His name was Rocky when you had him, but I changed it to Dodger. So far we've finished level 1 obedience with the Canine Coach and are going back for more in the fall! Level 2, advanced, agility, we want to do it all (and after all those classes, Dodger and I could probably earn a title or two from RallyO!!). He is so smart and so eager to please! He did have some real leash pulling issues when he first came to Minnesota (I saw him break the leash when he was brought into Downtown Dogs as a foster!) but since then we've been working really hard and now he'll walk with just a collar and leash like an angel (I'm so proud of him)! No gentle leader required!! Jeff from the Canine Coach helped us with that one. He does have separation anxiety, but we have been working on counter conditioning since day 1 (after he destroyed his metal kennel, ripped off a door frame and all the carpet around the door!). I know separation anxiety is a big thing to tackle, but I have all the books and know the right experts to turn to when I need help. It helps to live with roommates who love him as much as I do, he rarely ever has to be alone then. He also has a dog sitter when nobody can be home with him and daycare is closed for the day.

Which reminds me, he absolutely LOVES to go to daycare, he's a real social butterfly and plays with ALL the dogs! Even the little guys, he'll just lay down on the floor so he's more at their level to play! It's amazing! He also gets to tag along with me to all of my Frisbee games, which my teams loves as much as he does! Our team name is Dodge and he's our mascot. I was even told by a teammate once, when Dodger was curled up in my lap during half time, that we were the perfect example of "real love". They can't get over the bond between Dodger and I! They also can't stop complimenting me on how he is such a good boy.

We go swimming together every other day at the lake near my house. He was born to swim, that is for sure. In fact, we spent about three and a half hours there yesterday with his friends Luna the boxer, Brooklyn the boxer and Patience the APBT. He LOVES all his little girlfriends and likes to show off his awesome retrieving skills when they come to play at the lake with him. We also do dock jumping together! It's a great bonding activity and he *really* enjoys it. We actually have an event coming up this weekend.

As far as health and wellness go, he's top notch! We went to the vet once for an eye infection of some sorts, but some eye drop steroids cleared it up with in a week. I feed him Solid Gold's Barking at the Moon since he's such an active boy and I top it off with some Salmon Oil for a nice healthy coat. His nails get clipped every Friday or Saturday by a friend who's a groomer. His teeth look great, he's not a real fan of the tooth brush but he puts up with it. He also gets lots of dental chews and bones. I've had countless numbers of people tell me he is such a good looking dog and one person (upon hearing that he was a rescue dog) asked me if he had been used as a stud before I got him! One of his nicknames is now 'Stud Muffin'.

I just want to say thank you for letting me adopt Dodger. Every night when I go to bed and he's right there curled up as close as he can get to me, I'm so grateful that he is a part of my life. I can't imagine what it would be like without my little guy (I know it's only been three months, but it feels much longer).
Once again, thank you :)

Sincerely,
Jess from Minnesota