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Just saved a 4 month male

13K views 96 replies 27 participants last post by  BellaLuna 
#1 ·
I rescued a 4 month old male GSD on Craigslist this morning. The lady couldn't wait to get rid of him and only for 100! Apparently the GSD was her ex's which went to prison. He was chained up all day in an apartment and he stunk like pee! Just picked him up this morning. He has raw skin spots on his neck from the chain choker which went straight to the garbage. He's black and brown and extremely friendly. My kids love him. I noticed his hind legs look weak. The way he ran in my yard once I brought him home looked weird. I assume its from lack of exercise. Well off to the vet early next week to make sure all is well with him. Ill post pics of him later.
 
#35 ·
Hi and congrats on your new pup. Sounds like a perfect match for your family!

No one can say for sure just going off a few pics, but he looks like he is American lines to me, judging by his short coat, big huge ears (he will grow into them), and his more refined head and muzzle.

He seems to be at a good weight from the pics - keeping track of how much he weighs as he grows is fun, but the best way to know if he is of good weight is to look at his condition - every dog is different, and every pup develops at a different rate, so just going by a number doesn't mean much. Some dogs lag behind then catch up, some dogs put on weight at a steady pace, others go through growth spurts, etc . . .

He seems just fine in the pics - watch that he does not fill out to much, or does not loose too much weight - if he does, adjust his food accordingly.

I bet this pup just thought he died and went to heaven going from a chain to a normal, happy, family life. :)
 
#41 ·
The downward slope has much to do with how the dog is stacked. It also has to do with breeding, but there are many very moderate looking dogs that are completely pure-bred. Good thing too! Over doing the sloping back (which is really a function of the length of the back leg bones and the angles of the joints), can really impact a dog's ability to move around in a normal fashion.
 
#43 ·
Just got him micro chipped over at Petco and got him vaccinated according to Dr. Dodds list. The staff fell in love with him and actually told me he's quite large for 5 months?? He has to get a rabbies shot on his next visit. Its the law they stated. Once he hits 6 months Im going to get him neutered. Im not crazy about snipping but from I have always heard its healthier for him and why not since obviously he's not going to do the nice nice. Also my wife and I noticed his hind legs seem a lot better now then the day we got him.
 
#46 ·
Just got him micro chipped over at Petco and got him vaccinated according to Dr. Dodds list. The staff fell in love with him and actually told me he's quite large for 5 months?? He has to get a rabbies shot on his next visit. Its the law they stated. Once he hits 6 months Im going to get him neutered. Im not crazy about snipping but from I have always heard its healthier for him and why not since obviously he's not going to do the nice nice. Also my wife and I noticed his hind legs seem a lot better now then the day we got him.
Please let him grow up before you neuter him...he needs those hormones to develop properly. UNLESS you cannot be responsible for him escaping and causing an oops litter, there is no reason to rush to neuter. My male is 3.5 and intact, you'd never know it from his attitude, he is well behaved and doesn't mark inappropriately
 
#47 ·
You should call him raisin bread then LMAO ... he's a cutie!!! I'm sure once he gets good food, lots of exercise and all that jazz, he'll grow up to be a great looking dog! Just remember he's going to go through growth spurts. So one day he'll look super lanky and gawky and you'll be like: what the heck??? And then a couple of weeks later he'll fill out! All part of the natural development from puppy hood to adult hood .. (remember when you were a developing teenager ... same thing for your pup!)

Enjoy these moments, they are precious and definitely frustrating at times, but those precious moments far outweigh the frustrating ones!!!!
 
#49 ·
Yeah I bet and I'm looking forward to it. Frustrating ain't the word. Woke up at 6 to poop and pee in his crate and I took him out 2am! Had to give him a second bath in four days. Don't want to dry out his skin but can't have him smelling like pee either. Five months and can't control his bladder and pooping. Guess he was used to releaving himself and laying in it since he was chained up all day and night.

Please let him grow up before you neuter him...he needs those hormones to develop properly. UNLESS you cannot be responsible for him escaping and causing an oops litter, there is no reason to rush to neuter. My male is 3.5 and intact, you'd never know it from his attitude, he is well behaved and doesn't mark inappropriately
I second Onyx. It is responsible to get him neutered, however wait until his immune system has fully matured - also - no surgeries with 6 months of a vaccination.
Great then Ill wait till he is a year. Thanks for the tips.
 
#50 ·
Your vet will push for neuter, so be ready. There are threads on that subject too!
 
#57 ·
Well so far its almost a week since we got Jack. Looks like house breaking is going good. We let him out of the crate but confined to our dining room and he seems to point to the outside door willingly to do his business. At least Im assuming so. He is starting to understand the sit command pretty good as well. Jack is definitely scared of car rides and in the store if I leave his side he cries till I come back even if my wife is holding his leash. I guess more car rides and social interactions in public places should fix that hopefully. Im also in the process of hiring a trainer for the basic commands.
 
#60 ·
I wouldn't say saint but thanks. We are both lucky to have found eachother.

Awww.... he is just adorable! :wub: Thank you for saving this little sweetie. You'll find a lot of good info and support on this forum. Welcome!
Thanks!

-----------------

For the first time yesterday I heard him growl and bark. He was relaxing on the deck absorbing the sun and I heard him. I assume it was at the two rotties who are usually behind the picket fence of my yard. I didn't think at 5 months that they exhibit this behavior. Real interesting.
 
#61 ·
So it's been 3 weeks since we brought Jack into our lives and its been great. He's grown bigtime in weight from 37.5lbs to 42 plus he's taller. His hair has grown a bit more. I'm guessing winter. I started him on basic obedience lessons on Friday and he's got sit and come pretty good. My dogs trainer used to be around GSD's all her life. Her father bred them and was a K9 cop. He also trained them. As soon as she walked in she fell in love with his color and his personality. She said he's definitily an American black and red GSD. She also told me he needs to work for something because he has high drive for it. He'd be a good candidate as a K9 dog.

Interesting enough she told me a lot of things about GSD's that I read on here so I'm glad I hired her for training Jack.
 
#65 ·
What a great update! So many dogs rejected by their first owners are just gems waiting to be rescued by the right person. Each time you post, he sounds more and more wonderful. And how cool that you found such a knowledgeable and experienced GSD trainer? Enjoy the adventure and the learning experience. :)
 
#62 · (Edited)
One advice I can give you is you always want to listen to what GatorBytes says, she is very smart, and #1 person on this forum you can trust with good advice. There are many opinions here do your research and do not rely on the vet for nutrition/vaccine/neuter advice. Next time you go to the vet ask what food they recommend for your pup, I bet it will be Purina One large breed or science diet or royal canin, all crap kibble yet the will still recommend it becuase they get paid to do so oh and they will warn you about dangers of raw feeding which is the best food your dog can eat...So please, once again never disregard what GatorBytes says, I don't know who she is but she is very knowledgable also listen to Carmspack on this forum, good luck.
 
#63 ·
One thing about this forum is you will get a lot of advice. Some good. Some terrible,and a lot in between along with a dash of controversy (and sometimes someone spills the whole darned shaker in the soup). You need to take whatever advice you find interesting, do your research and make our own informed decisions.

But, hopefully, you hear things you may never have thought about and have some resources here to help you explore them.

That, and consistency in training are the most important things, I think.

A lot of folks feed raw but a lot feed kibble and have healthy dogs. Same with vaccinations/neutering and spaying - there is no concurrence on this forum to any of these things.....

Sounds like you have some good folks to work with at home. That is the really good! I'll add that to help puppy build some muscle running up hills is good.
 
#64 ·
#69 ·
He's looking good! His pasterns look much, much stronger!!
He's definitely a lot stronger thats for sure. All he does is run when we have him outside lol.

I think he might have some West German Show lines in him - the stippling grey grey hairs on his withers is very specific to West German Show lines.

So cute with those Radar ears!
Really thats pretty interesting. I was kind of wondering about those hairs. I thought he had something to do with stress lol. His ears are hilarious kind of like a rabbit.

I measured him at 22.5 to the top of his shoulder yesterday at 42.5lbs. I just want him to be a good weight and height considering his past.
 
#73 ·
My Jack what big ears you have:))) Couldn't resist:) He does look MUCH better!

And no he does not have a sloped back, even with him standing pretty weird in the above pic..His rear legs are a splayed out, if he was standing straighter, he'd look even more straight..

Good job, he's looking great!
 
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