George's first stop in Minnesota was at our RAGOM office where an army of volunteers greeted our new arrivals from Turkey, gave them a chance to stretch their legs and roll in the snow, and then bathed them.

Arriving in our home, George happily met the three resident Goldens. He proceeded to explore the house and back yard, accompanied by his new friends. His tail wagged nonstop! Predictably, after dinner, George crashed. He slept through the night. That was his adjustment period. (We should all be like George.)

Several days after he arrived, we went to the vet for George's wellness checkup. He has an ear infection, and we're applying ointment daily with ear "flushes" several times a week. George's teeth needed to be cleaned also.

We returned to the vet this past Monday, expecting the cleaning and perhaps several extractions. Instead, George had six extractions, two of which were teeth in the back of his mouth and badly absessed. Poor George! Now we know where that bad breath came from. Foster mom is delighted to report that George's teeth are now shiny and bright, and his breath is as fresh as a baby's. He is recuperating with some meds, mushy food, and lots of love. 

From a health perspective, George needs to lose some weight. He has enthusiastically embraced what, from his vantage point, must be "boot camp." He is on a reduced amount of high-quality grain-free dog food, liberally supplemented with green beans for bulk and roughage.

George's previous activity level was, apparently, low. Accordingly, although he does not have any detectable hip problems, foster mom is supplementing his diet with fish oil and glucosamine/chondroitin to ease his transition into this increased activity level. We started walking the day after he arrived.

George's pace could initially be characterized as an "amble," but he has picked up the pace every day. After only 10 days on the new program, he is walking briskly for over half of his 1 to 1 1/4-mile route and, even when he slows down, we do not amble!

Best of all, George loves his walks. Whenever foster mom goes to the front door now, George appears and, with much tail wagging and enthusiastic pirouetting, tells me he's ready to go on a walk! Bless him! And his efforts are paying off. Just a week after his initial physical, we weighed him again: he's already dropped two pounds. Kudos to George!

Some highlights of "Life with George" are that he:

• is housebroken,
• walks nicely on a leash,
• has free roam in the house,
• meets other dogs with smiles and wags,
• rides quietly in the car,
• sleeps through the night next to FM's bed,
• although he perks up his ears when squirrels run by him on our walks, he shows no inclination to chase them, and
• rarely barks.

The only time I've heard George bark was when we were in the waiting room at the vet's office. A pretty little Min Pin came in wearing a very feminine pink bow. George just beamed and barked a big "Helloooo! Let's be friends!"

Lastly, George exhibits a characteristic that foster mom has seen with other dogs who have come into RAGOM from challenging conditions. He is so appreciative of what many dogs take for granted. He lets me know every day that hugs and pets and kisses are prized above all else in his world. He is, quite simply, a beautiful soul.