22-010 Finn is an 8-year-old purebred Golden. His original owner took him to a vet in Queen Creek with a request to have him euthanized because his medical needs, as well as those of the humans in the household, were just too overwhelming. The vet refused and gave the dog to one of his techs, who then gave him to his girlfriend, but the girl couldn’t keep the dog. She then called AGR and offered to drive Finn from Chandler to one of our partner veterinarians in Glendale – so nice of her to do that! Once in the lobby, Finn let everyone know he was there by barking a greeting. He was a reasonable weight at 76 pounds, maybe even a tad underweight for his size. He is a big boy with a big head and one of the worst skin conditions we’ve ever seen – he was furless on his chest, belly and sides halfway down to his tail, which looked like it was missing most of the fur. The skin was angry-looking, red between the folds (it was folded like a hippo’s skin), and was infected probably from him scratching himself so much. He also had some hematomas on his ear flaps. We thought his skin condition might have indicated hypothyroidism, but the test came back in the normal range, so it was just allergies that had run rampant. At the vet, he was given an antibiotic injection, some pills, and a vitamin supplement for his skin. We found him a great home with an adoptive family in Scottsdale. They have adopted from us before and really love the senior dogs. They also live within walking distance of Dermatology for Animals where we had Finn’s skin condition analyzed. They did a full workup on him and prescribed a regimen of meds, baths and a change in food. Finn is now doing well. The adopters asked Finn for his input:

Hello, nice people of AGR. My name is Finnegan but most folks just call me "Finn". I came to AGR earlier this year with a pretty bad skin condition. Allergies of some sort that made me scratch and claw at my skin all the time. I couldn't help it. I was always very itchy. So, AGR folks found me a new home with my new dads, and it has been great. They put me on a special high protein diet, and gave me medicine and a weekly medicated bath. I didn't understand it all at first, but my itching soon stopped and my pretty golden fur has all grown back now. I feel GREAT! I love my new home with my dads. We go for walks in the big park right next to our house. My favorite game is tug-of-war with the leash. Dad did not understand this at first, so I had to teach him how to play the game. Now we have lots of playing it every day. My new sister is Miss Kitty, and she and I have lots of fun together. I am also a good watchdog. Whenever someone comes to the door, I bark furiously then greet them with the "Woobie of Welcome" as they come inside. I'm so very thankful to the kind folks at AGR for finding me this new, special home. It feels good not to be itchy and scratchy all the time, and I love my new family. I think this is the place for me. Love, Finn