Rescuing Gunther

I had just lost Saber, my amazing high drive German Shepherd, 6 weeks prior to hearing about Gunny. Nine months prior to that I had lost my precious little fluffy Corgi, Star at the age of 15 ½. In February I had added Pirouette, my new little Corgi. Along with Daisy Mae, my seven year old German Shepherd, Pirouette was the perfect dog and my pack was fun, calm and predictable.  Being down to two dogs had its advantages. With one dog on each side, it was easy to travel and easy to walk with both at the same time. Going to dog shows was a breeze, with only two x-pens to fit in the car. In short, I was not in the market for another dog.

              My friend and former student Diane had moved to Redding, after retiring from the Sheriff’s department, and had become very involved in rescue. She “Face Booked” me a photo and information on this German Shepherd that had been found and turned in to the local shelter in Marysville. She has sent me these before, and they have always been interesting, but not something I gave a second thought to…until this one. I had his picture up on my computer and kept pulling it up to look at it. There was something about the eyes…and so I got on the phone and called to see if he was still there. At first I had the wrong shelter…I thought it was Yuba City. They told me of another shelter in Marysville – Yuba County Animal Shelter. After exchanging several phone calls and emails, we determined that they were the ones who had the German Shepherd I was interested in. Finally, I decided to take the afternoon off work and  go and see him…it wouldn’t hurt to look. As I was driving to the facility, I realized that I was in a position to adopt him, to save his life, and then decide if he was the dog for me. If not, I could train him until he was adoptable, and find him his forever home.

              My Aunt, Uncle and cousin had lived in Marysville years ago, and I know we had visited them…but it had been at least 50 years. The area where the shelter is was desolate, made worse, I am sure, by the current drought. Fields were weeds and stickers; a field was where Gunny had been found running loose. Fields and yards with stickers were what I passed on my way to the shelter…and I was worried about the shelter itself. When it appeared on my left, I was pleasantly surprised at the new and modern facility. I went in and asked to see the German Shepherd I had been corresponding with them about.

              The nice young lady working there went to get him and we met in the holding area between inside and outside. When she came back, I was greeted by a gawky teenage German Shepherd, who was doing his best to play with her while he was on his leash. We proceeded to their outside fenced yard. This area also was full of weeds, but shorter. He was not allowed off leash in the big yard as they felt it was not secure. He stopped fairly early in our walk to urinate, which went on for a while. I asked how often the dogs got out; the answer was twice a day. Poor dogs…

              Finally the smaller enclosure was available and we took him in there and took the leash off. I had, of course, brought treats in my pocket, to see what behaviors I could elicit. He was only mildly interested in the treats…or me. But I did get a sit, down and come…not with any enthusiasm, however. This dog seemed nice, and didn’t mind being touched. While he was mildly interested in me, he seemed to have bonded to the young lady who was his caretaker.
This was good news, as it meant he could bond. Hopefully he was transfer that bond to me. He seemed really “shut down” which is not unusual with this breed. They do not tend to do well in shelters…but does any dog?

              It is hard to evaluate dogs in this situation. He was not interested in treats. He was definitely thinking of quickly exiting over the top of the run. The girl spoke quietly to him and he changed his mind. Someone walked by outside the run with a small dog on a leash, and he did not get excited; in fact he barely looked at the dog. This was all I had to go on…that and the fact that he was gorgeous and I fell in love when she brought him out and he was trying to play with her foot.

              And so I went back in and signed his adoption paperwork. This was on a Wednesday; I would not be able to pick him up until the following Monday, as the girls and I were headed north to agility trials in Ferndale. We would be staying in a motel for two nights, and I didn’t want to risk having a brand new dog that I knew nothing about, on the road in close quarters. I felt guilty leaving him for a few more days, but at least I knew he wouldn’t be put to sleep.

              I took that Monday off work to finish getting ready for him and have time to drive to Marysville to pick him up. As it was I got stuck in traffic, and was a few minutes late. I called the girls at the clinic and they waited for me. After paying his bills for neutering, ear cleaning, hip x-rays and a check-up, we headed out for a last potty break before the drive home. He wobbled across the grass and stood there, still very much under the influence of drugs, finally coming over to lean against me. He already knew he was mine. They helped me get him into the car in his crate. Besides a toy, I had put a “slept-in” T-shirt in his crate for him to get my scent. And off we went.