Farwell Tess, Hello Bella.

Below, five Golden friends sit for a snack during a going away party for Tess and a welcome party for Bella II. From front left, Mogley, Bella, Aspen, Tess and Bella II. Tess left shortly after the party for a new home in rural Colorado.

Below, Bella II seeks some of my advice on how to find the best home possible.



Bella II squints because of the flash.

Bella II was surrendered to Golden Retriever of the Rockies (GRRR) by her family. There were a lot of tears when they had to give her up. They lived in a home with only a short fence. The low fence had been adequate for their old Golden, but Bella was able to clear it easily.

Bella is about one year old, still a lanky, awkward puppy. She is a dynamo, running and playing constantly. She has worn all three of us out trying to keep up. While she is full of energy, it is a calm energy, she is not hyper and she is well mannered for a one year old.

The first thing Bella did when she arrived last evening was to jump on top of the swimming pool cover and run around in the puddles of water. The chauffeur became angry, he is afraid someone will tear the cover or fall through. It only took a little time and Bella was taught not to run on the cover. It also took four towels last night to dry her after her initial runs. Not a single towel today, she learns fast.

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Bella has learned so much in the short time she has been here that she is being recommended for service dog training. We think she could learn to be a working dog very easily. She certainly pays attention to commands and it only takes a few minutes to teach her things like not to run on the pool cover or not to chase the cats. She ran on the cover last night, but today she has stayed off as she was told to, although she did stop on the edge and wish she could run on it. Bella took off after Mini Cat when she ran by, but when told "NO", she skidded to a stop. Since then she has walked around Mini Cat without a single attempt to chase her.

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Her first task here has been to empty the toy box. The toy box is a large old wash tub. There are toys in the bottom of that tub that have not seen the light for several years. She is almost down to the bottom already. She is testing each toy for its endurance, so far no toy has passed the test, the toy box may end up empty by the time she is through testing.

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She plays a mean game of fetch, her prior home probably used fetch to give her an outlet for her energy. She needs to work on dropping the ball at the end, she enjoys running with it too much.

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We will keep you informed of her progress. She will probably go in for testing and then a decision will be made if she can enroll in the classes. If she does not become a service dog, then we will need to find a home for her where they are willing to spend extra time training and working with a young student. It would be a shame to waste her desire and ability to learn.

Mogley G. Retriever