I have been fostering a sweet, energetic male shepherd named Leonard, aka Lenny, from a very high kill shelter. I committed to saving him before I even met him, about a month ago, after seeing his sweet face listed on the shelter's website.
I was looking for a shepherd with a personality like my male shepherd Titus, who passed away a few months ago (I"m working on a post about him). His "girlfriend" Shelby missed him terribly, and so did I. It felt weird not to have him around.... Titus had such a strong presence, I felt like I had the rug pulled out from under me. I was still getting over the loss of my older female shepherd, Kali, who died in the fall after an aggressive tumor (that showed up right after getting the rabies vaccine) took her life. You can read more about that on this page. I am working on tribute posts for both Kali and Titus -- two of the best dogs in the world - it's just taking a while to get them done, as I'm juggling a lot.
Anyway.... sorry, I digress.....
The silence of Titus' absence was unbearable. And when he was no longer around, the vibe in my shepherd pack felt very "off." I love all of the 3 female shepherds I have now, but something about having one male in the group somehow kept things in balance. All my girls adored him. Titus was also a protector, who was able to keep my Shepherd / Husky Fafi from bullying my docile Shepherd / Goldie, Shelby (something she often did, partly because she's a herder and very alpha female). You could see the sadness and and anxiety in Shelby's eyes, and it was eating away at me.
I wasn't necessarily ready for another dog just yet, but one day I decided to just have a look and see what shepherds were available at the shelter where I'd gotten Titus, back in 2022. Me and my boyfriend had rescued four shepherds - all great dogs - on the same day, in the fall of 2022. So naturally, I checked that same shelter, first, to see what shepherds were available.
I knew if I did get another shepherd, I'd want one that was strong and had a strong presence, but was also mellow, and also not an alpha, or he might butt heads with one of the other very large dogs I am fostering (who is an alpha). I should note that Titus was an alpha male - but sadly, that is what cost him his life. One evening when I was at work, he got in a fight with my foster husky Rocky, who is usually pretty mellow,, and would tend to retreat with his tail between his legs when Titus would pick a fight with him (usually it was related to territory). But Rocky had a secret weapon in his back pocket, that he eventually used to keep Titus from going after him..... a very strong bite. I discovered, too late, that while I was at work and no one else was around, Rocky bit Titus' ear so hard that it caused excessive bleeding. And he died of blood loss, before I got home.
I spent about a week bawling my eyes out. Losing Titus hurt about as badly as I imagine it would hurt to lose a son. But I knew there was nothing I could do to bring him back, and I just needed to do what I could to make sure me and my other shepherds would get through this.
I began browsing - juuuuust looking - through the shelter's pages, and when I saw Lenny's face, he immediately captured my heart. Something about his eyes.... he looked so sweet. There wasn't much about him in the description, other than the fact that he was a "jumper" and was able to scale the shelter's 6 foot fence. He was also afraid of the male Animal Control Officer (ACO).
I saw Lenny's post and profile in mid-March. I thought maybe he'd get adopted, since there weren't a lot of shepherds in the shelter (or at least, there weren't as many as there were when I got the 4 shepherds in 2022). But Lenny was in a back kennel (an enclosed one so he couldn't jump out). Apparently, he'd been able to scale the shelter's six foot wall, so they had to move him to a kennel in the back. But he was getting almost no exposure or publicity, there. There was just one photo and no videos of him.
I meant to visit Lenny on a different trip to Southern California, a few weeks after Titus died. There was a different shepherd I learned about in a facebook post. She was found injured in a field, and was set to be euthanized since no one had claimed her. So I drove down to get her, but ran out of time to visit Lenny while in Southern California. The shelter closed and I had to get back to my own dogs at home. I just had to hope Lenny woould find a good home.
After about a month, I saw in a facebook post created by networkers, that Lenny was on the URGENT list. He was just days away from being euthanized, and for whatever reason, he was getting almost no exposure and no pledges. I was really worried about him.
I knew basically nothing about Lenny's personality, because I live far away from the shelter and wasn't able to go down and visit him beforehand. I knew that going to get him would be an 8 hour trip, but I couldn't bear the thought of hearing later, that he'd been euthanized. Like I said, this is a VERY high kill shelter, and sadly.... I did, later, find out that all the dogs (except Lenny) who were in this picture collage with him, were, indeed, put to sleep. Lenny was the only one that made it out (and I had to do a lot of talking and pleading with shelter staff to hold him long enough for me to get there). I had to pay extra money for them to hold him a few days until I could get down there.
There are just too many dogs and not enough space, resources, fosters and adopters right now.
Lenny would be a great guard dog and I feel VERY safe walking him at night. He is always alert and looking around us to see what's going on. He is smart and eager to learn. Already knows commands for sit, stay, lay down and shake a paw, and could learn much more!
You can see a video of him here. Please note that I am purposely using a very SWEET voice with him, as he seems to respond well to it. I heard he was afraid of the male animal control officer who found him, so I think he had a bad experience but he was fine with my friend who is a guy (though it helped that he fed him rotisserie chicken. Here's the link for a video.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/qkUf-2wp7G8
Here he is on a walk:
https://youtu.be/9fKdZa7cpX4?si=KBuuC7mLjnBBy4W2
I would ask for a small rehoming fee just to ensure he doesn't end up being used as a fighting dog, and might use a formal rescue for his adoption, but could be flexible with the right person or family.
I think he would love to be with a young male or female who is willing to walk him daily and give him more training. He could possibly be a companion for another dog but I just don't know for sure. He wags his tail at my dogs but because he barked at one of my fosters, I was a little cautious about introducing him to the others so I have been keeping him separated. I would keep him if I didn't already have my own shepherds plus 3 foster huskies! You can see his pictures in this post. Please let me know if you're interested in meeting him.
Lenny does get restless and likes to chew things, but he's also recently neutered so I think he will calm down a bit over the next 2 months. He would make an excellent running companion.
You can see another video of Lenny, here:
If for some reason it didn't work out with someone I'd gladly take him back, he is a sweet boy who deserves a good life! I might also be willing to provide a training course for someone who might be willing to give him extra training. Just let me know if you have any questions.... click on the contact form on the right side of this blog. Thanks!!!
Laura
Laura
