THE JOURNEY |
GREYT TAILS |
GREYT ADOPTION PHOTO GALLERY
RAINBOW BRIDGE |
GREYTHOUND TREATS
GREYHOUND OBEDIENCE |
SENIOR SALUTE
The
Butler's Ark - Greyhounds, 1 and then 2!
By
Audrey Butler
I'll
admit it. I was hesitant about adopting a Greyhound. Here was a grown
dog whose history was completely unknown to me. What if he/she had been
abused? What if it didn't like me and attacked me while I was sleeping?
What if it ate one of my cats? After much debate with my husband, who
is a huge Greyhound fan, he finally convinced me to go to one of the "Meet
the Greyhounds" to see them and learn more. I'm so glad I did!
We walked into Bass Pro Shops, and I immediately was drawn to how sleek
and athletic looking the dogs appeared. They came in all sizes and colors
and were really beautiful. I found that I could walk up to any of them
and pet them, and they would just stand there and love all the attention
they could get.
Phil, my husband and I were both impressed with how friendly and knowledgeable the GALT volunteers were. They asked us all sort of questions about our lifestyle, other pets in the home, and our work hours. I didn't think that we would be able to adopt a Greyhound because I already had three "very lively" cats. After much discussion on how GALT cat tested their dogs, I felt a little more at ease. It was then when Susie McQuade mentioned that she thought Rachel would be a good fit for us. She was currently living in a foster home with two other dogs and a cat. We waited for Rachel and her foster mom to arrive, and she when she did; we were immediately drawn to her. She walked right up and wanted to be petted. She was friendly and curious, and she had the softest fur on a dog I'd ever felt.
Joanne Selzer, Rachel's foster mom, spent a lot of time filling us in on Rachel's personality. It was a real comfort to me that she seemed to know so much about Rachel. We completed an adoption application that afternoon and anxiously waited to hear. On the adoption application, GALT requires two personal references, which they actually called to check. I can't tell you how impressed I was with this. This meant that they cared what sort of home they placed one of their dogs in. It also made me feel like they wouldn't place a dog in my home, if they didn't think that it would be a good situation for all involved. After a week Joanne called us, and we made arrangements to have Rachel brought to our home.
I was scared. I didn't know how the dog and cats would react to each other. Simon, my most adventurous cat, walked right up to Rachel. She lowered her nose to him, they sniffed each other and that was it. That evening Rachel made her way around the house, picking up various stuffed animals to play with and eventually finding her way to the couch!
As we settled into a routine with our newest "kid", we noticed that Rachel seemed to be lonely. We contacted GALT and they informed us that Joanne was fostering another Greyhound, a four-year-old boy named Cole. We made an appointment to bring Rachel by that weekend to meet him. Cole was tall and thin, with wiry black fur, but despite his rough appearance, he had the saddest big brown eyes I'd ever seen. He and Rachel ran around the yard and after some discussion with Joanne about Cole's personality, we decided to adopt him that following week.
It was a little rough, settling into a routine with two new dogs and three cats. There were times I thought I was crazy and wondered what I had gotten myself into, but now, after four months, I can't imagine my life without them. Who else is happy to see me every time I come home? Who else can melt a bad day away?
Rachel was always affectionate to us; she jumps on the couch and curls up with anyone who happens to be there. Cole is another story. He was a bit scared and standoffish. I can't imagine what sort of life he had before he came to our home.
I have to admit it; but I'm now one of those crazy pet people. The kind that you avoid because all they do is talk about how wonderful their pets are. The kind that show you photos and tell you funny stories, as if their dogs are their very own children. My mother calls my home, "Butler's Ark". I also have to admit that I'm not ashamed of it either. My dogs are the most beautiful Greyhounds I've ever seen, well, to me anyway. I would urge anyone who is looking for a wonderful pet to consider a Greyhound. I'm so glad that we did.
I'd have to say that the best part of the whole adoption experience has to have been when I woke up one morning just a couple of weeks ago. The dogs were stretching and Rachel was bouncing off the walls, just delighted at the prospect of getting a walk and her breakfast. The cats were running around, chasing each other. I stumbled out of the bed and there stood Cole. I bent down to rub his head and he looked up at me and began to rub his head into my neck. He wouldn't stop. He just kept rubbing and rubbing. We were shocked. This was the first time he'd ever shown any sort of affection. It was as if he finally realized that this was his home, where he was loved, protected, and would spend the rest of his life - with me and my husband, his crazy sister Rachel and those three nutty cats.
