Morgan

MORGAN’S (was KAI) HISTORY

Morgan is 12 to 18 months old and was surrendered into the Pound by his owner. He was rescued and then fostered in Ireland for a week

INITIAL REPORT – IRELAND: MAY 2012

Morgan is quite small and slight for his age. He was fostered for a week and he slept in the kitchen with 10 cats without a problem.

He’s a fabulous boy and all he wants in the world is a cuddle above all else. He walks quite well on the lead and enjoys playing ball. When I throw the ball for him he fetches it straight back to me, then sits beside me and lets me take it out of his mouth and throw again. On meeting other dogs in the home he barks initially, and then he’s fine with them. He has been clean during the night and has slept straight through without a sound. He’s not in the least bit bouncy and I could recommend him for any household (even toddlers), although I haven’t actually child tested him, but he doesn’t mouth like most retrievers. He’s a super, super boy and as far as I can see, without fault.

FOSTERER’S FIRST REPORT – UK: MAY 2012

Morgan arrived with us early hours Sunday morning. He is a very small chap for a retriever, but then again he might still grow a bit, I think he is about a year old. Very loving and affectionate, but scared of his reflection and his own shadow. Morgan has the tendency to bark and give a little growl when he first meets strange dogs, he certainly needs a lot more socialisation and would benefit from puppy classes.

He loves soft toys and to play with a ball, which he does give up for you to throw again.

At the moment he does not know any commands like sit, stay, wait …….but we are working on that.

When he first arrived I gave him and Jerry-lee a soft chewy stick, he dropped it and didn’t know what to do with it until he watched Jerry-lee eating his, and then gobbled it down. He’s not food possessive; I feed both dogs in the kitchen together and give them treats while they’re sitting next to each other without any problems at all.

Morgan has met my chickens and while he is not very sure about them yet, he shows no aggression towards them what so ever.

I just took Morgan and Jerry-lee for a walk around the field and the lake, he is a bit wary of people and barked at 2 dogs we met, but he is perfect on the lead. Not pulling at all.

Morgan can be left alone for short periods. I had to pop out for an hour this morning and he was quite happy in the kitchen with Jerry-Lee. I did stand outside for 15 minutes just to make sure!!

It is early days but I am sure with a bit of training and reassurance he will make a fantastic companion for somebody out there.

FOSTERER’S SECOND REPORT: MAY 2012

Morgan is such a loving quiet dog, you would not know you’d got him, apart from all the cuddles he is demanding, but he does understand “Time out”.

Morgan loves lying down with me on the sofa; he loves playing with a ball, which he does give up for you to throw again. He is a bit of a chewer where soft toys are concerned and likes to take my cushions of the settee, so he needs a bit of watching!!

He loves being in the garden watching the world go by and amuses himself with a ball for quite some time. He is not so sure around male dogs and will need some more socialising. He is fine with Cody next door and Princess, so I would recommend he be re homed with a bitch. He does not like his own reflection and will bark at himself.

Morgan absolutely adores kids and all he wants is to play with them. He likes to be with you all the time and does try to help you clean the house!! He even stands for me to run the Hoover over him.

So far I have found no fault with him; he will make somebody a great companion, so loving and gentle!!!

FOSTERER’S THIRD REPORT: UK – JUNE 2012

Morgan is so loving. He has found a very small teddy and he loves it. It is the only soft toy he hasn’t chewed.

Morgan does amuse himself with balls a lot; he throws them about and runs after them.

He is very protective around the house and barks if somebody comes through the gate to let me know that somebody is there, but then he goes and gives kisses to them!

He loves to chase the cats out of our garden and does bark a lot at the chickens to get their attention.

Morgan does not like to be left alone, even with our other dog in the kitchen with him. He wants to be with me all the time. He does love his treats. At night time he has a couple of jellies with me when we are in bed. We can’t not have any jellies, it is a must lol. He stands waiting for his two. Once he’s had them he settles down to sleep on the landing.

Morgan does not beg while we are eating he just settles down for a little nap. He loves being brushed.

At times he can be very stubborn and does not come when called when he is at the bottom of the garden, but then again he loves annoying the chucks so much.

He will make somebody a lovely pet with a bit more training. He is such a gentle dog and half the time you don’t even know you’ve got him in the house. Oh and he loves to pounce on me when I am lying on the settee, he comes up and plonks himself on my hip, then gives sloppy kisses.

He also pulls his top lip up, giving you the biggest smile you can imagine!!!

I will be sad to see him go as he is such a wee darling.

I love him to bits!!!

AUGUST 2012: Morgan has gone to his Forever Home

1st report from Morgan’s Forever Home – August 2012

Morgan and our dog and Millie get on a treat and play endlessly. He also has three other friends: Toffee a guide dog pup; Monty a black lab and Penny an English bull dog.

He is getting to know the area we live in and has walked miles along the canal and also joined us on some days out, including Stratford on Avon, and has already started some training.

Morgan has endearing habits such as bringing garden snails half chewed into the house, jumping from a standing start on to our knees and leaping over the coffee table! He also pulls out the stuffing from a large number of cuddly toys and our carpets are permanently covered with white fluff. Without doubt he is the clumsiest pooch we know, several times a day running into furniture!

Morgan also has the biggest smile, the kindest heart, the most willing character to learn and do his best – and then like our children goes and does it his own way. Will we ever learn – probably not, but we love him anyway

2ND REPORT FROM MORGAN’S FOREVER HOME

Morgan is such a star.

We all went to Guide Dog Day at Atherton a couple of weeks ago (I am not sure if we were brave or stupid!) but after a few snarls and growls Morgan started to greet some of the dogs with a wag of the tail. To be honest there were hundreds of very placid guide dogs there and he would have been daft to keep making a fuss when they were all pleased to say hello to him.

He has his good days and bad days when meeting other dogs still and we can’t figure out why this is or what sort of dog offends him so! We have signed up for a socialising class in early October which will involve a group session in the morning and walking in the afternoon. We will also be starting dog training classes in the next village in October (they only have new starters on certain weeks, so we thought it best that Morgan got to know us all better first).

He certainly loves Millie and she loves playing with Morgan, although she is less than impressed that all her cuddly toys are now just empty cuddly skins!

He is a wonderful addition to our family and we love him so much.

Update from Morgan’s forever home: 30th September

As I write, it is my Sunday morning lie-in and Millie and Morgan are extremely comfortable on my bed – I hope they are because Robert and I are cramped at the top!

Morgan is getting much better at remembering dogs he has played with and has also made another friend: Ralph. Ralph is a cross between a deer hound and a greyhound and to be honest he is quicker than Morgan, but they enjoyed the game. He also let Monty play with his rugby ball. As you know he loves ball games so we have now been and bought a selection of all sizes so he is spoilt for choice.

As Morgan is not good at coming back to us when we are out on the park we have bought a 20m lead and Robert is working hard to encourage him to return by blowing a whistle and he is doing really well, until a great smell comes his way and he is off.

Companionship is so important to them all. In the house he is such a good boy and he and Millie love each other so much. It is just outside he gets stressed when we are out walking. Next Saturday we are off to a socialisation class where we will meet other dogs and continue with behaviour training. In the afternoon it’s the group walk – I just hope it doesn’t keep raining. Morgan’s winter coat is coming through. He has lovely blond waves along his back but still has his little goatee beard/mane. He is absolutely gorgeous.

Update from Morgan’s forever home: December 2012

Morgan is the absolute perfect dog in the house and he and Millie adore each other. Outside – well he is still really making a fuss when he meets other dogs but we are convinced he is just so frightened, but naturally he does scare lots of potential friends off. Apart from Izzy who just completely ignored the barking and rushed at him and licked him – Morgan loves Izzy now!

Although his recall is great in the garden we can’t let him off on the park as we can’t keep his attention but he has a really, really long lead so he does get lots of exercise. We thought you would like to see these pictures of the new dog beds we bought at the weekend. They were meant to be for Christmas but I am not sure where we would keep two extra-large dog beds hidden, they seem to really like them.