Max turns 5 today

[ken k]

my boy Max turns 5 today, so now i`ll tell how we came to be together, (this is gonna be long winded) 9/16/05, I had to put my GSD Bo down due to bloat and many other issues he was being treated for, he was 10yrs, so, everyone suggested I wait a few months for another, couple weeks went by and I couldn't stand the quiet, I missed the pitter patter of 4 little feet around the house, so I started looking on the net, my last GSD had all the medical issues you could get with a GSD, and I wanted one from a reputable breeder, so North of me I found one, went to see the pups, I put a non-refundable $250 deposit on a pup that was not yet born and may cost up to $2,500, had to wait till feb, I wasn't gone from this place not more than 10 minutes when a friend called and said so and so had GSD pups, I said no thanks, so another week goes by, the quiet now is becoming deafening, the friend calls again, says his buddy called again and said one of the males was returned, again I said no thanks, couple more weeks went by and he called again, said "would you please at least come look at him" so now i`m about a month with out a GSD, and the thought of waiting another 3 or 4 months was unimaginable, so I went, turns out the guy that had the pups was an old friend of my son`s

so I get there and he had the mom, and 2 pups, a sable and Max, never really seen a coloring that was on Max, I guess hes a Bi color, I was used to the traditional black and tan, so the pups were running around and giveing mom a hard time, they just turned 4 months, Max looked kind of large, he was already 40lbs and tall, we talked for a bit and Ely said Max was returned once for not having papers, he had to go all the way to Ohio to get him, the gal put a stop payment on the check, next guy that bought him, come to find out he lived in an APT, and they said no, so back he came

I knelt down as the pups were racing around, the sable ignored me, Max came over to me and acted like we were long lost friends, pushing me with his nose and licking my face, so i knew right then and there he picked me and we were supposed to be together, I paid $200 to cover the vet bills

fast forward a couple of months, hes 6 months old and trying to take over, a friend of mine recommended a trainer, retired military, and I was always impressed how his yellow lab responded to hand signals and voice commands, so I went, his style was new to me, and I thought I knew what I was doing until I started attending class`s, was hard at first, Dan was partial to the GSD`s after all hes been training them for 45 years, for the military and local police K9`s

about the 3rd week Dan commented on how Max`s temperament was exceptional, after 6 weeks, Dan pulled me aside and again said his temperament and intellange was exceptional, and I was doing an excellent job with him,

so we graduated from the OB class and on to the off leash class, bout the 4 week Max was off leash in class, I stayed after one night to talk to Dan and this time he said "you dont know it yet but your going have many wonderful years with him" also said Max "is a once in a lifetime GSD" at that time I had no idea what he was talking about, I do now

if anyone would have told me 5 years ago that I would have an exception to the breed GSD, become involved in pet therapy work and become a tester for T.D.Inc, I would have said "your nuts", he`s changed my life so much in the past 5 years am very proud of that boy, and I do believe they pick us, some pics of my boy, from baby to adult

happy birthday Max

[GSD MOM]

Happy birthday MAX!!!!!!!!

[bianca]

Awww what a handsome boy Max is! Happy Birthday! I love the photo of him sleeping on the couch

[onyx'girl]

Happy #5 Max!! So do you still have a deposit on that litter, Ken?

[sagelfn]

Happy Birthday handsome Max!

[JakodaCD OA]

Happy Woofday and many more!

[Tyson722]

Happy Birthday Max!!

I have to say though, I was looking at his baby pictures and my 3 month old Tyson looks exactly like Max.
Here is a picture of him: