Stoic

Finally it seemed like we were on the right track. Goliath was gaining weight and his hair loss issues were under control. He was a playful pup and LOVED to snuggle! He had no problem crawling under the covers with me and "sleeping like a person" as my boyfriend would say. He wasn't much into toys; my hands, and face were much more fun to lunge at and nip!

As soon as my alarm would go off in the morning, Goliath knew it was time to wake me up. He would start by tramping all over my face. Sometimes I wouldn't wake up fast enough for him, and I would just peek my eyes open at him and see him in a stiff stance, preparing to leap. One time, I didn't close my eye fast enough and he nipped me right in the eye! It didn't hurt luckily, and there were a few instances where he bit me right on the nose. I knew he didn't know any better, and he was only playing so I couldn't scold him. I just discovered an alternative: a laser pointer!

That laser was awesome! He never got tired of chasing it. I would get really crafty and put the laser under the covers and he would search under the blankets for it. When he couldn't find it, he would poke his head out from the covers and look at me like "now what?" and then he would quickly notice it on the wall. This was the perfect way to play with him, because it kept him entertained. With toys, he quickly got bored  and only wanted my hands to bite! Today, I thoroughly checked my hands to see if I could find one small trace of his playfulness, and sadly saw nothing but dry skin =(

As the vet put it, dogs are very stoic. Its hard to tell how long he wasn't feeling well because all he cared about was impressing his mommy, apparently no matter how crumby he was feeling. Goliath was the bravest and most playful fighter that ever lived.