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Comment by Patricia Schaeffer-Jobe on March 21, 2010 at 10:56pm

She is my heart! Patricia

Comment by Jennifer on March 21, 2010 at 2:04pm

Beautiful dog, My aunt had one that looks like her. Very sweet dog.

Comment by Patricia Schaeffer-Jobe on October 31, 2009 at 5:18am

Continued: He was beautiful, and a wonderful personality, unfortunately, he thought cats were "dinner", so that adoption did not work past the first night, he was finally adopted by people who did not have cats, and who did not have any other dogs, so I know that he is happy and loved. Years ago, I not only rescued Dobes, but I had my own dog training business for over 10-years, before dogs became so much in vogue. I have also had two Dobes and one Golden Retreiver at the same time, without any problem, so I know that a multiple dog home is not beyond me, as on of the dogs was my Phara. Of course, I was much younger then, and I had not suffered from bad relationships at that time. Sheba never meets a stranger, she loves everyone young or old, children or babies, but she is my baby first, and seems to like it that way. Everyone should have the experience that I have had with animals, my cat Spencer is not only a male, but he is our mail kitty, and waits for the postman to bring our mail. If we are not present, as when I am in the rathskeller, he will choose a piece of mail and bring it to me. Shadow, my black and white cat is my alarm clock. If I hit the snooze button too many times, she takes it upon herself to stand at my head and paw at me, and trill until I awaken. Shadow was badly abused, and I am "her person". Spencer is huge at 17 lbs, and although he is a tiger at the Vets as he has to be anethistized just for a check up, he is the most precious and loving sleep kitty ever. Spencer puts me to sleep, and Shadow wakes me up, all on their own. Sheba is my confidant, my buddy, and my angel, I could have not asked for better souls to share my life. No doubt, this is more than you bargined for, but I really liked sharing with you. Patricia

Comment by Patricia Schaeffer-Jobe on October 31, 2009 at 5:15am

Continued: Mom and I bought the house, I had my gardening for rehablitation for my peace, and then I thought that I was ready for a dog, I had brought my two cats with me from NC, which I had adopted after my separation. When I brought Sheba home, I wanted her, but I had to soften my heart to love another dog. As a gardener you already know that it is one of the few places where you obtain graces for the good care and concern that you give to each of your plants. I left over an acre of gardening, and have never gotten all my statues owed me from my garden when I was married. I believe those graces cashed in and I was directed to adopt this beautiful dog. Sheba loves everyone, although the next weekend after I brought her home, we were at the park. A young man had a black pit bull, off lead, and he came barreling toward us. I tried to get Sheba into my mini van to protect her. This young dog attacked me, jumping up and grapping my sweat shirted arms, and once I screamed, Sheba went into full protection mode, and attacked the dog to protect me. I was so surprised, I just cannot tell you how I felt, Phara would have protected me in the same way. Sheba ran the dog off, with the owner running after him. That was our turning point. Here was a dog bred not to bark or bite, and she had only been with me for one week, and it seemed that she knew what could have been her fate, and it was at that moment that we began to bond. Since then, Sheba has become my heart, and I am not sure if she is not Phara reincarnated, except for the fact that Phara followed every command flawlessly out of the ring and loved it, but in the obedience ring she would do everything that I wanted, but as we would leave the obedience ring she would would walk infront of me, instead of heeling like she should, and would turn around and look at me like, "Mom, you know I only do this for you, I really hate the ring", so I retired her from competition, and she was just as perfect as always, and so happy that she didn't have to show off. Sheba, on the other hand, loves to please and loves to show, however, she is not "down" with retreiving...we are working on that. She know how, but she was not accoustomed to "playing", so we are going slow, doing disjointed parts of the retreiving process, in hopes that it will all finally come together. You are correct, just like Phara, this girl looks through you, not at you. She is sensitive, positively reactive, willing, and full of energy. To her credit, she has a turn-off switch, not always usual in her breed. Just like Phara, I am so tickled to see her having a good time, and really having fun, that I try really hard to find outlets for her. She waits for Wednesdays, when we go to my old training club, which I was able to join because of her. Now I am looking for somewhere where we can learn Agility, because I just know that she will love it. When she is outside, she is "flat-out", and agility will give her the opportunity to wear her out, and hopefully take a few pound off me-:) I train for fun, and there is nothing more gratifying than an obedient dog who is having fun at what she is doing. We have bonded very well, almost as closely as Phara and I, and I am confident that our relationship will just keep going. I am contemplating bringing home a Dobie puppy for company, but I am dubious. Mom and I drove all the way to KY. to pick up a shelter rescue BC bitch. I did not think that she would be right for us, but she was on death's door. As it turned out, she ate clothing, while on your body, was very damaged from abuse, and finally was found to have a double load of heartworm, which was more than the little girl could take, as she had just had 13 puppies, and was very debilitated, so I had to put her down. Sheba did not do well, she likes being just my dog...so I will have to think long and hard, before I bring another dog into our home. I tried to brind a year-old Doberman, which Sheba and I met at a Dobe rescue group. He was

Comment by Patricia Schaeffer-Jobe on October 31, 2009 at 5:13am

Susan, You must be a very special person, why of course you are, your a gardener. I have been greiving for my beloved Phara for over 20-years. Three years ago, I was had three more years of working full-time and going to college full-time, it took me 30-years to return for my BSN, and after two-years of insanity, when finished, I decided to immediately decided to continue for my Masters. So three years ago, after greiving so long, I thought that I was finally ready for another dog. I would routinely visit PetFinders website, knowing that I was looking for a Doberman puppy or young dog, but also having a new interest in the Border Collie. Months had gone by, I looked in the paper, looking for Doberman puppies, but never went to see any of them, I just couldn't. For months I paged endlessly through the multiplicity of photos, just looking, until one night it happened. As I paged first all the Dobermans, I just arbitrarily decided to visit the Border Collie pages. I don't remember just how many endless pages I went through, when finally there was her photo, the first one on the page. I swear that it was the strangest feeling, like a sledge hammer in my abdomin that shook me to the bone. I immediately copied a picture of her, and took it upstairs to my mother stating, "this will be my next dog", and of course she did not believe me. I called the number, it was 10:30 PM, and the Constable called back about an hour later. She stated that she did not open the shelter on Saturday, which was in Piedmont, MO, 150 miles away, but if I would promise to be there, she would open for me, because Sheba was to be put to sleep on Monday, and I promised that I would be there. I did a 300 mile turn around rescue, got the absolute last opening at the St. Louis Humane Society to get her shots and a physical, then we motored to PetStupid for a bath (what I lovingly call PetSmart), for a bath, because I could not take her home to the cats without these services. At the Piedmont shelter I cat tested her, and she showed aversion, which was good, she would just turn her head, and lay calmly, so when I took her home, I had not doubt that she was cat friendly. Long/short, between classes, and work I have trained her in obedience, and asked her to wait until after school was over, and just be patient for me. I can count twice that we had a housebreaking problem, and she has been stellar since then...had to teach her what I expected to alert mom and me when she had to go outside. However, she had a very hard time with separation anxiety. It took me, maybe 8-months to adjust her outlook, she had been left at the shelter with another of the woman's four dogs, who only left her birth date, not her pedigree papers although she is a purebred, along with an unruly "runner male", who had already been put down. She demolished one set of mini blinds, chewed and scratched my original 128-year-old front door to our historic home, one base board, and the frame around the rathskeller door twice, before I could teach her that she was in her forever home. Obedience training helped, countless hours of leaving the house, and then returning with incrementally longer periods, and of course the fact that Mom was home during the day really helped her a lot, and was really pivotal in her rehabilitation, and I am so proud of her for helping me, by being there when I could not. Today, Sheba has actually been my rehabilitator. It was very difficult for me to bond with her at first, I had grieved for so long, and was so connect to Phara that I just had such a wall built against loving another dog. Now, I have trained and showed dogs since I was nine years old, first German Sheppard Dogs for five-years, then Doberman's for 25-years, but when Phara died, she was my heart, I turned to cats and rescuing cats for the next 17-years. When I separated from my husband, I came back home to St. Louis after 20-years, I started my life again. Mom and I bought the house, I had my gardening for re

Comment by Susan Scimeca on October 30, 2009 at 8:26am

I can see the "person" in her looking back with those big brown eyes. :-)