Our Christmas Carol

On October 17, 2013, our pal, Mystique, an eleven-year-old German Shepherd dog died. Our hearts were broken.

Two weeks later, unbeknownst to us at the time, Southeast German Shepherd Rescue found a six month old, mange-ridden, sick and starving female German Shepherd dog somewhere down in Mississippi. 

The lady who rescued the dog proclaimed her the second sickest dog she'd ever rescued. She wasn't sure the dog would live. Neither was the vet. But she did live. She was treated for mange, gained weight, and in January of 2014, was moved from Mississippi to North Carolina, a more centralized location for possible adoption. 

Her story touched the hearts of many who followed her journey on Facebook. Requests for a suitable name went out over Facebook, and she was named Holiday Hope.

Many families wanted to adopt Hope, but we were the lucky ones. In late January, 2014, we drove to North Carolina and brought Holiday Hope home with us. Given Hope's journey, one can only imagine what went through her mind as two strangers drove away with her.

But all is well that ends well. Next Friday will be Hope's second Christmas with us. Along with our son, his wife and our grandchildren, she is one of our greatest treasures. On paper, we rescued Hope, but in reality, she rescued us. 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of Growltiger's readers.*


*If any of you want to play a tiny part in saving another dog like Holiday Hope, please consider giving to Southeast German Shepherd Rescue. (For those who wonder at the address in MN, suffice it to say -- she moved but continued being treasurer of the organization).


SGSR Treasurer
PO Box 416
Osakis, MN 56360