I needed a buddy for my dog so I went to German Shepherd Rescue in LA. We picked a handsome, 8-month old shepherd who loved any attention you gave him. GSR said they were sure he had been dumped by a breeder in the area. I couldn’t figure out why a breeder would dump what was obviously a pure-bred shepherd, but found out quickly enough. We went on our first walk, made it less than a block before he lay down. This repeated itself the next few days. A trip to the vet let me know what the breeder obviously had known – at 8 months old this poor puppy had virtually no hips. By this time I had fallen in love with the goofy, attention-loving dog, so decided we would rebuild him. Two new hips for an 8-month old dog led to a name change, he became RoboDog!
He repaid me in full less than 2 years later - a would-be burglar tried to come in my house through the back gate at 2am. Robo heard the gate opening and before the guy got into the yard, Robo was out of the house with that deep-throated bark ready to attack. This wasn’t a ‘there’s a raccoon in the yard’ type bark so I ran outside and caught a glimpse of someone running up the driveway. I called the police, not because I was afraid, but just to let them know someone was in the neighborhood. They responded quickly and were greeted by a still-agitated Robo. They laughed when I told them I wasn’t worried and said no reason to be – I had the best protection possible.
Rescues may need a bit more support medically or emotionally but you end up with the most loyal friend you could ever ask for. Robo is still playing at a great old age of 13!
San Jose, CA
