Dutch Shepherd Forum

This is the photo that changed my life forever and brought me to this group.

It's hard to believe it's been 6 years.

Man, were you suckered!

I would have done it too!

It's been seven CRAZY years...



Here's an early days pic:


The old man now:

Was he at a shelter or rescue?

Bramble's gotcha day was the 13th.....but she spent it in the kennel because we're at Disneyworld. We decided not to bring her as the crowds are so big right now.

Radar was a stray find at Miami Dade Animal Services.

It had been 3 months since our Shepherd mutt had to be euthanized unexpectedly due to a large mass in his chest. He couldn't sit or lay down. We were still grieving from putting our yellow lab down just a couple of months prior.

Coming home to a dog-free house was as unbearable as the grief. One search on petfinder turned up the photo that's in the first post. I remember going on a Sunday and seeing all these hearts and comments drawn on the kennel paperwork. "Awesome Dog!" was one comment and I also noticed that there were no other kennels with that type of commentary.

Radar had a grapefruit sized burn on his side ,but he was gentle and loving and I couldn't wait to bring him home.

Not so fast...

They wouldn't let me have him until he was snipped, and they didn't snip on the weekends or holidays (Veterans Day). I had to wait until Wednesday to pick him up. The thought of him spending 3 extra days at the shelter was a nightmare.

Of course, nothing had prepared me for the next few months. The gentle and loving monster was also a Holy terror. I warned him the whole time that I was going to stick it out, and I did.

So, here we are today.

Bramble's story is similar. I actually saw her photo, but was supposed to adopt a different puppy-a Dalmatian mix. I had just had to put down my Dal due to age, degenerative neurological issues (result of abuse before I got her) and breast cancer. The week after she died we had to euthanize the boxer lab mix due to age. (Both were beyond the expected ages for their breeds.) We still have Peanuts, but he was even older. I needed a new dog.

When we realized the puppy I was supposed to get was Pit mixed, we knew I couldn't get it. While Pits can be good dogs, powerful unpredictable breed plus severe autism don't mix. We looked through the shelter and none were it. The attendant said they had a few small dogs in another building.

I didn't want a small dog...but my mom convinced me to look anyway. There were about 10 large dogs in the building. All in a room where most of the dogs had "aggressive" and "will bite" signs. There were also big poles for handling dogs. This sweet little dog with tiger strips was also there. My mom, who really didn't want me to get another big dog, tried to get me to go Corgi. But when we took Bramble out, she was perfect. She didn't allow my son to be afraid of her. She just assumed he loved her.

Of course, when they said, she's a Dutch Shepherd, I assumed they just made up the name.....only after this forum did I realize why she was in that room. Then she started alerting to my son's migraines. Fortunately what I learned here help me get with a good trainer. Otherwise we wouldn't have been able to keep her, no matter how much of a lifesaver she is.

On today's date...