Dog (sorry) rescue question

OK, I know it's the Cat Site, but so many of you seem to be so knowledgeable about strays...

I'm looking for resources to contact to try to help find a home for a stray puppy.

I've been trying to get her into our local no-kill shelters since she appeared at our house in September, to no avail. I put up pictures at the local pet stores, only to get responses like "can she fight?" She looks a lot like a German Shepherd police dog, and is very large, but very sweet & gentle. With her personality, I think she might even make a good service dog of some sort.

We're happy to keep her until a good home can be found, but I'd like to get some ideas on how to get her some exposure to potential good homes, and how to screen out unfit ones.

Any ideas are appreciated...
Thanks.

*We're located in Texas, if anyone knows of any area-specific resources.

Lots of people visit the Petfinder message boards..and if you have a picture of her....than people can see what she looks like:

http://www.petfinder.com/messageboard/index.php

Katie

Originally posted by tuxedokitties

With her personality, I think she might even make a good service dog of some sort.

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You might try contacting some of the organizations that supply these dogs and asking them to evaluate her.

Thanks, I'll give those ideas a try.


She has just about the sweetest personality I've ever seen in a dog, and is very calm - some neighborhood idiots were setting off fireworks on Christmas night, and they didn't bother her at all. She just watched curiously...as our dogs & cats all tried to dive under the bed. And her hearing is fine.

Originally posted by tuxedokitties
[B}She has just about the sweetest personality I've ever seen in a dog, and is very calm - some neighborhood idiots were setting off fireworks on Christmas night, and they didn't bother her at all. She just watched curiously...as our dogs & cats all tried to dive under the bed. And her hearing is fine.

[/b]

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Contact your Local Police K-9 Unit. If they are like most in the Nation they will be more then happy to take her and evaluate her. the fact that she is so calm and the fact that the Fireworks didn't bother her shows that she may be a very good Attack dog. I grew up training and handling Police K-9's and that is one of the many things that was very important in a police dog.

I think that Border Patrol has a K-9 training facilitiy somewhere in Texas. atleast they used to about 10 years ago. My father trianed with the lead Trainer there. you might want to check into that also. Just a few ideas for ya! I hope she finds a good home working dog or just a family pet. I am sure she would do great either way!

I would suggest contacting your local shelter and find out if there is a reputable German Shepard Rescue group in your area. They might be able to help you. Also talk with local vets who might have steady clients that might be interested.

The "can he fight" people are always scary and distressing. If you do find someone to adopt him please be sure to check out their story before releasing the dog.

Good luck,
George

Thanks for the ideas.

I've tried to contact the local GSD rescue several times & never got any response.

If she becomes a police dog, will she have companionship & love? I know that dogs have been bred for centuries to work, and having a job would really make her happy (my dog LOVED obedience training), but where do they go when they're off-duty? If she's loved, that might be a great option for her.

If I can find a family for her, what I plan to do is get their permission for me to contact their vet & get a reference, as well as visit their home. I'm wondering if I should charge an adoption fee, & what is reasonable? I don't expect to recover my costs (spaying a dog this size costs a small fortune), but I want to weed out someone wanting a 'free dog'.

She's almost 8 months old, and 67 pounds as of yesterday.
I really wish we could keep her, she's a great dog - but we have an older dog with arthritis that's half her size, and he tries to play with her & gets hurt. Plus, 3 dogs is a bit much for our small house and yard, especially if you consider the 5 cats, too.

Her feet are tan, BTW - that's just mud on her paws.