A gem

Service Dogs of Virginia (http://www.servicedogsva.org/) is an organization in Charlottesville that trains and places dogs with individuals in need of a working companion. As would be expected, not every dog that goes through the training program succeeds. Such was the case with Gemma. Although she was raised from a pup by volunteers with the organization, she didn't develop all the characteristics needed to excel in that line of work.

Primarily, Gemma lacked confidence out in public, in new situations, and particuarly when encountering new dogs. She performed well in the training center but was not dependable in the field. She also has a prey drive towards cats that would be problematic for a service dog. Those dogs have to be "bomb proof" -- so confident and directed that nothing phases them or distracts them from task. Gemma is not that dog.

Her owner/breeder released the dog to VGSR and she is my latest foster. Although she didn't make it as a service dog, the training she has had far exceeds that of 99% of the dogs I normally encounter, including my own. She is also beautiful, which never hurts when you are trying to attract attention and find a home. Gemma will be a short-timer in foster care. I have one home in mind for her already, and if that doesn't happen, putting her picture on the web will bring more emails and requests than I really want to handle.

She also happens to be very similar in appearance to Justin, my newest male foster shepherd. They look like they could be brother and sister. The pic to the left is Justin, a very handsome dog in spite of the one floppy ear. He is more red than he appears in the picture, pretty much the same color as Gemma and both dogs have nice heads and very dark faces.

Below is a picture of the two dogs together when they first met yesterday evening. You can see the similarities in their body shape, coat, and markings even though Gemma's face isn't visible here. They got along fine, he was glad for the company and she had no trouble showing him what she would and would not tolerate from him.