Princess is a 4 year old, cream-colored, pocket sized golden retriever! Her foster family describes her as a playful, loving little girl who is extremely affectionate and loves to be next to your side. When Princess first arrived her personality was very much of a puppy that clearly was not house-trained and had been given very little structure in her prior home. In six short weeks, this little girl has had tremendous improvement. She is now almost 100% housebroken (very rare accidents now) and her personality has much developed into a typical ‘’golden retriever.’’ She now understands ‘’boundaries’’ and is learning what she can and cannot play with. She is now able to ‘’relax’’ as when she was first brought into her foster home she was confused on how to be a dog. She has also gained patience and will nicely lay under the table when you are eating. She has adapted to a schedule and absolutely LOVES her dog toys. For being just shy of 5, this gal loves to play! She at times is still very much puppy-like and loves throwing her stuffed toys around or playing tug of war. Princess loves going for walks and still needs to enhance her walking and focus skills. Her foster family is working on her staying calm as other dogs pass her. Princess is an extremely loving dog even after being chained outside to a shed for so long. She is completely content with sitting next to the couch and being petted. She will follow you around the house to remind you that she is right there by your side. She has become quite fond of her dog bed and at night when she is ready, goes and lays on it whether you are in the room or not! Due to her lack of structure when she first arrived, she had become adapted to a crate. Her foster family no longer needs to lock her into the crate when they are not home, but they do still confide her into a room. Princess is working on tricks such as ‘’sit, stay and paw.’’
Princess arrived to WAGS with some medical issues due to her prior environment. She was surrendered with severe skin dermatitis on her belly, chest and legs. She had ear infections in both ears and was underweight. It was also later discovered that she has sight impairments in both eyes as well as cataracts. Princess has had 3 checkups since her arrival to WAGS and is continuing to show amazing improvement. Her skin was first extremely red, itchy, carried a scent and produced extreme shedding/dandruff. She was initially on Prednisone and was extremely uncomfortable. She required and is still receiving medicated baths every two days, and the improvement has been tremendous. At this time, we do not know how long these baths will continue. Her new owner will need to understand that her skin dermatitis will still be an ongoing treatment and will need to be monitored. This gal has very much adapted to her baths and does them with no struggle at all. Her diet consists of dry food only, Natural Balance venison and potato, as golden retrievers are known for their allergies and unfortunately, it is hard to pinpoint exactly why the dermatitis initially began.
Princess’s weight has improved (she is approx. 48lbs) and she no longer has any ear infections.
Her foster family had begun to notice that at times, it seemed Princess was not spotting them immediately when she walked into a room. WAGS wanted to be completely thorough and took her to the PVSEC ophthalmology department to be examined. It was discovered that Princess has Wandering Nystagmus meaning her eyes are unable to fixate on an object. Treatment is not an option. But she has accommodated her own condition and does well. She also was diagnosed with PPMs (Persistent Pupillary Membranes) remnants of blood vessels that never fully dissolved from the eye when she was a puppy. This led to Princess having 30% cataracts in each of her eyes. Surgery is unfortunately not an option for her. Princess does get by fine and always will, but this is a matter that a potential adopter will need to understand, accept and continue care.
Her foster family has completely fallen in love with this gal! She has gone through a ton in her 4 short years. She would do fantastic with a family who will have the ability to provide the time and love that she needs and deserves. Princess seems good w/ small children and cats and has done fantastic with her foster dog brother.
If you are interested in an adoption of Princess here is the process and requirements;
1. You must live in SW PA
2. She would do well with older respectful children
3. She needs someone who is home during the day, in and out during the day or a dog walker.
4. Her medical care for skin, ear and eye care that includes medication and office visits must be continued.
5. We request a minimum donation of $300 but please consider more due to all the medical and behavioral expenses the rescue incurs.
6. If all of these are agreeable contact acwein123@gmail.com for an application. Please describe her new life in your email.
April 13, 2024, 12:15 am
