I wanted to let you know of the passing of one of your rescued dogs.  In 2008 I was looking for theGerman Shepherd of my dreams.  I was put in touch with Martin Shepherd and he brought over a beautiful 6 month old female called Betsy for us to meet.  I knew instantly she was the one.   My husband and I adopted her and we shared 13 great years together.  

We named her Andie and she was our baby.  We enjoyed long walks and dog park visits.  We found out she loved the water, so of course we took her places she could enjoy a swim. I bought a van so she could travel with us and we got a condo so she could vacation with us.  Yes we loved her. 

At 12 she had some arthritis but otherwise very good.  She slowed down a little more, her hearing was selective.  I started cooking healthy stews for her.  She loved her special meals and she still loved going to the dog park to sniff around.  Unfortunately, out of the blue things changed.  I had to say goodbye to my sweet girl yesterday because of cancer.  We miss her terribly and lots of tears.

I wanted to thank your rescue for the wonderful work you do.  I always appreciated the fact Andie came into our lives because your rescue pulled her out of a shelter in Richmond and Martin was willing to foster her. 

Virtual hugs to all of you.
Dawn Case 2/10/21

It is with sadness that I report that Bobbi (VGSR 3443) crossed the Rainbow Bridge on July 29, 2019. She was my special friend, and I miss her terribly. Mike

7/30/15    Boots came to us in February of 2005, and from the moment we met him, it was clear that HE chose US, and not the other way around.

                  After losing our 8-year-old female GSD to bone cancer, we started looking at rescue dogs on the VGRS website.  There were so many beautiful dogs to choose from, it was hard to decide.  We connected with a VGSR volunteer at an in-store adoption event and set up the meeting for our home inspection.  Having owned a GSD for eight years prior, she was pretty sure the inspection would be a simple visit.

                  What we did not realize was that she and her husband also fostered some dogs, and so the day she arrived at our house we were surprised to see she had brought a handsome boy along for the ride.  We hadn’t arranged to meet any dogs that day so we were wondering why he was there, and then she explained that “Boots” simply adored riding in the car and she decided to bring him along.  The moment I opened the front door to greet her, Boots pushed past my leg and made himself right at home, prancing around the house to everyone’s delight.  He even headed upstairs without asking and explored up there before coming back down again.  Our home inspection was already underway, it seemed.

                  As we all talked with the volunteer outside in our fenced-in backyard, we learned that at nine months old, Boots’ previous owner had not watched him carefully and he had gotten out into the busy street and was hit by a car, breaking his left rear leg.  With the cost of surgery now in front of him, the owner decided to dump Boots in a shelter and avoid the trouble.  VGSR received a call from the shelter and when this volunteer got down to the shelter, she found Boots in a kennel cage with no first aid having been administered at all on his broken leg.  She removed him immediately, and the team at VGSR got him to surgery right away to fix and pin the leg, and take care of neutering and updating his medical care.  Boots wasn’t even on the VGSR website yet, as he had to complete his recovery first.

                  As she told us this story, it was hard to believe that the young 1-year-old GSD excitedly tearing around in our backyard could be this same dog.  Even the volunteer said the vet didn’t believe he was doing that well.  After playing ball with Boots and some hide-and-seek (he found me every time!) we had decided that this could very well be the dog we wanted.  After we completed the adoption process, and after the pins were removed from his healed leg, we were able to adopt Boots into our home.

                  He joined our family just as our little boy turned two years old.  From that day forward, they were inseparable.  Boots watched over, (and sometimes to our boy’s frustration, herded him,) at all times.  There’s was never a concern for our son’s safety as long as Boots was outside playing with him.  They slept together on the couch.  At night, once our son was asleep in his room, Boots would trot into our room and either take his place on his dog bed in our room, or jump up on the foot of our king-sized bed and proceed to hog all the space.

                  When we moved to Massachusetts in 2009, Boots rode with me in the car for the nine-hour journey and did fantastic.  He enjoyed the next six years running our 1-3/4 acre property, chasing squirrels, chipmunks, turkeys and even spooked a deer or two.  He love to just lay in the back yard like a king and survey his property, watching the birds on the feeders, his radar-dish ears always turning to take in the sounds of the woods behind our home.  He loved car rides and our favorite game of tug-of-war.  We admit without guilt that we spoiled him and he in turn, loved us without fail.

                  In October of 2014, we discovered a tumor in his belly, and after a day of pain meds for the discomfort, he was back to himself as if nothing was wrong.  While it didn’t appear to be any aggressive cancer, working with our vet, we decided that since he was just turning eleven we’d maintain the meds to keep his quality of life strong, as surgery would likely do more harm than good at that point.  Boots kept on going, refusing to quit, and he and I enjoyed our new morning ritual of a half-mile walk to keep him limber and exercised.  He still wanted to play tug-of-war, although they were much more subdued games now than in years past.  When the day finally came in June that he was having trouble walking, we knew it was time to let him go.  Even then, tired and unable to get up off the floor, he let out a soft growl at the vet when she came into the exam room, as if to say “This is my family, and I’m protecting them even still.”  We all sat with him and pet him and kissed him all over as we said goodbye to the best rescue dog on the planet.  He was such a good, loyal, brave boy, and we only hope he knew just how much we loved him.  We were so blessed that Boots chose us that day in 2005.   Dave and Kelly Bailey

RIP 6/15/08 - 11/30/11
Buddy was taken from a shelter 11/30/11 with an unknown medical problem in hopes of saving him. Sadly he had Lymphoma and could not be cured. He was allowed to pass in caring hands.

8/2/19 - 11/24/19.   Some dogs come into VGSR as a life-saving effort. Bullet was one of those dogs. She arrived at the vet lethargic, vomiting and displaying other concerning symptoms. Her owner was no longer able to afford her cost of care so she was brought into the rescue. Bullet was moved into a foster home where she received around the clock attention. The vet believed she was suffering from meningitis or possibly a toxin in her system. Bullet was a total sweetheart who loved to just sit in her foster's lap, but despite all efforts, she could not be saved.