When you think about a German shepherd, you probably imagine a loyal, determined guard dog that would give up his life to protect his human. Well, Sarge might seem just like that on the surface, but his owner’s habit of rescuing animals has revealed a much softer side of him.
Turns out, Sarge is a complete softy when it comes to injured and orphaned fawns. Naturally, Bored Panda reached out to Sarge’s owner, Cheryl Stephen, for some additional details after seeing the adorable photos online and she kindly replied with more information about the dog and their farm.
“We live on a little ‘farm’ in Ohio, but the animals here aren’t raised for food. They’re raised to be loved and cherished, like all animals should be,” Stephen explained. “I’ve been bringing home strays since I was a little girl and I’ve never stopped. I have two sons and they are animal-lovers too,” the woman elaborated.
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Turns out, Sarge is the perfect babysitter for the injured animals his owner rescues
“We brought Sarge home nine years ago. He’s the only full-breed dog we’ve ever had. The rest are mixed breeds or ‘mutts,’ which I happen to think are the best dogs!” Cheryl told us. “Most were dropped off or someone gave them to us because they couldn’t keep them anymore. They are all wonderful and everyone gets along.”
Turns out, Sarge wasn’t always a soft giant: “Sarge was an ornery puppy and loved to bite toes and chase the kids’ friends around the house playing ‘Police Dog.'” However, a completely different side of the pooch was revealed six years ago when Stephen rescued their first fawn. “A family friend found a baby deer lying in the middle of a road. He watched and waited for the mom to return, but she never did. He knew we were animal lovers, so the fawn was brought here,” she explained. From the moment the fawn was brought back home, Sarge acted as a guard and babysitter to the poor animal.
But fawns and dogs aren’t the only animals on Stephen’s farm: “As far as other animals, we have a pet rooster named Big Roo that kind of guards our place and a hen. We also have a horse and a pony, Gibby and Corn Pone. Recently we brought home a precious little black sheep and a baby goat, Hildie, from the sale barn.”
“We also have some rock doves that are the offspring of a racing pigeon that apparently dropped out of a race and never left here,” Cheryl continued, “she had a band on her leg.”
“In addition to Sarge, there’s Brownie, (her brother Angus who passed away recently,) Doodle, Dingo and Scrunchers. We also had an amazing dog named Jack who disappeared recently,” Stephen told us. “He loved little critters too and once saved a chipmunk from drowning in a bucket,” she revealed that Sarge isn’t the only one who had a soft spot for little animals.
“We aren’t an ‘official’ sanctuary and we don’t take donations,” Stephen said, “we just love animals.” The woman shares moments from her and her animals’ lives on her Instagram page. Surprisingly, Sarge and his little fawns aren’t the stars of the page. It’s actually Bucky, a cow Cheryl rescued when he was just a week old.
“He was on the way to the auction barn when we saw him tied in the back of a pickup. The farmer was nice enough to let me buy him and delivered him to me instead of taking him to the livestock sale where he would have been sold for veal,” she told Bucky’s story.
“It was an impulsive decision to buy a cow, but one I’ve never regretted,” Stephen told Bored Panda. “He’s about 2,500 pounds now and still likes to hang out on the porch and sometimes comes inside,” she explained. And people seem to really like Bucky on social media pages.
“People seem to really enjoy all the animals’ pictures,” Cheryl explained. She also revealed that many people have asked to come and meet Bucky in person. “They’re always amazed at how big he really is,” Stephen said.
“It gives me great joy to share the animals online and I’m happy to know they are loved by so many,” the woman concluded.
Sarge’s (very) big brother, Bucky!
You can check out Sarge and one of his fawns in action in the video below!
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