Rosie Blissett
Sad News 16 June 2021
Rosie’s mum, Julie, said: “We lost our beautiful Rosie today. It was just her time but at 14.5 years, she’d had a good innings and thoroughly enjoyed her all too brief time with us. She was a timid and apologetic soul who never put a paw wrong and gave nothing but unconditional love. Our hearts are breaking and the house is so very quiet without the sounds of her gentle breathing, but this awful pain is the price we pay for all that love. So many of us have gone through this so many times, but it doesn’t make it easier. It’s still a beautiful day but it’s just a beautiful day without Rosie. Fly free my Angel in a fur coat and thank you for the past couple of years of your sweetness. There’s plenty of your IRR brothers and sisters to play with now so I know you’re not alone.”
History
Rosie is a 12 year old Golden Retriever who will not be spayed at her age. She was vet checked and had all the necessary inoculations in Ireland to obtain her Pet Passport and be able to come to the UK where she went into foster with Julie.
A WONDERFUL LIFE FOR SWEET ROSIE (JANUARY 2019)
Rosie is a very lucky girl. We are all delighted to report she has used her lovely nature to establish herself firmly in Julie’s heart which means another “failed” fosterer has joined the ranks of the ever so many that have gone before. Clever girl, Rosie. Have a wonderful life.
We are absolutely certain that dear Valentino who was taken too soon, will be watching over them and will be thoroughly approving of the beautiful, gentle Rosie.
HISTORY
Sadly, Rosie was surrendered because her owner was going into a hospice. Although she has been loved, she always lived outdoors.
PERSONALITY
Julie tells us Rosie is the most delightful dog with a sweet and gentle disposition. On arrival, she lacked confidence in most areas and everything seemed new to her. She was very reluctant to leave the house after dark but we wondered if that was due to having been an outside dog. I truly believe she thought we wouldn’t let her back in!
She seemed to be very noise sensitive and cowered. If we moved suddenly and unexpectedly, she threw herself to the floor and made herself as insignificant as possible.
After just a few days, Rosie has made huge improvements with her submissiveness. She is still alarmed by the unfamiliar so we believe taking time and having the patience to introduce her to new things will always be essential for her as she is basically innately a timid dog who needs trust and assurance to find her bravery within. This is helped by the occasional cocktail sausage!
Rosie has adapted extremely well to the massive changes in her environment over the past 10 days and continues to settle in well. She is a very reserved, sprightly older lady but has lots of ‘pep’ in her and enjoys a sprint and zoomies around our enclosed meadow. I think Rosie feels secure having a predictable routine that she can anticipate.
Now she is gaining confidence, Rosie is becoming very calm and laid back, more alert and inquisitive and more playful and happy
HEALTH
Rosie appears to be in great health overall, especially for her age. She doesn’t appear to suffer with any underlying health issues and shows no signs of arthritis.
She has some scar tissue on her earlobe from a previous injury but inside, her ears are clean and free from odour. Rosie’s eyes are clear and free from any opaqueness. Rosie does have some bad breath and plaque on her teeth but we are giving her plaque-off with her food to counter this.
SOCIAL LEARNING
TRAVEL: Rosie travels well in the car preferring to lie down and snooze She is happy and content travelling in a vehicle but she does need assistance to get into my SUV (which is quite high) although she can jump out on her own.
HOUSETRAINED: She has been clean in the house since she arrived. She remains clean and has regular and healthy pees and poops! She has been reticent to leave the house to use the garden on her own, but at last, she has happily trotted outside unaccompanied although she did wait for me to catch her up.
BASIC TRAINING: She has received some basic training
LEAD WALKING: Rosie walks `loose lead’ with a slip lead and with a body harness. She walks by your side on or off the lead and is responsive to commands when spoken to gently. I can’t emphasise the gently bit too much. She cowers to the point of a belly crawl and needs encouragement in most areas. She did engage her nose with her surroundings on our walk yesterday, which was a first. She has become much more confident on the lead and now walks a little ahead of us, rather than behind, cautiously looking over her shoulder.
She walks very well on the lead and has shown much more interest in her surroundings than when she first arrived. She engages her nose much more, enjoying reading the wee-mails left by other dogs and wild animals.
RESOURCE GUARDING: Rosie has shown no evidence of resource guarding. She has a good appetite but doesn’t bolt her food and hasn’t shown herself to be a scavenger given the amount of Christmas treats in the house!
SEPARATION ANXIETY: There have been no signs of separation anxiety
ADULTS: Rosie is very friendly, adores people and craves affection. She isn’t afraid to interact with them but is extremely submissive and apologetic. She will take a little time and patience to build her self-esteem but, once she’s gained confidence and trust, she will make a wonderful family pet.
CHILDREN: Rosie is also very friendly with older children but is intimidated by youngsters so I think a home with young children should be ruled out.
At a Christmas market, she was concerned by the noise and fast movements made by the youngsters but allowed a pair of older children (10 and 12 years) who were calm and respectful to give her pats – to the point where she didn’t want to leave.
DOGS: Rosie is generally very friendly and sociable and is of the wagging tail variety! Right from the start, she wasn’t concerned by dogs that we met on the leash but she did give a low growl at two very boisterous boys we encountered who were off lead and much too interested in her rear end. She has met more dogs this week and has shown she prefers dogs who are respectful and not overly interested in her bottom.
CATS: She hasn’t seen any cats yet but did give chase twice to squirrels in the garden. We have no cats in our neighbourhood so we haven’t been able to assess her but, given her enjoyment of chasing squirrels, rabbits, pheasants, pigeons and basically anything that moves, I’d be hesitant to rehome her with a cat.
ROSIE’S DREAM HOME
Rosie deserves a very loving, cat free home where she is the centre of attention for someone. An adult only home would be best or one with older children, probably over 10 years old, but only if they were dog friendly and respectful
As she is timid dog who is still alarmed by sudden movements or loud noises, she needs time to gain trust so her new owners will need to give her time and have the patience to slowly introduce her to new things.