I am debating rehoming my German Shepherd daughter (Sam) due to the way life is going. I am in a form of law enforcement in which I commonly get called out and sometimes will be gone for extended times. My fiancé is completing her masters degree in elementary education. This fall she will be starting student-teaching and following a semester of that, she will start working in her respective field. To financially prepare for student teaching, my fiancé will soon be carrying two part-time jobs and I may add part-time work to my full-time job as well. What this equates to both my fiancé and I being away from the house from sometime around 7:30 to 4:30 and as late as 7:00. This time period will likely remain from this point out. Also, simply said, we do not have the financial backing to put her in a doggy-daycare program.
We live in a Duplex in a good neighborhood of a residential area. The living quarters is about 900-1000 sq feet, and the back yard is smaller, being about 500 sq feet. No-doubt, I am not providing adequate space for her in her living space alone. Though we may make it home between 4:30 and 7:00, the day is far from over as homework related to either her school/work or my work is often not in a shortage. With this, Sam doesn't often get to go for walks or extended play's. In a small, western-Oklahoma town there are no dog parks or really for that matter, not many dog-friendly locations period.
Now lets talk about Sam. Sam is a full-blood german shepherd who is almost exactly one year old. Sam has completed formal training in the petsmart program in beginner, intermediate, and advanced; she is now eligible for her good-sumeritan test in which allows her to apply to be a service dog. In all three classes, she finished at the top of her classes. She is a 75 pound saddle back dog. I have had Sam since she was about 10 weeks old. Sam was partially house-broken in less than a week and has been fully house-broken for longer than I can remember. She doesn't have a mean bone in her body, and hasn't tore hardly anything up (minus her toys) in her life. Sam loves people and especially children. Sam's hobbies include hiking, playing fetch, playing in water, playing with other dogs, satisfying her curiosity with other animals, cuddling with momma and daddy, and just getting loved on. Sam is the kind of dog that will go hiking with me and never get very far from me. Sam has two drawers in a cubical within the house. She will open her "toy drawers" and choose her toy, leaving every other item on the cubical shelving unit alone. Sam loves to travel. She will lay in her spot in the back seat and generally not make a peep, even on a 9-hour trip. Sam is crate-trained, but normally sleeps out of her crate at the foot of the bed. Every morning just minutes before the alarm goes off, Sam will jump on the bed and snuggle up. She will literally lay belly-up with her head sharing your pillow. She is the most lovable dog at this moment because she knows that she will soon be left alone for several hours and she will do anything for that last bit of love. No-doubt, Sam is the most amazing dog that I've ever been around. I am afraid that in the soon approaching time, that could change as most of her time will be spent alone.
Here are my hesitations:
It's very difficult let your family member go
She is a very special dog with great potential
I've invested thousands of dollars in her
I don't know what kind of home she would be going to
Did I mention that it's very difficult to let your family-member go?
I am curious of any of you have been through something like this? From the outside looking in, would you guys attempt to find a home where she could live a happier life with more human interaction?
This is Sam taking care of momma when she was sick(DONT tell the ms. I posted that one)
Sam went to work with daddy today
This is Sam's chair
This is Sam asking to go to work with daddy
This is Sam in her natural habitat
And this is Sam making sure we have enough corn for the winter
And this is her morning ritual of snuggling, again don't tell the ms.
We live in a Duplex in a good neighborhood of a residential area. The living quarters is about 900-1000 sq feet, and the back yard is smaller, being about 500 sq feet. No-doubt, I am not providing adequate space for her in her living space alone. Though we may make it home between 4:30 and 7:00, the day is far from over as homework related to either her school/work or my work is often not in a shortage. With this, Sam doesn't often get to go for walks or extended play's. In a small, western-Oklahoma town there are no dog parks or really for that matter, not many dog-friendly locations period.
Now lets talk about Sam. Sam is a full-blood german shepherd who is almost exactly one year old. Sam has completed formal training in the petsmart program in beginner, intermediate, and advanced; she is now eligible for her good-sumeritan test in which allows her to apply to be a service dog. In all three classes, she finished at the top of her classes. She is a 75 pound saddle back dog. I have had Sam since she was about 10 weeks old. Sam was partially house-broken in less than a week and has been fully house-broken for longer than I can remember. She doesn't have a mean bone in her body, and hasn't tore hardly anything up (minus her toys) in her life. Sam loves people and especially children. Sam's hobbies include hiking, playing fetch, playing in water, playing with other dogs, satisfying her curiosity with other animals, cuddling with momma and daddy, and just getting loved on. Sam is the kind of dog that will go hiking with me and never get very far from me. Sam has two drawers in a cubical within the house. She will open her "toy drawers" and choose her toy, leaving every other item on the cubical shelving unit alone. Sam loves to travel. She will lay in her spot in the back seat and generally not make a peep, even on a 9-hour trip. Sam is crate-trained, but normally sleeps out of her crate at the foot of the bed. Every morning just minutes before the alarm goes off, Sam will jump on the bed and snuggle up. She will literally lay belly-up with her head sharing your pillow. She is the most lovable dog at this moment because she knows that she will soon be left alone for several hours and she will do anything for that last bit of love. No-doubt, Sam is the most amazing dog that I've ever been around. I am afraid that in the soon approaching time, that could change as most of her time will be spent alone.
Here are my hesitations:
It's very difficult let your family member go
She is a very special dog with great potential
I've invested thousands of dollars in her
I don't know what kind of home she would be going to
Did I mention that it's very difficult to let your family-member go?
I am curious of any of you have been through something like this? From the outside looking in, would you guys attempt to find a home where she could live a happier life with more human interaction?
This is Sam taking care of momma when she was sick(DONT tell the ms. I posted that one)
Sam went to work with daddy today
This is Sam's chair
This is Sam asking to go to work with daddy
This is Sam in her natural habitat
And this is Sam making sure we have enough corn for the winter
And this is her morning ritual of snuggling, again don't tell the ms.
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