Chance (Lance 04-307)

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Lance is a beautiful 9 mo. old, 55 lb., recently neutered male, light medium gold in color. Lance spent the first 8 mos. of his life in a confined area of a barn. He found his way to being adopted but was returned within the month when his new owner's living situation changed. Lance was again kept in an old barn-like structure until he made his way to RAGOM. This poor boy has had a very rough start in life. Lance is very thin and his legs are lacking in strength, probably due to inactivity. Lance was treated for tapeworm and they should be gone by now. Lance has had free rein in the house and there have been no "accidents" or destructive behavior, although he has only been left alone for a couple of hours at a time.

Lance sleeps very well along side the bed all night long. He likes to follow his people around and lays quietly on the floor when in the house, unless of course its meal time - then he can't decide which of the 3 dishes he would like to eat out of, so tries a little out of his foster-sisters' dishes too. Luckily they are very tolerant of sharing food.

Lance is already learning good manners. He is learning to sit, no jumping, his name and comes running when I call. Although he is on restricted activity due to the recent neuter, he likes to play with a ball and fetch. In fact he is so proud of his ball he prances in a full circle to show it off. Lance also enjoys playing with his foster sister and they play real well together.

Lance's records indicate that Lance lived with children ages 9, 11 and 14 (although it is not clear for how long - the 8 month or 1 month home) and cats and other dogs. Lance would love a fenced yard, and someone who has time to spend with him.

At a Glance #04-307

Golden Retriever Born: January 2003
Male Weight not specified

Status: Deceased

Profile

Lance is a beautiful 9 mo. old, 55 lb., recently neutered male, light medium gold in color. Lance spent the first 8 mos. of his life in a confined area of a barn. He found his way to being adopted but was returned within the month when his new owner's living situation changed. Lance was again kept in an old barn-like structure until he made his way to RAGOM. This poor boy has had a very rough start in life. Lance is very thin and his legs are lacking in strength, probably due to inactivity. Lance was treated for tapeworm and they should be gone by now. Lance has had free rein in the house and there have been no "accidents" or destructive behavior, although he has only been left alone for a couple of hours at a time.

Lance sleeps very well along side the bed all night long. He likes to follow his people around and lays quietly on the floor when in the house, unless of course its meal time - then he can't decide which of the 3 dishes he would like to eat out of, so tries a little out of his foster-sisters' dishes too. Luckily they are very tolerant of sharing food.

Lance is already learning good manners. He is learning to sit, no jumping, his name and comes running when I call. Although he is on restricted activity due to the recent neuter, he likes to play with a ball and fetch. In fact he is so proud of his ball he prances in a full circle to show it off. Lance also enjoys playing with his foster sister and they play real well together.

Lance's records indicate that Lance lived with children ages 9, 11 and 14 (although it is not clear for how long - the 8 month or 1 month home) and cats and other dogs. Lance would love a fenced yard, and someone who has time to spend with him.

Updates

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

 

We want to let you know that Chance went over the rainbow bridge Wednesday June 20. We adopted Chance (formerly known as Lance) in 2005. He was one year old and full of energy which he had until close to the end. We channeled his pep with obedience training, agility training (he hated weave poles), he was a certified therapy dog, and participated in dock dogs. We walked 3 miles a day, xcountry skied in the winter, tried skijoring, and typical of goldens loved the water and his bumper. He was intelligent, intuitive, and affectionate with plenty of love for all.

On May 18, 2011 he had an enlarged tonsil removed which turned out to be malignant melanoma. We were devastated. We went to the U of MN for experimental vaccines the last one in July. His 3 month check there was clear. We were elated. His 6 month check was not so good. The cancer had come back on the surgical site, he had a tumor in his neck, and ct showed a lung tumor. We had the two removed but not the lung tumor. He had a great rest of the winter with skiing and walking and was great thru mid May. He even got to swim and fetch his bumper.

The last month was up and down. He lived large, loved all, and left with dignity. He will be loved and missed forever.

We would like to thank Ragom for allowing us the greatest opportunity by letting us adopt Chance. Thank you so much. The work you all do is exceptional!

Charles and Vicki

 

Sunday, October 30, 2005

I felt I needed to write and update you on our wonderful dog that we adopted from your organization the end of January 2005.

Lance, now known as Chance to our family, has turned out to be a wonderful addition.

After the loss of our 13 year old Golden, we decided we needed to adopt because there were so many dogs needing homes. We were in for an eye opener getting a year old Golden. We had forgotten about the dog taking us for a walk. We were used to strolling along after our old dog a couple times a day. We enrolled him in beginner obedience with the local dog club with the first lesson March 2. We have been going ever since. Last Wednesday was the last day of our intermediate lesson. After the first 8 weeks, I was encouraged to try agility with him. He was a natural. We took two 8 week sessions of agility and the last 8 weeks have been obedience.

Our instructor talked about Therapy Dog testing a few weeks ago and encouraged us to try the test for the experience. After class she told me to bring Chance the next night for the test. I thought about it and decided why not. Chance went thru the 13 tests and much to my surprise he passed! I was such a proud mom. He now needs the vet check and I can mail in his papers with his picture.

When I look back on the crazy pup we took in I am amazed at the change in such a short time. He is obedient, well mannered, and wonderful. He is still a puppy and races around the yard, jumps, and chases squirrels, but he is also secure, happy, and a real member of our family.

Thank you for all your organization does for Goldens. They are truly a very special breed.

Sincerely,

Vicki and Charles T

Sunday, January 9, 2005

Lance is still looking for that perfect home - someone willing to give lots of love and continue his training. Lance was mostly deprived of any love or attention for the first 8 months of his life and now is desperate for attention and love. Lance also has lots of energy and will need someone who can exercise him properly. A walk or 10-15 minutes of ball fetching in the morning will go a long way. Lance has been staying home without his people for about 7-8 hours per day for the past month and doing well. He counter surfs less but still finds a little mischief to occupy his time - such as playing with the napkins that were handily within reach, and he enjoyed reading a book one day. The mischief is much less now that Lance has trained us so well - we don't leave things laying on the counters or table. Lance has advanced to being left in his crate while his people are gone for 1-2 hours at a time. He still goes into his crate if you throw in a treat or chewy. Lance does well with his kitty (this is a dog-smart kitty who only comes out for friendly dogs). Lance has shown improvement with his training, although he still has a way to go. He comes very well when called, although sometimes if he is too busy playing with the other puppers it may take a few calls but a whistle usually breaks the concentration. He is well on his way to learning to sit when he wants attention. Lance has been working on the sit - stay command and doing very well. I can tell him to stay, cross the room and wait about 1/2 a minute before releasing him. Lance likes to play catch and has to cute habit of trying to catch is stuffed toy with his paws rather than his mouth. If you have lots of love to give and patience for training this cute cuddler, Lance has a lot to give in return.


Lance and Thicket

Lance plays catch

Saturday, November 27, 2004

Lance has had difficulty finding a new home because he has insecurities and does not like to be left alone. Lance goes to the window to watch his people leave and to wait for them. If your blinds by the door are down they will probably come down when Lance jumps up to the window to see where you are going. One needs to be dog savvy and, for example, not put plants by the door where they could be knocked down when the dog gets excited to see you return, or close the doors to the bedrooms/bathroom. Lance does well in the house when his people are home and therefore would do best with someone who is home a good part of the day. Currently he is alone with his foster sisters for about 4 hours and does well with these precautions. That aside, Lance is very friendly and sweet - all he wants is someone to give him a chance to feel wanted. Lance likes to cuddle and when he does sneak up on the bed, he lies quietly (maybe he thinks I won't notice if he is still?). Lance is laying on his new doggie bed resting contentedly this snowy Saturday afternoon. As with any new dog there can be a 1-2 week (at least) adjustment period. He visited with a 5 yr old who gave exuberant hugs as Lance chewed his bone and paid the boy no heed. Lance conducted himself well around the kids and none were knocked over. Lance gets along well with other dogs and loves to play with his foster sisters. Lance went for a walk in the woods of Ely and helped haul brush for burning. Lance had a great time walking in to the cabin and exploring. Lance would like a home where he can get alot of exercise and loves to go for runs which is a good way to expend his energy. A fenced in yard is preferred because Lance likes to be able to run and play in the yard.

Thursday, October 28, 2004

Poor sweet Lance tried a new home but does not take well to being confined and becomes frantic in small spaces. He was able to escape his crate. The good news is that he appears to do well if given free rein of the house. We knew he did well being left with run of the house with his foster sisters. We have now left him alone the past 4 days without the other dogs for 3-3 1/2 hrs and he has done great-no damage, no accidents. I don't think he would have a problem being left alone longer, as long as he is not confined. We have also been working on getting Lance to feel more comfortable in his crate by crating him when we are home - he turns in circles for a 1/2-1 minute then lays down and we do this for 45-60 minutes. Lance still has his puppy energy and loves to fetch and go for walks, yet does very nicely in the house. He is excited when one first comes home (what Golden is not??) but settles down nicely. He is laying nicely near me as I work on the computer. He still sleeps in his doggy bed beside his people's bed and lays nicely all night. He is also doing very well with sit and doesn't hesitate to come when called. Lance needs work on walking etiquette. If you give him any lead, he will occasionally come to a quick stop in front of you (not good when you're running), or cut in front of you; but 85% of the time will trot nicely in front of you. Lance is curious about the cat but hasn't been chasing it and has a healthy respect for that hiss. Lance is leary of the basement stairs and has yet to work up the courage to follow me down. Lance also likes to look in the mirror (well, he is beautiful) and thinks it's great to see my hand reach for his head - he jumps around and looks at me then back at the mirror and waits for me to do it again. Lance has had little or no training or attention in his short life, yet is picking up good manners very quickly. A little training and loving will go a long way with Lance- he is smart, sweet and wants to please. Lance would love to go to a home with a fenced yard with lots of tennis balls and someone to give him the love and attention he deserves.