Hello, my name is Gentle Ben, and I am a young black Labrador retriever mix boy. I was born in the spring of 2014. As a young dog, I was thrown out of a car at Caballo State Park, and lived alone there for several weeks. Some kind humans gave me food and water, and I finally trusted them enough to come to them. As seasonal migrants, these humans could not give me a permanent home, so they brought me to Desert Haven in November 2015. I weigh about 47 to 50 pounds. I am a gentle giant with a loving heart. Due to my history, I need to make sure I can trust a person before I show them my loving personality. Although I am big and strong, my human friends at Desert Haven say that I am very mellow, like a “Zen Buddha”. I am friendly, and love to give kisses. Going on walks is really fun. Playing with toys is wonderful too, especially playing fetch with footballs. My human friends say I am the "King of Fetch". I would be a wonderful family dog for the right forever home.