It was in April 2009 that I adopted my beautiful German Shepherd from an inner city pound. Majority of animals or prospective pets sent there were stray’s to be put down (due to over crowding). Make no mistake about it, this was not a Humane Society. Coming there, unfortunately, was a death wish for most animals (seeing as many new animals arrived each day). The pound had everything from cats to dogs to reptiles of all ages. The elderly dogs, for instance, might never find a home. The dogs seemed like they knew what their probable fate could be, as they would all barked hysterically when you were passing their cage. I saw it as a “please save my life” bark, rather than a idle “pick me, pick me”.
When we got there, we found my dog Roxy. I knew instantly that she was for me. Roxy (also known as Roxanne or Rox ‘n Sox) was in poor shape. She was a stray that was treated for harsh wounds and was 25-pounds under weight; she didn’t even have the strength to walk out of her cage. My girlfriend and I went to go pay the adoption fees. Some of the dog’s were on what they called the “termination list”. For Roxy, we were ready to go..or so we thought. There was a technical error in the system that said Roxy was scheduled to be put down the next day! Dogs there are supposed to have a 3-week allowance before being put on the termination list. We made sure to clear that up and luckily were still able to adopt her.
The next part was unforeseen. Roxy became very violent and aggressive. She would bite, growl, snarl, and scratch. I live alone and she is a very dangerous breed to begin with. I literally lost sleep because she’d bite me in the middle of the night.
We’ve come a long way. Nowadays, through tender loving care, she has become a very loving dog. I call her the “gentle giant” seeing as she is this huge dog with a heart of gold. I don’t know where I’d be without my Rox ‘n Sox. Because, after all we’ve gone through, we loyally remain at each others side.