Bodi – The Reluctant Foster Fail

Bodi was born in Texas, where he was adopted into his first home. At seven months old, he was adopted again—this time by someone in Arizona. After four months, they turned him over to Rescue A Golden of AZ.

Enter “the Bobs,” board members and masters of gentle persuasion, who convinced me to foster this sweet boy due to a lingering paw issue. A couple visits to an orthopedic vet later, and we were on the road to recovery. Spoiler alert: fostering lasted about as long as his healing, because Bodi had already claimed his forever home.

At two years old, he’s the definition of calm (unless there’s water involved—then he’s all in!). He runs like the wind, swims like a champ, and somehow has a very specific distrust of boxes and plastic. Lawn mowers? Totally fine. Go figure.

Now he’s healthy, happy, and living his best life—a proud foster fail with a heart of gold.

Happy New Year! I’m Rosie, but call me Audrey…Hepburn, that is. I have her style. Everyone who meets me is charmed by the oh-so-chic way I cross my legs.

Mom looked for me for two whole years! My predecessor, Riley, was another rescue dog from Rescue A Golden, and from what I’ve heard he was truly the Cary Grant type. So suave that when mom wrote her memoir Riley figured prominently in her story…the golden guy who got her through medical mayhem and her introduction to widowhood. With Riley gone she now longed for another companion, and she searched and searched and searched.

Rescue a Golden made my mom’s dream come true. We are now a family, and beautifully suited for each other. I am a five-year-old retired mama dog. The mellow type. I am petite and weigh only 48 pounds. We live a quiet life, but I don’t miss having walks because we play with squeaky balls and have lots of mind games. Plenty of exercise for me, and easy for my mom’s back.

Here’s the best part…I get to be a studio dog. I have an extra bed in her art studio. I am the official greeter. The students are enchanted when I elegantly cross my legs, and I have them trained to bring me treats.

My wonderful Rescue A Golden foster family prepared me for kindness and love. My mom says I was worth the two-year search. We know we both have struck gold!

Mariah and her siblings were born into rescue on May 10, 2024. Momma Ella, a puppy mill rescue from the midwest, took wonderful care of her six girls and two boys.

Since Mariah was born on my birthday, well let’s just say the rest is history! She captured my heart from day 1. You see, I fostered this family for 9 weeks!

The name Mariah means: “rebellion,” “beloved” and “wished-for-child”. In reality she is named after my great grandmother, Amanda Mariah. My great-grandmother was 4’11” and raised 11 children in the foothills of northern West Virginia. Mariah is living up to her name, she is truly an independent soul who marches to her own drummer!

I should have known, when at 8 weeks of age she ate the puppy collars off of 2 of her siblings and we spent the day in the ER, that I was in for a roller coaster ride with her! She has also eaten earrings, torn apart an extra-large dog bed, discovered the kitchen counter and loves anything paper that she can tear apart! She has been more challenging than my last 3 male puppies, all put together!

Mariah is also very sweet and loving and spends her days playing with her big sisters Mia and Penny. She also loves playing with her sisters Margo and Bella, who live in Prescott. She runs like the wind and always has a big smile on her face!

Thank you RAG of AZ for bringing Mariah to us!

Mia (the redhead), RAG of AZ’s first rescue from China, arrived at Sky Harbor on May 22, 2017 at 9:30PM, the temperature was a balmy 99 degrees. She had traveled almost 9,000 miles from China to a new life in Arizona. Mia was rescued from the Bo Ai Animal Protection Centre of Guangyuan in central China, where she had been surrendered as a puppy. She survived a bout of distemper, but was left with permanent nerve damage in her left front shoulder and leg.

Penny (the blond), also a special needs girl was surrendered to RAG of AZ

in May 2022, because her back legs were paralyzed and her owner was

unable to care for her. Prompt medical care determined that Penny had an untreated case of Valley Fever and there was a lesion on her spine that was the cause of her paralysis. Penny is also hypo-thyroid.

Today, both girls are happy, healthy and full of life. They are best friends and play every day like a couple of puppies! Mia’s favorite toy is one of her

many hedgehogs and Penny loves her cow and tennis balls. They both love attending RAG of AZ events and greeting all the people that stop by our booth. Traveling to places as far away as Michigan and the Carolinas is another favorite on their list of things to do.

Thank you RAG of AZ for allowing me to adopt these sweet girls, who make me laugh everyday!

Kelsi’s journey is one of determination and resilience.  From her days as a breeder dog, confined to the four walls of a barn, to her arrival in Arizona, where a world of new experiences awaited her, unfamiliar sights and sounds of the outside world overwhelmed her with fear. Converting her unique lifestyle created a challenge requiring the assistance of a professional trainer. We became the trainees.

Kelsi immediately sought the companionship of her new Golden sister, Sophie, and followed her everywhere.  Sophie became her leader and inseparable buddy. The only way to get Kelsi to leave the confines of the house was for Sophie to lead her out the door, into the car, vet or groomer. She taught Kelsi how to use the doggy door, which she frequently uses enjoying her newfound freedom, how to play, and how to answer the front door.  They sleep cuddled together.

Kelsi spent many hours at the front screen door, observing neighborhood activities from a safe distance until familiarity made her brave enough to go for walks.  She became the official greeter for package deliveries.

A year later, with consistent efforts and patience, Kelsi overcame most of her fears. She still gets startled by sudden loud noises or movements, but quickly recovers. With soulful eyes but a happy disposition, this gentle, big-footed, five-foot-long lap dog, welcomes attention from everyone and is a true blessing in our pack.  We are grateful RAGofAZ gave this special girl a second chance at a Golden life.

Our world changed when we saw an email with two adorable goldens. We were aware of jaw issues, and realized help was quickly required. Maisy couldn’t open her jaw at all, food only made it in her mouth through sheer force and a large overbite. Finley ate normally, though a true yawn is elusive. Both had fangs stabbing the roof of their mouths. After tests, scans, root canals, biopsies, medications, and 3-D skull printing, we found out their bones didn’t form right and only major surgery would fix it.

Maisy was first as it was literally life-saving for her. She now opens her mouth 5x’s wider. Her muscles haven’t been used so they’re stretching more daily. After seeing her experience, Finley decided to wait before making surgical decisions. If she ever holds a ball, he’s in. We are grateful we’ve been able to change their lives and love them more every day!

Finley & Maisy Speak – 

Our world changed when our pawrents read an email saying we were extra special and needed a special home. We knew this was our opportunity to shine so we turned on the charm until they loaded us in the car and drove us to our fur-ever home. We’ve met pawsome doctors and had some ruff surgeries, but we’re resilient!

Our lives started very dif-fur-ently than they are now. We spend our days surrounded by toys, snackles, blankets, a pool, and paws-itively crazy amounts of pets, snuggles, and kisses. We know we have it the goodest of any doggos!