You stole our hearts, sweet boy! Gladys & Frank Ritter

Please welcome Boika to RAGOM. Boika is a very sweet, healthy, energetic and handsome dark red purebred Golden Retriever who is 1 ½ years old. He found his way to RAGOM from a loving couple who took excellent care of him, but struggled with his strong energy drive and only wanted to give him the best life possible. Since his short time with us, we can attest that Boika does have A LOT of energy, and loves running in our fenced backyard playing with our 2 year old resident dog. He absolutely loves playing tug (does this frequently); going for walks, and anything that involves him being on the go.

Because he has so much energy, it would be best if his new  family was active to keep him stimulated, and had a fenced yard to let him run either on his own or with another dog. The surrendering owner did report he likes to chase cars, and it is unknown if he will easily come when called if he were to get free.

Boika has been to the vet for his checkup, is neutered, and weighs in at 60 lbs. He did well and the vet said he is at an ideal weight. While there he was micro chipped and received his heartworm pill and flea and tick preventative for the month. Boika is on antibiotics for Coccidia, which is typically caused by stress, and will need to get a fecal recheck, but otherwise received a clean bill of health.

It is evident that Boika wants to love all people; however some basic obedience will be needed. He can sit using a hand command, shake, and understands when you tell him “No”, however stay, lie down, and leave it are works in progress. He also pulls on walks, but a gentle pull on the leash does help redirect him. The surrendering owner indicated that he does not like to use a gentle leader, but does tolerate and walk better using a harness. Since we have had success with a gentle correction we have not tried his harness yet, and it should be noted that in typical retriever fashion, he likes to grab part of the leash in his mouth while walking.

Boika tends to be very curious and will sniff countertops to see if there is anything there that might have his name on it. While he has not actually jumped up to “counter surf” while in our care, he does put his head up and sniff the perimeter of counter tops, tables, etc., and does respond well to being told “No”. He will just move on to something different. He does not resource guard and gets along very well with our resident dog. When playing he can be mouthy only because he is so excited, and that is why we think he would do best around children who are a little older (10+).

This handsome boy is house trained and has not had a single accident while in our home. He will go to the patio door and stand without barking to be let out, or if he is in his crate he will bark once to let you know it is time. This sweet boy sleeps in his crate at night, and will put himself to bed between 9:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. by walking right in and going to sleep.

We do think that he would do fine with free roam and sleeping outside of his crate. Our resident dog has free roam while we are away, but we have always crated Boika and he does fine. We are starting to let them both have free roam for short durations (1-2 hours), and it has gone well without any incidents.

Please submit a RAGOM Inquiry for Application form if you are interested in meeting this delightful boy!