Sunday, May 25, 2008

Today was Bakarly Run's birthday and she got what she really wanted...A HOME!! Jennifer has been coming out and meeting and playing with dogs. First she met Merlin and the rest of the gang at Tripps. Then she came here and met Gold and Ducky. Of course she saw Run too but my heart was being torn with worry about Tigger and after all these months I had started to think of Run as mine. Based on the first visit I told her I didn't think Run was a match. The first visit Run didn't really interact with the kids...but by the third visit Run was enjoying the kids and Jennifer had proven herself as a good greyhound home. The final straw was the morning of the last visit as I was saying good morning to my greyhound girls Iris and Tava. I held their faces together in my hands and knew for the first time Run wasn't mine. I felt I had my girls...all of them right there. Of course I missed Tigger and I am sure she near. When Jennifer came out I could see the magic happening between them and I did what foster homes are meant to do....I let go. Reports from Jennifer are glowing. Run is settling in and finding all her favorite spots to nest. It is amazing how fast love can be transferred. Seriously I have tended her every need for months the least she could do is miss me a little...sigh dogs... Run and I have a special friendship....she didn't throw my love away but used it as a stepping stone into her new home. Little Run Run is home and I am very happy for her!!

Also on the road to new homes this week were Venture and Hairspray. Tami made the trip south to meet the boys Chili and Venture. She adopted another greyhound, Chuck, over a year ago. She said Chuck is really coming out of his shell and starting to play. Tami decided they were ready for another greyhound and Venture seemed like the match!!! Soon to be home is Hairspary. Dana and Mitch from Bozeman were over this direction this week end and took her home with them where Trish will pick her up and deliver Hairspray to her new owner, who by the way is already talking about a new name for her. I have met Hairspray and I am pretty sure her new name is going to be something like "Get off me!" or "Hey bring that back!" She is the cutest little imp!!

Thursday, May 22, 2008

I am sad to report the loss of our friend and my family member Tigger (aka Kiowa Margo). She lived over 15 glorious years and brought us much love and joy in the past 3 years she shared with us. Tigger came to us via a "give away" ad in the Missoula newspaper. Judy called and made arrangements to pick her up immediately then called me to ask if I could foster her. Really, I was only going to foster and the fact that the first greyhound I ever placed was named Tigger was simply a coincidence. Later I learned that she shared a birthday with my beloved aussie girl, Izzy....again I said this is NOT a sign it is a coincidence. She had been here about a week and one night I was playing with the dogs and I said "Everyone Sit", Tigger came running over and popped herself into the nicest sit. I was shocked by this un-greyhound like behavior. This certainly seemed like a lot of coincidences. It was then that I decided that 3 solid coincidences equal one big sign from above. That very night Tigger moved her little self from the kennel to the house and never looked back. Sure, adopting a 12 year old dog may seem like throwing your heart away, but that is not how it was...it was wonderful. Tigger was Iris' best buddy. She was so unassuming and nothing bothered her, a behavior that Iris' started to emulate. You would think I would leave a old dog alone but when the rest of the pack participated in a Canine Good Citizen test last year, Tigger at 14 years was not left out and was tested too. Her sit was a bit wobbly, and her down slow and careful but her desire to please shone through and she passed the test earning her first and only obedience title. On her 14th birthday and Izzy's 13th we threw a great dog party. Complete with ice cream and liver cake. That party is still talked about. There were about 15-20 dogs all loose together eating and socializing. Amazingly everyone was on their best behavior and we had a blast. Tigger loved to wear nice collars. I have never known a dog who even noticed their collar. Tigger did. This spring I bought a nice soft lime green fabric collar for her. It was the last collar she wore. It is in my pocket at this very moment and now dries my tears.

A month or so ago I noticed Tigger limping and it seemed difficult for her to get comfortable sometimes. I started to offer her pain reliever. I suspected osteosarcoma and started to hear the clock ticking. Tick tick tick. When Tig first came home Iris and her shared a bed for a few days. They both seemed to need the connection and comfort. Some of you may remember the yin and yang picture of them http://www.gparockymountain.org/ProsePoetry.html . After those first few days I never saw them share a bed again until last week. There they were side by side. I knew that they were going through the process of letting go and saying good bye. Tick tick tick. As the days passed I needed to make the dreaded vet appointment which would confirm what I already knew. When Tigger started needing a double dose of pain meds I could wait no longer. Tick tick tick. I noticed small changes in her, she panted more and her balance was off just a bit. I saw less of the smiling Tigger I loved. One glance at that x-ray and my heart sank. The affected bone was speckled with damage and the edges eaten away. As much as I hated the idea of letting Tigger go the risk of a break was too high to be ignored. Tick tick tick. So I made an appointment for later in the day. Tigger and I headed to McDonalds bought hamburgers. Then we came home and pulled her big bed into the sun and snuggled and shared cookies with the rest of the pack. Darrin left work early and together we took Tigger to be released from her sick little body. Together we wrapped her in a favorite blanket and delivered her body to the crematorium. As I was saying good bye I told her I would miss her stubborn streak...heaven forbid you should reach for her collar to guide her. I will miss her big chocolate drop eyes. I will miss how on the rare occasion she escaped she would hobble away as fast as her old legs could take her like some rest-home escapee with a walker. But the thing I will miss the most is her sweet little yip bark. She used that bark to call to me, to find me or if she needed help getting up. A soft little yip. Last night as I was falling to sleep I heard her yip...a last sweet good bye...a prayer answered. Judy told me Tigger's last owner never even said good bye to her or gave her a farewell pat. I can tell you when Tigger left this time she was surrounded by love. Her soft coat damp with tears and dried with loving caresses. Tigger is loved and missed by her whole family....dogs and people.

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

The lure coursing weekend was way fun for me. Saturday was the day the AKC rep gave a seminar. At the end of the seminar we were tested. A good test score is required of anyone wanting to become a lure course judge. I passed. I still have several requirements but I have the test out of the way if I decide to pursue it. Coursing is not about who is fastest. It is really about who displays the most hunting skill. They are scored on 5 criteria; Follow, Agility, Speed, Endurance and Overall ability. So speed is only a small part of the score, in fact a lot of speed can work against them as it makes turns and staying on the lure much harder. Tava has her big thick tail to help her rudder. Check out the difference in the picture between Iris who is in pink and Tava's tails.
Sunday was actual coursing. I took Iris, Tava and Katy Did the whippet. First all the dogs run against the other dogs of their breed in groups of 3. Since I had the only greyhounds my girls ran together. The course was small and my girls were not ready for it to be over so quickly. Both ran cleanly and safely. Tava was dancing at the end of her slip even after her first run. Tava and Iris scored within a couple points of each other with Tava gaining the edge. Katy ran against a whippet from Billings. It was her first time running with another dog and I was pleased with how well she did. She scored second but I was hit with a point penalty for early release. After everyone runs they reverse the course, so if they were going clockwise they now drag the lure counter clockwise. Again Tava edged out Iris which made her "Best of Breed". Katy ended up second by a narrow margin. Then they can run a third time in what is called "Best in Field". For BIF they run against the top dog from each breed, again in groups of 3. Tava was still game so I let her run. She ran against a Ridgeback and a Borzoi. After all the dogs ran I was thrilled at the awards to learn that little Tava Beanie won Best in Field!!! I took home so tired and happy pups!!

Friday, May 16, 2008

Are greyhounds good with cats? Well they can be! Check out Lance who is watching over the new arrivals of his cat/girlfriend. Lance continues to amaze us with his antics. I wonder who is going to break the news to him that he isn't the daddy or even the uncle.
Ahhhh summer!!!! I feel like we have finally reached the warm weather. It feels so good!!! The dogs are able to go out to play more and they all seem to love napping in the sun and taking a turn in the wading pool. Anyone who is thinking of getting a wading pool better do it right away. If this warm weather lasts very long they will be hard to find. The greyhounds have had more visitors. Jennifer and her two girls came out and spent an afternoon between Tripps and my house. They have had a greyhound in the past and are anxious to have another one. Jennifer went home and immediately filled out an application. I love it when that happens. She got in touch with us when she went to visit the greyhounds at PetsMart.

A couple of items for your calendar. June 14th is the picnic. We need volunteers to help plan and to get donations. I am offering lawn camping to anyone who wants to come up early and stay late. Years ago we had a camping greyhound picnic....it was a hoot!!!

This week end is some AKC lure coursing in Missoula. Sunday is a lure course fun match. I will be there with some of my gang. For directions go to http://www.fivevalleykennelclub.org/
find the link for the match premium. They are planning to start running dogs just after 9 AM. So bring a lawn chair and some lunch and enjoy the day. Might want to leave your hounds at home...it is only for AKC registered dogs and it may be hot. Want to know about lure coursing? Check this out http://www.akc.org/events/lure_coursing/getting_started.cfm
The one thing I love about attending a lure course is the chance to see other breeds of sight hounds running. I am not sure who will be there but I know there will be ridgebacks, borzoi, whippets, greyhounds, wolfhounds...might also be an Ibizan hound or two.

Saturday, May 10, 2008

What a busy week it has been. Finally Gold has all of his stitches out. Hurray!!! He has been cleared to go out to play with the other greyhounds. He has been loving being able to stretch out in the sun to nap and racing around being his goofy self. More notably in Gold's life is that he has caught the interest of a family. They have been out to see him a couple of times this week already. Even if ultimately the decide to wait to adopt, Gold is benefiting from some extra attention.

Also this week I found a nice big wire crate on Craigslist for a decent price. Those things are like gold to us!! I made arrangements to have it picked up. When the sellers found out where the crate was going they refused payment and donated it to rescue. Thanks to Steve and Lindi and their pups for the donation!! It will be put to good use and will house many greyhounds in transition.

Monday, May 5, 2008

Yesterday Tripps called and invited Judy and I over for a picnic. Judy and I were both on our own for the day as our husbands were otherwise occupied. Carol packed up a lunch and we hiked across the pasture into a pretty cottonwood grove where Dan built a fire and cooked hamburgers. Tava got to go with me. She had so much fun hanging out with us and Tripps little "farm dog" Italian Greyhound, Gloria. The area was fenced so Tava got to be off lead and explore the trees and the dry creek bottom. She showed up in time to get the tail end of hamburgers and some watermelon and of course gummy berries. Tava loved the little gummies but Gloria thought they were awful and she would spit them out projectile fashion.

When we were finished Some folks from Missoula came out to meet the greyhounds up close. Nicole and her man whose name I didn't catch. Came out to see the foster dogs. They aren't ready to adopt but are very interested in the dogs and willing to become involved until they can adopt. As we were getting ready to head for home we noticed that Tripps pups weren't quite done with the party. Top to bottom they are Robbie, Sparky and Holly.