New dog in the pack

Last weekend Kevin and I were in the Phoenix area with some friends. His daughters had flown in for vacation and were staying there a week. We joined them for a few days. We drove in separate vehicles because I had to work on Friday and wanted to give Kevin time to spend alone with his girls. I didn't drive up there until Saturday morning, a day later. We left Sunday morning to return to our home. I stopped by the Maricopa County Animal Care and Control Center-West (MCACC-W) where I met a young, small German Shepherd Dog that was available for adoption. She was one of three GSDs waiting for new homes. Despite knowing we had enough dogs, I paid for the adoption fee and drove up on Monday to pick her up after her spaying. I didn't worry about what Kevin would say. I've learned in the army that it's easier to beg for forgiveness than to ask for permission. The vet discovered she was pregnant, so I'm assuming her previous owners dumped her somewhere in Phoenix after she went into heat and mated with another dog. She's around 18 months old, and has had a rough life. Otherwise whoever had her treated her well as she is a gentle little girl who stays by my side. The little GSD we named Minnie, since she's so much smaller than Sadie. Minnie is more Zeke's size and those two have become playmates. Intergrating her into the new pack was easy. I was so afraid of having another female GSD, how Minnie would handle the cats. Everything went so well. Sadie, Sara, Sammy and Zeke accepted Minnie right away after a thorough butt-sniffing. The cats weren't too pleased but they now come up to her. Minnie's barked at them a few times but nothing dangerous. The next morning, before the heat of the day began, we played ball in the backyard. Minnie is right up there with Sadie at fetching, but Minnie also retrieves sticks and rocks! She is a mellow dog, doesn't bark much, and follows me everywhere. Earlier today I took the entire pack down to the river for some cooling off. There Minnie splashed around in the water and tried to pick rocks from the river. Only Zeke and Sara got wetter. Later she went on her first hike with Sadie, Beth and me up Brown Canyon, a five-mile loop Beth and I have done twice now. Minnie held her ground and kept a good pace.