This is the story of Shadow - one of the earlier dogs rescued by SSR, and how we found him.

Scrolling through Craigslist one day, I saw an ad for a German Shepherd being rehomed for $150. I clicked on the link, and was taken to this photo- which would permanently scar my mind. The ad stated that the owner was moving and could not take the dog, Shadow, with him. Horrified, I called the number listed immediately and told the man on the phone that I would leave my house at that moment and drive two hours to pick her up. He agreed to surrender her to Shenandoah Shepherd Rescue, so I jumped in my car and off I went. It was a cold January day with snow still on the ground from the previous week, and I was racing like a bat out of Hell to get to Shadow.

I got lost two times along the way, both times in the same neighborhood, and both times I stopped to ask for directions. The first time I stopped at a home where a man was outside with his Australian Shepherd. The dog was off leash and came running up to me, sweet as can be. As I pet her, I noticed that more than 1/3 of her fur was matted together and clearly had been for a long time. Angrily, I accepted the directions and moved on. The second time I stopped at a house that had four dogs tied to trees; one near each corner of the home. Two of them were German Shepherds, and all of them looked rather underweight. As it turned out, these people were relatives of the man who had Shadow. They gave me directions and I asked if they would be interested in surrendering any of their dogs to me. They said no, and given that I was in the middle of nowhere with no cell phone signal and no weapon, I didn't push the issue.

When I arrived to Shadow's home, I immediately saw her. Barking incessantly on a chain to the left of the house, skinnier than any dog I had ever seen up until that point. Her nails were almost 2 inches long, she was missing fur in parts of her rear end and tail, and her "shelter" was two boards of plywood leaned up against each other to make a triangle with the ground. Her bucket of water was dirty, and I saw no food. I approached her with kibble, wary that she may end up being aggressive after all of the neglect, but as soon as she smelled the food the barking stopped. I let her eat some, unhooked her chain, put a leash around her neck and brought her to my car. She couldn't jump into the back alone, so I had to lift and put her inside.

I then walked up to the home and knocked on the door. No one answered, and there was no car in sight. I waited for a few minutes and a man in a truck pulled up. He was a seemingly nice man, who told me that he really cared about Shadow and just wanted to see her go to a decent home. I asked him why she was so skinny. He told me that he had tried deworming and feeding her but she just wouldn't gain weight. He also told me that she came to him in that condition 2 years prior, when he bought her from a breeder for $150. He pulled out a ripped off piece of paper that said "Black German Shepherd. $150, sold as is" and then a signature at the bottom.
As we were talking, I heard a commotion in the small fenced area near where Shadow was being chained up. He angrily said, "I have to get rid of that damn puppy. My beagles keep attacking it." Before I even knew what the puppy looked like, I told him to just put it in my car. The man brought out a large hound-type puppy, only a few months old, named Mac and placed him in the back of my car with Shadow. We said our goodbyes and off I went, crying the whole way home.

I got home and immediately bathed the dogs. Mac first, who seemed to be in really good shape apart from a few minor wounds from the Beagles. Then Shadow. At 35 pounds, I could feel every bone in her body. Picking up this 7 year old German Shepherd was easier than picking up a bag of trash. her face was sunken in, and her nails were so long that they were beginning to curve to the sides. I sobbed as I bathed her, because if it hadn't been for my ability to feel her breath, I would have thought I was bathing a skeleton. All the same, she sat calmly in the tub, enjoying the company and warmth of the water. After her bath I wrapped her up in a towel, sat on the couch with her completely fitting on my lap, and let her have a coconut ice pop.

The veterinary appointment the next day revealed that Shadow had hookworms so severe they had traveled up to her lungs. They were stealing all of the nutrients from her body, which was why no matter how much she ate, she continued to decay. Amazingly, after living outside for years, she was heartworm negative. Shadow was started on an aggressive deworming treatment, which would last over 6 months before finally being delcared worm-free. She was also placed on a regimen of supplements, mainly donated from companies who saw her story and wanted to help.

Mac, being a non-Shepherd, was transferred to another local rescue and after a few weeks, was adopted. Shadow remained with me during this time as I worked to get her as healthy as possible, and looked for an adopter capable of caring for her as much as I did. That adopter came, and when I brought Shadow to her home for a meet, I knew there could not be a better home for her. Not only was she happy, but the adopter was home all the time and able to feed her frequent small meals, keep up with vet appointments, and spoil her rotten. I left Shadow with the family, and for the first time since I had seen her face, I cried happy tears for my sweet girl.

Flash forward 1 year: Shadow is a beautiful, happy, worm free dog weighing in at over 80 pounds. She loves to swim, loves to go for walks, and after 7 years of neglect and abuse, will never hurt or starve again. Shadow's adopter also adopted Reeses, another local dog who came to us severely emaciated. Reeses was diagnosed with EPI, meaning she lacks the proper digestive enzymes and derives no nutrients from her food. She requires a special enzyme powder mixed into her food before every meal so that it can begin breaking down on its own. Reeses, with her new medication, has also gained over 30 pounds and is a beautiful, healthy 5 year old dog who enjoys her days swimming and walking with Shadow.

I now check Craigslist regularly, waiting to find my next severe neglect case, and wondering how many dogs I never saw who didn't make it. Hundreds of people drove past Shadow on that chain in the 2 years she sat there, and no one said a word. She was half dead when I found her, and would not have lasted much longer without the vetting she needed. If you see an animal being neglected or abused, say something. You could very well save their lives.