Ellie at 10 (months)

It’s been 8 months since we brought Ellie home. She is a great dog and we feel that we could not have gotten a better breed. We’ve never had a Golden Retriever before and we cannot imagine another breed that would fit our family and lifestyle so well.

In case you don’t know the story of how Ellie came into our lives take a look at this Sometimes the best packages come wrapped in fur and these “Ellie Updates.”

Coulee Country Kennel, the breeder, has found the right combination to make for a friendly and smart Golden Retriever.

What has Ellie learned this month?

Leading into her first Summer she is learning that it can get hot. Well, hot for Seattle. Like most Golden Retrievers (at least according to the books I’ve read) Ellie drinks lots of water.  To cool off one of her favorite things to do is to stretch out on the lawn and especially in the tall grass.

She learned what rabbits are and that they can be fun to chase. She caught one once and was not sure what to do from there. We are going to keep it that way. I told her to “Leave it” --- our command for ignoring whatever stimuli has her attention at the moment and she dropped it. It scampered off. She was keenly interested in chasing it again, but another “Leave it” command and she watched it run off to the bushes.

She learned to love playing in the tall grass

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She continues to love swimming. She will go to the pond and just swim around for 5 minutes with the happiest look on her little puppy face. Occasionally chasing, but never coming closer than 10 feet to the ducks.

She still loves going to the baseball fields and by extension …. she loves baseball too. At least I like to think she does.

She has also gotten used to riding in the car. She no longer runs the other way or cowers. Now, she waits patiently by the car door for her chance to go for a ride. She will be getting the big test in Mid-June when we are taking her on an extended ride to Leavenworth, WA for a baseball tournament.

Thanks for reading this months Ellie Update. Look for the next one around The 4th of July.