Dog's Strange Behavior Alerts Owner To A Deadly Threat

When Brian Myers adopted a German Shepherd named Sadie, he knew he'd made the right choice. The very night he adopted his new friend, "she jumped up and put her paws on my shoulders and gave me a kiss on the face,” he told TODAY. “And it just seemed to me that she was saying, ‘Thank you for rescuing me.’” However soon, things would take a dark turn when Brian noticed Sadie acting bizarrely, and he suddenly realized that something was very, very wrong.

Brian's Choice

Brian Myers had been thinking about adopting a dog for some time, and finally, in September 2020, he bit the bullet. He wanted to save a needy, abused pup from a scary fate, and he knew a shelter that could help him out.

The Other Oakland

Our story begins at the Ramapo-Bergen Animal Refuge in Oakland, New Jersey, the adoption center that housed Sadie, a 6-year-old German Shepherd who badly needed a home. After hearing about her past, Brian didn't have do dwell on the decision any longer. This was the dog for him.

All About Sadie

"Sadie (below) is a 6-year-old rescued German Shepherd," wrote Ramapo-Bergen Animal Refuge in an Instagram post, "surrendered to the shelter when her owner moved. She was confused and seemingly lost upon rescue, having suddenly lost the only family that she knew. Sadie is a loyal dog, but nervous and protective with new people, making her a more difficult placement." That wasn't all her baggage, though.

Man-Hater

Sadie's biography noted that she was "especially nervous with men." This didn't stop Brian from meeting her, however. “I met her and within 20 minutes she was comfortable with me," he recalled. "And then 10 minutes later, she was jumping in the back of my car and we drove off."