Save-A-Shepherd

Save-A-Shepherd was formed in July 2008, starting with our first pup, Kaiser, a GSD cross, rescued from Wagga pound on 26 July 2008.  Since then, we have expanded the range of pounds we keep watch on, and have rescued from as far afield as Wagga to the west, and up to Kurri Kurri in the Hunter region.  The majority of our dogs come from Sydney pounds however.

Save-A-Shepherd is a husband and wife team - Andrew and Tanya.  We do have a small number of foster carers, however the majority of the dogs live with us while they await their new homes.

At this stage we both work full time, so our time to devote to the rescues is limited to after hours and weekends.  If you would like to help, please visit our How You Can Help page.

 We offer a lifetime guarantee on our dogs, so if you ever need help or advice we are only a phone call away.  And if for any reason you are no longer able to keep your dog, please contact us and we will do what we can to help to find the dog a new home.

Our aim is to rescue dogs on death row from pounds and find new, loving homes for them.  This involves watching the various pound websites and contacting them whenever there is a German Shepherd either surrendered or not collected by its owners.  We then arrange to rescue the dog if it is not adopted directly from the pound, and transport it to our property.  From there, the dogs live with us until they find their new homes.  They are desexed, vaccinated, microchipped, wormed and heartwormed, and any other vet work that is required is carried out, so that they are fit and healthy by the time they go to their new homes.

The dogs are well socilaised with each other, and we do what we can to test their reactions to cats and livestock such as horses and sheep. We can also advise whether the dog is suitable for a home with children.  We make every effort to match dogs to the right homes to ensure that this home is their last.  To do this, all of our dogs go on a minimum two week trial to ensure they fit into their new homes, and it is only after the completion of this trial that ownership of the dog is transferred.

On occasion, we do take in surrenders directly.  This however is dependent on the room we have available.  Wherever possible, we would prefer to assist with rehoming the dog direct from its previous home as this prevents the dog having to be relocated several times and allows it to stay in a familiar environment, reducing the stress on the dog.  If you need assisstance rehoming your German Shepherd, please contact us.

We don't have any hard and fast rules about what makes a suitable home as we understand every dog is different.  Our adoption application raises a number of questions which will help us to determine whether your home and family environment is suitable for a particular dog.  We look to make sure that the property has adequate space and fences, that other animals or people in the house won't provide a source of conflict, and that you can provide a lifestyle that is suitable to that particular dog.  This list is of course not exhaustive, and while our adoption application may seem to ask quite a lot of questions, it is important that we match the right dog to the right home, and to ensure that both the dog and it's new family are happy for the rest of its life.