NEW HOME UPDATE

Bailey is now Barney and has been rehomed with Shelly and Andy. They said. "What can we say, we are the new owners of Barney.  Barney has settled so well into our life it is like we have had him forever.  Barney is our 3rd golden retriever we never thought it would be possible to find another super dog to share our life with.

We drove to Tipton in the Midlands on Monday 12th April to meet Barney having heard lots about him from Andy and Val his fosterers.  We left early as we live 7 miles north of Brighton and knew it was going to be a long journey.  Arriving at lunchtime we were met by 2 Goldens, one medium sized bitch (Smudge) and a very large male (Barney).  We knew straight away that Barney was for us, he is a very laid back big bear of a retriever who likes to walk around rather than bound.

The journey home was totally uneventful with no sound coming from the back of the car (we stopped to check he was okay as he was so quiet).  When we arrived home we let him explore his new home and then took him on a quick lead walk in the fields near our home.  We were all pretty tired so settled him into his bed in the kitchen and went upstairs, nearly a month later and he has never disturbed us at night, he settled from the moment he arrived.  In the middle of one night there were fireworks and he was not keen, quietly barking, so Andy went to the kitchen and sat at the table and did the crossword until the fireworks stopped just to let Barney know he was not alone.

He was not very fit when he first came to us but with two good walks a day and lots of rabbits to chase he is getting fitter!  He has been on his first visit to the sea near here and loved all the smells but never tried to swim although he loves the water nearer home.

From the first few days he has spent his walks off the lead with his recall very good, even when he is on the scent of something exciting he will come back for a game with his favourite toy.

We would like to thank his previous owners for doing the right thing and signing him over to IRR.  We will always love and look after him to the best of our ability.

Barney is a true gentleman of the breed and although weighing in at 38kgs a real softie at heart who has found his way into our hearts.  Here is a  picture of our lovely boy.

UPDATE 26.07.2010

Shelley writes: "Barney is very funny, we were at training and his sit and stay was remarkable.  In fact he had dozed off and I had to wake him.  He is very laid back (when he wants to be) he does not particularly enjoy training!!!  He is already quite well trained - we go for the socialising  and I really think he cannot see the point.  When we do the sit he is usually already sat down and leaning against my leg, it is a source of some amusement. Barney is proving to be a real character and the tales are endless."