Duke

This handsome young man is Duke. His owner has fallen on hard times and had to relocate to an apartment where no dogs are allowed. He made a desperate call to us to help Duke find a home so that he would not have to take him to the local shelter where his fate would be unknown.

Duke is 21 months old, with his birthday coming up on January 25! He has been with his same owner since he was only 6 weeks. He loved the children of the family, and had a female Labrador named Serenity as his playmate. Although we are not a “Lab” rescue, we offered to take Serenity in as well, so that her fate would not end at the local shelter. Please help us to ensure that Duke is celebrating his second birthday in a loving home.

Duke is a very loving dog and has a lot to offer. He gets along well with other friendly dogs. He is big and strong, weighing in at around 85 pounds. He has had some training, but could stand to use a refresher course. We want to find the right match for this boy, so he can become a part of a family that will cherish him the way he deserves. Are you willing to take this young dog into your home and make him a member of your family for the next 10-15 years?

11/21/05 Update

We just learned that Duke’s hips are not 100% well. Although Duke seems to play with abandon and doesn’t appear to be in any pain, he will need a hip operation and our vet tells us “the sooner, the better” to help Duke. Duke was turned in to us when his owner fell on hard financial times, but we did not plan on this additional expense. Can you please help us make Duke feel better? Preliminary estimates for one hip surgery are between $1000 and $1200 with our non-profit discount, so any gift would be greatly appreciated.

1/3/05 update:

We took Duke’s x-rays to a noted veterinary surgical center and —guess what?! Duke doesn’t need surgery! Yes, his hips aren’t perfect,but with the proper care he may never need surgery. You see, if you ask Duke, he’d say “What problem with my hips? I can scale a couch with no problem, especially when I think my foster mom is coming home. I can also take long walks in the mountains, and I play with my foster brother all day. He chases me, I chase him. You know, PLAY!” Well, we agree
with Duke. He may need a total hip replacement someday in his life (although expensive, this procedure can be done at any age in a dog’s life), but he may not. So, Duke is happy to report that he is thankful
we went for a 2nd opinion. The proper care he needs to keep his hips in good shape includes three things: active lifestyle (he must have daily walks and/or play with another dog during the day); daily dose of Glucosamine/Chondroitin pills (just hide it in a ball of wet dog food);and proper weight management (don’t let him put on extra weight). Not too much to ask, huh? Duke’s foster mom also reports that Duke would prefer to have a friendly dog at home to play with him and that it’s “no thanks” to cats, horses or guinea pigs.

Duke is in a foster home, where he gets to play with two other male German Shepherds. To arrange to meet Duke, please complete the online application to expedite the adoption process and then contact Karen at k_dekker@earthlink.net for more details.