Amos Fabian, an English Cream Golden, would be the first to tell you that he and his forever family are a perfect match. Quite the talker, Amos greets his family with his own language, a whimper/whine to let them know in no uncertain terms that he is happy they are home.
Even when he sees other dogs or humans, he barks or whimpers to be sure they see him. Along with his unique way of welcoming family and friends, Amos also greets everyone with his babies, sometimes one, maybe two and sometimes even three babies in his mouth at once (his record). He is quite fond of his babies, but previously he never knew what toys were; he only had a towel for comfort. In the beginning if he were left alone or was stressed for some reason, he would grab a kitchen towel to bring to his family. Now he always has 3 or 4 babies nearby at all times. Amos doesn’t even like to play with a ball; he has no idea what to do with it. “Very un Golden Retriever like; we thought it was in their DNA,” says his mom.
Surrendered because his previous owners wanted to travel, which is not Amos’ favorite thing to do, his new family has learned to adjust to his needs. Even though they have tried to get him comfortable in the car, Amos would much prefer to be home with his family. Not wanting to be left behind, he follows his family from room to room, including the walk-in shower. Once he is settled, he makes sure he gets the requisite number of belly rubs by raising his arm off the floor so his belly is readily available. His new family willingly rubs his belly as they walk by. Yes, he has their number!
Besides the belly rubs, Amos is the first of their goldens who is allowed to sleep in the bed. Mom was away so Amos took advantage and settled in the empty spot and has been there ever since. He’s not a bed hog, but he does expect snuggle time early in the morning. They have also learned that Amos is a counter surfer after filets, pork chops and cookies disappeared. Now no food is left unattended. Finally, the family has learned to make sure the bathroom door is closed before they leave, or Amos will leave a trail from their trash can. Amos, himself, has not had any official training, but he has learned to “stay”, a major accomplishment for this energetic golden whose “concept of ‘stay’ was beyond his comprehension.”
Amos is currently recovering from knee surgery. After surgery, Amos was to be crated, but his family didn’t think this was fair as he is 8 years old and had never been crated. Instead, they took turns supervising him 24/7 including sleeping on an air bed on the floor as he couldn’t jump on their bed. He can now use a ramp to get into bed, but he is not allowed to run or jump.
Amos tells anyone who will listen that he is with his forever family and life could not be better. He has them trained the way he wants.
