The New and Improved Shep~Adopted

Shep Update:  Shep was adopted last night by Johanna and Adriaan and will be living in Orlando.  Updates coming soon, but these photos show that he is making himself at home with his new pack.  New photos of him will be posted on Facebook.  They are thinking of naming him Sir Alfred, Alfie for short, and I love it!

History:  Donations needed immediately, Would you sponsor this one year old boy? Emaciated, covered in ticks and fleas, this boy is very loving, but someone has done him wrong with the leash; he is terrified of it.  When we tried to get him out the car last night, he did a stop, drop and roll.  It was heart breaking.   

He warms up quickly, and he’s hanging out with a kitten we rescued. He’s quiet and obedient. His transformation will be quick. He’s also great with kids! He comes to us as a stray from Lake City, Florida via Holli Miller.

I haven’t seen ticks like this since Frances; it’s bad.

Looking at images, I found many photos that confused me even more.  In this search on Google images, I saw Collies, Aussies, Border Collies and English Shepherds.  I did even more research, reviewing breed information and I’m still unsure.  Regardless, this gorgeous boy looks 95% collie.  What’s the big deal?  If I list him as a Collie, Collie-lovers will tell me I’m wrong.  If I list him as an English Shepherd, those folks will tell me he’s a Collie.

This has happened to me many times.  I was asked by a Sheltie rescue to take Jedi; they were positive he was not a Sheltie.  Yet, when he arrived at my home, I was positive that he wasn’t a Border Collie!  Recently, many thought that Rawhide was an Aussie.  After research, he looked like a purebred English Shepherd.  I know, we’re splitting hairs here!

Updates coming soon.

02/07/13 Update:

Written by Dave:    Yesterday I experienced Shep’s shy and fearful disposition first hand and can honestly say it is the worst case I’ve ever seen. When Gisele told me he would not walk on a leash I thought to myself, come on now, how bad can he be? That question was soon answered when he jumped and bucked like a unbroken wild bronco. This brought back memories of the Pilot-n-Paws transport of Lady Di on the tarmac of Tampa Executive airport over three years ago. Jeff Bennett and a few other volunteers and I were unloading crates from his plane when she wiggled her way out of a harness only to be grabbed at the last second by her tail. If I didn’t hang on she would have been running loose on the tarmac and I would have had to face the wrath of Gisele for losing her Collie!

Fortunately for us, Shep did not attempt to flee but looked for a safe corner of the front porch to retreat to where he found the bowl of cat food. Once lured to join Gisele for a bowl of moistened dog food, we were able to get a slip leash on him but he still fought. As he scarfed down his first few bites, he knocked over the bowl and frightened himself and realized what we had done. The sound of the metal bowl hitting the concrete sent him into a panic.  We were glad to have the slip leash on him or he may have taken off that time. He fought for a few seconds until lured to the spilled dog food and scarfed down a few more mouthfuls.

It wasn’t until we introduced Lady Di to Shep that we could get him to go where we wanted him to go. Slowly he followed her as she followed us to the side yard where we witnessed the first sign of playfulness in the boy. He’s also quite fond of the kitten being fostered, though I don’t think the kitten feels exactly the same way. Back indoors, Shep warmed up as he joined us on the sofa inside.  I was happy to see him relax just a little.

It appears this young dog may have been kept locked up in a barn or kennel his whole life, unexposed to any contact or socialization of humans. He’s not a fear bitter; only extremely shy and fearful.  I experienced a severe case in my first adopted border collie so I did a lot of reading on the subject.  I’m wondering how thunder will affect the pup. Thunder-phobic goes hand-in-hand with shy and fearful.  ~Dave

While I look at his kind and gentle face, knowing he would never hurt a fly, I wonder who did this to him, and why.  Why take such a noble and kind heart and destroy it.  What purpose does it serve for a human being to be so inhumane?  I’m very thankful that he’s here with us, for if I personally worked at a Shelter or Pound, I would have to deem him unadoptable.  But I don’t work at a Shelter or Pound, so I grin when I think about Shep’s future.  For there will be no eleventh hour for Shep.  Instead, we will find him the right home, and he will learn to enjoy everything he is so afraid of.

While Shep’s fears are severe, he will be exposed to something new every day.  And every day, he will learn that he survived it, which will make him stronger and more confident.  After taking a long hard look at him, we realized what makes him “not a collie”.  It’s his ears!  My nine year-old daughter Sarah pointed that out to me that Shep is an English Shepherd!  So, I can safely say that Shep is both, a collie/shep.

We must continue to help him on leash, and to be “outside” for he does have to go to the vet, and soon.  I think Lady Di has a full-time job now… to rehabilitate Shep.

02/10/13:  Shep has benefited by being with the pack.  He is very gentle, not hyper but likes to play.  He has become more self-confident.  Shep does not have any prey drive; he is very gentle with young children, and still is good with small cats.  He would make an awesome family dog.  

I believe he is very young, and will continue to grow; maybe the size of a golden retriever or English shepherd.  He is already taller than Lady Di.  He will see the vet on Tuesday for a complete examination, and his neuter.

 02/14/13:  Picked up Shep from the Vet. He had a rear dew claw removed, all of his shots, neuter and micro-chipped and three baths! Special thanks to Serena and Kerry who watched over him at Val-u-Vet! Shep is also used to the leash now! He walks like a pro!

He enjoyed going to the diner which is next door to the vet, and we had breakfast outside! Everyone came out to meet him; as if he is a celebrity! Well… he is to me! Heartworm negative… good boy!  New photos of him are on Facebook.

02/25/13 Update:  Shep has bounced back quickly.  He is awesome on leash, not afraid like he was, and seems to enjoy the company of other dogs.  He is playful, but not over the top hyper like most puppies.  He could easily be head of the class in a puppy training program, and really should be taken to the next level in his education, and become Canine Good Citizen Certified (CGC).  Shep is a great family dog, good with people of all ages, he does gravitate to seniors, he is fantastic with young children, gentle with cats, and enjoys other dogs.  I can’t say enough about this noble companion.