I have a foster dog.  I now have 4 of my own greyhounds, 2 liter mates, Maggie and Alec who just turned 4, and Rollie and Macho.  Macho is 11 and Rollie 8.
Sam (BF Par Sam) had to leave his original foster home, due to the surgery on the foster moms leg.  So, I took him although I really don't want to foster. When Sam first arrived in ESGAO,in October, he was spunky, assertive and food aggressive, or so I was told.  He was requiring constant monitoring and was a challenge. His prior family let him on the couch, something we don't encourage, but is hard to stop when your greyhounds are allowed on the furniture.

Sam arrived yesterday afternoon, full of energy and joy.  After muzzling my pack, I sent them out to meet Sam, one at a time, till they had all sniffed each other and they didn't have any issues with each other. We let Sam in the yard and he was greeted in normal greyhound fashion by all 4 at once, then he was ready to run. Fortunately, Maggie and Alec were up to the challenge, and ran him around the yard a few times.  When they all came in, Sam made himself at home and ran up the stairs, and all around the house.  He looked at the couch and whined.  My furniture placement prevents the dogs from getting on the couch.  None of mine have even tried.

Bill said, he looks a lot like Maggie.  I said yes he does and he acts like her too,.  Although Maggie and Alec are liter mates they do not resemble or act like each other.  I jumped onto google and found out that Sam and Maggie and Alec have the same grandpa.   All I can say is Grandpa muist have been quite a character. 
This is the first of several upcoming blogs about the joys and sorrows of having a foster dog and 4 greyhounds.
Sam wont stay still long enough for a good picture.  As soon as I get one, I will post it.

Rollie 2015

I am a failure. 

Rollie was returned to ESGAO in January 2015.  Since prior to his adoption he was my foster dog, I took him back to foster until he could get adopted.

Bill took Rollie to many meets and greets, those are days when adoptable dogs go to stores or dog events to be seen and hopefully adopted. 

Around April, I started thinking we should just keep him.  He was such a good dog., friendly, happy, energetic and smart.  Bill said, logically, we can't keep him, we don't need four dogs.  I agreed. 

Rollie was advertised on the ESGAO website as the dog of the month several times. 

One couple fell in love with him and adopted him.  But, Rollie didn’t match their life style; he was returned, pretty quickly.  And since he had been my foster dog, I of course took him back…           to foster.

When the summer hit, and Rollie was able to get out in the yard and be the dog he knew he was, he would chase cars, from the safety of the fence.  He would expend so much energy and get so hot, he nearly collapsed from heat exhaustion.  Fortunately, by then we had the kiddy pool full for the dogs, and he knew to get into the water, to revive himself.

I told Bill that no one else would understand that he has to have a kiddy pool in the summer.  He could die without one.  Bill said, we will tell whoever adopts him that he has to have a pool in the summer.  And we will explain he gets heat exhaustion. 

When Rollie gets  nervous, his tummy gets upset and he gets diarrhea, which hits around 3 am.  Since he is such a sweet dog, he doesn’t wake anyone up when this hits.  So, many mornings, I came downstairs to find diarrhea all over the kitchen floor and often he had gone number 1 too.  A great

 way to start the morning.

I told Bill that no one will tolerate months of diarrhea on the floor every morning.  Bill said that the new adopters will love him and be willing to clean up after him.

So on Facebook and on the ESGAO website, I posted, that Rollie needs a home that has another greyhound to play with, a patient owner, a loving owner, and preferably a doggie door, so he can go outside at 3 am.  He also needs a fence so he can run, and a pool to recover in.  A Facebook friend who lives outside of Ohio and specializes in taking care of "problem dogs" wanted to adopt him.  But he is too far.

It is now September and no one wants to adopt him.

A friend in the group has always loved Rollie (really, who doesn’t?) and was contemplating taking care of him while we are out of town soon.  I thought, they would be good parents for Rollie.  But alas, they are unable to take him at this time.

For 8 months Bill and I tried to get Rollie adopted.  We failed.  So I am again failing.  I am a failed foster parent.  Today, Bill and I officially adopted Rollie. We failed at fostering.  A phenomena that often occurs with foster parents, but very often with greyhounds. 

Macho was my first failure as a foster parent, and now Rollie is my second failure. 

Pat C. Roller became Pat C. Roller-South today.

Welcome my buddy!  I often call him Bubba. :)

Life before retirement

We are temporarily fostering a 2 year old female greyhound.  She was adopted within 5 days of arriving here and never really had a chance to figure out what happened and learn how to be retired before she was adopted.  Her adoptive people had a greyhound who died and she is their next dog.  She was returned when she wouldn’t go outside to go potty. She had been whiny and skittish also, but the foster coordinator was able to help them deal with that  The reason, she was returned seems to be that there was a roof being removed and replaced across the street and the noise and flying things scared her. She would not go out.  This was the last straw for the humans.  Bill told them to bring her here and we'd find a place for her.  Fortunately, River has mellowed in her old age and is tolerating Indigo well.  I told Bill that we already have a foster dog and 5 are too many.  He convinced me and Indigo's adoptive family that the South Pack would teach her about retirement and I would teach her how to be a good girl. They could take her back when she got some greyhound guidance.  Her adoptive Dad comes to visit every 2 or 3 days, he loves her and wants what is best for her.

I got to thinking what the retired racers go through before they retire and through their transition.  I found this article by Dennis McKeon, written in 2013 that addresses the mindset of a retired greyhound as they become pets.

" It’s just that when a greyhound retires and is adopted, he is entering an entirely new and foreign world, full of strange and often, to him or her, intimidating new places and things.

For the first time in their lives, they are outside of their normal, busy, familiar, athletic routines, and their greyhound-centric environs. They are without their kennelmates, their littermates and the people they have known, depended upon and loved. For the first time in their lives, they are often without any canine companionship at all, or the security of the pack that they have known since the day they were born.

For some of them, this adjustment is a can o’corn--for others, not so much.

Because of their essential nature as hunters, who locate and then chase after game by sight, racing greyhounds are very highly attuned to their surroundings. They notice things. The simple flick of an upright, velveteen ear among briars, while entirely imperceptible to us, can be, for a greyhound, the clarion call to a thrilling chase and catch episode of the purest excitement and delight. It’s what they do.

Conversely, the horn blast of a passing automobile, or even the crash of a milk glass on hardwood, can be absolutely terrifying to them. They notice things. But they only know what is familiar to them. Everything else is a crapshoot, and to the most high strung and skittish of them, some things can be terrifying.

We hear a lot about “socialization”, or the lack of it, from those who themselves lack greyhound experience or first hand knowledge. The truth is, that mostly all racing greyhounds are quite well socialized, both with and among canines and humans. They are handled by a plethora of individuals from the day they are born, from the breeder and their helpers, to assorted guests, to the veterinarians they visit, or who come to visit them. Again, with their handlers, when they begin to learn how to chase after the artificial lure, and to also learn proper manners, while being walked on the lead, exercised, groomed, bathed, and/or massaged.

At the racetrack, they encounter many different people, from the leadouts, to the judges, to the track vets, and then of course, in addition to their own handlers, the many other handlers they also come to know.

Most of the time, it’s not lack of socialization that can cause upset to a greyhound. The real challenge is complete and utter “re-habituation”--from life as a racing athlete, to life as a family pet.

Like all dogs, racing greyhounds are primarily creatures of habit and routine. They have remarkably accurate psychological time clocks in their pointy little heads. They have led very structured and predictable lives. They demand your punctuality and your attentions at what they have learned to be the “appointed” times. They thrive on routine. It is novelty that can sometimes completely undo them and even drive them into an ill-advised “fight or flight” panic ."

Indigo was in a panic mood at the adoptive home.  The roofers put her over the edge.  But happily, she has been here for 2 weeks and is a normal greyhound and is ready to go back to her adoptive family.  I think she has figured out that this retirement will be a good thing.  

Well, It has been a long time since I Blogged and a lot happened.  Mike got adopted with another greyhound and Mike and the other hound didn’t get along real well so they returned Mike.  He is in a different foster home right now and is getting along well there. He is becoming a Velcro dog with this foster dad.

Rollie was returned.  I try to keep in contact with the adoptive families, but his mom wasn't interested in talking about Rollie, so I stopped trying to contact with her.  Rollie was adopted in June 2014.  Out of the blue, we got a call saying his mom is moving into an apartment and couldn’t take the dog.  What???? Anyway, I took him in, of course.  I had forgotten about Rollies quirks.  When I send my foster dogs to their new homes, I write a book about what the dog does, what he needs, how to comfort him, etc.  When Rollie was returned, I received the dog, and his book.  The book contains his medical records.  My info to her was not included so it was like starting over.  I texted her a couple of times, to get info. She would give me that info and that was it.  She never asked how he is, if he is doing ok, or anything.  Very strange, cause she loved him from the minute she met him.  People are weird.

My three dogs and Rollie were getting along fine.  Then a couple wanted to adopt Rollie. It didn’t work out.  Rollie is too social to be an only dog with people that work all day.  He didn’t work out for them, so he came back to me.  That's ok cause he is the "fun" dog.  When we got the next batch of retirees from Alabama, I wanted Rollie to be here as the official greeter.  In the past, he would be gleefully welcoming everyone to his yard.  This time, he was snarly and grumpy.  I had to leave River and Rollie in the house most of the time the new dogs were here.  But he calmed down and when I let him out again, he was the normal social dog that makes him so adorable.

I've decided to be very particular about who gets Rollie.  I don’t want him to bounce back again.  He needs a home where there is a playful greyhound or other large animal and no small dogs or cats. He needs to have free range of the house, including a dog bed or couch.  He needs a yard to run in, sun in, and observe life as it goes by.  He needs someone that will walk him a couple times a week and let him go with them in the car once a week.  He needs to be part of a loving home where the people understand greyhounds..  I think my criteria may be too specific, but that would be perfect for him. Oh and he needs a patient person to clean up after him when he goes potty in the house, or get up in the middle of the night to let him out. 

Welcome to winter.

When Greyhounds arrive at a home, they are often on their good behavior.  It takes a couple weeks for the greyhound to get to comfortable enough in a house to let their actual personality come out. Mike has been here for a month now, and the weather has changed.  When Mike got here, he knew how to ask to go out.  After the weather changed, Mr. Mike has decided that peeing outside makes him cold, so instead he will just go #1 inside. He no longer asks to go out.

When this first started, I convinced myself it was because I wasn't noticing his request to go out.  Then, one morning, I found a puddle in the front hallway.  I figured he didn’t know how to wake us to let us know he had to go out.  Later that day, I found  another puddle after he had come in.  Instead of being  a responsible foster mom, I just complained about it as I cleaned it up.  The next morning, I got up and he had peed on the tile and carpet leading from our bedroom to the bathroom.  I of course was barefooted, so the carpet was squishy, and my sleeping brain didn’t recognize the issue.   As I took the next step onto the carpet, I stepped directly into the puddle of pee and before quickly realizing what "that was", my other wet foot stepped onto the tile and I went sliding across the floor, followed by Mikey wagging gleefully that I was out of bed.

He was introduced to a belly band after he went out and before breakfast that morning.  He lived in the belly band for 2 days without an accident.  He did not get to wear it while he was outside.  So far he has not gone #1 in the house since he was introduced to the belly band.  In case you don't know, a belly band fits around the dogs private parts, it velcros on at the top.  It contains a pad to catch the urine, and like a toddler being potty trained: it gets wet and they don't like that feeling.  Greyhounds learn pretty quickly not to go potty in the house with the help of a belly band.  I will keep him in the belly band at night till I am sure he can wake us up.

Today, he discovered the fun of deep snow.  While we have not had a lot of snow, we have some good drifts in the yard.  Macho was doing his trot around the yard, in the snow to find the perfect place to take care of doggie business, which meant he had to go through the snow.  Mike watched this with great attention and wagging.  I let him out and he layed in the snow and watched Macho, then, with all the enthusiasm of a puppy, jumped off the deck and into 1 foot of snow. He ran and ran, he ran his 3 laps. I do believe he had the best time of his life in the deep snow! Now he is a tired boy.

Mike, foster dog #17

                                 Hi.  I had been blogging about my foster dogs, then they got adopted so naturally I stopped.  We took a little time off from fostering to let my dogs relax and return to normal.  But while we did that, a dog named Red was returned by his owner, and he stayed with us for a short while.  He was adorable, and I really wanted to keep him.  Fortunately, a lady came to meet him at one of our events, and he really, really liked her.  She is now the proud owner of Red.  Any way, we got 5 dogs in from the Alabama tracks on November 15.  All 5 dogs had foster homes to go to, so we didn’t foster this time. 

       Then, the phone rang, and one of the foster families was having problems and not able to give their foster dog, Mike, the time, training and attention he needed.  She asked if there was some place he could go.  Naturally, I said he could come and stay with us.

                                 Mike is a 3 year old Black greyhound.  He only has a quarter of a tail, 6-8 inches long.  Greyhounds ordinarily have a long whip of a tail, normally 17-22 inches long.  Mike's tail was obviously amputated at some point.  I called the kennel to see if they knew why.  The kennel mom said she had asked everyone she knew and no one knew why his tail had been removed.                  Anyway, Mike does fine without his tail and it is very cute when he wags it. His rear thighs are bald, but the fur should grow in over time.  He is a gorgeous Black dog with a white chest the slowly disappears down his belly and he has a few white toes.

Mike All curled up

  This Blog is about the adventures of Mike and his growing up while in my care.  He will make a great pet for someone who wants a happy, energetic dog. 
These are the best pictures I have of Mike.  You can't tell that he is anything more than a resting dog in these pictures.  So far, the only thing he doesn't like, is the camera. 

Camera shy, Mike

Rollie leaving

This is a happy day for Rollie.  Not so much for me.  Rollie is going to a home,where the lady is going to foster with intent to adopt.  She is fostering greyhounds for another greyhound group but she has not fallen in love with her foster dog. She met Rollie at an event this weekend and came around 5 times asking about him and she decided he may just be the right dog for her to adopt.

So today I say farewell to my foster dog Rollie.  I know I should be happy for him, and he is able to go because of me. But, after 15 or 17 foster dogs, you'd think this would be easier by now.  I've decided if the foster dog is here for a short time, it is easy to let them go to their forever home.  But after 5 or 6 months, it is a terrible feeling to say good bye to the dog who had diarrhea for almost a

month, the dog who fell asleep while roaching and used the wall to prop himself up while sleeping, to the guy who would joyfully roo "hello" when I came down the stairs after feeding him.  The dog that learned squeakies are fun, treats are good, and people that lay on the floor with you are wonderful. I will miss this guy a lot.
In addition to me missing him, I will need to help River understand the loss of her best dog friend.  While it takes a while for her to warm up to them, after they understand her and the rules, she enjoys the company of the foster dog.

The tears will soon stop and I will appear normal again, I think.
So Mr. Rollie, I bid you a fond farewell.    I told him he can come back to me if it doesn't work out.

Bye Y'all!

Sardines

It occurred to me that it has been a long time since I blogged about Rollie.  So I was going to restart his blog, and I was planning out what to say.  But in the meantime, I have a story about my dogs, along with Rollie.

Sometime during the last month, I read on FB about all these people giving their greyhounds sardines, and many, many people saying their greyhounds love them. Some people add them to the food, some give as treats, and the dogs just cant get enough of them.  I thought, well, that’s interesting.  2 of my dogs like shrimp, and a couple like fish sticks and they all like canned Tuna, maybe they would like Sardines.  I try to let my dogs experience different  things in life so I thought, I will try that. While I was at the store, I paid $1.00 for a can of sardines in oil. 

After work today, it was beautiful outside.  The dogs had started going and looking in their dog bowls for food, so I thought I would treat them to sardines.  I remember that my brother ate sardines many years ago and they came with a key that you rolled the sardine can open with.  So I got out the can and looked for the key, and found it was a pop top. YAY.  So standing by the pantry door, I popped the tab and oil ran down my arm, down my pants and onto the floor.  Great...  so, I grabbed a paper towel and took the open can of sardines out to my dogs who were lying on the deck (including Rollie).  By the way, Sardines stink, so outside is where they need to be.

River was lying on the bed closest to the door, so I reached into the can of oil and sardines and gingerly picked up what appeared to be a headless fish.  As I took it from the can, only half of the fish came out.  I put that down in front of River.  She smelled it, looked at me, looked at the chunk of fish, sighed and put her head back down on her bed.  Ok, she is picky about what she eats.  No big deal.  Macho wanted it, but he knows he cannot take food from her even if she won’t eat it.  In the meantime, all the boys had gathered round for their treat. I attempted to give Macho the remaining piece of oily fish, but only part of the carcass came out.  I handed that to him and he swallowed it.  I gave the final piece of sardine to Ace, who smelled it and promptly said, “no thank you” and refused to take it.  I gave it to Macho who is always by my side.  Macho is like Mikey from the old Life cereal commercials, he’ll eat anything.  Cute little Rollie was standing there, tail wagging, “me. Me. Don’t forget me”.  So I handed him a greasy piece of the second dead fish in the can.  He took it, looked at me and using his tongue pushed that fish right onto the freshly power washed deck!  Splat! Oily fish with dog germs now is lying on concrete part of deck.  Macho wanted more so I handed him another piece.  By now, Macho has convinced the guys that Sardines are good, so they (Ace and Rollie) come around for more.  Ace takes a piece of the second sardine, (note, the piece was the size of a thumbnail), looks at me and drops it onto the concrete, a foot away from Rollie’s dropping.  Bill is out in the yard and I am temporarily distracted, but I realize subconsciously that Macho wants more fish.  So I hand him another piece without thinking.  And Rollie wants to try it again, so I blindly hand him some sardine.  By now River is up and asking to try it; although, her big chunk is laying on the bed leaving a grease stain, so I hand her another piece.  Soon there is only one left.  I decide to throw the remaining gawd awful smelling fish in the outside trash receptacle. 

When I return, I see on the deck, (that Bill took 3 hours to power wash last week), several pieces of dead fish.  Oily dead fish, on the clean deck.  It was a trail of sardines!  Apparently, Macho didn’t like them either and would spit them out when I wasn’t looking. And because he knows that I know he likes to eat everything he sacrificed himself, so the others wouldn’t have to endure Sardines, and he took as many as he could.  It seems River, Ace and Rollie all learned this trick from Macho, cause It didn’t appear any sardine was consumed by any of the four greyhounds.

I picked up the fishy, oily body parts from the deck and put them in the outdoor trash receptacle. The only thing that stinks worse than sardines, is hot dog poo in the outdoor trash receptacle on a hot afternoon.  But add some sardines to it, and HO LY COW! 10 feet away, it reeks!

I don’t think my dogs or Rollie like sardines, and I wonder why the many others do?

Play mate

Mr. Rollie has found his calling.  He is the welcome committee/play mate for new greyhounds!

This weekend seven retired racing greyhounds arrived from Alabama to begin their life as pets and companions.  They come here, and we and many ESGAO www.esgao.org volunteers prepare their bodies for their new lives.  I ensure one of the volunteers is coming to take pictures, cause, really, what good is a name of a dog without a picture?

While we are preparing for the bathing, tick removal, and micro-chipping, we let the new dogs run in the yard.  The new dogs have been cooped up in a trailer for roughly 18 hours and need to stretch and feel the ground, and just to be dogs.  This is when many pictures are taken.  After the recent retirees have been in the yard for a few minutes, my dogs including Rollie are going crazy in the house. I muzzled them and sent them out with to meet all the muzzled greyhounds who have overtaken their yard.

My dogs got tired of the new dogs within minutes.  Five minutes with new dogs, my dogs were begging to be let back into the house!  But not Rollie. 

I was busy coordinating the volunteers and directing people to the restroom, and getting forgotten items, so I didn’t spend a lot of time with the dogs, either mine or the new ones.   

Rollie stayed out in the yard with the new dogs.  Did I mention is was maybe 30 degrees, and spitting snow?  Greyhounds have very little hair, and nearly no fat (most of them) so they can get hot and cold very quickly. On the few times I got into the yard, Rollie was hanging with the new guys.  Proudly prancing, talking, occasionally running with them, having the time of his life. We kept the new dogs outside and as one got clean we brought in another till soon they were all in the garage.  When we let them all go back into the yard, Rollie and a couple of the volunteers were waiting for them!  

Mathias, Rollie, Fenn (L-R)

Red and Rollie

Rollie gleefully greeted them as they ran into the yard and pranced with them, went running and just hung around with the new guys.  There was no barking, no snarling and no problems.  Greyhounds are great together.  I didn't realize how social he was, until I saw the  pictures that were taken, and Rollie is in many of them. 

Flash's behind and Rollie

Rollie's behind, Ripple, macho

While we were on vacation, Rollie was able to stay with another foster family. I thought it would be better for him to be in a home than in a kennel with my dogs. Being in a kennel would be too confusing to him after not being kenneled since he retired. While with the foster family, Rollie cut his leg on that awful ice hiding under the dreadful snow. They rushed him to the vet, and the vet stitched him up and sent him home. The foster family opted to keep him until the stitches came out. Although we have been home for a couple weeks, Rollie just came back to us on Saturday. He walked in, said hello to my dogs, peed on the floor, and went and laid down in favorite bed. He and my dogs are acting as if he never left! I guess he feels comfortable here. So yesterday Khan came over with his family. Khan doesn’t have a yard to run in yet; although, the fence has been picked out and paid for, the installers don’t want to install it in the snow and cold. So Khan gets to go walking and running with his Dad and Human sister. We always invite our foster dogs to come back and run in the yard and spend some time with my dogs. So Khan came over yesterday to run in the yard. There is probably 4 inches of snow in the yard and it was less than 20 degrees yesterday. Khan came in said hello, gleefully greeted Bill and me and then went out with his human tweener to play and run in the yard. Well, my pack wouldn’t have that, so they went out to play and run in the yard too. (My dogs don’t like snow). Many times they all came in and went out, and many times, Khan would walk from person to person to get cuddled, petted and loved. Khan is NOT the Khan that was my foster dog. His new family took him from a skittish dog to a happy, confident and proud retired greyhound. I was so proud of him and very thankful that Khan found them. They obviously love him very much and he seems to feel the same way about them. Their love and kindness has brought the best out of him. This is what we, as foster parents hope for when our dogs get adopted. I am so happy for all of them! My dogs were very tired after spending the afternoon running and playing in the snow. They didn’t get up till 830 this morning. Even Rollie, the eating machine, slept until 8:00 which is two hours after his normal eating time. I can only hope that Rollie will soon find a family that will love him and teach him as well as Khan’s family has.

MY new Toy

We took Rollie to Petco for a meet and greet.  It is important to get the foster dogs out to socialize them, to get them exposed to potential adopters and so they can see new things.  This way, we can find out if they are other animal friendly, and if they like different types of people, like, Men, or Women or Children.  Since they were raised on the race track we don’t know what the foster dogs reaction to things will be and this allows us to see how they do in unusual situations.  Mr. Rollie does NOT like animals that are not Greyhounds.   Bill thinks he may be workable with larger dogs, but I am not so sure.

So while at the meet and greet, Rollie got antsy so Bill took him for a walk around the store.  They went past the mice, and guinea pigs, down by the birds, and checked out the cat and dog food.  Bill took him around the dog treats where Rollie happily sniffed everything a curious 26 inch tall greyhound could sniff.  Then he got to the squeaky toys. By this time, Bill was distracted, and not focused on the dog.  Rollie began investigating the toys.  He sniffed, looked and examined every toy he could.  Soon he gleefully grabbed a big blue Jack, like what little girls used to play with.  It is probably 10 inches square.  It has balls on the end of each spike and 2 squeak and 2 don’t.  The center of the jack squeaks. He proudly led Bill away from the toys carrying his new toy.  Bill said, I think Rollie found a toy he wants.  I laughed and said I guess he is getting another new toy!  I had already gotten him a Red football that squeaks. 

After Bill bought the toy, they all returned to the meet and greet area.  Ace was also interested in the new squeaker and so were the girl greyhounds that had come too.  Rollie allowed Ace to touch his new toy, then Rollie claimed it as his very own. 

When we got home, Rollie showed his new toys to Macho and River.  Macho of course had to test out the new toy.  Ace played with the new football.  Soon, they all fell asleep.

We try to keep the good toys in the house, especially when it is cold and snowy. Ace is always taking toys out side and we are always bringing them in.  Somehow, Rollie got his jack outside.  He adores playing with this toy.  When he goes to his new home he will be taking it with him.  

Rollie prancing in the yard with his new Jack

New Foster dog - Rollie

Erie Shore Greyhound Adoption of Ohio has a Foster boy greyhound named Rollie who has tummy troubles.  I am Fostering him to see if we can get his tummy troubles under control.  Rollie is a white with Brindle spot dog, he looks similar to Ace.  We have never had a dog that looks like Ace as a foster dog, so it will be interesting to see if we get Rollie and Ace confused like we did Macho and Khan.

His foster mom is my friend and a very dedicated greyhound person.  She has fostered probably close to 50 greyhounds and used to run a kennel for another greyhound group.  Since Rollie has been having tummy troubles since he got here, she has taken him to the vet for his tummy troubles a few times.  He has been wormed a couple of times.  The vet recommended B12 injections, which was done, and put him on special dog food.  This special food is hugely expensive, $120 for 6 lbs!  And she told me it is helping but not fixing the problem.  His tummy is not getting better.  

 A dog with tummy problems can wear on a person’s nerves. Getting up to go to work and finding messes throughout the house is no way to start your day.  Nor is coming home to a stinky house and having to clean up the messy poo.  It is bad enough to have to do this occasionally, but it was becoming a daily routine.  We agreed to take him and see if his tummy settles down here.  Sometimes a different environment can cause or fix tummy troubles.

Rollie came in the group that came with Fog.  He has learned how to live in another home.  I don’t allow my dogs on the furniture, I don’t muzzle my dogs, but his current foster mom does.   So he will have a bit of learning to do.  This will be more like getting a returned dog than an off the track dog. 

Rollie has been here for a couple of weeks now.  He has discovered squeaky toys.  He loved them.  Then one day he threw one in the air to catch it and it landed on Macho.  For whatever reason, Rollie decided to take the toy from Macho and a fight ensued.  A single puncture in Rollie’s shoulder and he broke his bottom K9 on Macho’s hard head.  But other than that, and some hurt feelings, he is ok.  Macho was not hurt. Now Rollie only plays with the toys when Macho is not in the room and he only plays for a minute.  I am hoping as he finds no more problems, he begins to play again.

He has only had two “accidents” in the house in the two weeks he has been here.  I suspect this is more of a separation anxiety and not knowing how to wake humans up to go outside in the middle of the night. 

Rollie is a loving, cuddly boy, who just wants to fit in to the pack.  He loves to eat, he pays attention (mostly) to what he is told.  Rollie like Ace, stays out of the way, but is always aware of where the humans are and listens for a call to come.  He is a happy boy who just needs someone of his own.

I think he likes it here

Dedicated to the ones we loved

sky, thor, macho

To all the greys I've loved before
Who traveled in and out my door
I'm glad they came along
I dedicate this blog
To all the greys I've loved before

twiggy

 To all the dogs I once caressed
And may I say I've held the best
For helping me to grow I owe a lot I know

Ollie

To all the dogs I've loved before

fog

To all the dogs I've loved before
The winds of change continue blowing

And they just carry them away

To all the greys who shared my life
Who now are in someone else's lives
I'm glad they came along
I dedicate this blog
To all the dogs I've loved before

macho

 To all the dogs I once caressed
And may I say I've held the best
For helping me to grow
I owe a lot I know
To all the dogs I've loved before

ace,macho,duke,river,effe

To all the greys we've loved before
Who traveled in and out our doors
We're glad they came along
We dedicate this blog
To all the greys we've loved before

ollie, mindy, kacey

To all the greys we've loved before

Thor, Rest in Peace 

A home for Khan

The first Saturday of each month, Erie Shore GreyhoundAdoption of Ohio has a Meet and Greet (M&G) at Petco, near Rocky River Ohio.  Bill and Ace normally go, and if we have a foster dog, the foster dog gets to go too.  So, on December 7, Bill loaded the Retired Racer Bus

with Ace and Khan and went to the M&G. We get a lot of interest in greyhounds and a good bunch of adoptions from this Petco.  This is the Khan’s story of how he got adopted.

Ace and I were standing in this store, which had all sorts of interesting things, critters, rodents and dog treats out on a big table.  Ace said we can’t help ourselves.  Since I had never been in a store, this was all pretty scary to me, but I was on my leash and Ace said it is fun to go there.  There were a couple of girl greyhounds there, Rain, came up from FL with me, and a couple others I didn't know.  It was nice to see some different greyhounds.  Anyway, I was standing there, and a human girl came up and started touching me in the nicest way.  Soon she was petting me, rubbing my back, using the right amount of pressure and oh my, it felt so good.  I leaned against her to let her know that felt good.  I lost my mind for a minute and pressed my whole body weight into her.  I felt her brace to hold me up, but she didn’t stop petting me.  Soon my man, who was talking to another man handed her my leash.  I was worried, but there was something about her that told me, I would be fine.  Plus my man was watching and I don’t think he would let me get hurt.  The girl took me to look at something called Ferret, and small rodents.  We looked at birds and something called cat. Then we looked at dog snacks and returned to the man and the other greyhounds.  Before I knew what was happening another man was petting me.  He reminded me of the girl and she was standing next to him.  I liked him, and he was petting me too. So I pressed against him so he could feel how strong I am and that he could pet me.  Next thing I knew, the girl was petting me again and the man was writing.

Soon we left.  It was fun being at the store with Ace, the man and other greyhounds; it was hard on my feet.  It was nice to get back to the lady and my bed.  I don’t know why we go to stores.

A few days later, my man took me for a ride in the car, by myself.  We went to see the girl and man that were at the store!  It was so nice to see them again.  I was so happy, I pressed against the girl and then the man, which is her Dad, and back to my man.  Then a cat came by and told me that the cat is in charge.  It scared me when it hissed at me, but I was brave.  Soon, my man left me at the house with the Dad and daughter.  On the way out, my man told me to be nice cause these people want me to live with them.  My man said he would be checking on me and if there were any problems, I can come back to his house.

I like living with the new man, and his daughter.  My soon to be Dad is Larry, and my sister is Alyssa.  I will officially be theirs in about another week.  Larry walks me and I got to meet some neighbors.  Soon the fence will be finished and I can run in the yard, once it warms up.  Larry and Alyssa love me a lot and I am starting to get into their routine.  The cat comes and hisses at me sometimes, but I don’t want to bother it.

Larry has purchased a new collar or two for me and is getting me a couple of new coats.  I am a happy pampered pet.  I hope all the dogs that came to Ohio with me get good homes like I did.

I am Khan

Prelude:  Khan wrote this about 10 days ago.  I was waiting to post it till I got a new picture of him.  But in the meantime, we have received an adoption application for Khan.  So, I thought I would post Khan's blog before he goes to see if he wants to live with the new people.

 My racing name was PGs Khan, they call me Khan.  I am 3 years old and taller than the dogs I live with.  I am Black.  I have 4 white feet and a white chest and underside.  My teef are beautiful and my front top teef are vewy long.  When people rub my chin, they can feel my top K9s.  I have white hairs on my back.  The man says, I want to be grey, so, I am growing in white hairs.  The lady says I have a Red undercoat, which she can see when I am in the sun light.

I like getting petted.  I like being gently held and petted and have words said to me.  Macho and River lay on the floor with the lady, and they look like that is heaven.  I would like to try that, I think.  I watch them and want to ask her to lay with me, but Macho and River will not allow her to get on the floor without one of them being right there.  They have made it clear that that they get most of the attention.  The lady takes time with me and sits on the stairs so I can come to her.  I stand with my side against her and she rubs me.  I press harder against her cause it feels so good, and she just keeps petting and holding me.  It is the second best part of my day.

Khan in the snow

The bestest part of my day is running in the yard.  They have a nice yard here, and I have figured out that I can run.  Macho will sometimes run with me, since I am faster than him, he gets grumpy then he cheats while running.  The best part is having the yard to myself and the lady comes out to watch me run.  She tells me I can run, and jogs in the yard to show me what she wants me to do, and I go and show her how fast I am!  I love the feeling of running.  I am fast, it feels so good:  I am a confident, proud, happy dog when I am running in the yard.  I run 8 figure 8s in the yard when she is watching, then I run to her when I am done.  She rubs me and tells me I did good, and she hugs me.  I am hot and panting, but she doesn’t care, she just keeps petting me and talking to me.  I like that.  Then she asks if I am done and together we walk back to the house.  I hold my head high and my arch is out of my back when we walk together, I know she is proud of me.

The other part of the day I like is the food part.  We get fed twice each day.  I have figured out where MY bowl is, and that the humans won’t take the food away while I am eating.  They don’t like it when I eat the other dog’s food.  I know it is theirs, but for a while, they were leaving part of their food just for me. Not anymore, so I don’t get to eat as much as I did when I first got here.  We also get treats here.  The others line up for their treats.  I stay on the bed next to the man’s chair, where I am safe and out of the way.  The lady makes sure I get treats too.  If I am feeling especially insecure, I will go in the other room when she brings a treat for me.  She leaves it on that bed, and keeps the others away from it so I can get it.  I sleek to the bed and snatch the treat and eat it.  She likes us to have Milk bones.  I don’t really like Milk Bones, but they are fun to crunch.  After I crunch them, I eat the big pieces and leave the crumbs for the others.

At the end of the day, we all go upstairs and go to bed.  We sleep on dog beds on the floor.  It feels good to lie down knowing the other dogs are with me.  I know that if I get scared the humans will get up to comfort me, and that if I need l go out, I can tell Ace and he will get the man up.  I feel safe, loved, and content when we are all sleeping together, and look forward to what things I can do tomorrow.

I hope the people that adopt me are patient and kind.  And I hope they will occasionally take me for a walk.

A New Attitude?!

Thank you everyone for the kind words after the last Blog.  I appreciate it.

This is a happy blog about Khan. 

Erie Shore Greyhound Adoption of Ohio had a booth at a show called the Christmas Connection.  It is held each year and thousands of people go to buy unique gifts from private vendors.  We go to encourage people to consider adopting a rescued greyhound, and to raise money. 

This year, the foster parents were encouraged to bring the foster dogs.  Bill and I signed up to take Khan on Saturday afternoon.  Saturday, was only a couple days after the “treat” event.  I was feeling that this may be too much for Khan to handle; but, we agreed if he panicked one of us would bring him home and take Ace back. 

We had a couple problems getting him to come through the entrance, but a little love and encouragement got him through the entrance uneventfully.  The entrance for vendors is at least 1000 yards of polished concrete until the first booth. Our booth is near the huge Ferris wheel and 500 feet from the first booth.  River can’t do the show because of the polished floor, Bill had to carry her in last year.  Macho is afraid of the Ferris wheel, so he can’t go.  Lots of things against us.  Anyway, Khan pranced across the long unending stretch of concrete.  We got to the show, and he didn't want to walk on the carpet that covers the walkway from vendor to vendor!  More love and assurance and he was walking again, not so proudly, but walking on his own.   We arrived at our booth and set to work.  Khan allowed everyone to pet him, wore the donation jacket and was all around a good guy.  When he got overwhelmed, he would go to the back of the booth and lean on another group member, or do the greyhound sit on a lap of a member until secure.  Then he would go and get more attention.  GOOD GUY!  Near the time for us to leave, he was trying to walk down the aisle way.  I realized he needed to go out, so we headed toward the 1000 yard walk.  Of course, people want to pet him and ask questions, so we didn't get to the walk to the entrance for about 10 minutes.  Right in the middle of the floor he stopped and pooped!  I told him we had to stop and clean that up, and I got on the floor to pick up the poo.  He was straining to get away.  I stopped picking up poo, and reached out and gave him a big body hug and told him it was ok.  He relaxed, and I finished, and out we went.   We returned and then shortly after, our time was over and we returned home.  Fog was there, along with a couple of the dogs that came on the hauler with Khan.  And Duke and Effy were there, they are the friendliest greyhounds. Maybe they all chatted.

Khan in his new collar

Khan was tired.  He didn't even eat standing up.  I put his food near him on his bed and he ate, laying down.  At 9, he marched up the stairs, without help, encouragement, or permission and went to bed.

He got up at 730 the next morning.  His legs and feet were obviously sore. He gingerly came down stairs went out came in and went back upstairs.  I fed the other boys.  River and Khan came down at 930, the time she normally gets up.  I fed them, he stood and ate and went back upstairs to sleep. When he got back up 4 hours later, he had a whole different attitude.  He is coming for attention.  I don’t have to be in view for him to come in or go out.  He will come for treats.  This evening, he even took a treat right off of my open hand!  He’s got a new attitude!  He seems happier and more confident.  Bill said Khan conquered some of his fears at the show this weekend. I think he realizes that he is safe with us and even if something scares him, we are there to support and protect him.

Poor guy

Khan is probably 28 inches tall at his shoulder.  He is black with a Red undertone.   He is starting to get white hairs all over him.  Khan has really long top K9 teeth.  When he got here he weighed 63 pounds, he is now around 70 pounds.  Khan has bonded to Bill, as my dogs believe Bill is the protector, so does Khan.  Khan would be a lap dog, if he could get on the furniture.  He loves to be cuddled, stroked, and gently spoken to.  His ideal place would be right next to a human with a hand that just gently rubs on him. He has a gentle soul.

This Blog is about the hard part of fostering.  Similar issues probably occur with non greyhounds, but all I know is greyhounds.  Khan is 3 years old now.  He is starting to have separation anxiety, but not bad yet.  We can work on that.  But this little guy, has been severely mentally abused, I’ve decided.

It appears that whoever worked with him in his formative years were bullies.  I believe the abuse occurred at the hands of his handlers. Khan will not walk past you unless he can see both hands and you are at least 3 feet away.  If we reach for him to reassure him that everything is ok, he backs away, tail tucked, head down trying to find an escape route. But his eyes never leave the person.  They must grabbed him or hollered at him every time they let him out or tried to feed him.

He literally snatches treats out of my hand, just missing me with those huge K9s.  If Bill tries to give him a treat, Khan is scared.   He paces and comes quickly, snatches the treat and runs to his bed, where he feels safe and he can watch what is happening.  So the other day, Bill tossed the treat to Khan.  OMG! He tucked his tail and ran to his bed and stood on it and shook.  It was very sad.  Bill felt bad. I felt bad, and Khan felt betrayed by the protector.  Bill gave him lots of love and kindness and Khan is forgiving Bill and becoming comfortable with Bill again.  One simple gesture that works for other dogs, undid 3 weeks of work. 

I am concerned that he may accidentally bite my finger when I give him a treat.  He is getting to the point where he stands with the pack and waits for a treat.  He is even coming for more treats, as my dogs do.   My dogs take treats so gently that a baby could give the treat to them. So, I decided that he is comfortable with us, and I would hold the treat as he took it from me, to show him I won’t hurt him. A mistake on my part.  OMG!  He had half the treat in his mouth and I had the other half lightly in my fingers.  When I didn’t let it go he started crying.  Crying like he was going to be tortured.  He let it go and he was whimpering and backing up while looking at me.  When he made it around the corner, he just stood there, shaking.  I  told him it was ok, and (stupidly) tossed the cookie near him.  That sent him running, as far as he could. (why didn’t I learn from Bills mistake?)  He found his safe place, next to Bill.  I went to pet him and he hung his head and winced, like he was going to be hurt.  I said to Bill, with tears in my eyes “what did they do to this poor guy??” 

Khan on his safe bed

I suspect they used to grab him when he walked by.  Probably by the neck and scream at him or something.  There is no sign of physical abuse. I have also decided they would throw things at him or on the ground and then run toward him screaming or something to harass him. They may have double teamed him and let him pick something off the floor and then ran toward him while someone behind him caught him.  Terrible treatment this guy must have endured, it breaks my heart.  Khan is by no means an alpha dog, so this treatment destroyed his confidence and made him a scared guy.  I don’t understand abuse of  any kind. Mentally abusing an animal would result in what?

He is still arched in the back.  He eats if people are still.  If I move or Bill moves, he leaves the food and runs in another room.  He does; however, love to walk on the leash, with dogs, without dogs it doesn't matter.  He is a strong confident happy guy while on his leash or alone in the yard.  The trainer would have been working with him for this stuff, which is why I don’t think the trainer abused him.

The treat event, damaged the confidence he was gaining with us.  He is better today; he came with the pack for a treat this morning.  He is not as confident as he was, but he is better.  

Play?

 My dogs are spoiled. They have a box of toys.  The box of toys is near their downstairs beds.

Ace likes to play with toys, so periodically, he’ll dig one out and toss it around and play with it.

Khan is still learning what retirement is like, so he watches what my dogs do, and learns from them what is acceptable.  My dogs are warming up to him.  Khan is frightened by unusual noises or movements: introducing toys was not going to happen for a while.

Ace in his younger days, was a player.  Now that his playmate is gone, he doesn't play so much, but when he does, he spins and tosses toys and chases after them, and occasionally, it is ok for Mom to toss the toy for him.

So, Ace had a squeaky toy and he was chewing on it and tossing it around and running 4 feet to get it.  A little while later, Khan got up and pranced his happy self over to the box of toys.  He gently took one out, and promptly put it down.  He went and laid down in what he believes is his bed.  I went and got the toy he got out of the toy box, and gently put it by his bed.  This particular toy doesn't squeak.  It is an elephant that crackles when chewed or tossed, I figured it wouldn't scare him, if he chewed on it.  I went about my business and soon heard crackling.  I peered around the corner and Khan was gingerly chewing on the toy.  Well, this inspired Macho so he went and got a toy and started throwing it in the air and catching it on the fall, and then spinning and doing it all over. Macho puts his heart and soul into playing, which right now is way to intense for Khan. Khan watched from the safety of his bed.  Soon Khan was carrying the elephant around the house. 

Later I let them all out and in through the patio doors. Near the patio door was a red stuffy bone, that is about a foot long and 6 inches wide.  He smelled it, looked at me and quickly ran in.  I took the bone and put it near him.  He grabbed it and pranced around with it.  He put it on his bed and in greyhound style, invited the toy to play with him. He decided he could chew on it and when no one said no, or moved to take it away, he gleefully laid on his bed and chewed and chomped.  Soon Ace came in and showed him that you can play with one toy for a minute and then get another and another and no one says anything. 

We have Kong toys.  They are heavy and are generally for heavy chewers.  My greyhounds love them. Every foster dog has found the Kong toy has managed to do some serious damage to the toy and or their teeth.  Khan found the Kong softball.  Fog had found the kong softball and was in the process of taking the bright yellow cover off of it, before he got adopted.  I looked at Khan, and he was carrying the kong softball all around the house, by the partially removed cover.  It looked like a Christmas ornament hanging from his mouth! He dropped it and it scared him so he ran to his bed.  Ace got up, grabbed the ball, tail wagging, and took it to his bed (nearly 20 feet away).  A little later, Ace moved from his bed to another bed, and Khan, got up, and stole the ball and took it to Khan’s bed.  This was deemed a challenge by Ace, so when Khan was looking for more food in the bowls, Ace stole the ball back.  They stole the ball from each other the rest of the day.

Now when Khan is feeling especially good, he gets the big red bone and chews on it.  The yellow kong ball is missing, it must be under something and I haven’t found it yet.

A side note, the boys are taking turns playing in the yard.  Khan invites Macho to play, so they chase each other, then Ace runs with Khan, and Macho stops, and then the three run together.  I noticed yesterday, that Khan is now inviting River to play too.  While she does not play with him, she does not stop him from running in the yard.  I watched him run in the yard after he talked to River. (boy is he speedy)  River went and stood near the deck and pretended to not notice while he ran a couple laps.  When Khan came in, he found his elephant and chewed on it, then found his big red bone, picked it up and dropped it in front of Ace, trying to get Ace to play.  I think Khan is gonna be a dog that plays!

Fog and Khan

So, I noticed with Fog, that he had an arch in his back for the first couple weeks and Khan has a similar arch.  With Fog, the arch came out when River finally accepted him to the pack. We’ll see how long it takes for Khan’s arch to go away. 

But my dogs aren't excited to have a foster dog in the house. They are not inviting Khan to be part of the pack.  I showed Khan where to lay the first night and that is where he stayed when he wasn't following me or jumping at every new noise or movement in the house.  My dogs are ignoring him, except Macho.  Macho is not inviting him to hang out with him, but he is tolerating Khan hanging around Macho, leaning on Macho and stealing Macho's favorite bed.  River stayed upstairs for two days after he got here, and Ace laid on his bed and just watched what was happening. 

Khan is just looking for a dog to tell him what is happening.  I figured, Fog recently went through this, maybe Fog would be able to explain to Khan what is going on.  And they came from the same kennel, they may know each other.  So I called Fog’s parents and arranged to borrow Fog. When we got off of work, I drove over and got Fog.

Fog came over and greeted River, then Ace, and lastly Macho.  Macho was not impressed, someone ELSE to take attention away from him.  Then Fog discovered Khan.  Sniff, sniff and all of a sudden both of them back up and their hair is standing on end.  I told them to stop.  A little paw stomping and huffing continued, but Khan ran off.  Soon Fog got done talking to the pack and I took my eyes off of them for a minute.  When I looked up, Fog and Khan were walking right next to each other, like a team of reindeer pulling Santa’s sleigh.  Same pace, almost as if they were tied together. It would have been a terrific picture, but no camera at the time.  Fog spent some more time hanging out in the yard, but Fog didn't want to run in the yard. And, he wasn't too interested in hanging out with Khan or River; although, he and River had a conversation which made River sad.  I let them all back out, my dogs came right back in, and Fog and Khan stayed outside.  “Good” I thought, “they’ll play now”.   I came in to get my phone to capture the perfect picture of them hanging out together.   This is what I got. Fog standing and Khan lying in the yard!

I took Fog home. When I returned, Khan was prancing around the yard.  When greyhounds are happy, they prance, it is sort of like a fancy horse trot.  When my dogs prance, I know that they are happy with themselves.  He came galloping to me and proudly took himself into the house.

Although they didn't get to run or play in the yard, the short time Khan and Fog spent together had a positive impact on Khan.  I suspect Fog told Khan that this is a good place, and he doesn't have to run any more or live in a cage.  I think Fog told him that it is good here. 

Khan has not had any “accidents” in the house since Fog left.  He sleeps through the night. He is still jumpy, but Khan will now take treats out of human hands.  And Khan really likes Bill!

Khan- the first 12 hours

Khan’s first hours of retirement in a house were pleasant.  He and his 7 companions arrived just after 5 p.m., after traveling for approximately 20 hours.  They were all happy to get out and stretch.  Fortunately, there were plenty of volunteers on hand to help get them off the hauler and attached to leash with a human at the other end.  All was well. 

After a couple hours of microchipping, bathing, pictures, romping in the yard, and food and water, 7 dogs and their responsible humans, departed to start their retirement life, leaving Khan with us. 

River of course was snarky.  Ace was tired cause he had been with Bill at Petco for 4 hours, leaving Macho to fend for himself with this dog, that is a skinny version of Macho.

Khan is not shy.  He is just not brave.  Any sudden movement, or unusual noise sends him 20 feet away from the fearful thing.  Tail tucked and a look of panic in his eyes.  A simple gentle touch and some kind words relax him and all is well. 

I fed him last night after the people left.  He ate 2 cups of food and drank a tablespoon of water.  Then he ate the rest of Aces food and then polished off Macho's.  He would take a break between eating.   He is eerily thin, so he can gain 20 pounds.  Soon he needed to go somewhere to poo. Ace came and yelled at me, so I figured Ace wanted to go out.  I got up and the 3 boys followed me:  only Macho and Khan went out.  Macho showed Khan all the good spots for a guy to pee, and then Macho showed Kahn, Macho's favorite place to Poo.  Since it was dark, Macho waited for Khan and they came running back.  Good Macho.

Bill carried Khan up the stairs so Khan could sleep with the pack.  Eventually, after River snarked and Macho growled, Khan laid down on the bed I had shown him after he got upstairs.  At 3 this morning, all  four dogs started moving around, which woke Bill up.  He got up, carried Khan down the stairs, waited for him to finish his dog business, and then, carried him back up the stairs. Once Khan got settled, they all slept till 730 this morning.  Yay!

Ace and River bounded down the stairs this morning.  Khan stood at the top of the stairs, so I decided to see if he could come down without waking the elevator.  Sure enough, Khan let me move each of his feet, down each stair, and together we made it to the main level, which allowed him to happily trot outside with the others.

No one wants to eat this morning.  Macho and River abandoned us and went back upstairs to sleep with Dad.  Ace claimed his downstairs bed and has not ventured off of it. Khan, well, he paced, he snacked, he drank 3 cups of water, he marked, he paced, he went out and in 20 or more times, drank some more water, and finally laid down next to me and appears to be nearly asleep.I think he is waiting for Macho to tell him what is happening but Macho is still sleeping!

Kahn will not leave my side. He will stay with Bill, but he knows who has the softest heart, and 

he can wrap me around his toe.  I can't get a good body shot cause he is with me when I am moving.For those that know Macho, this is NOT Macho.