Echo and I will leaving for the ASFA International invitational in just a few weeks, so I thought she could use just a general exam and bloodwork. She gets these strange little growths on her from time to time that eventually dry up and fleck off, so I also wanted the doc to take a peek at one of those. Her general exam was unremarkable and her blood panel came back perfect, so she’s now got  clean bill of health! The vet said the little growths are nothing to worry about…most likely just a build up of oily skin material in her coat.

Melody was also in for a general exam and follow up bloodwork to check her kidney values. When she was at the specialist to have her toe amputed last year, her kidney values were off the chart. We put her on kidney-friendly food and rechecked at several weeks intervals and the levels did drop down. And ultrasound showed nothing unusual. This visit was just to take a look at her values and see if her kidney issues have progressed or stayed the same. Her creatinine was 2.7 (up from 2.1 6 months ago) which is elevated from what’s considered “normal” for a greyhound, but her BUN was within normal limits at 27. At this point, we are going to keep her on the kidney food and just recheck. However, the vet did clear her for toe amputation surgery, so we will be scheduling that in the next few weeks.

Tater was spayed last week and I noticed a little bit of fluid pooling around her spay incision, so I decided it was best to have the doc take a look. It wasn’t painful to the touch and the skin color along the incision looked great. It was just a little….puffy. The vet examined the incision and said he could feel that all the abdominal layers were intact, that sometimes the muscles just sweat a little fluid. He put her on an antibiotic just to be safe and said to keep her as quiet as possible. We’ll be keeping a close eye on that, for sure.

Peanut was in for a wellness visit last week and to have some baseline bloowork run…something we like to do for all new pups as soon as possible after coming home. Well, one of her values was a little high so they just wanted us to bring in her urine so they could make sure it was concentrating properly. Since she has had a few peepee accidents by the back door, it’s always best to rule out anything medical. I decide to bring her along with the urine specimen “just in case” they wanted to lay hands on her again for some reason. Turns out, her urine looked good and was properly concentrated so Peanut was just along for the ride. Which she didn’t seem to mind. She rides really well in the car and is just soooooo curious about everywhere she goes and everything she sees.

$200 and four healthy hounds later we headed for home…until the next visit!

Most of the hounds in the kennel had already been petted out or sent to other tracks to race, but there was one very special girl Heather said I just had to meet. She opened the top crate about four down from the front door and I peer in to see this beautiful black face peering back out at me. This timid little girl was crouched down in her crate and not quite sure why we were so interested in her. Well, aside from a shiny black coat, this girl had the most adorable roman nose. You don’t see roman noses every day in greyhounds and it seems even less common to see them on a girl.

I was immediatly smitten, but Heather assured me that she had a promising career ahead of her. And she did! In fact, she went on to race in Birmingham for a couple years before closing out her career at Gulf Greyhound Park just a few weeks ago. Over the two years she was racing for Fishdog Kennel in Birmingham, I would always stop by and say hello to her. And every time she’d cower to the back or crate and avoid eye contact. And every time I’d think the same thing: Awwww…sweet little girl. She seemed SO unsure of things, it made you just want to scoop her up in your arms and give her a big ol’ hug.

Heather had always told me her racing owner had an interest in bringing her home when she retired, if she didn’t go to be a brood. And aside from that, with her roman nose I figured there’d be folks lined up to adopt her. So, when Heather told me she was being hauled back to Birmingham and she wasn’t spoken for…..and that if I really wanted her, I could have her…well…that just set my mind to spinning.

Bringing her home meant going back up to our limit of 15. Did I want that? Was I ready for it? I struggled and contemplated for days. And I found my answer in the turn out pen of the overflow kennel at Birmingham. When I looked into Lightning Lee’s eyes, I saw my dog. Not a racing greyhound. Not a pet. Not a foster. I simply saw my girl. And I had no more doubt about whether bringing her home was the right thing to do. It was the only thing to do.

So thank you thank you thank you to Heather,  Team Greyhound, Toomanyhounds kennel, her racing owner and all the folks who helped Lee race straight into my heart and home.

Waiting to come inside for the first time…

Oh, did I forget to mention that this shy, timid girl in the racing kennel was pulling a fast one? Oh yea…turns out, she’s not shy at all! In fact, she’s proving to be quite a mischevious little thing! Stay tuned for all of Lee’s adventures and misadventures!

I was a nervous mommy dropping them off this morning, but I know the spay/neuter surgery is in their own best interest (and my peace of mind!). When I picked them up this afternoon, the doc said Primo came through with no problems whatsoever. Tater did great with the surgery as well, but her uterus was unusually long so her spay incision is quite a bit larger than it normally would be. Poor girl…it really is long incision

Both hounds were given the once over by the pack and then went off to rest. They’ll be on pain medication for the next few days, but I’m sure they’ll both make a quick recovery.

When I asked about her I learned that she was racing Grade A and winning enough to be moved to Gulf Greyhound when Fishdog left Birmingham.  I was so excited for her as Gulf is my “home track”.  I spent many a Thursday there enjoying 50 cent hotdogs and beer and dollar margaritas while watching some of the greatest dogs I’ve ever seen run.  I was in love with Slatex Shell, who turns out to be  Denim Day’s Grand-Dam.

Well, she has run her last race and is headed back to Birmingham to await our arrival.  We will be picking her up on Sunday and welcoming her into a pack that has taken on a young new spirit.  Stay tuned.

Most retired racers will chase…but it’s never a sure thing. And being off the track for so many years, I wasn’t really sure what Louie would do. My questions were soon answered! When he first saw the lure go round the course, he went absolutely bonkers. There was no question he’d chase! In fact, it took nearly all my strength to hold him back! He was entered in Singles because that stake does not require any certification since the dogs are running alone. His first course went beautifully. Despite being a large dog, I thought he handled the turns quite well. Not exactly the speediest hound of the day, but he loved every second he was out there and that’s really what it’s all about. After a short time to rest, he was ready to go again….and I’m sure he would have run a second time. But, I felt he’d done enough for the day and scratched him from the final run. Better to leave the field with a healthy, sound hound that still wants to come back for more!

Pictures from his run on Saturday…

He did so well on Saturday and recovered so nicely, I decided he could handle one more run on Sunday. I asked if he could be the “test dog” used to test out the lure on the course before the first official course is run, and the Field Trial Secretary, Robin, offered up her whippet to run a certification run with Louie. A certification is required for any dog to be entered into Open or Veteran competition. The new dog must run a course of at least 500 yards with a hound of a similar running style to prove that they will chase the lure (not the other dog), won’t interfere or fight…that sort of thing. Once they do that, the judge signs off and the dog can be entered in future field trials.

I muzzled Louie as an extra precaution, but it turned out to be unnecessary. He could have cared less about his running mate…He was focused on the lure the entire trip around the course. The judge signed his certification and now Louie will be ready to run when the lure coursing season starts up in the fall! Because of his age, he’s eligible to run in Veterans (dogs over 6), but he can also be entered in the Open Stake (dogs who haven’t earned their Field Champion title). I’ll probably run him in veterans, but we’ll see how things go this fall. Louie is in fantastic shape and, with a little bit more conditioning, I think he’ll have a nice career on the lure coursing field. I know he’s going to love it!

Stay tuned for more adventures of Lucky Louie the Greyhound!

Nearing the age of 6, it’s hard for an ‘older’ hound to be as competitive as the younger, fresher dogs. Someone forgot to tell Echo that though. She brought her A game last weekend and left the field with a 2d place finish on Saturday (forfeit in a three way tie for Field Champion) and a Best in Field win on Sunday. After taking about a year off from lure coursing and coming back at almost 6, I really thought this season would be fun runs. I would enjoy watching her run and she’d enjoy running. We certainly have had that! But she’s brought a level of competition that I didn’t know she still had in her. To say I’m proud and awed and humbled is an understatement.

Not only do I immensely enjoy watching her run, but she’s such a pleasure to spend the day with on the field. She can calmly watch a course in progress, having learned that her turn to run will come. She settles in the x-pen quickly and I can leave her without worrying she’ll try to escape or drive the neighboring cars nuts with a lot of barking.  She’s just a pleasure from beginning to end. My once in a lifetime girl.

All photos on this page are courtesy of Uma Rapiti Photography. Reprints are available from their site.

A nail biting moment as Echo (pink) and Cole (yellow) bunched up heading into the first turn. Wicked is in the background in blue

Her Best in Field final run with the very handsome Saluki, Pyr

Her Best in Field Trophy “stacked” photo…I imagine it’s a lot easier to get a stacked picture from a show dog!

The weather was pretty bad both days. Rainy and cold and windy. Ugh. But it didn’t seem to bother the dogs! The greyhound entry was very small – only 2 Field Champions, 1 Open and 1 Veteran on Saturday. On Sunday Echo was the only greyhound entered. I was actually glad she was the only one entered on Sunday, as that allowed her to run the course at her own pace.

On Saturday, Echo ran against Cole…Cole happens to be my favorite greyhound to watch lure course (other than my own). So, it’s always a special treat when he and Echo run together. After the prelim course, Cole was up by one point. Echo pulled it out on the final run to win with a combined score two points higher than Cole. I forfeited her Best of Breed run since she was going to be running on Sunday as well. It’s always nice to leave the field with the dog wanting more!

Being the only dog entered on Sunday, she was guaranteed the first place position and Best of Breed. Her first run was pretty sloppy as she blew a couple of the turns when she ran really wide. In true Echo form, her second run was MUCH better than the first. I had planned to run her for Best in Field because I thought she had plenty of gas left in the tank, but we were called home by Ken when Bodhi took a turn for the worse.

Despite the miserable weather, it was a great weekend of running. I got to watch some really nice dogs and chat with lots of great owners. We’ll be back on the coursing field next weekend for SEGC’s Run for Rescue (ASFA) on Saturday and the Lucy-Fox Cup (NLCC) on Sunday.

So, we are relieved that Tater is completely healthy at the moment and showing no signs outward (or inward) of being sick. Hopefully this bodes well for the general health of the pack. I won’t rest easy until we get test results back from Cornell, but that may take a week or so. And we may never know what took Bodhi so quickly and tragically from us.

So…we’ve kinda just let her blossom on her own. Sure, the first month or so she was here we had to leave the back door open and hide in order for her to come inside. She wouldn’t come near us if we were holding something in our hands or wearing a hat or if anything looked significantly different about us. But we let her be and didn’t push too much, too soon. It took months for her to fully trust us.

Then she discovered the sofa and regularly climbs up to sit with Ken or I. In fact, she loves to hog Ken’s lap whenever she can. We started taking her for walks with the pack…those first few were nerve-wracking for her. But, we kept her moving forward and didn’t give her mind a chance to work into a tizzy. We also always paired her with the dogs she seemed most confident with in the pack. Now I can take her walking with any combination of dogs and she actually enjoys the time out! At some point in the last couple months, we’ve just noticed her being a different dog – more mature, more confident and seemingly happier (less stressed) in general. She’s a maniac with the stuffies and has recently displayed an infatuation with chasing tennis balls. We decided she was ready to start developing her social skills out in the real world.

So, tonight was a big challenge. Probably the biggest challenge since she’s been with us. Petsmart. Yep. I decided to take her to a very public place, with all new people and new dogs and new sights and new smells. I was anticipating a meltdown…I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to get her in the doors. I’ve learned with Stella, that a spook can appear very comfortable and confident in their own environment, but revert back to their spook ways once things change.

So, I loaded her up in the mini-van with Bodhi and that went well. Deep breath. Driving to Petsmart she actually laid down and dozed. Another deep breath. I parked the mini-van, double checked her collar and leash and then opened the side door to let them out. Bodhi jumped right out, ready to take on the world (no surprise). Diva stood there looking, with a slightly concerned look on her face. I happily called her name and said “C’mon, D-Dog!” And she jumped out willingly. BIG deep breath!

As we approach the store, there were several cars passing by and I was hoping they’d just drive on by…but they saw us and decided to stop to let us across the crosswalk. Stopped cars on both sides, approaching the front of a store with sliding doors and I could see some people on their way out. Oy. The worst possible scenario for Diva! Again, I happily said “Good girl, Diva…let’s go!” and just kept moving forward, giving her only a little bit of slack in the leash.

And she walked right next to me! Right past the cars…right past the people…she didn’t even flinch as the doors automatically whooshed open! Once inside she started to balk, but I just kept her moving forward, happily chattering about going to find some treats or toys or something. And she kept moving! While in the store, she met a new dog (basset-mix), let three small kids pet her and walked by everything in the store – she even seemed curious about the fish and the cat toys. She stopped shaking after the first 5 minutes as we continued moving around the store. Once she seemed to have let go of most of her nerves, I stopped and sat down to let her just observe and take it all in.

“I’m not afraid anymore!”

I’m so proud of my Diva girl! We knew she wasn’t a true spook and believed if we just gave her enough time to let her figure things out on her own…pressing her with new experiences and socialization challenges every so often, that she would come around. And I think she’s almost there! I also think this is an example of how the “power of the pack” can help an unbalanced dog learn to live a balanced life. If you start with a healthy, balanced, harmonious pack, they can teach dogs things that humans can’t.

This weekend she’s spending the weekend with me in Atlanta. Echo has two days of lure coursing and I thought this would be a great opportunity to get her out amongst some great dog people (who are always great in helping to socialize a dog!) and she’ll have the new challenge of a handling a hotel. I would ask you to wish us luck, but I don’t think we’ll need it! A confident handler and a newly confident hound should be all we need!

….at least I hope…

 Ken chose his pet name: Bodhi Dogma (Bodhi is short for bodhisattva - Ken is Buddhist, for those who may not know)…here’s a pic our beautiful boy on the way home from the track:

While we were chatting with the kennel helpers about Bodhi and greyhounds and racing in general, I asked about a hound I’d visited often at Fishdog Kennels that has also moved over to Toomanyhounds. I knew Rights to Riches had been retired recently and I was just curious about how she was doing. They asked if I wanted to see her…and I said of course! I figured it might be the last chance I had to see her before she went to an adoption group in Tennessee. So, we went to the overflow kennel and they pulled her adorable overbite-having, buck toothed, wiggly-butt self out of the crate and my heart just about burst into a million bazillion pieces. I just had to bring her home. I just HAD to!!

So, we did While mulling over a name for her on the ride hom, a bit from Ron White came on the XM comedy channel we were listening to and it hit me: TATER! Yep, our new girl was definitely a Tater if I ever saw one. LOL (If you happen to not be familiar with Ron “Tater Salad” White, you are missing out on a hilarious comedian…and a Texan, Ken never forgets to add!)

We did it…We caught The Tater!

After a really long day (8 hours round trip driving for us)…we’re almost home and stop to get gas

Many thanks to Heather with Team Greyhound/Fishdog Kennels who gave us the opportunity to meet Wildcat Bob and Rights to Riches. And lots of thanks also to Melony Cleveland, the owner and trainer of Toomanyhounds kennel in Birmingham, for taking such fantastic care of our pups while they were racing. The dogs were absolutely gorgeous, clean and happy when we picked them up. It’s always great to work with wonderful racing folks at the track!