GARRETT
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| Garrett was on the euthanasia list for tomorrow morning and we simply
could not let that happen, BUT, where to put him?
We will be bailing this male puppy GSD out of a shelter on Thursday
and must have a foster home for him ASAP.
More info re: age, health status, etc. after he's in our custody.
DON'T DISPAIR LITTLE GUY, YOU WILL BE OUTTA THERE SOON and sure hope your buddy is too. UPDATE 1/20: Garrett is now in our temporary foster care in quarantine for a while as he had been picked up at large by animal control and having been in a shelter for a while might have been exposed to stuff we don't want around the other dogs. The marks around his eyes have been identified as a scrape. He's around six months old, has his secondary teeth, is red and black and cute as a button. We will have new photos shortly and will update him as we learn more about him. He will need to move to a real foster home in a week or less and will be visiting the vet shortly after.
We will post more info after he's out of quarantine and has been allowed to integrate within the pack...PROBABLY BY NEXT WEEKEND If you are interested in fostering Garrett, please read about OUR FOSTER PROGRAM and submit a Foster Application (found on the Foster Program page). UPDATE 2/1: Garret has proven to have a sound temperament and strong personality; he's fearless and approaches new things with 'reckless abandon'. He is currently transiting through what we affectionately refer to as the "chainsaw and defiant period"; a time when he's testing his independence and out to seek and destroy whatever he can get his handsome mouth on. This is a normal stage of growth that does pass but requires dedication and commitment to the supervision, training, socialization, teaching of boundaries and manners it requires. It is also a stage during which many GSD owners throw up their hands and quit, admitting defeat. It is obvious that Garrett was likely a backyard dog that missed out on early guidance for which we must make up. So far, aside from being 'in your face' with the dozens of dogs in his current pack, he is dog friendly and simply full of his confident self. He requires an owner with the time to provide what he needs and the boys generally take longer to get past the teenage years than the females do..possibly as long as two plus years. Needless to say, his new home should be one in which the adults are not gone all day and are ready and willing to start formal obedience training. All that said, it's much like battling through our human teenage bumps in the road~~it's always worth it in the end. We're eager to start learning more about him in a real home setting and seeing him reach his full potential...we (our staff) really like guys like this :-) but we MUST have a foster home in order to do that...can you help? MEET ME ON SATURDAY AT THE K9 TRIALS UPDATE 4/14: Garrett visited us at the trials on Saturday,,what a pretty boy! He has big ole puppy paws and will be quite the handsome dude when mature. He was surprisingly in control for the most part..he did, as most unsocialized youngsters do..bark at things unfamiliar to him but was very responsive and affectionate. He cannot progress as we would like him to where he is.... ....We MUST have a foster home for him SOON so that we can start getting him on track to being a canine good citizen. His fosters should be prepared for a typical untrained jumper and chewer. The rewards will be great. Until he is reevaluated and trained, Garrett cannot be placed with children, small dogs or cats. At least initially, he would do best as an only child with a strong possibility, after learning some manners, OK with another large breed female. UPDATE 7/7: Garrett is being evicted from his current..what was to be temporary...foster home. Putting this boy in a long term boarding situation would be the worst possible thing for this dog but we've run out of options. The photos posted to date are old shelter pics..he's quite the beautiful boy now. Still a handfull but once we have an opportunity to work with him, will make great strides..he just needs a CHANCE. GARRETT MUST HAVE SOMEWHERE TO GO BY THIS FRIDAY!! UPDATE 7/12: Having run out of options, Garrett left today to spend a few weeks with our friend and trainer Chuck in Southern AZ. There he will be evaluated for scent detection work for the department of corrections. In the event his focus is not strong enough for such work he will be coming to Phoenix for four to six weeks of in-home boarding/training with our friends at Quality K9. Hopefully he will be well mannered enough after his training to be placed in a real foster home and ready to meet his public. We really like this handsome boy and believe that with some one-on-one direction he will more than make up for what he's missed..again, we see great potential.
UPDATE JULY 26th: We're told that Garrett has basic obedience skills now; a very strong heel, knows but resists sits and downs so as soon as we get him to Phoenix, his hips will be X-rayed and he will have a full medical work-up. He is not a "working dog" prospect but does have slightly above average drive levels, particularly prey drive, so no small dogs, critters or cats and only teenage children..no little ones. Previous handling/training skills with GSDs would be best for this very outgoing, fearless and fun fellow. He IS very people and big dog friendly and his socialization will start as soon as we can get him to Phoenix. UPDATE 8/30: Our pretty boy is in Phoenix! Many thanks to Tino Reinke of Quality K9 for transporting and taking Garrett on. Garrett arrived filthy and emaciated. He's been cleaned up and had his vet visit today; weighed in at only 61 pounds! We did a complete blood panel, X-ray, fecal and thorough exam. He does have hip dysplasia, worse on the right side and will likely benefit from a course of Adequan down the road. His fecal was negative and we should have some lab results back by Thursday. Much to our surprise, he seems to know little more than "sit" (or chose to forget) so solid basic obedience has already begun. He does walk well on lead and has a very endearing personality. This poor youngster has not seen much of the world outside of a kennel, so is very distracted by all of the new stuff he's encountered in just a few days.
We have established a fund for Garrett to which donations can be made either by PayPal/credit card or snail mail check...ANY help is appreciated more than words can say: GARRETT'S FRIENDS & SUPPORTERS;
Garrett is neutered, vaccinated, chipped, housebroken, crate and leash trained. UPDATE 9/2: Garret's blood work revealed a positive for Valley Fever; his titer is not all that high and he will start on his medication this weekend. All other values were normal, and negative for Tick Fever. Now that he's indoors and being treated, we expect him to pack on the pounds...stay tuned... UPDATE 10/20:
He has calmed down considerably and is no longer the out-of-control teenager he was upon initial rescue. Garrett has one more month of medication and will be retested to confirm that he has won his battle with Valley Fever. His exercise requirements are moderate and include only low impact stuff like walks, moderate hiking and/or swimming. We feel strongly that a course of Adequan will do wonders for his comfort level and we will provide it to his adopter.
GARRET DESPERATELY NEEDS A FOSTER, OR AN ADOPTIVE HOME AS HE CANNOT STAY WHERE HE IS MUCH LONGER. He knows his basics well, walks well on lead and is oh so ready to be the loyal and loving companion he yearns to be with a human all of his own. Stop by & meet me..SUNDAY, DEC 4th EVENT AFTER 11:30AM UPDATE DECEMBER:
Garrett spent time with us at the December 4th event and was on his best behavior. He ignored all of the dogs surrounding him and just wanted some human lovin. He walked beautifully on lead.
UPDATE DEC 8TH:
We did Garrett's Valley Fever re-test today and it was less than 1:4; he is off all medication as his immune system is taking care of what is no longer an active infection. We also tested his blood sugar as he drank a lot of water at the event last week, and that too, was perfectly normal. He weighed in at 75 pounds..a 14 pound gain since arriving in Phoenix.
He was also moved today to Camp Johnson. He will not have as much freedom nor does this arrangement replicate a 24/7 in-home setting, but he is safe and out of training. He hasn't had the experience of much grass in his recent past, so upon arrival at Aunt Becki's he discovered a flowing hose in the grass; he happily jumped in and out of the water, ran in circles, picked up a ball and literally celebrated!
We also revisited his hip X-rays and his dysplasia is pretty much on one side, he is young and healthy too, possibly making him a good surgical candidate. First of course, he needs a home, whether a temporary foster or forever ..he deserves some stability.
Garret is a very affectionate fellow and would make a wonderful, loyal companion and protector.
UPDATE 1/24:
We spent some time with this handsome dude last weekend......he's such a love bug!
He moved, ran and played with no apparent discomfort.
Since he's still so young we are willing to have him evaluated for hip surgery and spend what will likely be several thousand dollars to ensure a pain-free future, however, WE MUST HAVE A HOME IN WHICH HE CAN RECOVER. Surely there's a Florence Nightingale out there with a spot for this boy's healing period???
UPDATE 4/14: Garrett came out to the K9 TRIALS today!
Adoption fee $250.00.
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UPDATE 1/21:
THESE ARE NEWER PHOTOS OF GARRETT...STILL VERY DIRTY & SCRUFFY FROM HAVING JUST COME OUT OF THE THE SHELTER.
Initial examination indicated there's nothing wrong with his eye, just swelling from the abrasions above & below. We will be treating and monitoring this.
All we know right now is that he's demonstrated a nice temperament and what will be a beautiful plush coat once cleaned up not to mention lovely conformation.
