First Post

Let me start by introducing "the Ts":



Taenzer (Valiantdale's StarDance) is from Kathy Watson's Valiantdale Kennels in Tulsa, Oklahoma (http://www.valiantdale.com). She's a Boss granddaughter and the great-niece of my beloved Stella (Valiantdale's Midnight Star CGC) through Stella's mother Jazz. Taenzer is 3-1/2, black and silver with an odd coat--it's not exactly a true long-coat, but it's definitely not the standard GSD coat! She is very bright, very athletic, a little high-strung, and a gentle, friendly dog to everything but small children (sigh). Unlike Stella, Taenzer has no interest at all in formal obedience, but we do train manners (of course) and dabble in agility and freestyle ("dancing with dogs"). She's extremely musical and has been known to wag her tail in time to a piece of music (her favorite is Cajun). As you can see, she's very beautiful, and she's the goofiest dog I've ever had; she loves to make me laugh.






This is Timber, aka Mr. Destructo. Sometime around the end of September 2004, someone abandoned an entire litter of 6 purebred German Shepherd puppies, 3 long-coat and 3 standard, outside a truckstop near St. Louis. The vet estimated them to be about 6 months old. Faery Tails Rescue of St. Louis was then handling GSDs as well as Corgis, and took them in to foster and place. I took one look at his sweet, wistful face on Petfinder and thought--"It can't hurt just to *ask* about him." Famous last words: Three weeks later, he'd come home to live with us. Timber is a magnificent long-coated black and red boy. He's very bright, extremely determined, and a Grade-A Certified Ball Dog--the intent expression in this picture was caused by the tennis ball I'm holding out of frame. Unlike his "big sister," he's not very interested in dog sports (though I suspect he might enjoy herding), so we work on basic manners, tricks, and impulse control, necessary because he's so enthusiastic. He's very friendly and gets along with dogs, cats, and people of all sizes. When he's not chasing a ball he's sweet and very gentle. The relationship he and Taenzer have is very much like a teenage girl with a pesty kid brother. I'm afraid I find him irresistible, and I'm afraid he knows it.




You'll be hearing a lot about these two. The other member of the menagerie is Annie, who turns 19 in a couple of months. She's a short-hair tortie-girl who's on her 4th GSD, and still fiesty enough to give the Ts what-for whether they deserve it or not!