GSDWF
Meet Our Permanent Residents
Some of the German Shepherd dogs rescued by us have very little chance of being re- homed. This may be because of illness, or because they are old, or simply because they do not get on with other dogs.
The older or sick dogs may be lucky enough to find a foster home but The German Shepherd Dog Welfare Fund continue to pay for their vet bills and medication. The other dogs that are not lucky enough to be fostered have to be housed in commercial kennels, presenting us with large kennel bills.
We operate a “Sponsor a German Shepherd” scheme where you can sponsor one of these dogs and receive quarterly newsletters from them. The money raised helps us to continue to care for them whether they be in a foster home or kennels. Sponsorship costs just £20 a year. It makes a perfect gift for your dog loving friends and gives you the satisfaction of knowing you are helping a German Shepherd Dog in need.
If you would like to sponsor one of our residents, please email us at gsdwelfarefund@gmail.com putting "sponsor" in the subject header for more details. All of the dogs below can be sponsored.
ACE
Ace came into our care when he was 9 months old having already had 4 homes. Sadly, something had happened in his original home before he was 7 months old that obviously terrified him. We believe he had an electric collar used on him. He was rescued but each home found it wasn't working out with him so he was moved on. In the fourth home he was lunging at a member of the family so they brought him into Welfare. When he came it was difficult to get near him. He wasn't vicious, he was terrified. We did a lot of rehabilitation work with him and he came on in leaps and bounds but still always had a reaction to young men (his original home where the trauma had been caused) so it would be difficult to re-home him.
Although he now copes really well, from experience people do not always follow advice and if we were to re-home him and he was put into a situation that he couldn't cope with and reacted he could find himself in trouble when it really isn't his fault. On top of all this, the poor boy is almost blind. The chances of him finding a suitable home is very doubtful but he is happy where he is, in our care, living life to the full.
ALBUS
Handsome Albus is only a young boy who loves affection and fuss once he gets to know you. He is incredibly intelligent and very quick to learn and communicates beautifully with other dogs. However, Albus can be very unpredictable and becomes frustrated very quickly. He is happy and feels safe in kennels with his routine so we feel he should remain in our care.
ARLO
Arlo the handsome came into welfare because his previous owners felt I had some behaviour issues. Sadly he had a freak accident resulting in a broken leg. Despite the setback he has done well and come on leaps and bounds but he would need a very specific home. It would need to be with a man who lives alone and has time to continue to work with him. There shouldn't be any children or other pets in the household either. We feel this is a huge ask so Arlo will likely remain with us.
ARTHUR
Arthur came into our care at 7 months of age after suffering neurological damage directly after being given nexgard flea treatment. He has learned to walk again although not long distances, but it obviously affected him mentally.
Arthur has to be micro managed otherwise he gets over stimulated and bites. He is not an aggressive dog. This is part of the neurological damage. Because of this we obviously feel he is not safe to home. He is now 3 and such a happy young man.
BEAU
Beau is one of our permanent residents. Sadly she suffers with a disease called exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI) so needs medication with every bit of food she has. We did home her once but sadly they didn’t stick to the guidelines and she lost so much weight we had to bring her back.
BRUCE
Bruce is a 2 year old black and tan, long coated entire male. At 7 months he started reacting to things when taken out on walks. We believe that he was going through his second fear period.
Unfortunately, his owners sent him away to board and train with a disreputable (for want a better description) trainer. During his stay with the training school, they introduced him to a prong collar, spray bottle and rattle can (obviously this trainer had no idea of the science of how dogs learn). On the face of it, the training worked, but in reality, such techniques will at best mask the original issue, and are also likely to create new ones.
How prong collars are still legal in this day and age is unconscionable.
Bruce returned home, and he wasn't so reactive on walks. and his owners naively thought that the training had worked. In reality, the fear had sunk deeper and taken on new forms. He'd learned that seeing humans resulted in pain from the prong collar.
When visitors came to the house he was terrified of humans but didn't have the prong collar on. And so he tried to protect himself and bit. Poor Bruce now has two police records.
Arriving at Welfare we recognised a terrified and shut-down boy. His eyes told such a story - one that would reduce you to tears. Once we'd taken him in, the police contacted us. If he hadn't been surrendered to us they would have issued a destruction order.
Within weeks of being here, and by only working at a pace he could cope with we worked with him on problem-solving. Bruce transformed as he gained confidence and proficiency. Suddenly he looked like he had the weight of the world lifted from his shoulders.
Even with this we still have to be careful, and make sure not to put him in situations he can't cope with. He is so loving, and just five minutes in his company would leave you wondering how on earth he found himself in that predicament. Sadly the answer is all too simple - because people do not always listen to the advice given, or given bad advice and don't check. There will be no third chance for Bruce with the police, so we made the decision to keep him safe in our care.
BUDDY
Buddy came into our care to save him being seized by the police. However, it was agreed that he must remain in kennels. He is around 5yrs old.
CHARLIE
Charlie is an 7 or 8 year old male entire GSD. He came to us after his elderly owner fell and broke his hip. The owner was 82 years old when he was sold Charlie as a puppy. After breaking his hip, his owner needed family assistance and Charlie wasn't too happy with this. He had been used to doing just as he pleased so when family members tried to tell him not to do something he bit them.We've looked after him for over two years now. Once we had worked with him we tried putting him up for adoption. A couple of people expressed interest and we'd already explained Charlie's situation before seeing them. When they visited, we asked how they would handle certain situations and of course they said they would tell him "no". One of the visitors was reminded that a different approach was needed with Charlie and his response was "what good is he if I can't tell him no" even though we had a long discussion about it before his visit.
We subsequently made the decision that for Charlie's safety we wouldn't home him. He is very happy with us and is not being put in situations he cannot cope with.
DYLAN
Dylan is approximately 8/9 years old and came into welfare with two other dogs. He had been living a terrible existence. He had bits from his ears missing from other dogs fighting. He also has a spinal injury with causes him to walk with a wobbly gait. He is not aggressive to other dogs despite his experiences but Dylan isn't comfortable around people he doesn't know so he is now a permanent resident.
ERNIE
Ernie is a handsome 2 year old, black and tan, male German Shepherd. He came into rescue after a disagreement with his previous owner. Even after this occurred, Ernie remained very loving with everyone else around him. We have been assessing him closely whilst he is in our care and we have found him to be a happy, fun loving, and loving boy. He loves playing ball games and will keep bringing you his ball all day long if allowed to.
We have seen no signs of any aggression with people he knows or strangers. He greets everyone like a long-lost friend. He can react to other dogs be we feel this is more out of excitement. However, we did try to re-home Ernie but he couldn't cope at all so came back to us. We have now made the decision not to re-home him.
GEORGE
George came into rescue with seven other GSDs he had been living with. George has the sweetest temperament and is a delight to be around. Sadly, he suffers from brain damage. It does not interfere with his everyday life, and you can easily see how he loves life and is always so happy.
Unfortunately, George has seizures and needs regular medication. This medication will be lifelong. George also has a problem with his ears and because he doesn't let you check or treat them, it means he has to be sedated at the vets for treatment when he has a flare up.
HUGO
Hugo is a 5 year old short coated sable male who came into Welfare through no fault of his own. He had been kept in a barn for the first 2 years of his life. He was not socialised at all so therefore can be reactive. He is not good with male dogs and can be choosy with the females. He has a very high prey drive so not good with small furries. He has never been around children. Hugo is a small GSD but he is like a little pocket rocket. He is neutered and microchipped.
We did re-home Hugo but they brought him back because of his reactivity. Hugo finds it difficult to settle in a home and can get quite stressed. For this reason we have decided to keep him in our care.
KAI
Kai is a handsome 2 year old male GSD. Unfortunately he found his way into Welfare after a disagreement with another resident dog. Kai can be reactive and has a few other issues and in that regard we will not look to rehome him.
LILY
Lily came into our care when she was 7 months old. Sadly she is a very nervous girl which makes her reactive to dogs and people. Lily went through rehabilitation and found a new home. Sadly they didn’t listen to our advice and she couldn’t cope with the situation they put her in so she came back into our care.
Unfortunately she has regressed so had to start from scratch again. Because of how stressed she had became we made the decision not to put her through the rehoming process again.
She is a sweet, happy girl who now loves cuddles with the people she trusts.
MARLOW
Marlow is only a young boy but finds people worrying. He prefers men and even then is quite selective so he will stay in our care where he is happy.
MAYA
Maya had been kept as an outside dog as a potential breeding female. Sadly an elbow issue meant they couldn’t breed from her so when she was 1 year old they found her a home. Maya was terrified as she was totally unsocialised and in the first couple of days she bit a passer by.
She came into welfare as a condition of the bite. She took a couple of months to come around and then progressed in leaps and bounds. Because she missed her early socialisation period and because she can be so nervous we felt it was in her best interest to keep her in our care. She is now 3 years old.
MOSES
Moses came into our care when he was around 9 years old. He was 1 of 8 GSDs that we rescued from 1 home. He is a very nervous boy and doesn’t take easily to strangers.
We did rehome him but he managed to escape after 2 days. We managed to find him but decided it was best for him to remain in our care. He is now 11-12 years old.
MURPHY
Murphy is a black and tan, male German Shepherd who found himself in rescue after the death of his owner. He is about 8/9 years old. When Murphy first came into Welfare he was quite traumatised and it took him a while to let his guard down with people. Murphy likes to do things at his own pace and we have encouraged this while he has been with us. Once he warms to you he is very loving. Although he has lived with another dog he can be very reactive towards other dogs.
Sadly, Murphy has recently suffered a gastric torsion but is recovering well. Unfortunately, he is also showing signs of DM and has been diagnosed with a heart murmur. Because of this he will stay in our care and be loved.
NED
Ned cane into our care about 3 years ago. We did manage to find him a home but sadly it didn’t work out. Ned is worried around other dogs. As a result he becomes quite reactive. Because he was constantly exposed to other dogs while out on walks with his caregiver, he became quite stressed and began jumping up and “grabbing” so he came back to us. We started his rehabilitation work but then poor Ned went into kidney failure.
Thankfully with constant care and medication he pulled through but given that a new carer may not appreciate the importance of keeping him calm and that becoming stressed would be detrimental to his health, we made the decision to keep him in our care.
He is a very happy boy and copes very well with rescue life. Probably because he isn’t put in situations he cannot cope with.
NIGEL
Nigel is a young boy who came into welfare with a bite history. He can be quite mouthy if he feels stressed or over aroused so we feel it is best for him to remain with us.
RILEY
Riley is around 3 years old but is extremely reactive to new people. Sadly we don't think she would cope in a home so she is a permanent resident.
ROCKY
Rocky came into our care after being sold to a couple who were told he had no issues. Within days he was growling at them in a very threatening way. They understandably became concerned. We have done some rehabilitation work with him but unfortunately do not feel we could rehome him with a clear conscience so he will remain in our care.
RODNEY
Rodney is a glamorous long haired male German Shepherd. He is 3 years old and came into our care after a bite incident. His caregivers were distraught at having to part with him but did so for his own and everyone else’s safety. Because of this Rodney is a permanent resident.
He has been with us for over a year now. He doesn’t like to be touched so even everyday things like grooming and putting a lead on create a difficult situation. We try to respect what Rodney tells us and have arranged his living arrangements so we can get him into a secure field from his kennel without having to put a lead on him. He is a happy boy and enjoys life (not as much as he enjoys his food though).
SMUDGE
Smudge is 10 ears old in great health. You would never know her age just by looking at her. Smudge is a sad case as she has spent a long time in kennels. She was adopted but returned to us a year later as things had changed. We feel she would now struggle to adjust to living in a home.
SULLY
Sully came to us just under one year old as a boisterous, frustrated boy who used mouthing to get what he wanted. He did go out to a new home briefly but sadly came back to us after a bite incident. Sadly things were rushed and Sully couldn't cope so he will remain a permanent resident.
TIA
Tia was sold through a newspaper ad when she was 1 year old. When the new guardians got her home she escaped from the car.
She was missing and living rough for 8 days although we were searching daily. We finally managed to trap her but she had been totally traumatised. She has gone through her rehabilitation but due to her past trauma we decided she was safer in our care.
She is best friends with Rodney and is a happy little girl.
Could you sponsor one of our dogs?
Sponsorship costs £20 per year - please email us at gsdwelfarefund@gmail.com putting "sponsor" in the subject header for more details