Jonathan is a four month old purebred male Golden Retriever puppy who came into RAGOM with his brother from a breeder in Iowa.  He was shy when he arrived and relied on his brother for direction.  In one week, he has blossomed into a confident, happy puppy.

Jonathan has had his wellness checkup and was given his age-appropriate vaccinations.  His stool check was positive for roundworm, which has been treated, and he has been microchipped.  He is recovering from a respiratory infection and is doing very well.  He weighed in at 26.1 pounds and is all puppy legs.  He will be available after he has been neutered later in September.

Jonathan, also called “Jack,” is a happy go lucky pup who loves to play with and shadow his one year old Golden foster brother.  He loves to meet other people and dogs and has been good around children. He loves to run and play in the yard.  He is learning basic commands like sit, down, come and stay and sits nicely for treats.  Jonathan is a typical puppy who will need patience, training and love.  He kennels during the day, but being a puppy, he will need a plan to make sure he gets a potty break every four hours.  He is doing well on potty training, but he still is a puppy, so expect accidents.  Puppies eat three times a day, just like humans, so a plan must be in place to give him lunch, which is very important to his growing body.

Jonathan enjoys snuggling and pets and does not puppy bite or nip.  He sleeps through the night, but only in his crate in our bedroom.  He goes to sleep around 9:30 PM and gets up around 6:00 AM.  Sometimes he has to go outside in the middle of the night to potty, but will get restless in his crate and let you know.  He plays with toys, loves to go on long walks, enjoys time in the water at the lake and travels well in a car. He is cautiously exploring new foods and is now a fan of peanut butter, sugar snap peas, baby carrots, zucchini, frozen sweet potato strips and blueberries.

Jonathan has had some incidents where he has growled and snapped at our resident Golden.  He didn’t seem to understand rough play.  It seemed odd to see such a big voice coming from such a little guy.  We are working on correcting this behavior and are seeing positive results and with continued training he will learn.  He also growls when he plays with a toy.  It appears as though this may be his way of talking with his toy.  We do not allow tug of war or play with high value toys at this time.  His new family will need to commit to keeping these behaviors in check. 

Puppies are a lot of work, and much like a newborn, they require observation and guidance as they explore and grow.  Puppies chew, so they must have many chew-appropriate toys as options and all puppy-interesting items must be removed from their reach.  Obedience training is a must, as it is a necessary tool for both of you, as well as a bonding experience for communicating in positive ways.  He is a smart pup and has already learned to “sit” and “come”. He is working on “stay” and “leave it”.