Fern found her way into RAGOM when I happened to be at the gas station where she was being given away, along with her Husky looking puppies, out of the back of a truck. She was the only one left by the time I got to the truck. The person giving her away didn’t say much about her other than that she had showed up at his farm about 2 years ago and she had been living outside on his farm ever since. This sweet girl didn’t have a name when I first loaded her in to my car, but my daughter thought the name “Fern” seemed to fit her. Fern has a very curly/wavy reddish/golden coat. Her coat is so soft! Our best guess is that she’s a Golden Retriever/Lab mix.

Fern had a vet check and was spayed this week.  She was brought up to date on vaccines and her heartworm test and fecal float were negative.  She has an ear infection in her left ear that we are treating with a medication we put in once per day.  Everything else with her physical exam looked great and she is ready for her forever home!  The vet thinks Fern is around 3 years old.  She weighs 60 pounds and is on the thin side.  We will try to get 3-4 pounds on her.  Fern is now microchipped.

Not knowing much about her background, we weren’t sure what to expect bringing her into our home. We were surprised and delighted to see how well she has fit into our household! Here are some things that we learned about Fern this week:

• She has not had a single accident and whines at the back door to go out.  I would consider her fully housetrained. I crate her when I am gone and she goes in the crate willingly. She is crated a full work day without any issues.
• Fern loves to play with Vinnie 12-382, Rufus 12-342, and our resident Golden, Finn. She did a great job communicating (growling) when they spent a little too much time sniffing her back end, and when they backed off she was happy to play with them again. Fern would love another dog in her adoptive home, but it would be best if it was a younger, active dog. I think her playfulness would annoy an older dog.
• She does seem to like our cats a little too much! The first few days she wanted to get them, and we had to separate them by keeping the cats in a bedroom when Fern was out, and putting Fern in the kennel when the cats were out. Now, we are at the point where they are both able to be out at the same time, separated by a baby gate.
• Fern does great with my 8 year old daughter and I often catch them curled up together on the floor. I think she would be okay with kids of any age.
• Fern does have basic obedience commands down (sit, down, come) but she would still benefit from obedience training. She likes to jump up when meeting new people, but we are working on it and she doesn’t do it nearly as often. She does pull on a leash, but we are using a Gentle Leader and she is doing much better!
• She is a young, active dog and needs a family who will exercise her daily. As long as she has had enough exercise, Fern is happy to sprawl out on the floor in the evening and hang out with the other dogs.
• It doesn’t appear that she has any allergies and she loves to eat! I am feeding her Taste of the Wild. She doesn’t take treats very nicely, so we are working on her calming down before taking a treat and not trying to gulp our fingers down with the treat!
• We haven’t noticed any anxieties or fears. We haven’t had any thunderstorms in the last week, but she didn’t flinch when the noisy snow plows roared by.
• I think she would be happiest with a fenced in yard or invisible fence. She does not like to go potty on a leash and would really like the freedom of running around in her yard without a leash or tie out.
• Fern loves car rides!
• Fern would fit well in almost any family. She is very sweet, loving, and has a wonderful personality. If you would like to meet her, please contact your placement advisor!
• Fern will be at the Des Moines, IA Petco 7333 Buffalo Rd. on Sunday 3/3 starting at 11 am, along with her foster brother, Vinnie 12-382. We may stay the whole 4 hours of the event, but it will depend on how both dogs do