POOR old Sam the German shepherd dog!

The seven-year-old was dumped at a Deighton home by two men.

But now, thanks to Johanna Askham, Sam has settled in well at his new temporary home.

And he's made some new friends - three other German shepherds and a border collie.

Johanna, an instructor with the Huddersfield branch of the British Association of German Shepherd Dog Owners, has cleaned Sam up.

Now she wants to find him a good, permanent home.

The 39-year-old, non-teaching assistant at Highfields School, Edgerton, was out on Sunday when neighbours saw the men abandon Sam in her garden. She came back to find him barking away.

She said: "There was this dog lying on my doorstep.

"I just walked up, talked to him, opened the gate and he came up to me as if he'd known me for ages."

The next day Johanna took him to the vet to see if he was microchipped - which he was.

The owner was identified as a Mr Edwards, from Rawthorpe.

They drove round with the dog but were unable to locate him.

Now Johanna has alerted the police and the dog warden service.

She said: "Sam's a sweetheart. He's a good weight and he's very obedient. I took him for his first proper walk today with my young bitch.

"He's somebody's loved pet somewhere.

"The way he's been dumped I presume he's been stolen.

"He's a lovely boy."

She has had Sam wormed and de-fleaed.

Johanna, who lives with husband Leslie and 18-year-old daughter, Laura, says German shepherds are not the vicious breed some believe them to be.

She said: "They're only nasty if you don't look after them.

"They're a guarding breed, but that doesn't mean they're all nasty. But, saying that, they will let people in the house.

"People have always got to remember that although German shepherds are wary of the unknown it doesn't mean they're nasty.

"But with the right training and socialisation, to me, personally, they're one of the best breeds you can have."

Sam's new friends are four-year-old Odin, his daughter, Freya, one, and Jenna, also one.

The border collie, Fern, is 11.