Today would have been Ginger's 11th "anniversary" (of the day I found her.) I miss her so much... I decided to post the story of how I found Ginger, this is from her webpage so I'm putting it in quotes... Some of you may already know the story. Above the story is a photo of Ginger soon after I found her and below it is one from last summer, on our last vacation (Wisconsin.)
About Ginger and How I Found Her
I found Ginger as a stray in the winter.
I was walking out of school, and I saw a dog running around in the park outside the school. It looked like maybe a Golden or Irish Setter mix (or both) She was running in the football field and chasing ducks. I was watching her, but I figured some owner had just let their dog off leash to play... I kept watching as I walked, but didn't see anyone else who seemed to be watching the dog. I decided to try to call her over to me, because I figured if she had an owner they would yell or come see who was holding their dog. I stopped, and a friend of mine saw me and came over to talk. I told him about the dog, and he stood there while I tried calling her.
I started calling "C'mere puppy! Come on!" She came over but wouldn't come closer than about 20 feet away- she seemed scared. I told my friend I'd see him later, and he left. As soon as he left, I squatted down and tried calling her again- she came over, but she was crouching low as if she was scared. Her tail was wagging, though!
Ginger pretty much made herself at home right away. Since it was mid-December, we already had the tree and the Christmas decorations up, and she never once bothered any of them. She never made a mess in the house, never chewed up my collection of stuffed toys and she never tried to chase the cat. I never found her old owners or any sign of them, and with all the neighborhoods we've been in on walks no one ever recognized her.
The first time I took her in, the vet said Ginger was between 1 1/2 and 2, and that she was probably spayed (she was). They called her a Golden mix. However, when I showed her photo to some people, they though she looked all Golden. I went searching online and found lots of photos of red Goldens (I had never seen one before) including several field CH's that looked like they were related to Ginger... I also asked a few breeders, who said she was definitely a Golden.
When I first found Ginger, she was pretty shy and scared of many new people, places, and noises. She sometimes would cower or back away if people wanted to pet her while we were on walks. She would bolt at some loud noises, and was afraid of raised hands or voices.
I did a LOT of socialization with her, mainly just by taking her as many places as I could and helping her realize that no one and no thing was going to hurt her (I wouldn't let it!! ) I took her to obedience class pretty soon after I found her- not sure how soon. By then she was already a little more confident, but obedience class helped a LOT! After Beginner's, we went right into Intermediate, and at the end of Intermediate, before we went on to Novice, she passed the CGC! She did back away when the evaluator came up to her *wielding* the brush in the grooming section, but the person realized what had happened and she tried again and Ginger stood still.
Ginger later re-passed the CGC with flying colors (a little over a year after I found her) when she took it in conjunction with the TDInc Therapy Dog Test. During the test, there is a segment where the dogs go up to three people sitting down to 'visit', one with a walker and one in a wheelchair. Ginger wiggled up to each one, stuck her head very carefully *through* the walker to greet one person, and on her evaluation sheet the evaluator wrote "Happy Visitor! " She passed the test.
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