I'm a Golden Retriever. I've lived with the Sapp family ever since I moved in on Christmas Day in 1989. They take me everywhere and really make me feel like a member of the pack. My brother even subscribes me to junk mail to make it even more official. I spend most of the day sleeping. (at least that's what I'll let them think since they're at work during the day and don't know what I'm up to) The rest of the time I enjoy eating, getting petted and sitting outside on the porch and just sniffing the air.
According to the AKC standard I'm supposed to be a hunting dog. Yeah right. I'm a city dog! I don't hunt. I do however love to fish. It's my favorite thing to do at the Lake of the Ozarks. I can stand on my big rock and watch the fish swim in and out from underneath it. If they get close enough to the top of the water I'll take a leap in after them with open jaws and hope for the best. I've never really caught a fish, but I have a blast trying.
I'm a loving dog and like to be around my family. However, if they up and leave me I tend to get a little ticked off. I don't make messes or break things, I just trot through the house and find objects that they like, pick them up and place them in the hallway. Usually it's a brush, toy or soap dish. (Whatever is on my level) The bathroom is my main target.
Despite popular beliefs I am not an Irish Setter so don't call me "OL' RED". My parents were goldens and my grandparents were goldens. I just *tan* easy and have a darker coat than most of the goldens you see on TV.
If you measured my doggie IQ it would be pretty high. I'm a smart dog that knows a lot of tricks. Even when I was a few months old, when my brothers and sisters were whining for food I found a way to get into the puppy chow. Ever since then I've been learning new tricks. Like: sit - lay - bang (play dead) - beg - speak - shake - up - shake (the water off) - other paw - get toy - go to bed - get the newspaper - down - no - go get em - crawl - go away - stay - massage someone's back (still in the works) - high five - roll over - ask someone to go outside - and many others.
That's it for now. Hopefully someone like Julie,
Greg, Dad or Mom will add/modify this because Doug is an engineer and english
is his second language. (his first being C++) Bye bye!