We recently rescued Daisy, a 4 year old purebred Euro German Shepherd.   Her story is another amazing story, as
was her two sisters Freeway and Tessa.

Freeway

Tessa

We were a household ran by two white cats.

Our world revolved around them and they provided us with much love and companionship and humor.

But I feared we were getting "old".

We had discussed getting a dog several times since we moved to Arizona but we always had a reason to let the discussion go at just that: discussion.  We both agreed that we wanted a big dog so that played into our reasons for letting it go.   Sometimes, it was because we were planning a trip, or had some large expense coming up, or just that the cats probably wouldn't like it.

I was reading in our neighborhood discussion site that someone needed to rehome a 4 year old purebred Euro German Shepherd named Daisy.  She was beautiful.  Out of curiosity, I followed the conversation.  

Daisy had lost her Alpha and was a bit disoriented.  In addition, an elder had moved into Daisy's home and it wasn't going well.  Daisy was unhappy.  Days went by and I continued to follow the conversation as Daisy had not yet found a new home.

I then noticed the owner said that she was reluctantly going to take Daisy to a no-kill shelter.

I immediately called the hubby, who was out of town for a testosterone filled weekend of racing, and told him about Daisy....  and that she was headed to a shelter.    Hub said, "go get her".  

I am sure I was in a bit of a shock but I called the owner to discuss Daisy.  The owner shared more of Daisy's story and why she would benefit from being rehomed.  The owner did not want to let Daisy go and was concerned that she went to a home that was loving and where Daisy could get what she needed.

We met Daisy and her owner and interacted with Daisy for a while.  The owner felt good about us and requested that she could visit Daisy after we all settled in to make sure all was ok.

Daisy came home with us....

We wanted to get off on the right foot so the first order of business was a vet visit, purchasing a kennel large enough for a 100 pound GSD, and finding two gates that could keep Daisy separated from the cats.  Daisy did not like the gates but took to the kennel immediately.

Daisy was doing very well with us but we wanted things to continue to go well and make sure that she bonded with hubby and accepted us/him as her Alpha so signed up for obedience training and made an appointment with an animal healer.

After some observation, the animal healer, Lisa Osthelder, felt that Daisy was a bit fearful...  and rightly so given the changes in her life.  Lisa worked with Daisy to help her relax her fears and let Daisy know that she was safe and loved in her forever home.  Daisy literally relaxed during the session.  She had previously been "on guard" at all times and very restless.  It was an amazing thing to watch and Daisy was definitely less erratic and seemed happier after the session. 

Everyone is settling in exceptionally well.  Daisy has lost 8 of the 15 pounds the vet felt she needed to lose.  The obedience training is going well and we are still working on managing Daisy's OVERprotective behavior with other dogs and toys.  We have incorporated raw foods into Daisy's diet to supplement her dog food and she loves it.    Daisy is now free to run the house but is kenneled when we are gone, just in case.  Tessa allows Daisy to be near her but no rear end sniffing is allowed.  Freeway is still keeping her distance but neither the dog or cats are forwardly aggressive toward each other. 

It was fate that brought Daisy to us.  Daisy brought a new zest for life into our household and we are all more active since her arrival.   She is a blessing.