Many of you who have stayed with us in the past few years may have seen my German Shepherd Apollo when checking in.  He was an office fixture, accompanying me to work most days and appearing in our pet friendly advertising and on this site.  He was the love of my life.  In December – I lost my best friend, just shy of 13 years.  He had a wonderful Tahoe life, full of beaches, friends, hikes and swimming.

I have always been a bit of a dog “snob” preferring to know a dog’s history, lineage, etc.  Because I know how long it takes to find the “right” pup and maybe get on a breeder’s list, I began looking toward the end of December, although my plans were to purchase a dog in the spring.  My friend and business partner had recently adopted an adorable dog thru petfinder.com so I took a look at it, not with the hopes of finding a dog – but just out of curiosity.

I came across an ad for a dog placed with German Shepherd Rescue of Sacramento Valley.  He was cute – and he had been picked up the day after my Apollo had died.  I visited his profile a few times over the next few days….talked to some friends – looking for someone to say – its ok, you will know when the time is right.  I finally decided to call to see if he was still available.

Long story short – he was!  The process was thorough with an adoption questionnaire and a home visit.  After the home visitation was complete, I arranged a visit with Brian of GSRSV to ensure that “Conner” – now “Jager” would be a match.  When we drove into the property, we were greeted by a few German Shepherds and then more, including Jager.  He came over immediately, kissed me on the face and proceeded to saunter over to my SUV where he smelled all the way around it.  None of the other dogs checked out the car – they were just bounding around playing.  We looked at a few of the dogs that Brian had in an area behind his house and I told him that I had a few treats and toys that I had brought for the other dogs living there awaiting adoption.  About five dogs accompanied me to the car.  When I opened the car door – Jager hopped in and laid down on the seat.  No amount of coaxing was going to get him out – he was going home with me and that was that!  There were tears of joy in my eyes.  I knew at that moment that this was INDEED meant to be.  In the course of two weeks he has gone from being a Sacramento stray, wandering the streets….to my boy!

There are many rescue efforts in communities around the country.  For those living in the Sacramento, Reno or the Bay Area I would encourage you to check out the adoptable dogs at German Shepherd Rescue of Sacramento Valley.  Brian is a one man operation, basically devoting his life to ensuring that German Shepherds and GSD mixes are given the best possible chance at finding the right home.  He has opened up his heart and his home and currently has about a dozen dogs that could use a family.  I am sure that food or monetary donations would also be appreciated.

-Lisa Underwood - Vice President of Sales and Marketing

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