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German Shepherd Dog : : Male : : Young : : Large
Learn more about the German Shepherd Dog.
Foster update: We've been fostering Luke about a month now. Luke is turning into a wonderful all-around dog. As he recovered from his previous neglect, he turned into a playful, affectionate dog who sticks close to his people. His hair is growing back beautifully, and he's gaining weight. (Some of the pictures on the site are from early in his recovery.) He'll be even more handsome as his coat grows in! He's house-trained and gets along well with our two dogs. He has a sweet disposition and responds well to gentle, positive training. He's playful but does not appear to have high exercise needs. When given the run of our yard, he prefers to hang out inside with us. He settles down well at night. He'll readily enter his crate, but is not a fan of it. A previous minder noted that he escaped from her crate; we have not seen that, but he can be "talky" when crated. Luke had a rough start in life, and deserves a loving home where he can enjoy lots of time with his new family.
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Original intake notes: Are you looking for an active, sweet, and affectionate young boy? Well Luke is the man for you! We know he’s not the best looking dog right now, but boy is he going to be a stunner once his hair all grows back in! The difference in just the time SSR has had him is amazing.
When we originally got Luke, we thought that he was 5 to 7 years old due to his significant hair loss, body condition and being shut down from being in the shelter. Once we saved him from a high kill shelter in Texas, and got him some much needed medical care, his hair started to grow back, he is gaining weight and his playful puppy like personality is shining through.
We now believe him to be no more than two years old. (!!!) His teeth are in pretty great condition considering the rest of his body and he has very few gray around his face if any. He is very playful and acts like a puppy still trying to figure out his feet!
Luke is a talker and likes to vocalize when he plays with you or other dogs. He likes to play using his mouth so this may be scary for small children who aren’t used to how most GSDs play. He plays well with other dogs and did well with a GSD-savvy 20 pound terrier mix.
He needs training to include leash manners. He's a big strong boy, so we strongly recommend a professional trainer for Luke and his family to help him be the best dog he can be.
Luke has mostly been in a boarding setting since he came into SSR except for a few days while he stayed with another foster to get vetting in Virginia. While in a household setting he had no accidents in the house.
He did well in the is crate, vocal at first but settled within 15 minutes. Luke's nickname is Houdini as he is able to get out of a traditional wire crate so his adopters will need a XL airline crate or a heavy duty crate for him. He was not destructive when he crate escaped but he did dig up the carpet at the door trying to get to the house humans. He didn’t shred or chew on it, just pulled it back trying to get out of his room.
Luke is currently being treated for fungal yeast and bacterial skin infections. He is fully vaccinated, neutered, and microchipped. He is ready for his forever home and can be adopted while finishing his medications which are provided at SSR's expense.
Luke was neutered while in Texas but when he got to his Virginia foster they saw and felt masses in his scrotum that felt consistent with testes. He has seen the vet here in Virginia and it was determined that the masses are two large hematomas, or blood clots, and that he possible has an underlying delayed clotting condition. His blood testosterone level came back as zero so there is for sure no testicular tissue. He was checked for all the basic clotting disorders, which came back normal except his fibrinogen. We did full tick borne illness testing as some tick borne illnesses cause clotting issues and they were all normal as well.
The vet recommended his adopters know that if he were to ever need surgery, that he should get a plasma transfusion to ensure proper clotting. If you are interested in Luke and would like to discuss this more, please have your caseworker put you in touch with Cassie, one of our medical fosters, as she did his vetting for this and knows the full details and can best answer your questions. More about Luke 2258Good with Dogs, Good with Adults, Somewhat vocal, Does Good in the Car, Likes to play with toys, Playful, Affectionate, Eager To Please, Intelligent, Goofy If you are an approved adopter and are interested in this dog, please let your case worker know. If you are not yet an approved adopter but are interested, please complete an adoption application! Videos of Luke 2258:
   Other Pictures of Luke 2258 (click to see larger version):
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If you are viewing this animal on Petfinder, please see our organization’s Petfinder home page, linked below (on mobile) or to the right (on desktop), to read about our adoption process and to start your journey!
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