Auction Wrap Up

by: GSRNE Staff

Auction 2023 was an especially exciting event as we saw friends who we haven’t seen for several years! The day was also changed to a Saturday instead of Sunday. Lots of positive comments on the change! It takes legions of volunteers to pull it off, but April 22nd, pull-it-off, we did!!  The hotel facility, at the Springhill Suites by Marriott at 43 Newbury Street, Peabody, MA, was excellent, and the staff was very friendly and willing to accommodate our needs. 

Our volunteers rose to the occasion, doing a tremendous job. From the tagging party in March to the final day on Saturday in April, a lot happened!! We were able to load and transport all our items to the hotel on Friday evening, so set up could begin early Saturday morning. Most stayed all day, also helping to clean and pack up! Then some went to storage to be auction items for next year.

During the day, we had Door Prizes, a 50/50 Raffle, a Food Table and Sales Table, along with the Silent and Live Auctions. Lauralee D. got us all to bid and spend "just $5 more" and reminding and reminding us "it's all for the dogs", which raised even more money! 

Our president, Tina R., welcomed everyone and emphasized the importance of this fundraiser was to provide the best care for our dogs! Many "veteran" volunteers from the New England States were there to help and bid high and often. We had a lot of supporters who donated items, came to help, or supported us in other ways to make this day a success. Such an uplifting, happy day for all!

During the break, we got to see some of our wonderful dogs: Kiley, a trained service dog, was there with Dotti; Jim brought our foster, Thunder, and ambassador Princess Red; and two of our puppies, Hannah and Dash, were in attendance.

Registration was hectic at check-in and check-out, but Tomas, Remy and Chris kept things running smoothly. Our 50/50 Raffle sold a lot of tickets, and Kathy was busy selling tickets to everyone! Our Sales Table was hopping with our jackets, shirts, cards, cookbooks and lots of goodies to sell; Diane, Jodi and Diana, the sales team, were kept very busy! 

We all worked up an appetite, and thanks to our food table, we were well satisfied, buying a lot of delicious sandwiches, chips, drinks, coffee, noodles and yummy desserts. All food was individually wrapped! Carol and Mark did a great job setting up and helping people.

The Blue and Yellow Silent Auctions did well, and Lauralee did a fine job as the “Auctioneer Extraordinaire”!!

Thank you to MANY individuals who donated and participated in lots of ways to make this such a success! Behind the scenes, Chris and Tomas worked their magic to input all the items from the Tagging Party and make our Auction Catalog.

 Hours of work and time went into the success of our Auction... beginning months in advance with Annette and others soliciting donations. It all came to a conclusion yesterday. We raised over $11,000 gross, which is a super job in these economic times! Soon, we will start working on next year!! 

Sincere thanks also to the many, many volunteers who worked so hard!! And to those great people who came and won some great items!

GSRNE Board Change ...

by: GSRNE Staff

We wanted to announce that Kathy Van Zandt has stepped down from her role on the Board of Directors for GSRNE.  With Kathy’s heavy work schedule and long hours, it was becoming more difficult for her.  We know rescue work is draining, and having your life out of balance is not good.  We truly hope that stepping down from the board will take the pressure off so that Kathy will have more time and can enjoy helping in other areas and remain a part of GSRNE in an active capacity. Kathy enjoys writing descriptions of the dogs ready for posting on the Website, and she's good at it...she'll continue to do that as well as helping with new foster home applications, home visits and other things she was doing before becoming a board member. We're very fortunate in having former board members continuing to care about the dogs and stay active. 

We have asked Diana Thorpe, who is presently the GSRNE In-Take Coordinator, and she graciously accepted to becoming our newest Board Member. Before coming to GSRNE, Diana had previously been volunteering with Baypath Humane Society in Hopkinton, MA. In addition to walking and working with dogs currently in shelter, she was part of their foster program and had attended multiple education sessions on dog behavior. In 2019, she attended the GSRNE evaluator’s training and has gone on to evaluate and foster quite a few GSRNE dogs. We are looking forward to having Diana join the BOD.

2023 Calendar Raffle!

by: Lauralee D

 I can’t believe it’s that time of year again. The 2023 GSRNE Calendar Raffle is almost complete!! This year is the best yet!!! I Know… I say that Every year! But wait till you see it, and you’ll know what I mean!! Our $500 Fourth of July spot is always much anticipated. This year, I’m excited to announce the addition of a Bose Smart Soundbar 300! Our gift cards range from Outback, Panera, Christmas Tree Shop & a few others in between!! The Cash reigns supreme again with several $50, $100 & even $200 spots!! 

We welcomed a few new supporters to our calendar this year!! We also wish to thank our members who continue to support the calendar year after year. I Couldn’t do this without you!!! We remember & celebrate those we love while raising money for our dogs in need!! Thank You All for making this such a special fundraiser every year!! 

I hope we can count on you to get the word out and to sell as many tickets as you can. Remember, the top selling person gets a prize as well as the top selling company! They’ll be available to purchase from our website soon. 

Lauralee Davis 

Calendar Raffle Committee Chairman 

Fostering Help

by: GSRNE Staff

We love having good news to share, like our recent posts about the adoptions of Chief, Skye, Zeus and the puppies. Behind the scenes, though, we're having to make hard decisions about which dogs we can help and which we just can't save. Mostly that happens because we don't have enough foster homes for all the German Shepherds we learn about who are in need.

We've already placed 30 dogs this year; BUT, our two Intake Coordinators have responded to 240 calls since January 1st this year! Even when we have to say that we can't take in a dog, Diana and Dotti return each call, listen to the ACO's or owners and offer ideas for alternative avenues for them to pursue. We try, first, to help the dogs in shelters, who have already lost their homes and owners.

Right now, we have three dogs who have been evaluated and are waiting for foster homes. Jet, a 2-year-old female, has been wait-listed since February 7th. She lives with a female one year older, and they have been fighting recently. They are now kept separated, and Jet is not getting much exercise.

Axel, a young male, has been in a shelter since January. The ACO contacted us, our volunteer met and evaluated Axel, and we want to move him to a foster home. When his original owner became disabled, he posted Axel on Craig's List; he was adopted and then passed from one owner to another.... four times, from what we can understand. He's friendly with people and just needs some training and guidance.



Jake, another male in a shelter, 6 years old, was living in a car and a tent with a homeless man until placed in the shelter. Our evaluator said he's a good dog and deserves a chance.

This week, we have three dogs waiting for evaluation, two females in the same home. Their owner is going through a divorce and had to sell her house, with the closing coming in a few weeks. Her dogs are 3 and 4 years old, one has EPI, and she can't find a place to move to and take them with her. The other dog is a male in a shelter, 3 years old, all black and very underweight.

Please contact us if you can possibly foster a dog in need of help. We'll do a home visit with you and explain what's involved in fostering; GSRNE pays all the dog's expenses for food, vet visits and supplies and furnishes a crate and bedding. Many of us have fostered multiple times and still do, but the need for foster homes has increased to the point where it will take more of our "village" to save these dogs!

If you can help or have questions on fostering, please email Karen at tmccall488@aol.com.

Thank you for listening,

The GSRNE Board of Directors

--- New GSRNE Store !! ---

by: GSRNE Staff

Have you had a chance to check out our new online store yet? We have more merchandise to be added in the next week, including GSRNE embroidered hoodies and some long sleeve tees in many colors that you can choose from... And 100% of the proceeds go directly to the care of our wonderful foster dogs!  https://gsrne.org/shop/

Happy Tails: Athena #534

by: GSRNE Staff

We received a happy tail from Dawne and Jim, who adopted Athena #534 (formerly Lou Lou) in 2020 when she was about three-and-a-half years old. They write: We were contacted by Tina at German Shepherd Rescue of New England to see if we would be interested in fostering, since we were repeat adopters. We weren’t quite ready to adopt again after losing our beautiful Cassie-girl (#190) at the age of 13, but we thought we would give it a try as long as our 10-year-old Pomeranian, Brody, was okay with it too.

We were so proud of Brody for welcoming Athena into his home. Athena loves people, children, going for walks, riding in the car, looking out her big front window and, especially, all her squeaky toys. She loves when we have company: she’ll bring them one squeaky toy, and then she’ll change her mind and decide to look for a different squeaky toy for them to throw. We just have to talk to her, and her tail starts wagging—she is such a sweetheart and so loveable. We continue to work with her on her prey drive, and she is getting better. We tell her, “Rabbits are friends, not food, so leave them alone!” She is also very strong, even though she’s only 68 pounds. She’s quite the character and loves her “belly rubs,” too.

Athena has gotten used to having her picture taken and is no longer camera shy. She is also all about comfort and loves her new “Snuggle” bed. She is so smart: Jim has been working with her, and she now can “sit pretty” on her hind legs for a treat. She is so alert and notices everything, and her memory is unbelievable, she never forgets.

We are so happy that Athena is part of our family. Our lives wouldn’t be the same without her. Thank you GSRNE for all you do.

Take Me Home: Brave

by: GSRNE Staff

Brave is a 2.5-year-old female GSD who certainly is living up to her name. When GSRNE was contacted by her owner, we were horrified when we looked at the photo of her. She appeared emaciated, and we asked the owner to take her to the local VCA immediately and said that we would take ownership and responsibility for vet care. Brave only weighed 28 pounds then – yes, you read that correctly. The Vet told us she was weak, extremely malnourished and would have been dead in a few days if we hadn’t intervened. We are just grateful that her owner reached out to us for help.  

After testing, it was as suspected, Brave was diagnosed with EPI that had been untreated. This is easily controlled with medication, and Brave is responding very well to the EPI enzyme supplement that she will need to stay healthy. She is feeling much better as she is gaining weight and energy.  

Fast forward to April … Her foster mom reports Brave is eating well and digesting normally. She is getting stronger and more playful with each passing day. She loves people and is friendly and affectionate when meeting them.  

Brave has a high prey drive; she likes to play and chase toys. She is still chasing shadows indoors and outdoors, which is something we believe she did from being bored when she was left alone in her previous home for so long. The good thing is, she is gradually transitioning and redirecting to toys, tug ropes and interactive toys. She's learning how to catch, and her foster mom continues to work on reinforcing her basic commands. Brave is reactive when she sees another dog; she’s been evaluated by a trainer, and we’re hoping to enroll her in some group obedience classes to help socialize and build up her confidence. 

This Brave girl is ready to find for her forever home. Could that be you?

Adoption News: x5

by: GSRNE Staff

Adoption News: Max

Max is a 1-year-old, friendly, energetic male. He’s full of energy and loves life. Max was an emotional purchase by an older couple after the passing of their 13-year-old GSD mix and a death in their family. They soon realized that Max was too active and large for their age. They didn’t 

feel they could give him the exercise and fulfillment a young German Shepherd needed. They loved him dearly and wanted to find him the best home, so they contacted us for rehoming help. There wasn’t any urgency, as they were more concerned that he was going to the right home.

We didn’t have any foster homes available at that time, so he stayed with them for several more months. In the meantime, we heard from two-time previous adopters that their male had passed away after a long and happy life. They submitted an application asking us to look for a dog for them, but weren’t in any hurry. When we were reviewing Max’s evaluation, we had a sneaking suspicion that he may be a good fit for them, so we asked if they would be willing to foster him. We were thrilled when they said yes.

In only a matter of days, we were hearing wonderful things about Max. He settled in nicely once he got over his fear of their stairs. He needed some additional training, but our experienced couple was working on that. They said it felt like he had always been there, and they knew he was home. After a period of foster time, they asked us if they could formally adopt him, and we couldn’t have been happier to say yes! Welcome home Max, GSRNE # 629! 

Date Adopted: March 25, 2023

Jax

This handsome boy is named Jax, one year old, and he had been surrendered to an animal shelter by a single Mom with three children. The shelter manager described Jax as a "good dog, probably the best GSD we've had in a while." He certainly is a handsome dude, with plush fur and striking black-with-silvery-white markings. No dog is perfect, of course, and we were told that Jax could be intense with food, eating fast but not guarding. He enjoyed some touching, but would get nervous and a bit mouthy if stroking was prolonged. We know that being in a shelter environment can be especially hard for a German Shepherd; and after he passed our evaluation, we went through the paperwork for all our approved adopters, waiting to be matched with the right dog.

We kept going back to a professional couple with GSD experience and no current dog. They both work mostly from home, so we knew Jax would not be home alone much; and they believe in ongoing training, positive reinforcement and gradual socialization. They had been looking for a slightly older dog, but we felt that Jax could fit well into their home, so we told them about him. We were relieved when they agreed to take Jax to Foster-to-Adopt and kept in close touch as they gave us feedback on how he was doing.

They confirmed that he would get overly excited and obsessed with food, but he was learning to be calmer. They worked on teaching him to sit for a treat when he started to jump after coming out of the crate or when he would get overly excited while playing and nipped at ankles. They went to training classes together, and Jax is making progress while keeping his spirited personality.

Before the end of the fostering period, his new family members were asking to adopt Jax, and we happily agreed! He is now GSRNE # 640, and we look forward to hearing more about him in his new life!

Nellie

GSRNE’S Nellie has found her forever home!

Nellie is a sweet and friendly girl who was about to turn six years old when her owner died after a serious illness. The caring woman had asked her adult children to find a loving home for Nellie, and one of them stayed in the home with her dog until GSRNE could help.

We were able to send an evaluator who confirmed what we had been told about Nellie’s personality, and a former adopter took her in as a foster-to-adopt dog. Nellie does have sensitive skin and a history of ear infections, and she’s continuing on the food that helps this condition; she’s also continuing to get Apoquel once a day and drops for her ears as needed. Her foster Mom cleans her ears regularly and makes sure to keep her comfortable.

As Nellie’s foster parents were getting to know her, we could tell that they would not want to see her leave. They report, “All Nellie really wants is to be loved, and she gives it back in spades! She enjoys her stuffed toys and won’t leave the house without one in her mouth. When she’s outside, she wants you to be with her and has been friendly and affectionate with everyone she has met.” They told us that she does have some Separation Anxiety but is learning to stay in her crate for short periods with the help of a peanut butter-stuffed Kong to work on.

We’re delighted to introduce you to Nellie and to announce that she is being adopted by her foster parents and now has her very own GSRNE (639) number!

Zeus and Skye:

Zeus and Skye are stunning dogs that certainly live up to their powerful names. Zeus with his plush dark sable colors and Skye with her jet-black shiny coat make a striking pair.

In December, we were contacted by an ACO who had two German Shepherds she was looking to place in a breed experienced rescue. Zeus and Skye were about 3 or 4 in age and had never been to a vet. They had spent most of their lives living in a car, as their owners didn’t have a home. The dogs had been seized by the ACO, but the owners ultimately relinquished custody, so the ACO was now able to proceed with rehoming. Both dogs, amazingly given their start at life, had friendly personalities and were well liked by the staff. However, it was clear they had no training and were very high energy, high drive dogs. They were not dogs the ACO felt comfortable adopting out directly from the shelter to a family until they had some training and time to decompress from their ordeal. We were very happy the ACO called us, as we had a very experienced foster and trainer who was used to working with these types of dogs. There was one other wrinkle… Skye was clearly pregnant. We were incredibly lucky that our foster/trainer also had experience whelping puppies and was willing to take on this enormous challenge.

Over the next few months, Zeus, Skye, and their 8 healthy puppies learned what it was like to be companion dogs again. The puppies were born only about 3 days after their arrival to their foster home with 4 males and 4 females, evenly split colors with 4 being all black and 4 sable. We found Zeus and Skye to be great dogs, incredibly intelligent with very nice personalities who trained quickly. Skye was a good mom and trusting of her foster family to help wrangle the little ones, it was nice to see that her trust in people was still strong. Zeus was also fond of being around the family and blossomed during this time. Both dogs loved spending time running around on pack walks in the woods and getting so much love and attention. The ACO was absolutely correct when saying both dogs had very high drive. These were not dogs for the average home as they would need above average exercise and mental stimulation as well as daily training to make sure those traits were channeled into positive activities. They would need experienced GSD owners. The same would be true for their puppies, as they would likely have inherited these traits from their parents.

Once the puppies were weaned and in carefully selected adoptive homes willing to train and care for this caliber of dog, our attention turned to finding forever homes for Zeus and Skye. Miracles do happen, and we had an experienced applicant interested in both dogs. We are thrilled to say that Zeus #637 and Skye #636 are now in their forever home. They will not be bred again and will not know suffering, only love and happiness, now that they are part of the extended GSRNE family. Congratulations to all!

Chief

9-year-old Chief’s story is one that truly shows the commitment and passion of the GSRNE volunteers, members, and friends. 

Chief’s owner contacted us in late December looking for help in placing him. He had owned Chief since puppyhood, but he’d fallen on hard times, lost permanent housing, and now the options for temporary housing had run out. He had contacted a local shelter who told him that the sad truth was Chief’s age, breed, and dog and cat reactivity meant he would most likely be euthanized. Chief’s owner could not allow that to happen to the buddy he loved so very much, as evidenced by the many photos sent to our rescue of their adventures when he asked us for help. Our evaluators met Chief and found him to be a very people friendly guy. We knew we had to help Chief find a place to live out his golden years, but we had no foster homes without dogs or cats available.

This is the part of the story where our awesome volunteers and members kicked it into high gear to save this boy. We put out a general plea within the group for Chief. Through networking, a German Shepherd savvy family friend of a volunteer who’d recently lost their German Shepherd was found and willing to foster Chief!! Within a matter of days, Chief was in his new home and everyone let out a sigh of relief.

We were soon getting pictures of him dreaming his day away on his not one, not two, but three dog beds or the lazy boy armchair he was fond of taking over. His new family did tell us he was quite reactive to other dogs on walks, so they were careful to avoid confrontations. Chief also had some skin growths on his eyelids that we had evaluated, and they thankfully only need observation. Chief’s foster family has fallen in love with his sweet personality and have learned how amazingly rewarding it is to bring a senior dog into the home. They have asked to be his forever family, and we couldn’t be happier. Way to go, Chief, GSRNE # 641!

Volunteer Spotlight: Diana

by: GSRNE Staff

Name & Hometown: Diana, Hopedale, Massachusetts

How long have you been a GSRNE volunteer? Since October 2019

What do you do for GSRNE and what does the job entail? I've had a chance to learn about, and support, different parts of the rescue. I started out helping staff the adoption hotline, then did home visits, dog transports, behavior evaluations, and have fostered six dogs over the past few years. My main focus is serving as Intake Coordinator, which means I have conversations with people who contact us seeking assistance in rehoming their dogs.

Do you have a GSRNE dog? Not yet - but when I foster (most recently two puppies!) I have to restrain myself as I have a GSD female and a GSD/Mix male already.

How did you get interested in GSRNE? I've had German Shepherds at different points throughout my life. Every month I'd receive the monthly GSRNE newsletter and one day decided to attend an event. While at the event I got to meet so many friendly people willing to share their knowledge and experience.

What is it about the organization that interests you? The people are passionate, dedicated, and don't give up. All someone needs to do is go on the website and look at the list of adopted dogs to see the impact the organization has made on the lives of so many dogs. And for anyone who wants to learn more about GSDs, the organization is a great network to build relationships and make new friends.



What would you say to prospective volunteers? I encourage everyone who cares about GSDs to think about how they can help the rescue. We're all so busy with life - family, work, friends, our dogs - you name it. But what's great is that ALL help is appreciated! Whether you can contribute lots of time or just a little bit of time, anything is equally welcomed and valued. In my experience, I've learned so much and continue to learn from everyone. When I attended that first event back in 2019, I didn't know anyone there and was pretty clueless about what I might be able to do or how I could contribute. Four years later, I feel like I've found what I should be doing and that whatever I can contribute is helping to make a difference - one dog at a time.

Become a GSRNE Volunteer!

If you would like to learn more about our volunteer programs, visit:

https://gsrne.org/volunteer/

The 2023 GSRNE Calendar is Selling Fast!!

by: GSRNE Staff

Get your calendar before they are all gone.

https://gsrne.org/product/2023-gsrne-calendar-shop/