My First Dog Was a German Shepherd Mix

by Tammy
(TX)

My first dog was a German Shepard mix. I got her right after nursing school and she was my heart dog. She was also the first pet that I got by myself.

I grew up in a house were we always had little dogs but when I got my first pet I wanted a bigger one. I got her from the Human Society in Pittsburgh, PA. She was 9 months old and she lived to be 11 years old.

Her name was Tonya and that was my college roommates name so I changed it to Kandie Kane or as I called her KK. Like most GSD she had trouble with her weight and her hips. I kept her on a strict diet of Purina “Fit-n-Trim” 1 cup 2x a day.

She would get treats of rawhide bones to chew on about once every 3 months. They are the BIG ones and she always loved them and would take about a week to chew. If I would give her other treats her weight would always go up and then her back hips would bother her and cause her pain. So I stayed away from them.

She loved to go on walks. When she was young I tried to walk her everyday. As she got older and her hips got worse we would walk less often but she still enjoyed doing it and being outside. She loved sitting in the porch and watching the cars and people go by the house. She would not bark at them just watch them.

She was such a good girl. I loved to camp and I took her with me and at the camp ground they have golf carts for campers to ride around in. My GSD Loved to side in the gulf cart. She would sit beside me and wag her tail and if we stopped and spoke to people she would let everyone touch her.

When she wanted to play she loved her “Kong” and any thing she could tug on. I would put peanut butter in the Kong and she will lick it and bounce it all over the first floor of the house and chase it. The tug toys she would grab one end and bring it to you to grab the other end to pull with her. She was very strong and could pull me around if she really would get going.

I miss her very much. Her hips got so bad she could not walk any more and I knew it was time to let her go. It was a very hard decision to make. I cried that night and for days later. I have had other dogs since her but none will ever take her place in my heart.