We welcomed Kate into our home on Memorial Day 2007. She marched into the house and stood on the back of the sofa and looked at us all as if to say "well here I am!" When she arrived she had been in foster care for four months. She is a big dog but was skin and bones at 51 lbs. Her coate was very dry and brittle. Katie is an extremely active dog and we just assumed she had a hard time gaining weight because of it. After months of trying different foods she finally started to put on weight. Last January she became very very ill. We rushed her to the emergency veterinarian hospital (you know...the one where you pay triple because your dog only gets sick ten minutes after your vet closes for the night). They said there was something in her stomach but could not be sure if it was food or a foreign object. They also suspected Inflammatory Bowel Disease because of her history of stomach problems, diarrhea and weight loss. This can only be diagnosed through a surgical biopsy. We decided to have the surgery. Her stomach had only food in it but she did test positive for IBD.

Recovery from the surgery was far harder than I expected (35 staples). She lost a lot of weight and it seemed we were right back where we started. We started her on a prescription diet and she had done very well. No more problems. She is still very hyper and can be exhausting mostly all the time but I work with her on her manners 24/7 and she is very obedient when she can focus. Her passion is retrieving and we have been working on fieldwork since she loves to run (and run and run...). We enclosed 2 1/2 acres of electric fence for her and believe me she uses every inch of it.

This is a picture of Kate in one of her rare quiet moments. Most pictures we take are blurry

Another of her bringing back her duckie.

She is now 67 lbs and has a beautiful thick coat. We just love her. Thank you G.R.I.N. for giving us Katers and teaching me the value of "patience."

God Bless,

JULIE RIHN AND KATIE