My name is Gunner!

Gunner : 8 year-old intact yellow male Lab 80 lbs.

The latest on Gunner: Gunner has had his final check-up for his heartworm disease and is fully clear and recovered. He has been neutered and will have the sutures removed just in time for Valentine's Day. His devoted Foster has been rebuilding his immune system with a healthy diet and supplements, and has been working on continuing his training. Here is her report:

Gunner is one of the gentlest, sweetest dogs I have ever had the pleasure of spending time with. He is a trusting, happy, soul, a very patient, loving boy. While he has clearly had no training outside on a leash before, as we work together on his leash skills he's clearly trying, and definitely improving. I'm pleased to report he is getting better every day. He "gets it" extremely quickly in open settings (like a grassy area, or parking lot) and is making steady progress on sidewalks.

He needs constant, steady, consistent training in this area, and he will need it for several months to come. This cannot be overstated! He tends to "revert" to his here-I-go-go-go mode when he first steps out the door, (and he's one strong dog). By the end of our walks, he is always doing well. And so it goes, each time we walk, he "clicks" into matching my stride a little faster than before. But - see a cat? Squirrel? He's lunging. That will likely never change, so he needs a person who's going to watch out for him - and themselves - in this regard.

One thing is very obvious to me: whoever adopts this gorgeous dog is going to need to commit to his learning. Take him to dog training classes and walk him 2-3x a day, doing the same corrections, every time. This will be an enormous gift to both his adopter and to him, of course. But it is absolutely needed.

It's bad for his spine and neck to be putting pressure on himself like that (not great for mine either, truth be told).

But wow, when he figures this one out, what a joy he will be to walk and run with!

Indoors, he is awesome! Just awesome. He arrived here needing a lot of reassurance, structure, and sensible boundaries to be set. Now that he's settled in, and is used to my routine, he's a very lovely, easy dog to be around. He's such a sweetheart. Goes where he's asked, lays down and stays, loves to play hide and seek, with or without treats (which is really just sit/stay training in disguise...)

He never begs or gets in my way around my food at all. He is a typical Lab in that he is just over the moon with joy at every meal time, dancing around, utterly hilarious. It may be the high point of his day, but he's so funny, it's also a high point of mine. He doesn't ever lunge at the bowl, he's a perfect gentleman. (but if you make him wait too long, be prepared for the drooling to commence!)

He eats every morsel of food available, that's for sure. He'd not be a good fit in a house with another dog who likes picking away at a bowlful of food over the course of a day. This is not a noshing dog. All dogfood within reach is going down this boy's throat, as fast as possible. Same goes for water; he will often drink the bowl dry, so I only give him about 2 cups at a time, at least 4 times a day.

I noticed this week that he is starting to relax a bit around his water supply, so I predict he will eventually drink normally. My guess is that he was fed and watered as part of a group of dogs, and had to get what he could as fast as possible.

As for other dogs, he's non-aggressive. Sometimes he's not all that interested in them, other times he will strain at the leash to get closer to other leashed dogs. But no bad / challenging behavior at all. He just sniffs and moves on.

As for people, that's another story. He is a lover, this one. He just adores people.

He's so enthused, I sometimes put him in his crate when people are here visiting me. He can be very "kissy," and since some folks don't like that, he will need consistent structure in this areas as well. He doesn't jump on people.

He's also happy to hang out in his crate. He prefers it, often. I can go out and leave him safely ensconced in there for hours. He will eventually be fine, I predict, being left alone with free run of a house. But you'll have to be careful about any food, and keeping his space safe. His food needs to be kept safely sealed and out of his reach.

He will do best being trained slowly and steadily, with gradual increases in freedom and responsibility. He doesn't chew on things, or shred dog toys. I predict he will be a wonderful addition to the right household. He'll definitely do best with an experienced dog person.

And he is just great in the car.

But - he has a strong prey instinct. He will not be a fit with a cat, or rabbit, ferret, etc. No way, no how.

And if he were a man? He'd be part James Bond, part Steve Martin.

If you are interested in learning more about this exceptional Lab, please call or text GGLRR Rep. Kathleen at (415) 706-5868.

(Please keep in mind we are all volunteers, most of us work full time and we all have personal lives. I do call everyone back within 2-3 days so please be patient and I will be back in touch with you. When the dogs are in foster homes then it may take longer as we need to touch base with the fosters for updates on the dogs. We work very hard to make the right matches for the dogs and for the new owners. We get 3-5 dogs per week and we do not have a facility that we keep the dogs housed in. They are scattered all over the Bay Area.)