ANNOUNCEMENT

Next weekend we are going to have a open house so everyone can meet the available hounds in Victor. We are working on the details but are planning Sunday so watch for more info.

Chevron goes into the vet for his altering in the morning. Dr. Patti Prato is giving him her day off she she can focus on him completely and not have to worry about a schedule. Chevron came with a filthy mouth. I have been working on getting it cleaned up and it is looking better but I am sure he will lose some teeth...which is why Patti wants extra time for him. I will be able to be with him the whole time, which I like. He is such a wonderful guy. I pulled out his pedigree the other day and was checking it out. Turns out his family tree is checkered with familiar names. His mothers line goes back to both of my first two greyhounds...and his father's line goes back to my 3 girls I have now. It is no wonder why he appealed to me and felt familiar.

I am in a little deeper and happy about it. When we were in Colorado I met a 10 year old brindle girl. I asked about her but Heather felt sure she would be spoken for quickly. I said to Heather, "Well if that doesn't work out or she turns out not to be cat safe let me know...I will take her." Last week I got a email from Heather asking me to take her. Sandy is cat safe but Heather is getting in several retired broods and needs the space. I can't wait to see her again. It is all I can do not to hop in the car and GO to CO. Here is the best of the two pictures I took of her. If any one is traveling to Denver area let me know...she needs a ride.

BTW the cute little black girl behind her is a special needs girl. Super adorable but broke BOTH rear legs. It is healed now but she walks funny. Anyone interested in a sweet little cripple? Maybe we could do a two-fer

Our hearts are saddened by the loss of one of our greyhound family, Judy and Brent's Frosty girl succumbed cancer. Frosty claimed Judy in 2005 while Judy was visiting Almost Home for Hounds in Nunn, CO. Judy tells of how she was in the turn out pen and every time she moved this same old girl was sticking her head between Judy's knees making it hard to move and impossible to ignore her. Frosty had decided Judy was hers and that was all there was to it. She was over the first hurdle when she was chosen to become a Montana dog. Now Judy has a stiff upper lip and she declined to claim Frosty for her own...at first. But Frosty was undetered and knew what she wanted. In fact Frosty did a over nighter at a potential home but came back. Judy hemmed and hawed but we all knew how the story would go. All you had to do was see them together to know that they were family. Once Judy and Brent agreed to foster Frosty, she was over the second hurdle and well on her way home. I think Brent realized Frosty was their dog even before Judy would admit it....I say "admit it" because I am sure Judy knew. Then it was official and Frosty was HOME and ready to be crowned house princess.

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We never knew Frosty as a youngster. By the time she unpacked her bags at Brent and Judy's she had nine years under her collar. Born in Ireland she had moved to the US to be a racer and a mom. She wasn't just a runner she was a race dog, winning her share of grade A races. With a excellent pedigree and performance record behind her Frosty was bred to some of the best in the nation and has 19 pups on record. Some of which Judy has been able to find and is in contact with their adoptive families. You don't expect to miss your friends dogs when they pass as much as I am going to miss Frosty. I don't want to say good bye to her because in so many ways she is still so near. She was undemanding and yet always seemed to get her way. That was one of the many things I loved about her. I still laugh when I think of how Judy refered to Frosty as "The Old Broad" especailly if Frosty had been doing something independant or sweetly demanding. The picture I always see in my mind of Frosty is the one Judy took not long after Frosty got home. Frosty is lounging on the deck and looking like she owns the world....in fact she did.

Trish's Birdie

After a early morning visit with Trish she had to head to work. Not before she told me a funny story of a conversation between her and Vicki. They were talking about the incoming dogs and trying to decide if Nutmeg was really named Nutmeg or if her name was Cinnamon. They then decide her name could be Spice. Trish makes a really yummy breakfast loaf with ham and eggs and we feasted on that and went to gather our pups and hit the road. The ride home was uneventful and we were in Get-Home gear. We didn't want to stop for lunch or anything. I programed our GPS which we dubbed Chatty Cathy one last time. Carol said "We don't need her help." But I wanted to watch the miles. It was almost agony as the miles tick away sooo slowly. Judy was first home and Brent was out the door to greet her. We unloaded all the dogs and took a picture of all of us and all of the dogs. Then we sorted the dogs so my two foster dogs were in the back seat with my suitcase. Next stop was at my house. My husband sent me a "Where R U?" text. I answered with a picture of me kissing my aussie girl Izzy. Then Carol headed home where Dan and her son Drew waited to help her unload the hounds. After a few hours we all met up and went to Mexican food.

This morning it was a pleasure to wake in my own little bed and not have to hop in the truck to go anywhere. It was a pleasure to do my own chores and spend time with my own dogs. The sun was warm and I drug out the wading pools for the paddocks. Carol came by for a little bit of stuff swapping..."Here are your dirty clothes" and "Here are your left over snacks" I saw Judy too. I guess we need to wean off our companionship. What a truly great trip. I will get photos posted soon.

WE ARE HOME...a day late but safe and exhausted. But not too tired to reconvene for a dinner out together with our husbands. It was fitting end to a fantastic trip. You would think after spending the last 12 days together we would be glad for a break but that was not the case. We could hardly wait to get together and tell our stories one more time. Yesterday when we got up we were sad to learn we were still stranded on the wrong end of a closed highway. I started checking the road reports at about 7 AM and then every few minutes. Finally about 9 we started to see some of the roads further north opening but a 50 mile stretch near us was still closed. Then a blessed event I saw a snow plow at work on one of the live road cams. We decided we would go get a early lunch and hopefully it would be open by the time we got back. Finally at noon it was open and we were loaded and heading out the drive way by 12:20. We weren't a stone's throw down the road when Judy started to feel so bad for Socks who was back there with all those dogs. "Little bitty Socks is so scared." Carol and I already figured out that Socks was fine but Judy wanted to cuddle with her. Rolling our eyes we stopped the truck. While Judy waited with Reagan in her lap Carol and I tackled the job of getting one dog out of a truck of 7 dogs without losing any. Mission accomplished. With in the next 5 miles our two boys Mel and Mesa started having a personal space problem. It was crowded but Mesa was demanding the lion's share of the space. So again we stopped. While Judy waited with Reagan AND Socks, Carol and I shifted dogs. We had crated Chevron, being a senior we wanted to give him some extra protection and room. But now we pulled him out of his bed and plunked Mesa into the crate. This worked pretty well for a few miles until Mesa decided he owned the crate and all surrounding area. Mesa was having a fit because Mel had lain near the prince's crate and it was just NOT allowed. So again we stop and Carol shinnied over the tailgate and into the truck bed while I played hall monitor and kept the dogs back. We took up a blanket intended to pad the floor and covered his highness's crate. Again we hoped this was the magic answer for peace in the truck. Other than Reagan stretching her long legs and impaling Judy now and then with a bony foot or knifing her sharp elbow into Judy's leg, all was fairly peaceful.
We felt awful about missing the get together in Billings for everyone to meet the new hounds. Doubly disappointed that the news crew decided not to carry the story since the new dogs weren't able to make it. Carol suggested we invite who ever wanted to come to meet the new hounds meet at Brickyard Kennel where the hounds would overnight. Much to our surprise when we pulled in people started piling out of cars. First one to poke her head in was Becky Conner who I have waited years to meet and her daughter Zoe. They adopted my little Lulu, a dog I really thought I would keep but my Iris vetoed it. Whatever the reason Zoe and Lulu are peas in a pod and meant for each other. People were pitching in and unloading dogs and giving them some lovin' after their long journey. Off to the side quietly waiting was a white greyhound with black speckles and big eyes. It was Jill Walker!! One of the dogs I fostered who came to Billings to join the family of the Hendersons. Judy Henderson softly said, "Joni, we wanted to bring Jill so you could see her....I know you were worried about her." When Jill came in she was a very timid girl. She had been with her sister every day of her life until the day she stepped on the bus for Montana. It was hard on this little follower to suddenly lose her big sister...her leader. After a few days she settled down and did alright here but she needed to get into a home that would not pressure her and let her come around on her own. The Henderson's opened their home to her as a foster dog. Judy H. is the first to tell you she can be very lucky playing slot machines. In this case Jill was the lucky one as she was soon adopted and became Dick's little girl. I was very touched they took the time to bring Jill to see me. After that reunion I joined the others who were now swarming a turn out pen with the new greyhounds. Before long kennel owner Kaylyn was getting dogs into their kennels for the night. Watching the crowd move from one kennel door to the next, leaning over each other to peer into the kennels, I was reminded of relatives at the baby windows of a hospital. Everyone craning for a look and trying to see if any of these dogs make them think of their own. Finally we said good night and Kaylyn took over feeding them and making them comfortable. It was a crazy sort of family reunion there at the kennel. Meeting people we have talked to for years and seeing old friends. We followed Trish home and crashed for the night.

It is nearly noon...roads are finally open and we are loading up and heading out. We will probably overnight in Billings. All of us are anxious to GET HOME!!

It is nearly 3 PM and the roads are still closed. Judy and Carol have been busy bathing dogs, doing nails, tending to the dogs in recovery, doing laundry and are now cleaning out a messy crate. Heather taught me to clean teeth with power tools and while she does the surgery I have been busy cleaning teeth and checking the roads between dogs. HMMMM their list is sure a lot longer than mine. Carol says we are definitely here for the night. Even if it clears we are staying put. Billings is several hours away...and we want to drive most of it in the daylight

We made it to Heather's in Nunn, CO last night. It was fun to see the dogs we have claimed for Montana again. As dark fell the weather started to turn. By bedtime we were starting to hear reports that the weather was going to get bad. By morning the wind picked up and we had some snow. We stripped beds and got our bags packed. I came over to surgery to check road conditions on the computer. Heather was shaking her head and saying "I don't know I bet you are snowed in." Sure enough roads were closed or under emergency travel only. I looked out the window and Carol and Judy were starting t load the truck. I went out and broke the news we are staying. We are NOT going to hit the road with a bunch for dogs on bad roads. So we will take advantage of being here by helping with surgery and maybe what ever chores Heather finds for us. I have to admit I am starting to itch to get home but I am grateful that if we had to be stranded we are stranded with a great place to stay and with some of our own kind...greyhounds. I will update as the day wears on.