Kiah today, gone tomorrow

Introducing Kiah our new Foster Sister.

Kiah quickly earned the nickname of "Happy Face".

Thursday evening Bella and I were at the concert in the park, two humans and two Golden's were laying on the grass listening to the music. Everyone that passed by stopped to pet us. Children even brought their parents by to pet us. We were having a good time. Bella and I were the best Golden Retrievers on the green. Then the humans cell phone rang. It was Golden Retriever Rescue of the Rockies, GRRR, calling to tell us that there was an abandoned golden in need of a foster home. Mogley to the rescue!


In less than two hours we were back with Kiah. Kiah is a four year old lady, she was the victim of a divorce, she had not done anything wrong, she had not chewed on any shoes. She had not stolen food off the table. She walked well on a leash and obeyed her commands when told to sit or stay. But she ended up in the rescue system because the broken home left no room in a tiny apartment for a dog, even a very, very good dog.


Kiah spent the first few hours laying in the front porch, watching the road, hoping her real family would come claim her back. Even when we called her in to dinner, she went right back to her vigil as soon as she was done.

As Kiah settled in with us we learned a lot about her. She had been a townhouse dog, without a yard to play in and few chances to interact with other dogs. She was very quiet, she did not rough house with Bella and I, she did not get rowdy when company arrived. Calm, collected and dignified would best describe her.

Below, Kiah, on the left, Bella on the right, and I wait for a treat for posing for our pictures.
The human wrote an e-mail to the rescue placement office telling them that Kiah was close to being a perfect dog. She did not chew on shoes even though she slept with the humans sheepskin bedroom slippers laying beside her paws. She was perfectly housebroken, she did not jump on people when they came to visit. She did not pull on the leash when walking. She did not bark at strangers on the sidewalk out front. She knew her commands and obeyed them.

She clearly had been loved and well cared for by her former owners. She missed them and she was anxious about the kind of home she would be sent to as her new Forever Home. She was so perfect that even before she appeared in my blog or on the Internet listing of available dogs, she had several people asking about her. There were several people on the waiting list who had asked about a special golden friend like her, the e-mail describing her was quickly forwarded to people on the waiting list.

Sunday we went to the big park for a run. It was the first time that Kiah had been allowed to run lose without her leash and she did enjoy it. The humans are careful, they make sure we come back when called before they take us to the big park, it is four miles square with forests, rivers and lakes. They make us drag our leashes while they make sure we come when called. Only then will they take the leash off and let us go full speed. It only took a short time before Kiah was running free. She was always good about responding when called and she was rewarded with more time to run free. We arrived home, tired, hot and dusty.

Back home a telephone call was waiting. The rescue placement team had found a match and Kiah was to meet a possible new forever home. It is a long way from our home to the rescue offices, but it is always worth the drive. I had taken a swim just before I was loaded into the car, by the time we arrived at the rescue I was dry.

Kiah was introduced to "Bear". Bear had lost her long time golden buddy and was still saddened by his passage. She needed another Golden Retriever to help her move on, it was a perfect fit, Kiah needed another human to help her forget her loved ones so she, too, could move on.

Kiah was with us for less than three whole days. We are happy to see her move on to a wonderful forever home, we are also happy that she went to someone we knew from prior Golden Retriever events.

Before we left the rescue, we were introduced to Autumn. Autumn is a 4 year old Golden who was surrendered after a divorce left her with no home. She spent the night in a chain link run at the rescue and she was anxious to have a warm, comfortable place tonight. We never leave a golden in a kennel, it is not the way to treat such wonderful friends, the goal is to have a foster home waiting for them. Sometimes there is a late night surrender or an unscheduled drop off that prevents a foster home from being found immediately. We drove over with Kiah, we came back with a new foster sister. I will tell you more about Autumn in another blog.

Now it is time to say goodbye to Kiah, we know we will see you at the Golden Retriever Reunion Picnics and the Golden Swim Party in the park. Kiah, you are a wonderful lady, we wish you a wonderful life, take good care of your new human for you were destined to be together. Someday I may write more about how the match came to be, it is a wonderful story itself.

Mogley G. Retriever