Scout is a very handsome 12-year-old Golden Retriever who came into rescue due to changes in his original family. He is in an Oldies Club foster home in Upavon, Wiltshire, waiting for someone to offer him a permanent home.
Summary: Scout is an affectionate boy who gets on well with dogs but is looking for a home without cats. He enjoys a quieter home, but loves to get out for a good walk. Recall is a concept he’s heard of but prefers to ignore!
Doing well in foster: Handsome Scout took only a couple of days to settle into life at his foster home.
Can be left: Scout is fine about being left alone for a few hours when you need to go out, but he is looking for a home with people who are at home for most of the day.
Good with dogs: Scout is living with a Labrador at his foster home, and he lived with a spaniel previously. When he meets dogs outside he either greets them or ignores them.
Not lived with cats: As Scout hasn’t lived with cats previously, and he hasn’t encountered any during his time in foster care, we are looking for a cat-free home for him.
Happy to meet children: Scout is happy to let both children and adults pet him when he’s out and about, but his foster carer feels that he wouldn’t be happy in a busy or noisy home. Living with calm and sensible older children should be OK for Scout, or perhaps an adult home where children are occasional visitors.
Enjoys a brisk walk: Scout loves to get out for a walk. He pulls a bit on the lead, and although recall is a concept he has heard of, he isn’t sure he understands it! His foster carer told us that Scout follows paths at a brisk trot, but not always the right path! He is currently having two walks per day: one walk of about 45 minutes, and another of about 30 minutes, though he could probably do more.
A very good traveller: Scout is excellent in the car and gets very excited about the prospect of getting into the car. He puts his front paws on the (low) sill and then needs the rest of him to be lifted in. He then lies down quietly for the journey. When he arrives at his destination, he can jump out of the (low) car unaided.
Scout’s favourite pastimes: He enjoys sleeping, walking, eating, and saying Hello! to people.
His ideal home: Scout enjoys being with his people and he would prefer a home that isn’t too busy or noisy. Having said that, his foster home is near Salisbury Plain, where there is sporadic noisy military gunfire, and Scout is totally oblivious to it. At night he sleeps downstairs in his bed, and during the day he often lies on the floor. Although Scout can manage a few steps up to the garden without a problem, his foster carer recommends that he isn’t rehomed to a home where he would have to move between floors in a house.
Health notes: Scout is neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, wormed and flea-treated. At his vet check he was found to be in pretty good health for his age. He does have arthritic hips, for which he has been prescribed Metacam, and also takes 3 YuMove tablets daily. He has two black warts on his head — one in the middle of his forehead — but the vet said these are nothing to worry about and are not harmful. The vet wanted a second opinion on Scout’s eyes, which are blue and hazy, so referred him to a specialist. The specialist reported that Scout has corneal changes that do not need any treatment at the moment, but that his eyes should be re-checked in about 3 months’ time. If the condition does progress, he would only need an eye ointment. If Scout has been rehomed before his eye checkup is due, his adopters will need to take Scout to be checked, either by the veterinary ophthalmologist he saw (in Salisbury), or by an equivalent specialist local to them. Oldies Club will pay for this re-check.
More from Scout’s foster carers: “Scout is adorable, affectionate, quiet and clean. He is a delightful dog and is no trouble. He is very pretty to look at. He is lying beside me as I write this! We will miss him.”
If you would like to offer Scout a permanent home, please read our Adoption Procedures for information about the adoption process. You can then contact an Oldies Club Rehoming Coordinator as follows:
Email: rehome@oldies.org.uk
Telephone: 0844 586 8656
He can be rehomed anywhere on the UK mainland – the closer to his foster home the better – subject to a satisfactory home visit. Note that you will be required to travel to the foster home to collect him.
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If you would love to offer a home to an oldie but your circumstances aren’t suitable, perhaps you would be kind enough to sponsor one of the special oldies we are caring for that, due to health problems, are unlikely to be offered a permanent home.