Echo My Heart

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Echo My Heart Honoring and the 3,200 dogs rescued through Shenandoah Shepherd Rescue (2017–2024).

Sharing stories and continuing the mission through Second Start Rescue. — Jennifer Aufdenberg, Co-Founder

“You will discover how much you care, and will give your heart to a dog to tear!”— Rudyard Kipling, The Power of the Dog...
10/18/2026

“You will discover how much you care, and will give your heart to a dog to tear!”

— Rudyard Kipling, The Power of the Dog (1909)

Oh my gosh, brothers 😍 it’s officially the four month mark, the exact time it took Blue and Wash.My boys forming a heart...
10/18/2026

Oh my gosh, brothers 😍 it’s officially the four month mark, the exact time it took Blue and Wash.

My boys forming a heart right under Echo. This is too sweet.

Just recently, it was the one-year anniversary of losing my Wash. I couldn’t bring myself to post about him. Just like I...
10/17/2026

Just recently, it was the one-year anniversary of losing my Wash. I couldn’t bring myself to post about him. Just like I struggle to look at pictures and talk about , I find myself struggling in the same way with my Washy Poo. 🥺

When I said goodbye to at 6:48 pm on October 6, 2025, I kissed his forehead and whispered to him to send me “hearts.” I don’t know why I said that, and I didn’t realize at the time just how much hearts tie into Echo, too.

He started sending them almost immediately, with the biggest heart arriving on June 27, 2026, at 6:48 am. I had no intention of even fostering , let alone calling him mine forever, but I couldn’t believe it when I saw the number and the time!

Thank you for sending me my little heart-shaped-nose boy. I kiss his forehead every day, just like I did yours, and he has helped fill some of the emptiness you left in my heart.

Keep filling my heart however you can. 💖✨

Go figure I’m hitting post at 7:17… the day my dropped dead on me, and the day Wash was born.

Do you know how many times Lynda thanked me for everything I do for dogs? A lot. It’s incredible how quickly they can di...
10/16/2026

Do you know how many times Lynda thanked me for everything I do for dogs? A lot. It’s incredible how quickly they can diminish my role the moment I am no longer serving them.

Why doesn’t Lynda open and operate her own rescue?

Fosters are a vital part of rescue, I will always say that. Our work would be incredibly difficult without them. The thing about fostering is that you don’t have to carry the responsibility that falls on the shoulders of those who carry the weight of the organization, and you can walk away at any time, which many do.

That is the reason Lynda is able to foster dogs in and out so quickly, without having to worry about how much the vet care costs, the expenses of transporting dogs to her door, or taking a dog back in the event of a return. And that is also the reason Lynda was able to throw her hands up when she said she was done and demand that the dog leave her property immediately, or “something bad would happen.”

She can continue to talk about me. That’s fine. But we cannot say that I don’t do anything more than post dogs.

But here’s the thing: even if that were true, someone has to be their voice. Why diminish the work of a networker?

I don’t sugarcoat my stories, nor do I shield and protect the public from the truth of how the rescue world operates. I post dogs facing euthanasia, and the reality is that if no one steps up, that dog will die.

I won’t apologize for having an outreach on social media. People follow along, donate, and support our work because they know the dogs are real and that without my voice, many would quietly die in the dark.

Pictured below is Ferguson ( #2789) with my husband. Together, on a Shenandoah Shepherd Rescue mission trip to the RGV in Texas, we visited the Harlingen Animal Shelter and rescued this beautiful boy, who was facing euthanasia. He was adopted into an incredible home on 11/11/23 and passed away in April of this year.

His family recently adopted another dog from Second Start Rescue. The irony? That dog was , whom I personally drove on two separate occasions. First, I drove him to Lynda as a foster. Then, just five days later, I drove him to a new foster when Lynda said he had to leave.

That’s over 250 miles on the road in less than a week, and this is just one brief story of me not doing anything.

I may not do everything or be everything, but I will always do the very best I can for our dogs in need. I also know I don’t have to prove myself to anyone, and that’s not what this is about.

For whatever reason, people have decided it’s okay to bully me and that it’s popular not to like me. Please do better.

10/11/2026

I just want to thank everyone who tried to save Henry. He was dumped outside a street feeder’s gate, paralyzed and unable to walk. He lay there for three long days, unable to even lay his head on the ground, before help finally arrived.

Sadly, his spine was snapped in half, and there was nothing that could be done to save him. He is sedated now, and the vet is here to let him go and end his suffering.

I appreciate each and every person who cared enough to try to get him help and, at the very least, offer him a humane passing. The ladies who have him will bring his body home so he can have a proper burial, which is so much more than many dogs in the RGV are ever given.

This was not the outcome any of us wanted, but at least Henry will no longer suffer.

Run free, Henry. Your life mattered. 🌈💔

It never ceases to amaze me how the body knows before the mind. For days, my heart has been heavy, and I’ve been crying ...
10/02/2026

It never ceases to amaze me how the body knows before the mind. For days, my heart has been heavy, and I’ve been crying for my Echo and for my Wash.

I knew my memories today would likely feature the end of Wash. I didn’t want to look. I almost never do. I have a hard time remembering Echo without making myself sick over the grief of losing him.

It was Wash who gave me a piece of him back. Losing him was losing both again.

Yesterday, I found myself browsing rentals in Arizona. I plan to move back for a month or so soon. Clearly, my soul is calling me home.

Blue is getting old, and I had the thought that he wants to go back to Arizona too. I guess we need Sedona. Gar too.

In four days, it will be one year since Wash left me. This was his last trip outside. His last car ride. The last day he held his head high before he collapsed and lay waiting for the vet to perform his euthanasia on 10/06/25.

I told him to wait until the lawsuit ends. Wait for me to be able to survive without you. Nothing has changed, and another year has gone by.

But on his one-year anniversary, it will be exactly 7 months since my last drink. That is how I survive, but the pain never leaves me.

09/04/2026

Remembering Bubba, aka

He was just a baby. Not even 3 years old.

I came across his pictures the other day and felt such sadness remembering this incredible boy.

The day I met him, he cried and cried through the cage, wanting to be held. All Bubba ever wanted was a person to be near him. Like so many dogs in the RGV, his life sucked for far more time than it was good.

At one point, he was an indoor dog, but then he was tossed outside. When he started causing issues, they tied him up.

Bubba Hudson was one of the thinnest dogs I had ever seen. He was treated as if he had EPI, but little did we know something deadly was just waiting to take him from us.

Not long after he moved to the East Coast, he began displaying neurological symptoms. He started pressing his head into things, then went completely blind. And then the aggression turned on.

Things got so intense that he had to be immediately muzzled because he was attacking everything in sight.

They thought our sweet, innocent baby had rabies. We rushed him to the ER, and while he underwent an MRI, he crashed and died.

It turns out he didn’t have rabies. Bubba Hudson had hepatic encephalopathy. Everything had gone to his brain, though his MRI was normal. I believe it was said he possibly had liver shunts that were never diagnosed, and that this was the result of the toxicity. Ultimately, he died a very horrible death.

He was a magnificent dog who loved with every part of his being. Losing him this way was awful for everyone.

He died on my wedding anniversary, just one year before they would go on to steal Shenandoah Shepherd Rescue.

I can’t access any of my records to fully look into his files, but these are the memories I can share.

You mattered, Bubba. And you were loved. ❤️

Echo was truly one of a kind. My heart always yearns for him. He was such a fun dog who drove me crazy every single day ...
08/29/2026

Echo was truly one of a kind. My heart always yearns for him. He was such a fun dog who drove me crazy every single day for 11 years.

I can’t wait to see you again Boogs.

Three more days to live ☠️ Vesper - Weight: 45lbs on 8/04📌 Condition: Length of stay, QOL⏰ Deadline: August 31st (8/31)...
08/28/2026

Three more days to live ☠️

Vesper -
Weight: 45lbs on 8/04
📌 Condition: Length of stay, QOL
⏰ Deadline: August 31st (8/31)

Shelter plea ⬇️

“Vesper is a 1.5-year-old Shepherd mix who has been in our care since August 2025. She has always been a timid girl who needs a little time to feel comfortable, especially with fast movements or unfamiliar people. Once she feels safe, though, her sweet personality really comes out—she enjoys soft affection, belly rubs, and will even roll over for pets.

Vesper has also shown a completely different side in playgroups. She is playful, energetic, and puppy-like, greeting dogs appropriately, initiating play, and getting along well with others. She takes corrections well, responds to handler tools, and respects the gate. Her biggest challenge is the leash, which she has struggled with at times, though she has shown improvement.

She may be shy at first, but Vesper has so much personality waiting underneath that nervous exterior. She just needs someone patient enough to give her the time and space to show it. If you're that person, please reach out. Thank you!”

Palm Valley Animal Society
📍 Edinburg, TX
www.pvastx.org

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Stephens City, VA

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