Shepherd Girl: A Dog Story

Cat Needham is in love. Head-over-heels, over the moon in love. I mean this girl’s got it bad. Only the object of her affection is a goofy, long-coated German Shepherd named Athena. Puppy love indeed! In Needham’s book Shepherd Girl – A Dog Story, she gushes and extols the virtues and oddities of her beloved pet.

Initially, Cat was smitten with a puppy she met at the Virginia German Shepherd Rescue Booth at the Chantilly, VA Super Pet Expo. But Sasha was adopted by someone else and Needham’s loss only solidified her resolve to possess a German Shepherd. Eventually she found the one that stole her heart. Named after the Goddess of Wisdom and War, Needham envisioned a real bad-a** guard dog in Athena. Needham’s love for Athena is evident paragraph by paragraph, chapter after chapter, as she tells readers of the ups and downs of dog ownership. Boasting of Athena’s eccentricities as any dog lover does, with the affection any parent has for a child, you know how ga ga she is over this dog.

I enjoyed this book as an animal lover myself, but I felt that it ran a bit long at times. Anyone who’s ever owned a pet, whether a dog, cat, or cockatoo has a trove of stories they could share with others. We journey with Needham through Schutzhund training, being labeled a dog park bully, and most obviously being wrapped around Athena’s paw with manipulation, much like children manipulate their parents and grandparents. We even come to know several of Athena’s dog friends. This dog is doted on. And she’s a bit of an attention grabber. One might even go so far as to say she seeks adoration from everyone. Early on, Needham realized that Athena enjoyed “doing her private business” in front of an audience, the more people present, the better. Needham loves her dog, there’s no doubt. And her writing is humorous and generous, and she willingly admits she’s got it bad for Athena. If you are an animal lover, you’ll enjoy this book. Because face it, we’ve all been gushy in love with our pets and we want to share that with others.