I went to my foster grandparents this weekend with FM while the boys stayed back and hunted deer. My FM forgot my gentle leader, can you believe it?!  So, I had to be walked on just a leash. I did pretty well! Although grandpa said he thought if I came back to visit we should bring a sled along for me to pull!

I overheard FM say that she posted a photo on her Facebook page of me being a Drama King. Look at the picture and see what you think. I no nothing of this nonsense she speaks!

Hi everyone!  This is Reggie. FM is taking way too long to write an update for me, so I snuck into her office while she was out this afternoon.  

First off, I saw some really neat pawprints on my wall and wanted to thank Ann Meyers and Beau 14-117's family for thinking of me! Also, it looks like I have an anonymous fan. Pretty darn cool if you ask me. Thank you so much! I know that I haven't been the cheapest RAGOM guy, and so I really do appreciate the support. RAGOM is awesome and helps so many dogs who otherwise might fall through the cracks thanks to fans like you. And they never even complained about my costly handwarmer  incidents, oops.My foster family is petsitting for their former foster boy Rufus (the Dufus as I like to call him) for a whole month. We get along fine. He's 2 and a little more hyper than me, but what do you do? FM bought me an elk antler at Goldzilla and I even share it with him. We take turns. I'm a nice guy if you ask me! One thing that I learned from him was that when  FM throws sticks into the water, it is fun to swim out to them and bring them back. They make a nice snack once my feet are back on shore. Mom throws 30; Rufus retrieves 27 and I get about 3. Too much work if you ask me to get more than that. I'm pretty mellow and like a slower pace of life.About a week ago my mom did the best thing! She made a beef roast and took it out of the oven and left it on the stove while she went to answer the phone. The nice guy I am decided I'd save her a step and just serve myself. Anything to make less work for mom.  I am a helper.  Mmmmmmm, it was so good!! Well, that's about all for now. I have been keeping my paws crossed lately because I heard some rumblings that I might have someone interested in meeting me! I'm pretty excited and am hoping I will have some news to share on my next update!

Summer has been flying by and our big, lovable Reggie Bear continues to do well. He spends most of his days sleeping on the cool tile floor of the kitchen, keeping watch over the refrigerator and anticipating when the next walk will be. This boy loves his walks!  He could be a spokesman for a Gentle Leader company. He just sees me get it out and he is next to me in seconds trying to put it on himself! 

He is such a sweet, sweet boy. It is hard to over emphasize this. I know much discussion about his eating habits has taken place in past posts. I want to reiterate that Reggie has never once shown any resource guarding with us and respects boundaries with our resident dog's eating area. He does watch and if Tito walks away and leaves some, all bets are off, but while Tito is eating Reggie lays down and watches from several feet away. Tito is 19 pounds and Reggie is 100 so it's a bit comical. When Reggie has taken something "prized" that he knows is probably a no-no - such as a mouthful of napkins- he takes it into his kennel, which is a dead giveaway! We have been cautious taking from him, but he has proven that he will give it to us reluctantly, of course, but with absolutely no growling or warning postures when we demand this of him. He will try to give you his begging eyes and might even throw in an unsolicited "Sit" and "Shake". Do not fall for this!

A few weeks ago we found out that Reggie is an excellent camper. We took him for a long weekend to Lake City where we camped in tents. We were a group of 14 people including kids from age 7 to adult. Reggie did so well with everyone. My 7 year old nephew, who adores dogs more than anyone I know, especially loved on him and Reggie endured his 1000 hugs with no reaction. He was a very polite recipient of attention. Reggie is not a "get overly excited" kind of guy. While the s'mores making and hot dog grilling definitely did get his attention, he lay between our camp chairs and just watched with the hope that someone would drop a marshmallow on the ground. He listened very well to us and I couldn't have been prouder of his behavior. He slept in a tent with us and never moved after the first minute in the tent. Just walked in the door, found his spot and plopped down for the night like he had done this a million times.
 

I feel sad for Reggie that he was handed this card of having Cushings. I know he doesn't know any different, but I am sad because without this label I know he would likely have been adopted already. I understand that it can be scary to think of adopting a dog with an ongoing disease such as this. But please consider this guy. He really is a great housemate and companion. His Cushings is easily controlled with one pill/twice a day. He gobbles it up with no issues. He will be going in to the vet in late August to check his cortisol levels and make sure he is on the correct dosage. This is routine and there is nothing to indicate that he is not. Remember, Reggie doesn't know he has a disease. He just knows that he is thirsty, kind of hungry and waiting for his forever family. This is why we do Rescue. We are giving these dogs a much needed second chance and we would love to show Reggie that Happily Ever After is possible! Please let your placement advisor know if you would like to meet him. He's a very special boy looking for his very own special family.

Sorry about the length of time it has been since Reggie has been updated, but change has happened and he has been on the move. Three weeks ago an unfortunate accident occurred at Reggie's foster home with a resident dog suffering a spinal injury. Reggie, through absolutely no fault of his own, needed to be moved so that the resident could recover in as much peace as possible. His former foster family was terribly sad to see him go, but knew it was the best decision in a hard situation.He has made the transition very well. He is now living with just one other small terrier mix brother and they co-exist beautifully.First off, let me tell you this. Reggie really is a gentle giant. Emphasis on giant. I knew he was a big boy, but I still laughed when I put him the back seat of my car upon pick up. His head almost touched the ceiling! He is also the sweetest dog. I concur with former foster mom in saying I don't think there is a mean bone in this boys body.Reggie is a loving boy who enjoys getting his belly rubbed, but is just as happy laying by himself on the tile floor in the kitchen. He is not demanding of attention, but enjoys it when given. I work from home and he respects the baby gates we have placed to keep him contained while out of my sight. He sleeps in a kennel at night with no issues whatsoever. He goes on a tie out during the day for a few hours max and does well with it. He does like the reassurance of knowing where his people are and will position himself so he can see the doors to the house.Reggie weighs in at 100 pounds and while he doesn't look all that overweight, his weight does need to be watched as he has a ravenous appetite and will eat, eat, eat.  Reggie is a counter surfer and we are working on this, but you will need to keep your counters clear because while some of this might be bad habits, I think sometimes he really cannot help himself, possibly due to his Cushings. Unfortunately, it took several bananas with peels, and two loafs of bread before we realized how big his appetite really is. Reggie has been getting green beans with his kibble to help fill him up with fewer calories. We also give treats of carrots and apples. He LOVES his treats. We are all utterly amazed how the word "Gentle" works magic with him. If you forget to say it, watch those fingers. If you say it, he is so delicate. I think my favorite Reggie moments are when he is waiting for a treat. His eyes get sooooo big and he looks so goofy, it's hard to say no. The vet told me not to fall for it ;)Speaking of the vet, Reggie went in last week to have a few lumps and bumps looked at to make sure they were not his cancer coming back. They did biopsy them and found them to be harmless cyst type growths! Woohoo. Finally, good news for Reggie at the vet.  He will be going back in, in August to have his cortisol levels checked, just to make sure the meds are still doing their thing for his Cushings. This is just a standard recheck that he will need once or twice a year from now on.Reggie goes on 2-4 mile a day walks depending on the heat and walks so well on a gentle leader. He also has met other dogs on our walks with absolutely no reaction. Some have been yipping at him, some have been sniffing him, one large doodle even chased after us and he just kept walking along. I don't think he even looked at them. For this reason, I think Reggie could get along with any dog. Reggie will be at his first Meet & Greet in Shakopee on Saturday July 12. Please stop in and see for yourself what a sweetheart this guy is. Did I mention he's incredibly handsome as well??