Duke 09-307 [1]

Holy Cow, how time flies when you're having fun!  Duke came to me VERY timid of strangers (including me). He was quite upset by leaving his home of five years and his hour-long car ride to my house, so I have been working on exposing him to gentle friends and family along with new experiences to see how he reacts to them.  I must say, Duke is a super sweet boy and has adjusted much better than I originally expected.

Duke weighed in at a whopping 116 pounds and was brought up-to-date on his vaccinations the day after arriving to my house.  Funny thing is, he is not a food-hound like you think he would be since he didn't eat anything (even yummy treats!) for over three days.  He still needs me to stand near him while he eats his dinner, but is still not treat-crazy.  If he doesn't start to drop weight with exercise and diet, I may need to have his thyroid checked.

He is getting along great with my 14 year-old Golden and 3 cats.  He's also met kids as young as 7, and tolerated a big bear hug like a champ.  Duke seems to be enjoying car rides better as each day goes by, but still gets a little drooly during and afterward.  He is completely housebroken and trustworthy, and doesn't seem to care about needing a crate to hide in.  I work during the day and he is loose in the house with the rest of the critters, and does just great.  We've had a lot of storms lately, and he has taken that all in stride, and thankfully isn't afraid of lightning.

The one thing about Duke is that he is pretty clingy, even more than the velcro kind of dog that Goldens can be known for.  He definitely follows me, step by step, around my house when I'm home.  When he is with a group of people that he has gotten to know, he prefers that all the people stay together.  When one leaves the group, he follows them and then paces back and forth from where the group is to where the person disappeared.  No crying or barking (I've yet to hear him bark), just wanting that beloved person to come back to the group.

Duke was the recipient of a complimentary grooming session with a family friend who is a groomer, and he apparently loved the entire 3-hour session.  He came back clean, super soft, trimmed-up, and smelling like marshmallows; thanks Tracy!!!

He loves his "puppy" toy, playing fetch, and shredding baseballs (thanks, Dad).  Two shredded baseballs in two days; I think it's the stitching he loves to rip apart from the ball.  That is the ONLY thing Duke has destroyed; he doesn't even care for rawhides or bones (yet).

I think that's it for now.  I am thoroughly enjoying having Duke at my house, and will keep everyone updated on his progress!