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!

And as soon as I posted that, I burst into tears. I was so overwhelmed having one dog in the hospital fighting for her life…a life that was already saved once by a dog who’d donated blood so she could have a tranfusion. Of course, Elvis and Casino are never far from my mind. Two blood donors we adopted as seniors who gave up their youth so that pets could be saved. At this point I had my laptop in my lap with tears streaming down my face, and Ken is wondering what the heck is going on. I blurted out, “I think I just adopted another dog. He’s a blood donor and he’s going to die if someone doesn’t take him.” And Ken, being my hero, says “Of course, we’ll adopt him. That’s what we do. Now, tell me about our new boy.”

I’ve often said that the stars had to line up just right for this dog or that dog to find their way into our lives. And Lucas is no different. One of the vets at the clinic in Nebraska had

 spoken to a vet friend in Seattle about Lucas. She was very upset that his prospects seemed so dim. She did not want to see him put down, but there just didn’t seem to be any alternatives. Enter Mary. Mary lives in Seattle and owns greyhounds…those greyhounds led her to visit her vet  just a handful of days before Dr. C in Nebraska was leaving town…and leaving Lucas to a grim fate. Mary’s vet just so happened to be the vet that Dr. C had talked to about Lucas. They mentioned Lucas’ story to Mary. Mary, unable to adopt Lucas herself, turned to Greytalk for help.

So, I pm’d Mary to get the ball rolling. I talked to Dr. C about our family and our pack. She shared more details of Lucas’ story. He had lived in a “foster home” for two years and the family turned him back in. They had a baby and another dog and, well, Lucas just wasn’t what they wanted anymore. Oh, and he started pooping “on purpose” in the house. Dr. C tried to incorporate him to her pack, but that just didn’t work out either. At the vet clinic, Lucas was  not very happy. He started pooping in his crate, which created a mess for the staff to clean up. So, long story short – Lucas was a middle aged greyhound who’d been labelled a house pooper with possible separation anxiety. Not exactly the kind of dog adoption groups or adopters line up to take in.

Except for us. There is a reason we call ourselves the GreyhoundFreaks! Last weekend volunteers drove him from Nebraska to Kansas City to St. Louis and finally to Tennessee. Friends of ours, Mike and Judy (who have quite a greyhound pack of their own!) kept Lucas over night and I picked our  new boy up the next day. Prajna and Stella rode with me on the 16 hour round trip drive to get their new packmate, Lucas.

We decided to rename him Lucky Louie which has several special meanings to us. First, Harmony’s primary nickname was Lucky Charms and I can’t help but feel she helped send him here. As sick as she was, she helped us find him.   Second, stand up comedy is one of our favorite things (life can’t be only about greyhounds) and it’s sort of an homage to one of our favorites: Loius C.K. Third, he is pretty lucky that all the stars aligned juuuuuuuuuust right for him to find a Forever Home instead of…well, the very unlucky alternative he was facing. Fourth, Loiue should be an easy transition to Lucas (though I’m sure he will still be Lucas from time to time too).

Butt sniffs all around as he meets his new pack…

It only took a couple hours for Lucas to find a soft spot on the sofa with Wuzho the Staghound. He’s found his FOREVER HOME and we love him to pieces.