We wish to thank all of our amazing supporters who are well aware of the work we do, the policies we have in place and the support that we offer to all of our adopters and the dogs that they so wonderfully open their hearts and homes to; also a heartfelt thank you goes out to the fair and reasonable general public who have reached out to us for a better understanding of the factual reasons that we had to intervene on behalf of a distressed, ill and neglected GSD named Cassidy.

Cassidy was adopted out to a wonderful man by the name of Robert Bruch in 2009 at the age of 8 years old. At that time he was 100% healthy with no hip dysplasia or arthritis present. He had several x-rays done and a complete physical evaluation as well as a full blood work up. At the time of coming into care in 2008, Cass needed dental work and we had addressed that.  
He was adopted out to Mr. Bruch in optimum health. Two years later, Mr. Bruch brought him by a GSRBC member’s home for a visit, and at that time Cassidy appeared in very good health and spirits, he was not wobbly or showing any signs of impediment of movement, arthritis or pain. It should be noted that at the time of the adoption the expectations of GSRBC and the responsibility of adoptive families are clearly verbally discussed, this is done in conjunct and beyond the signing of the adoption contract. All of our adoptive families can attest to this procedure of our adoptions. It should also be noted that when Cassidy was adopted, the contract was indeed signed by Mr. Bruch, however he had his spouse, Linda McCrae, with him and she was very much present at the time of the adoption and was in full knowledge of the requirements and expectations.

When Mr. Bruch died suddenly last October, we were advised by Linda McCrae, that he had passed. We were heartbroken for her and for Cassidy; we included in our newsletter a brief memorial of Cassidy’s dad, and also paid tribute to him on our website. Our member was on the phone with Linda at the time, offering support. In no way did we want to step in to bring Cassidy into care as we understood from Linda that she wanted to continue with Cassidy and that he was well cared for. She raised no issues or alarms nor would we assume any. We trusted Linda to carry on the same level of care for Cassidy as Robert always had.

In December of 2012 Linda McCrae sent us an email asking if we knew of a groomer that would be able to come and cut Cassidy’s nails. We sent her the name and number of a groomer just a few doors down from her. We did not hear from Ms. McCrae again after that to indicate that she was not able to look after Cassidy any further. In 10 years we have brought into care close to 400 dogs. Medically and behaviourally challenged and carefully re-homed them while being very selective in which homes we have chosen. It would be physically and logistically impossible to visit each of the homes every few months to ensure that people are being honest and properly attending to their pets needs and fulfilling on their moral obligation to provide a good home. Rather we rely on the adoptive families to do right by the dog in their care and advise should they need help. We have seldom had a problem as the adoptive people are chosen and screened carefully and we believe them to be the right people for their adoptive dog.

The issue was never that the contract was broken as the spouse had not signed it, the issue was that this dog was suffering in obvious pain, was being neglected and was not being provided with the basic of his physical, and mental wellbeing or being provided with the medical care that was required and necessary.

A complaint was received by GSRBC from another reputable rescue, who had gone to the home on a completely different and unrelated matter. Upon seeing the German shepherd, Cassidy, in the yard, they immediately became distressed at the condition of him. They did not make the complaint lightly and it was made only after observing the deteriorated state of Cassidy and an extensive exchange and conversation with Ms. McCrae. There was no outdoor shelter and it was admitted that since he had fallen down a set of stairs he remained in the yard 24 hours a day, seven days a week in all weather and seasons as the dog ‘preferred to be outside.’

The rescue offered to take Cassidy to the vet on the woman’s behalf or to take them both so that the dog could be assessed and receive medical attention that he was in need of. The offer of assistance was refused and the reason given was that she had spoken with a vet on the phone who advised her to give the suffering dog ‘Tylenol.’ This was another red flag for the complainant as it is extremely unlikely that any vet would make this recommendation and certainly not without having seen the animal and assessing and diagnosing their health in person. The rescue was so concerned about the state that Cassidy was in that they were about to offer to buy him from Ms. McCrae and if that didn’t work they planned to make a formal complaint with the SPCA. They were relieved to find out that he was a GSRBC dog.

GSRBC received the complaint August 7^th 2013.

All ethical charity rescue organizations and ethical breeders will stand behind a dog for its entire life and step up to help them, should they ever need it again.  Had we not been the ones to have adopted Cassidy out, the rescue who had, or the SPCA would have been called and the investigation and intervention would have come from their organization. We believe the result of him coming back into care would have been the same given his pain, poor health and living conditions.

A member of GSRBC went to assess the situation that same day to follow up to the complaint and to determine if the complaint was valid and as serious as was impressed upon our organization; this is our standard process. It has happened in our experience that complaints may be unfounded, malicious or well-intentioned but misguided. It is our responsibility to follow up on each complaint regarding a dog that we have placed, and not to simply have a phone conversation. A complaint requires a member to physically assess the dog and their living conditions.

Given our past relationship with Ms. McCrae and the care we knew that Cassidy had previously been receiving, we didn’t think it would be possible for these allegations to be true. We felt that it would be a simple matter of a visit and some support if needed, but we were not looking to take Cassidy back into care.

Upon arrival at Ms. McCrae’s residence, Cassidy was found lying in the back yard and the member was able to easily observe that Cassidy had difficulty standing, moving and was in pain. As he got up, he would fall over as he tried to walk towards the member. He would drag himself up and try again, only to fall over again.

At that point, the member knocked on Ms. McCrae’s door. After a happy exchange, the member notified Ms. McCrae that they needed to talk about Cassidy. Ms. McCrae took the member into the yard where Cassidy was. The member examined Cassidy closer. Looking into his mouth, which gave off a strong and very foul odor, it could clearly be observed that he had abscessed and broken teeth with rot and puss showing along his rear teeth and swollen gums. Cassidy’s nose had sores and puss was observed around his nostrils. His front nails were painfully long indicating that they had not been cut in a very long period of time and his coat was in extremely poor condition. It was observed that Cassidy was often falling over and when he attempted to walk he was dragging both of his back legs. This validated what the complainant had observed and advised.

Further, to the shocking and distressing physical health of Cassidy, it was observed that there was no shelter in the yard for him other than a tree, the yard was overgrown and the fence was falling down. To further ascertain the treatment that Cassidy had been receiving, the extensive conversation between our member and Ms. McRae, confirmed that the dog had not seen a veterinarian in well over a year and Ms. McRae advised that a vet over the phone told her without seeing or diagnosing Cassidy, that he be given a couple of Tylenol every four hours. Ms. McRae would not advise the member of who the vet was so that this information could be verified and discussed with the vet. Ms. McRae also advised that the dog was left in the back yard day and night, no matter the weather or season since he had fallen down a set of stairs; it was told to the member that Cassidy did not like it indoors and would cry by the door if she brought him inside. She reported that she could not get him up the stairs. It was also admitted by Ms. McRae to the member that she could not take proper care of Cassidy since Robert had suddenly passed away in October of 2012. She advised that she was in a fog and could not manage Cassidy or his care physically and financially.

It was determined and agreed to calmly, that the best thing for Cassidy would be for him to be returned back into GSRBC’s care and to have his medical needs assessed and attended to immediately. Our member was let out of the gate by Ms. McRae and gave our member a hug goodbye. It wasn’t until Cassidy was being placed in the member’s vehicle that Ms. McRae became emotional, likely due to her realization of the weight of the situation.

We understand that Ms. McRae has now adjusted her version of events by alluding that she had contacted GSRBC supposedly via email and received no response and that Cassidy slept in the house in her room etc., however this new version of Ms. McRae’s story has come to light since the reporting of the story to the media which occurred more than 48 hours after Cassidy had been received back into our care. It is regrettable that the media devoted entire one sided minutes of visual news coverage to allow only one side of the story to be heard. The pictures of Cassidy that were shown on air were years old and in no way reflect his current state.

We are aware that sensationalism sells TV, but the price to be paid will be public misconception and a poor impression which will impact animals in need and the legitimate rescues who are all working to ensure the fair ethical treatment and safety of all animals. We were afforded a 10 minute phone interview with each of the news agencies and our summation of the actual events were reduced to 20 second quotes that were likely carefully chosen to influence the slant of the story.

The truest loser in this case is Cassidy who at his age of 12 years old, should never have been left to suffer in the state that he was left in, living day and night in a back yard without shelter and in obvious pain and distress; this should have been the focus of the story. The news sadly was aimed at sensationalizing Ms. McRae’s victimization of herself and did not allow us to address the true victim in this entire sad event which is Cassidy. We as a society should be ashamed that the truth of this story could be so clearly misled to the public and the responsibility of the news media to report with truth and the research of fact clearly goes unchecked and without any accountability. They reported with impunity an untrue, unverified, one sided story and the real cost will be paid in the loss of animal lives and downturn in support for those who need it the most, the companion animals at risk.

It is never the mandate of any reputable animal advocacy organization or charity to have to bring back into care a pet after it has carefully screened a home and family and then placed them. We want every cautiously chosen home and family to be a forever home for the dog. We go above and beyond to keep dogs *in* their homes. However if an animal is in obvious poor health and suffering a condition of pain and neglect, it is every human being’s responsibility to speak up and do the right thing for the animal who does not have a choice in its own living conditions. Our member had a moral and ethical obligation to fulfill on our lifetime promise to Cassidy that he would live in wellness and care and be given every opportunity to be comfortable, safe and free of fear and pain. Had he not been brought back into care but left to languish in pain and left alone to die in a back yard, we would have been seriously in breach of our most basic moral obligation and so would anyone who did not report or act on his situation.

We see people who neglect, abuse and even kill their animals in media stories and wonder why it was allowed to happen, why no one intervened, where were the people to report the abuse of Captain the GSD beaten within an inch of his life and dumped into a dumpster to die in pain, alone and scared; yet when it is clearly necessary to step in and do the right thing we are called to task for being heavy handed or unreasonable; all of this public outcry without people being allowed to know the truth of the situation and the events of the necessity for rescuing Cassidy for a second time.

GSRBC, as are many wonderful and legitimate rescues, is wholly run by devoted volunteers who give of themselves in time, effort, money and heartbreak to be the voice of those who do not have one. 
The funding for such organizations is most often from our personal bank accounts and countless hours of campaigning for awareness and showing need in the hopes of education and donations to support the care of more animals. Sadly there are more animals in need than volunteers or funding to support the animals in dire need. We do not have a facility and all of our dogs are fostered in private homes being cared for by responsible and loving good people.

Cassidy’s vet bills will be large as his condition was allowed to get out of control. At his age and in his medical state, it will be challenging to find Cassidy the exact right loving forever home where he will have all of his needs, medical, physical and emotional addressed each and every day without fail or without question; he deserves no less. We know that we will do this as it is our responsibility and the right people to love him may still be out there, waiting for him and he is worthy of the love they surely can give to him! However, if this is not to be, Cassidy will remain with us for his final days, months, years, living in a home in comfort and receiving treatment for his pain. His needs will always be attended to and he will be well loved, just as he was when he lived with us before his placement 4 years ago.

Cassidy will be forever on pain medications Deramaxx (easier on the liver then Medicam) and Tramadol for the now very advanced arthritic condition in his knees. Due to the severe onset and the amount of time that he has been allowed to suffer with it left untreated, there is nothing more that can be done other than to monitor his pain levels and treat him with pain medications.

If Cassidy's blood work comes back good enough, he will go in for in surgery to remove several abscessed teeth that have led to him suffering a severe rhinitis infection in his nasal cavities, but thankfully we were able to get him into care prior to it moving into his lungs. 
His further assessments including blood testing etc. will be updated to all once the results are back from our veterinarian. We are all hoping that Ms. McRae did not indeed treat Cassidy with 8 to 10 Tylenol a day as she indicated, as he could be suffering more serious and grievous internal injuries from the Tylenol but this will not show up until his extensive and thorough blood panel is back.

Our vet is recording Cassidy’s condition and reporting it all in the event of further action being required; he is familiar with the judicial obligation of pet care and what the courts require to assess abuse and the need to remove an animal. 
It should be noted that neglect and pain and suffering as a result warrants a condition of abuse, and is in direct contravention of the Essential Five Freedoms of all companion animals (http://www.spca.bc.ca/about/faqs/what-are-the-five-freedoms.html).

From GSRBC’s vet “Further examination revealed presence of severe dental disease included fractured crowns.   These conditions did not arise suddenly and cause pain and suffering and can be mitigated in the short term with appropriate use of prescription anti-inflammatory and analgesic medications until further assessments can take place.  If this dog has not been receiving treatment as such, pain and suffering would have been present.”

We will be ensuring that Cassidy has all of his medical needs addressed to the extent that modern veterinary medicine is able. We will not rest until he is out of as much pain as possible and is living in warmth and loving care for the rest of his days. Cassidy is now 12 years old and with the proper loving care and home we are hopeful that he will have many good years ahead of him.

Again we wish to thank all of those who cared enough to look past a poorly reported and irresponsible news story that vilified a situation for the selfish purpose of selling the news and for completely missing the mark on the real story which is that although you may love an animal, love is not enough. If you promise to care of a pet, it is for life, there are no excuses not to. This means that even if your personal situation changes or the pet becomes ill or it is no longer convenient for you to care for, it is not ok to neglect and ignore them and their most basic of needs. Companion animals are not disposable they are a lifetime responsibility. The love and care that they give to you, is the very least of what you owe to them. Be good to your pets, do right by them and one day perhaps the need for rescue organizations will no longer be necessary, which is our ultimate goal.

Sincerely,

German Shepherd Rescue of BC