Meet Lily
You will not meet a sweeter soul than this lady. She is about 2 years old and she came to us December 2022 with her litter of 9 puppies (you may remember the nascar litter). She was a skeleton, had severe pneumonia and she was unable to keep her food down. We spent months treating her respiratory infections and pneumonia along with figuring out that she has a condition called Megaesophagus which was causing her to regurgitate her food and not absorb any nutrients. Mega E is where the esophagus is enlarged and does not constrict to hold food down in the stomach. Most of these dogs need to eat upright in a specialized chair so the food flows right down to their stomach.

Lily started out with us in a chair but she has been able to now eat with just a very raised bowl. She is currently eating a kibble with water. She will never be able to drink water normally (she needs it mixed with her food or given to her in gelatin cubes). She will always be at risk of aspiration pneumonia but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t deserve the best family who can see past her special needs. She does still regurgitate randomly if she consumes too much at one time. Having a Bailey’s Chair on hand would be a good idea.

We originally thought she had severe food allergies but after 9 months of being on a strict diet for that, she was still flaring up. We did more testing and discovered she has severe environmental allergies, not food. So she is now on a regular dog food diet (not prescription) and she gets allergy shots monthly. These are done at home with a very small needle. She is a champ and knows exactly when it is time and sits very still. These injections are $40-$50 per month. These will be life long. She will also need to see her friends at the dermatologist yearly.

Lily gets along with other dogs and she loves running and playing with everyone. She is kennel trained and does well on house training. She started her life as an outdoor dog, which is how she ended up pregnant but she needs a home indoors now. She is also a very laid back girl and she listens very well. She has recently become fascinated with the squirrels that have taken up residents in a tree in the yard. She is a great hunter and will love to keep your yard clear of these pesky critters.

Lily graduated from a 12 week training program with Dog School of Minnesota. She made amazing progress with this training program!

When most people think of Goldens, they think of dogs that love to swim. While we don’t know if she would “like” to, we know that unfortunately she cannot be allowed to swim because of risk of aspiration of the water into her lungs.

We know this won’t be an easy task to find her forever home but there has to be a home for sweet Lily!

Adoption applications available at rpaw.org
Adoption fee is $300