Why not would be a better question.  Rescues are just dogs that have fallen on hard times.  Over the years three come to mind.  One lost his home because of a new baby.  He was a beautiful boy, kind, generous and loving, I bless the day the baby came into his life and am grateful for the six years I had with him.  The second was "allowed" to get lost by an uncaring byb person.  She probably spent the beginning of her life in a crate, being bred and ignored.  She is no longer being ignored.

She is a vocal and vital component of my life.  She has been with me ten years and never put a paw wrong.  The third lost his home due to his owner’s illness.  He is a big, "older" boy who has never grown up.  He is as playful as a puppy and very protective of his home and his newly found "sister".  He is loved and loving and he WAS a rescue.

Penny, Sky Classic and Brutus

(Lammtarra, Shahrastani, Dancer, Brandy and Sally waiting at the Bridge I pray)

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I have grown up with Dobie’s for over 20 years.  After our last boy passed at 12 years old we were heartbroken and in mourning.  We waited to feel better, and over time (2 years) realized the house was just so empty that we needed a companion.  Several friends were active in Greyhound and Dalmatian rescue and urged us to think about Doberman rescue.  After visiting websites and going to rescue events we saw so many Dobermans of all colors, ages, natural/cropped ears, male/female, etc that needed a loving home we just knew applying to rescue was the right thing to do.  We looked at several dogs and of course bonded with the one that would be least expected from the type of dog we originally were looking for.  There was just something that said, ‘he’s the one’.  In our four years together he has grown from a goofy, exuberant, people shy and slightly aloof boy into a goofy, exuberant, happy-go-lucky, affectionate and people meeting ‘pet-me’ boy.  After 6 months we adopted a girl.  They are best friends and companions to each other, and us.  The family is whole again, and the house is alive and a happy place full of activity and energy.  Both of our ‘babies’ were about 2 years old when we adopted them, and it’s like we have been together since they were pups.  I will always look to adopt rescue dogs, and as I get a little older, I think I’ll look at adopting dogs more my age…

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I found out about dobermans through my first dog - and why you should research breeds before owning them.  I thought about fostering a dog while nursing my dog Zoe who was dying of canine lymphoma.  I knew that I wasn't ready to love again, but I knew that I could help a sweet dog get "situated" while my broken heart was mending when she was gone. 

Zoe was a difficult dog - a crazy connection of a basenji border collie whom I adopted on impulse while volunteering at an animal shelter because "I was in love" - knowing nothing about the breeds.  While Zoe was dying I decided that the next dog I would love would be smart with a higher rate of retention of vocabulary and commands. 

 I wanted a dog that was easier to train.  I also wanted a dog that would respond well to positive reinforcement training - a dog whose pleasure would come from pleasing me and praise.  I also wanted a dog that was not aloof and who really wanted to be with me.  My Zoe was not always that way. 

The more I researched, the more I found the breed - Doberman Pinscher popping up.  Surely this could not be true?  Dobermans are mean and guard dogs right?  WRONG.  The more I read, the more I found that this was the dog for me.  As an asthmatic, I loved the shorter hair, and the way that they were in tune to their owners in different obedient classes that I attended to observe the breed.  Zoe did her tasks as if she were obsessed with the tasks at hand (must have been the border collie) with a bit of aloofness (basenji).  Soon she passed on...and three days later someone called me in a bind about a little red doberman puppy in West Virginia that needed fostering just through New Years because a lot of folks were really interested in her.  Ugh - a puppy?? No way, but I could do it for the short term.

I drove a few hours and met a fellow rescuer in a parking lot of a gas station where I was handed a little red 18 lb dobe who had been throwing up for the last two hours in the rescuers car.  Five minutes into the car ride, I was transfixed.  I called the rescue and said, that I wouldn't foster her - but was keeping her.  They said, "We thought that you would love her" - I was set up!

 Sadie has been everything that I researched in a breed...and even more.  She understands commands and was a joy to train.  I did however get more than I bargained for...she adores me and follows me even into the bathroom sometimes, and forgets however that she is not a lap dog.  Her dobervelcro to others may seem annoying, to me it is just the thing to keep me laughing.  She does however talk while whining at me...and somehow trains me to do things as well...which isn't always how it is supposed to be. 

 Dobermans get you through things unimaginable...their spirit and goofiness is contagious, and I will never own another breed.  They remind us to keep our hearts open...and silly at the same time.

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I always wanted a Doberman ever since I had a mix growing up. When Magnum PI was on, they had "The Lads", Zeus and Apollo. It was then that I knew I wanted 2, females. I first had a GSD, and when she passed, I knew the next would be a Dobe. Then a few years later,  #2. I did not want to have to potty train and go through all the puppy stages, and I knew what they would look like when they grew up-size, personality, and such. I made the right decision by far!

Debbie and the Girls, Shadow and Kobe 

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