Poor little Miss Mary was trapped in a junkyard in rural SW Virginia with quite a few other German Shepherd mixes. She has not been shown much kindness in her life so far, which has left her leery of people she does not know (which is why she had to be trapped). Gradually she is warming up to petting and hugs from her foster mom and dad. No doubt Mary had probably never been in a house prior to coming under VGSR's wing. She is currently being crate-trained. As fearful as she is of humans, she is very much a "team player" with other dogs, and even does well with cats. Surprisingly she also rides well in the car! Due to Mary's nature, her adoptive home must be quiet in nature and patient while she learns to trust new people. Mary will never be the sort of dog that can be trusted off-leash, as she would very quickly revert to her "wild" nature and run for cover if frightened. But Mary deserves a second chance and the opportunity to understand that there are good people out there in the world. Won't you consider her? Please check out our web site at www.shepherdrescue.org for more information about our dogs, our adoption process and to download an application. You must have a fully approved application on file prior to privately meeting our dogs. We do not have a facility, all our dogs are housed in private foster homes throughout MD/DC/VA areas. More information available on our web site, so please read through our web site before emailing questions, as it might save us both some time!

VGSR can only adopt dogs out in the Virginia/Maryland/DC area, no exceptions.

Although donations of all types are needed, our primary need is foster homes for our lovely dogs while they wait for their new family to find them. Fostering is an extremely rewarding experience. Vet care is paid for by our rescue, and we can even provide you with food. All YOU need to add is love and security.

The adoption process starts with the applicant filling out the adoption application. This can happen at any time during the process, before or after having met a GSD that might be the ideal companion. (It's an advantage to have a pre-approved application on file with VGSR. It should be stressed here that being pre-approved does not mean that any potential adopter can select any available dog at will and take that dog home immediately. VGSR will exercise its best judgement as to which GSD will be the best match for that specific adopter based on a number of qualifying criteria. Many GSDs that come to us are matched up with their new people very quickly because their people have been pre-approved.) The applicant then submits the application form with a non-refundable $10.00 processing fee. VGSR reviews the application, then schedules an interview and home visit during which a number of questions are asked and the home is reviewed to be sure there is a contained/safe yard, and to meet the family involved. Once the application is approved, the applicant is asked to submit a $250.00 donation to VGSR, and the adoption is completed.

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