After Fran and Steve lost their beloved Black Lab in 2018, they applied to foster with GRRMF. They had been fostering for several months and had been considering adoption when they were asked to foster a five-month-old Golden blend named Sassy. It was love at first sight as sweet Sassy stole their hearts, and since they were next on the adoption list, she soon became their Sassy, filling a part of their lives they never knew was missing.
They kept her name because she shared it — but not the calm personality – with their first Golden Retriever from thirty-five years before. And this Sassy certainly lives up to her name, keeping her parents happily and gratefully active! Particularly passionate about car rides, she also loves walks, grooming and brushing, training with treats, feasting on homemade pumpkin cookies and ice cookies, and playing with toys. And when her parents visit their sons and grandchildren several times a year in NC, Sassy loves playing with the grandkids and “grand dogs,” an eight-year-old Shih tzu and an eighteen-month-old Bullmastiff blend.
Thanks to some basic obedience training, Sassy knows and understands “sit,” “stay/wait,” “down,” “leave/no,” “off” and “come.” She’s continued to improve her leash skills and has learned not to pull when she encounters the squirrels that tempt and taunt her, not only on their walks but also in the backyard and along the fence. As affectionate as she is active, sweet Sassy is equally satisfied simply lying close to her family whether it’s indoors or out.
Well behaved on her own for a few hours when her family runs errands (they still check their SassyCam often), she giddily greets their return by bringing them one of their slippers! While her crate is never closed, she prefers to sleep or rest during the day in her armchair, donut bed or on the cool tile floor, and only sleeps in it at night. She always knows when it’s bedtime and informs her parents by laying her head on their laps. Then, as soon as she hears the cookie bin and the ice machine, she runs into her crate in eager anticipation of the pumpkin cookie and three or four ice cookies that she adores.
