Ellie originally came from a shelter in Bedford, VA; after she was given up by her previous owners who were moving. She is a spayed, 1.5-year-old, female GSD, and has lop ears. Ellie was diagnosed with Lyme disease for which she is currently taking antibiotics. She's a very gorgeous girl and is curious about our cat but has not chased him or shown any aggression; she just watches him intently and sometimes wants to play with him. A firm "No" stops any bad behavior from Ellie. She is very eager to please her family and prefers to be in the same room with people. Ellie is afraid of other dogs but she doesn't growl or bite. I am working on socializing her and getting her out and about to as many new situations as possible. She is crate- and house-trained and, we are working on basic commands with her as well. Ellie seems to love kids and I think she may have had children in her previous family, she gets very excited when she sees a child approach her but is very gentle with children. She isn't a jumper but when she is let out of her crate, she does get extremely excited and tends to jump a little at that time; we're working on breaking her of this habit. Ellie is about 70 lbs., and needs to gain about five more pounds. She does pretty well on a leash and loves to take walks. She also really enjoys her kiddie pool! Please check out our web site at www.shepherdrescue.org for more information about our dogs, our adoption process and to download an application. You must have a fully approved application on file prior to privately meeting our dogs. We do not have a facility, all our dogs are housed in private foster homes throughout MD/DC/VA areas. More information available on our web site, so please read through our web site before emailing questions, as it might save us both some time!

VGSR can only adopt dogs out in the Virginia/Maryland/DC area, no exceptions.

Although donations of all types are needed, our primary need is foster homes for our lovely dogs while they wait for their new family to find them. Fostering is an extremely rewarding experience. Vet care is paid for by our rescue, and we can even provide you with food. All YOU need to add is love and security.

The adoption process starts with the applicant filling out the adoption application. This can happen at any time during the process, before or after having met a GSD that might be the ideal companion. (It's an advantage to have a pre-approved application on file with VGSR. It should be stressed here that being pre-approved does not mean that any potential adopter can select any available dog at will and take that dog home immediately. VGSR will exercise its best judgement as to which GSD will be the best match for that specific adopter based on a number of qualifying criteria. Many GSDs that come to us are matched up with their new people very quickly because their people have been pre-approved.) The applicant then submits the application form with a non-refundable $10.00 processing fee. VGSR reviews the application, then schedules an interview and home visit during which a number of questions are asked and the home is reviewed to be sure there is a contained/safe yard, and to meet the family involved. Once the application is approved, the applicant is asked to submit a $250.00 donation to VGSR, and the adoption is completed.

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