In Loving Memory of Sheba  12/13/2003 - 01/07/2008

Sheba was the dog who taught me how to rescue.  Although Sheba was nearly six when I got her, she did not truly live until she came to me.  She was  alive but not living.  Her birthday became the day I found her and took her in.

Sheba came to me a week after my father's death from cancer.  She had been my neighbor's dog and he had kept her chained to a flat utility trailer that also doubled as her protection from the elements.

Everyday when I was out playing in the yard with my rottie Cissy, I would toss treats over the fence to Sheba and talk to her.  I had noticed a few months earlier that she was having trouble with her front leg and questioned my neighbor about it.  He said that he was going to take her to the vet and that was the last time I saw her until she escaped.  He had moved her to a part of his yard that was not visible from my side of the fence and had stopped feeding her.

On a cold December Sunday morning my husband called me to  our side yard and there she lay.  She was pitifully thin, her left shoulder was dislocated and she was lacerated around the circumference of her entire neck.  My neighbor's idea of a collar was a wire coat hanger.  At first glance I thought she was dead.

I scooped her up and rushed to the vet with her.  He debrided her neck wounds, gave her a ton of vitamins and told me to bring her back once she had gained weight.  She was full of intestinal parasites and also had a moderate case of heartworms.  This poor little tiny girl only weighed 42 lbs!  She was too thin and weak to undergo any surgery on her leg.

I took her home and that afternoon she got the first bath of her entire life.  What a pitiful sight!

Over the next few weeks Sheba gained weight and came to life.  She also became a bit of a liability.  She would not let anyone except me anywhere near her!  I had contacted a Rottweiler Rescue to help find her a home when she was well but I knew in my heart she was not a safe dog to place. I backed out and decided to keep her and try to help her overcome her fears myself.

Over the next few months I took  poor little Sheba to three different vets for opinions on what to do with her leg.  In addition to a permanent dislocation she had nerve damage that was thought to be irreversible.  All of them ageed that the leg should be taken off.  On a whim, I took her to a country vet about 30 miles away.  He was very pragmatic and told me "Well, you pretty much have a three legged dog here.  Why don't you try swimming with her and check back in a few weeks.  We don't have to be in a hurry to take that leg off."  Thus began our adventures of sneaking into friend's backyards while they were at work to swim in their pools.  We also spent a lot of time at the local rivers.

After a few weeks of swimming her paw no longer turned under.  A few weeks later she began to use the leg with every third step.   Then about three months later she was using it with every step.  She still had a considerable limp due to the permanent dislocation of her shoulder, but she was using the leg!  The vet was amazed!  He was surprised that her nerves had regenerated.  Not perfectly but she was able to walk with the leg which was more than we had ever hoped for!

I got four lovely years with my sweet girl.  In time and with a lot of patience she began to trust other people.  Ultimately she became a social butterfly and loved everyone.  She loved me so strongly she would grunt and make her "happy noise" every time I entered a room or touched her.  Her little nubby would wag so fast that it looked like she was going to take off.  We nicknamed her "Helicopter Butt" and she would even come to that name.

Little Sheba introduced me to Rottweiler Rescue.  Prior to having her I did not know such things existed.  I joined a Rottie Rescue named Southern States Rottweiler Rescue (SSRR) and became very active.  As time progressed I realized that although SSRR was trying diligently to save dogs in many states, the dogs in Alabama were dying.  Thus came the creation of Adopt-A-Rott.  I had made some wonderful friends with SSRR and many were local.  After discussing this with them they were ready to help.  In October of 2004 we formed our own group and since that time we have helped to save nearly 200 dogs. 

Sweet Sheba was my inspiration and my champion.  She brought me to rescue and changed my world.  For that I will be eternally grateful to her.  God speed my sweet angel. I can't wait to see you again at the Rainbow Bridge.  Have fun dancing in the grass and warm sunshine, chasing butterflies until I get there.  Don't have so much fun that you forget how much I love you.