happened to love dogs. Not long after we started dating, I sent him an email with pictures of a new Golden litter and told him one of them was mine. 

My daughter chose her name. She said, "a beautiful dog should have a beautiful name". By the time Claire came to us on December 30th, everyone was excited for her arrival. Everything revolved around our puppy's schedule and needs. My partner and I would walk her every evening, and every morning she would join us in bed for morning coffee. 

At first she couldn't jump up on the bed, and would have to be lifted, but soon she was able to make a run for it and jump to the top. There were a few spills along the way, but once she got up she was Daddy's girl, and enjoyed her morning belly rub. Her love for Daddy was evident every time he was out of town, when she would sulk when he couldn't be found, and when he returned was greeted with the most enthusiasm.  

We all live together now, and Claire has been the center of it all. She has a new dog run in the back yard, her own ottoman in the living room, and takes priority in the bed. Recently, we decided to adopt a baby brother for her, a Basset Hound named Gromit. She's not too sure what to make of him, but he makes her bounce on springs. She's started a blog to follow her life with Gromit, and tell all her stories of dog parks, tree farms, and stuffy ducks.

We all look forward to a long life with Claire. She makes every day a joy, and is the sweetest soul I have ever known.

Editor's Note: Amy is new to the blogging community, so please help us give her a warm welcome! Here's a link to Claire and Gromit's blog.

We received our latest entry from a sweet young lady who clearly knows the joy and companionship a special dog brings. We hope you enjoy her story as much as we did!

Crue 

My Best Friend, Crue

by Lainee Greeson

I knew the moment I laid eyes on him that he was the one. I spent all of my money I saved up and tried the hardest in school to get him. He was lightest one out of the litter and by far the one that caught my eye. We got to bring him home one week early because the breeders where going on a camping trip. His nose went off as soon as we stepped into the house.

It took me a couple of days to figure out what I wanted to name him. My parents wanted to give him "a horse like name" but I wasn't for that. The name came into my head Crue, like you never leave your home without your crew. He is the smartest, clever, most beautiful dog I know. And I know a lot of dogs! He acts as if he is human. When he jumps up on the ledge to look out the window, to see if anyone is coming. And when you say get the bunny, or the birdie he knows what your talking about, as he gets real still and looks around. When you ask him where his duck is or his bone he will search high and low until he finds that toy. He will lay right over the vent where the cool air comes out, because he knows what that does.

Today Crue is 3 years old  (he is a boy) I love when you wake up he follows you everywhere like a shadow. And like a human stretches when he wakes up. He takes up most of my queen size bed and loves to bring you socks. Its a pride thing for him. My favorite thing about him is how he poses for the camera. I want to become a photographer and he is the perfect dog to take pictures of. Crue is my best friend and I take him everywhere with me. If its the store or if I am just going out front, he is always by my side.

We are so happy to share with you, Golden Retriever 8 of 1000, Charlie. Charlie is a well know dog blogger, and we're grateful Anne wanted to contribute his story here!

 Charlie

by: Anne Kohlstaedt

It all began 10/26/2004 with email from our good friend, Karen, in Indiana: "Look! I am going to call about this litter. I don't know how old they are now, but there are 4 females and 4 males. They said the father was the same color as the mother (whose name is Abby). :-)"

Many years ago Karen, a vet in Indiana, had saved the life of our golden retriever, Lindsey. Karen had loved Lindsey's "you are my slave, give me what I want" personality so much that Lindsey made a litter just for her. We had each kept a puppy, but after long and wonderful lives, they had both passed on, and it was time for another.

Charlie is on the top of the pile!So we'd previously enjoyed having golden siblings, and when Karen sent her email, you could just feel where things were headed. She liked the looks of the new litter and selected a puppy (Sophie) herself. We asked her to pick out a Lindsey-like one for us, too. There was one puppy (called Bailey at the time) that stood out to her: "Wasn't it cute that Bailey was always on the top of the pile?"

From there things progressed pretty quickly: "I told the puppy people that you have dibs on Bailey". The puppy people's response was: "We won't have to mark his nails, his personality says it all; he tried another escape after we raised the board." And as they grew: "Bailey, aka. Charlie Jr. is starting to 'pounce' when he plays...very cute. He is the first to eat and the last to sleep. Get ready... ;-) "

So Karen is the reason we have Charlie and all of us here want to say a big Thanks!