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 OUR FOUNDER'S STORY 

Welcome to GSRTX! We wanted to introduce ourselves, Kristin and Craig Hensley. We founded this organization with one goal in mind and that is to help GSDs in shelters. Each year tens of thousands of them are euthanized in US shelters each year at no fault of their own. Texas unfortunately leads the way as the #1 state to euthanize shelter animals, and we want to change that here in Texas. We work with many shelters across the state but our main passions are rural and low traffic shelters for the breed.  Only around 5% of our intake is from owner surrenders. Young or old we love to help find these dogs their happily ever after and we hope you enjoy following along on our journey to live #therescuelife! 

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Below you will meet the 4 Co-Founders that started our passion for the breed and the important roles each play in our day to day operations!

German Shepherd dogs rescued german shepherds GSRTX founders

Our Co-Founders

German Shepherd Rescued GSRTX

Hi All, My name is Molly (Aka Miss Diva & Molly Moo the sweetest girl you ever knew )

I guess Mom and Dad were so excited to first meet me they showed up over an hour early to wait and hopefully be able to adopt me. Good thing they did because there was a line of people waiting to see me. Dad did tons of research about different breeds and was trying to find a dog that was great for families but could also protect Mom while he traveled for work. Needless to say he found the right lady for the job! 

After that I was spoiled rotten they would take me everywhere! I guess you could say I became a social butterfly. As Mom and Dad started adding brothers and sisters I showed them the ropes and kept them in line. I tend to be very quiet and reserved and stick to myself I don’t play with toys much but I am occasionally up for a good game of chase or wrestling.

As for my job, Mom and Dad say I have the most important of all. They call me the Evaluator and I guess it’s a big deal when dogs are “Molly Approved”. I am not scared of much and other dogs don’t really scare me easily either Dad takes me from shelter to shelter to behavior test dogs. Not sure what the big deal is- basically don’t bite me or try and attack me and I will be your friend? I guess I do a great job because we do it for more than just Shepherds. We sometimes get called to see if we can come test other breeds at shelters so I guess word has gotten out of what we do. It’s sad when we have to leave a nice one behind because we don’t have a foster yet, but it’s so much fun when we sometimes get to go pick them back up. Freedom Rides are the BEST!! 

Typically after a long day of going around to shelters Mom and Dad tend to give me what they call a Princess day. Basically a day all to me where we go have fun, those are my favorite! I always attend events so hopefully I will meet you soon! 

MOLLY

German Shepherd Rescued GSRTX

Hey all my name is Milo (AKA Mr. Lion ). Mom and Dad got me in order to keep my sister Molly company. Little did they know I was going to be a lot of work.

1st off my Pancreas doesn’t work. This means I can’t absorb fats and nutrients like a normal dog. They call it EPI but I call it always hungry and my is not normal. However, once I found them my life changed because they get the magic food I need to feel great again!

2nd I was scared of everything I don’t like to talk about why I was so scared but literally everything used to scare me. For the first 4 months Mom and Dad had me I refused to even come out of their laundry room especially if a fireplace was being used. They where patient and eventually I would come around them. Although when a fireplace log pops loud I still have to tell it who’s boss.

Honestly I act much tougher then I really am but don’t tell anyone. I’m really glad Mom and Dad looked past my lack of hair and how weak and scared I was and chose me. They now have taught me the world is not so scary although I still have my doubts.

I guess you would say my job is to teach the new recruits the world is not so scary! Even though I act like the boss of the house my older sister Molly ultimately calls the shots. She’s the boss and has the hardest job of all. I get to come to some events so come say hi

MILO

German Shepherd Rescued GSRTX

Hi all my name is Moe (AKA Gentle Giant)! I guess I’m pretty big, they say I’m 110lbs whatever that means. But I wasn’t always. I was rescued by Mom and Dad as a puppy at about 4 months old. I don’t remember much from back then other than being itchy from a lot of fleas, being dirty, and always hungry. They say I must have been digging through a lot of trash because of what came out of me later. 

My job in the rescue is to get the fosters to play and find their puppy in them! Many have never seen a toy before or had a sibling to have fun with. I am an expert ball chaser although I get so focused on it I sometimes forget to sit. My sister Zozo often reminds me since she’s in charge of rules and bites me on the butt to get me back in line. 

I love to play chase and go on walks it really doesn’t matter the more fun the better! After I’m done I completely turn into the biggest cuddle bug. I love that they still treat me like a baby even though I’m not lap dog size anymore.

Hopefully I get to meet you as well, Mom and Dad take me to Ambassador events!! Those are my favorite they talk to people about rescue stuff and I get tons of love and treats!!

MOE

German Shepherd Rescued GSRTX

Hey everyone my name is Zoey (AKA Zozo) as you can tell I love the camera! 

I was originally “just a foster”, but for some reason Mom and Dad decided to keep me. Something about how my adopted brother Moe got so sad he wouldn’t eat while I was at the Dr for a bit. We now have an inseparable bond ever since! They call me a “Foster Failure” but honestly I feel like a winner so not sure what they mean. 

They also call me the “unofficial” Foster Mom , something about how I keep the new fosters in line learning manners, but also when they are sick or hurt I tend to kiss all over them and make sure they get to feeling better quick.

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ZOZO

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