Success Stories
Dogs A-E

These are stories of the wonderful dogs that found their forever homes
because of AGSDR volunteers and supporters. 

To make a Memorial/Gift, click here

or send an email to jazz@austingermanshepherdrescue.org

Have you adopted from us and have a story and picture to share? 
We believe ALL of our adopted dogs are SUCCESS STORIES and would love to hear from you too!
Email us at jazz@austingermanshepherdrescue.org

First off I want to thank Allie’s foster family with Austin GSD rescue for recommending Allie for us…and of course AGSDR itself. We had such a great experience with you all and although we are from Kansas City, had the best time driving down to pick up Allie, our newest family member!

Allie has now been here for almost a week, and I felt compelled to email you all as she just fit in right away. She was an angel the 10 hr drive back to Kansas, and at the hotel we stayed in for one night.  We have had no problems with her and our other GSD getting along, they have become fast friends.

When we got home, of course all of our family wanted to meet Ms. Allie, and we have had several family members here and she is wonderful with all people of all shapes and sizes. We just love her already so much, she has gotten a lot of great compliments. It is obvious that that her foster family did a wonderful job with her!

She is a great dog. Some moments I feel a mix of so sad and so happy that at one time she, and many others like this may have not had another chance if it wasn’t for you all.  So, thank you, your hard work means so much to us, and to others like us, who get the joy of welcoming a new dog/puppy into our homes.

Thanks again,
Stephanie and Dan Garcia and Kelso (GSD) and proudly, Allie (GSD)

Allie and brother Kelso

We adopted these 2 precious girls from AGSDR 3 ½ yrs ago (from Anne Burkett). Athena (left facing) known then as Heidi on the AGSDR web site, and Phoenix (right facing) was pulled at the last minute by AGSDR from TLAC. She was a stray that I believe TLAC had named Ginger (?).

This photo was taken last night. My husband has stage 4 (late stage) lung cancer (he never smoked). He was diagnosed and went thru chemo last summer/fall. He was doing great until 2 months ago when he became ill again. This time it was an undiagnosed massive lung infection, which nearly cost him his life. He was in the critical care unit at St. David’s hospital for 8 days and was discharged home
3 weeks ago today.

I just wanted to send this photo to Anne to let her know that we think of her often. We also have 6 rescued dachshunds; 2 from Central TX Dachshund Rescue (CTDR), 1 from Dachshund Rescue of Houston (DROH), 1 from PAWS in Kyle, 1 from Guadalupe County Humane Society, and 1 from an animal control near the Oklahoma/Texas border.

Thanks to AGSDR for the wonderful things that you do to save so many precious animals.

Shirley (Lockwood) & Dr. Herbert Wong

We adopted Barr in November of 2004. Each day we are still more and more in love with him. I wanted to thank everyone again for all the dedication, time and emotion that goes into saving these dogs. Barr has brought so much joy and adventure into our home/family. We feel so grateful to all of you for saving him and all of the other dogs. I can imagine that it is difficult work....we so appreciate that you all do what you do.

Attached is a picture of Barr napping after a long day at the beach, we thought you guys might enjoy it.

Thanks so much for all of your work, and thanks again for Mr. Barr!!

Ariel

We wanted to send you an update on Barr…it has been about seven months since we adopted him in November and we love our life with Barr!

Whenever someone hears that our dog is a rescue they say, “Oh, he is such a lucky dog, you guys did such a good thing for him.” My response is always that we are the lucky ones, we feel like he has done so much for us! He has so greatly improved our quality of life. Waking up to his big old nose every morning never fails to make us giggle. You can’t put a price on a smile first thing in the morning!

We wanted a dog that we could take everywhere with us, a dog who wanted to be an active part of our busy and varied lifestyle. Barr certainly does fit the bill, we take him hiking, swimming, to friends homes with other dogs, small children and cats. He loves to see what adventures each day will hold and he certainly loves affection from all of the people we come across. He will just sit in front of someone and stare up at them with his big brown eyes until they melt and pet him. He always exhibits such self control, never overexcited or jumpy even though he is still just a young boy. He is always invited back to our friends and families homes.

His favorite times are spent romping outdoors. He is a hopeless fool when he is near water, he gets a little twinkle in his eye and the splashing begins. Because Barr so desperately loves being in the woods we have planned a two week backpacking trip to Colorado for August. We’ll send you another update and some pics of the Barr dog romping in the alpine wilderness when we get back. Thanks so much to everyone who works to hard to rescue and rehabilitate all of these wonderful dogs. Without all your hard work we’d be without our morning giggle!

Thanks a million,

Ariel and Nate
June 2005

P.S. Great job on naming him, at first we weren’t sure about the name Barr... but it quickly grew on us as our friends started joking with us about "raising the Barr", our "Barr of gold" and of course the "Barr tab."

In December 2003 AGSDR received a call about a young, long-haired GSD that was found running loose in the woods. "Bear" was picked up that weekend and boy was he a site to see! He was skinny and full of fleas and ticks. After his bath, he got a haircut to remove the mats from his beautiful coat. Bear fit right into his new foster home, making friends with all of the resident dogs and humans. He was a big, goofy puppy who loved everyone. We were not happy when Bear's heartworm test came back positive, but he went through the treatment with no problem. By this time, Bear had caught the eye of his soon-to-be new family, and a meeting was planned. It was love at first sight! A few weeks later Bear joined his forever family in San Antonio, and we think Bear could not have found a better home!

From a pup in his foster home...

...To certified Therapy Dog!

A letter received from Bear's new guardians:

Since its just about the end of the year, I thought I'd give you one last update on Bear. It's hard to believe we've had him almost a whole year, he is so much apart of our family.

He is now a big goofy adolescent (we think he's now about 18 months). He loves the world and everything in it. I think he finally has the confidence that no one will ever hurt or be rough with him again. I've seen him with a tiny poodle sitting on his head licking his nose (Bear just thumped his tail). Another time a little girl with Downs Syndrome ran up to him and wrap her arms around his neck and buried her head into his fur (he gently turned his head and licked her face).

His temperament is so wonderful he easily passed to Delta Society's Animal Aptitude Test last Oct. He is now a fully certified therapy dog. Bear's been going to the hospital with me the last two weeks visiting patients, family, and staff on the oncology unit. It's fun watching him learn all the new things that go long with going into a large busy hospital. As usual he has impressed everyone who has met him. His favorite time is if he is allow to get in bed with the patient, he gently snuggles down for a love-in.

He is a tall skinny adolescent Shepherd. He looks bigger because of all the hair! He's between 29-30in at the shoulders and about 85lbs. I don't worry about his weight as he has never been a big eater and he is very active. I figure he'll mature out at 100-120 lbs at 3-4 years of age. Several people who know Shiloh's ask me if he is one. Whether he is a big long-haired GSD or a Shiloh, we don't care. He's our big furry bear puppy (Kenzie, the name couldn't have fit him any better)

Bear is very much apart of our dog pack. When the golden and our old female GSD get tired of playing with the kid, he just plays with the toys by himself. We get comments all the time from people that he is a pretty impressive Shepherd with a wonderful temperament. We let everyone know he came from your organization. We recommend your rescue to everyone who asks about getting a GSD.  We couldn't be happier with Bear. He has turned out to be everything we were looking for in a GSD.

Have a happy holiday season.
Pat and Bryce Segar
Dela Bailey and Bear
December 2005
 

Brooke in the first few days...

Some dogs come to AGSDR in good health.  For one reason or the other they were surrendered by a previous owner or left to stray.  Others have a harder story.  Like Brooke.  Brooke was an unfortunate pup in a group of 3 that were hairless, mangy little messes.  But our intake coordinator, Megan, saw through that.  She saw wonderful, sweet, personable baby German Shepherds.

So they came to live with her, and she cared for them with horrid, smelly weekly baths; lots of good food; and even more love.  Another pup, Lola, that we got in at the same time (not one of the others with Brooke) had hair…and wow, she was adopted fast.  But little Brooke took a bit longer.   And a little later...

That is, until the day we found out she had a bum elbow.  For more on her problem, see our story under Kenny & Apache.  The two suffered the same condition.  So, we advertised for help with her bills on fundable.org, seeking half the cost so as to not devastate our limited rescue budget.  The outpouring was amazing!!

Recovering is a hard job, but someone's got to do it!

And even better, she caught the eye of caring souls who wanted Brooke to come be theirs!  A surgery, and trip across the country, and many hugs later, and Brooke has become a special gal to her new family.
 

Here’s a note recently sent, along with a couple of pictures.  Brooke, you’ve come a long way!

Sorry I haven't written in so long (truth is I've been waiting for Trevor to upload the photos from the camera since sadly I cannot); just wanted to let you know "We're Surviving."  Hee!Hee!  Unfortunately, Brooke proved to us that she cannot roam free during the day.  I believe our current total damage is up to $700.  Boy are we getting reacquainted with GSD puppy life!

We crate her during the day; however, she isn't very happy about that.  Our FL parents let her out at lunch so she can roam, play, and generally wreak havoc on the dog toys and FL lizards. :)  Her new Indian name is "Great Lizard Hunter."  We have a lot of them down her and apparently they fascinate her.  She enjoys chasing them around the trees.  Don't worry, she doesn't eat them.

Unfortunately, I must report that she was christened in the O'Day style. She kept bothering Rourke and wouldn't take "no" (i.e. didn't back off after the barking) so she got bit in the face which required two staples.  I say this is O'Day fashion since Megan bit Bailey (our older shepherd who died in June) and Bailey bit Rourke when she was a puppy.  Rourke had three staples.

Don't worry; all is well no visible scaring.  I would say hurt pride but it never phased her.  She is a hard headed one!

It seems Brooke has/will become Gemma's dog.  She has attached herself to Gemma, and we are surprised at how well she does with her.  You do have watch every now and then as she still mouthy.

She is growing into a Good Dog!
P.S.  I've enclosed some photos that I thought you might find amusing.

Talk to you soon.
Janet
 

We just celebrated our Buddy’s one year adoption anniversary (7/5/06)!! I thought it was only fitting that I drop you a line to let you know how he is doing. Our once skinny, shy puppy has blossomed into an 83 lb GSD who has lots of confidence and a crazy amount of personality. Eric and I absolutely adore him and can’t imagine life before he stole our hearts. He truly is a “Daddy’s boy”…he has bonded very strongly to Eric, which surprised us both considering Eric travels a lot for work. I think the A/C dog house that Eric built for Buddy might be a factor in his loyalty!

A few months ago we met up with Michael at a soccer game and Buddy demonstrated that he definitely has not forgotten those who has been kind to him. He recognized Michael’s voice immediately and covered him with kisses. A wonderful sight!

I thank you for opening your heart and home to Buddy and all the other rescues! We’ll continue to keep in touch and try to share more stories and updates.

Take care,
Shannon
July 2006

Some of them have it harder than others.  When we first got Caspian, he was here -----------------> 

<----- And he looked like this. This poor boy had not been neglected intentionally.  It was a sad story, really.  His previous owner had Alzheimer's, and the dog wasn't the only one suffering.

So people kept passing him by.  NOT what they were looking for in their new dog.  That's where AGSDR stepped in.  After all, we saw him for how he acted, and we knew how he looked would change quickly with some love and attention.  And it did. 
Before long, he was looking like THIS --------------------------------------------> 

And soon enough, in August 2006, he was adopted.  Here's a short section of a note we got from his new family after his first day...

"As you know we picked up Caspian on Thursday the 31st and what a wonderful dog he is. He has had no accidents in the house. He has settled in very well. Caspian has met the horses and did very good. No barking or growling or jumping at the horses. They all treated each other like long lost friends. Caspian even went under Zip and Zip didn't mind at all.

We are so glad to have added Caspian to our family. He is a wonderful dog. He even did super his first night alone when we were at work. He didn't even have to be crated."

And here's another note we got from them after one month, in Sept 2006...

I just wanted to say Thanks again for letting us adopt Caspian. He has already learned to down, sit, and shake. He is attached to Marks hip when Mark is home. We have had no accidents in the house. He got neutered last week. I dont think he was happy he had to stay for the day at the vet. I also want to donate his crate. We don’t need it because he has had no problems being alone when we are at work. He has done very well with the storms we have had. No pacing. We get complements on him all the time. Michele, you did a great job with him.

Suzi , Mark, and Caspian

And last but not least, pics of a happy Caspian in his new home...

Cassie (aka Cassidy) was my result of a search for a "white GSD". Something you need to know about Cassie is that she is Black and Tan. No, I'm not color blind but there's a story to all this. I also was looking for a dog close to Iowa. Again, there's a story behind this.

I started out like all people who are truly interested in knowing about the dog they will eventually own by reading books and searching the web for all the information I could find on GSDs. There are millions of pages out there devoted to GSDs. As I mentioned earlier, I was looking for a reputable breeder of white GSDs that was also close to where I live, Iowa. The more I looked, the more aware I became of animals who were either abused, neglected, or both. I decided to adopt rather than  purchase a white GSD.

Amongst all the Google searches I did I found the Austin German Shepherd Rescue website and stopped in to simply gain more knowledge about GSDs as well as being curious as to what dogs they had available. I looked at every dog they had—but one barked at me, not literally but figuratively. She said, "I'm the one you want and I would love to see Iowa." Her name, Cassidy. There was something special about her that kept me coming back to visit.

Eventually I sent an email asking if they would consider an out-of-state adoption. They agreed to "consider" it, with reservations I'm sure. Well after a few lengthy conversations and several emails we agreed to a meeting. I drove 1100 miles (one-way) to meet everyone and especially Cassidy.
The minute I saw her I knew that unless they had any concerns about me I was bringing Cassidy to Iowa to give her a good home and let her know how special she is.

After all was said and done I didn't meet either of my original goals, Cassidy is neither white nor was she anywhere even remotely close to Iowa. That said, she was better in every way than I imagined and she is enjoying her new home in Iowa.

Thanks to Joyce and Karen for all the hard work and for giving this more than a passing chance. Cassie has truly enriched my life.

Phil and I want to than you for putting us together with our wonderful German Shepherd Charlie.  She is perfect for us!  Charlie is so affectionate and eager to do the right thing.  We take her for a walk in the local park each morning.  This park is very large and wild with walking paths in the woods.  Charlie run and runs, but always returns to us at top speed when called.  The only shyness we see in her at this point in time is when she is meeting new people.  Most of our friends love dogs and are also our age.  They appreciate a polite and reserved dog.  Very quickly, if no noisy overture is made, Charlie will approach them to make friends and allow herself to be petted.

As much as we do love big German Shepherds, we are so happy to have our "small" girl.  She fits into our home and our auto and now our arms as though she was custom made for us!  

Charlie in her foster home

My husband says again and again that we are blessed to have Charlie and I know that we are indeed. She has added so much joy and affection to our lives.

I have finished reading "Help With Your Shy Dog," and I think I will begin formal and extensive training soon, although there are no classes near us and I will be training her myself.  We are doing our best to provide her with opportunities for socialization.  We take her on most of our errands and to visit friends.  She is learning that the world is a friendly and less scary place than she thought it was!

Charlie in April

Thank you again for providing us with our wonderful dog.  She is our treasure.

Best Wishes, 

Phil and Sandy Cook

06 April 2005

We are so very thankful for Charlotte our GSD rescue from July 2005. We love her to pieces. She seems to love all people. She is very healthy and happy. We go for walks several times a day. My Dad came to visit from California and loves her too.  Thank you for your wonderful efforts. 

The Anderson Family.

click for larger version

We wanted to share some thoughts and updates on China, a beautiful and soul-filled female which we adopted November 5, 2004.  For 29 years Tom and I have shared our home with many wonderful and beautiful German Shepherds, all of which we raised from puppies save and except one male which we brought to our family 29 years ago as a family could not have him in their place of residence.

We have loved each and every one of our boys and girls in a special way, each with their unique personalities and unconditional love and devotion. On December 31, 2003 we lost a very special male named Gunner. He was the light of our days and life and we could not imagine our home without him. Due to my impending knee replacement surgery we knew it would be impossible to bring a puppy into our home and be in a position to remain cautious about my knee. After the loss of Gunner, we weren't even sure that we would have another dog for a long time. The pain of his loss was incredibly intense.

After my surgery I was surfing the net and came across your website and the "Featured Dog" that day was China. There was something about her that I could not get out of my mind. I would leave your website convinced that I could not manage a dog at this time in my life and I was always preferential to males anyway. No matter how I tried, her face invade my thoughts, my sleep and I kept returning to her webpage.

Of course, we made the trip to Austin and five minutes at her foster home was all it took. She was so quiet and calm that one would ask how we could have made that decision so quickly, but our hearts were captured the minute we saw her.

China is doing beautifully and undoubtedly she knows she has found her "Forever Home". She is so loving and caring that it touches your heart. She loves everyone, adults and children. Most of our friends come to visit just to see her as everyone loves her gentle ways and sweet kisses. Unfortunately, she still does not like other dogs and it's probably her way of making sure that she is an "only child".

She definitely knows "walk", "treats", "bone" and all of those pleasures that a furry child should enjoy. It is incomprehensible to us that someone would have left this beautiful creature tied to a tree to starve and die....her greatest pleasure is to fill you with her love and gentleness, her body nestled right against yours and her love extended to you through her beautiful big brown eyes. She is so obedient and easily adaptable to whatever we ask.

Thank you for taking such good care of her until she found us. We never thought about adopting, but we can testify that there is no feeling that can match the feeling you have when you have adopted one of these beautiful pets.

Sincerely,
Mrs. Joey Prohaska

Martin and I wanted to give you an update on Chuska. It's been about eight months since we adopted him in September of 2005. When we first got him, he was tall and lanky but now he is a massive 110 pounds and very handsome. He gets compliments everywhere he goes and is the favorite at daycare. He is very intelligent and knows all his basic commands, can shake hands and is learning off leash now.

Some of Chuska's favorite things to do are riding in the car, going to the park to drink out of the water fountain, playing chase with us in the house, and he gets so excited on the days he attends doggie daycare.

Chuska is my husband's first dog and we couldn't have asked for a more personable, loving animal. He is great medicine - better than any doctor could ever give. We are so truly lucky to have him a part of our lives. We tell everyone where he came from.

Thank you to Joyce, Liz, Phil and all the other AGSR volunteers for all you do to rescue these wonderful dogs.

Kathy and Martin
May 2006

Deacon was adopted in early 2007.  We got this note shortly thereafter, along with some pics we thought you'd all like to see!

I just wanted to let you know that Deacon is doing great at my house with Kayenne.  He was the perfect match.  The dogs play all of the time and sleep next to each other at night.  He is growing stronger by the day, chasing balls and going for increasingly longer walks.

Thank you for suggesting that I adopt him.  He's turned out to be just wonderful.  I love him to pieces.

I finally got a chance to take some pictures of him.  He's such a beautiful boy and so photogenic.  He even has a new kitty friend who he has learned not to chase.

Hope you guys enjoy these photos.

Thanks,
Mary Ellen

I adopted Dingo this past summer (2005) and have just fallen in love! He is just the sweetest natured dog and so eager to please. We have gone thru the first phase of obedience training and will be starting the Canine Good Citizen training in March. As you can see from the picture, he is wonderful with children and, once he makes it thru the rest of training, I may consider enrolling him as a visitation dog for hospitals and nursing homes. You just can't love on him too much!

The foster family I received him from were so helpful and informative about his habits that it really helped to smooth over his transition into a home with 2 cats and a
15 year old miniature dachshund! While he and the cats aren't the best of friends they tolerate each other well and I occasionally catch them playing together out in the back yard.

Thank you so much for your wonderful organization! Its been a great experience that I would recommend to anyone.

The Maxwell Family

Diva