Last night we went to go look at a second German Shepherd dog to possibly add to our family. His name is Cullen and he was pulled from the pound after being picked up running on the street. He had tags and the owner was contacted. The owner said no, I don’t want him anymore. Just put him to sleep. This guy was just a big old teddy bear who wanted nothing more than to snuggle up next to a human.

Today I am giving thanks to the great many dog rescue groups and their volunteers that go into the shelters and pull good dogs like Cullen from the shelter and try to find them a new home with loving owners. If you want to add a dog to your family, please consider going to a rescue group or check out petfinder.com You can go to the pound too but here’s the advantage of the rescue groups – most of them place the dogs in foster homes with experienced dog handlers. The foster parent can give you a lot of insight into the dog before you bring it home. Yes, rescue dogs are often older and a lot of people think that means they won’t bond with their new owners but that’s not the case. And while puppies are cute and cuddly they are a lot of work. There’s a lot to be said for adopting a slightly older dog from 9 – 18 months.

If you want a specific breed, as we did, you can go to a breed specific rescue group. The AKC maintains a list of breed rescue groups around the country. Sure, it might take a little while to find the perfect dog (or not) but it is worth it. 

So thank you dog lovers and rescue groups everywhere.