Animal Breed
German Shepherd mix

Adopted or Rescued?
Yes

Pet personality / Story of adoption / Why is your pet special?
Duke is an excellent watchdog and you can count on him to protect our children and their friends in the house. He has an alpha personality: calm, assertive, assured, hyper-intelligent, powerful and athletic, and with the size to make the wrong person to hesitate. But at home Duke is loving, quiet, calm, even a peppy spark which can surprise you at times.

We adopted Duke from our local shelter when he was almost one year old and we fell in love with him and his calm low key style. And even though he isn’t 100% German Shepherd, he has enough of their personality which you see when you meet a pure bred German Shepherd i.e. he stands tall and confident, acts aloof (but isn't) more reserved if he doesn’t know you. But Duke is loyal to absolutely no end, and once he decides you can be trusted, he will show you a side of him which feels like a reward. Duke is extremely intelligent and has an impressive range in what we have trained him to do.

This photo was generously shared with our shelter pet photo contest by professional photographer, Maren Sater. Animal rescue and welfare are causes Maren cares deeply about and she has been involved in supporting shelters for 15+ years. She is an artist member of HeARTs Speak, and dedicated to providing photography services aimed at ensuring no shelter pet goes unseen. Maren is a regular adoption photographer at Foothills Animal Rescue in Scottsdale, AZ and supports other rescue causes with her heart and creative talents like our very own McCook Cat Pack youth project.

You can follow Maren’s shelter volunteer involvement & projects on her Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/marensaterphotography/

And you can enjoy a sampling of her amazing pet photography and her personalized approach when working with clients at her website: https://marensaterphotography.com/about