Off to the Races

My family thinks the DH and I are crazy and maybe to most
people we are, but who cares! Why do they think we're crazy? Because we are
going to adopt another dog, not just any kind of dog though, the DH and I have
decided to adopt a retired racing Greyhound. It's all DH's fault too because he
fell in love with the ones we met at Petco a few weeks ago. The look on his
face gave me all the ammunition I needed to add another dog to our family AKA
the family pack.

I'm not sure when we'll have our new pack member because I
still have to fill out the adoption application and go through a home visit,
but today's outing to a local store called Dog Dayz sealed the deal for us
about the breed. How could I have missed this breed in the past? They're
wonderful! They have the sweetest dispositions and aren't as high-energy as you
might think. Apparently they are affectionately nicknamed "The forty mile
an hour couch potato" because of they way they adapt to pet life after
racing.

Just so you don't think we're rushing into this, I have
spent the last few weeks researching the breed and talking with my vet to make
sure they understand the special needs a greyhound has. The breed isn't prone
to many illnesses like retrievers, but they are sensitive to anesthesia.
Thankfully, one of the two doctors at our veterinary office knows and
understands the breed as he takes care of quite a few.

After all my research, this is a breed I can see in our
family when we're older. I love large dogs and large lap and lovey dogs are my
favorite kind regardless of breed. Don't get me wrong I love my dogs that I
have right now with everything I am, but the connection I felt the first time I
touched the Greyhound was like going home. They have everything I love about
dogs.

So for the next year maybe longer if we're lucky we'll have
four dogs. I say lucky because we have an old guy named Chester who is 16 and
while his only major problem is a touch of arthritis, he is 16 and a large dog.
Recently he had some minor surgery to remove some growths and the biopsy came
back clear of cancer, however we have found more growths and decided not to put
a name to them because of his age. We will just keep a close watch over him at
home and with our vet and enjoy whatever time we have left with him. Some may say
we should find out what the growths are, but I've decided not too because the
last time we poked and prodded our Golden lost her will to live and within
three-months of her bladder cancer diagnosis we lost her. Not to mention I
spent most of that time wondering when her last day would be instead of just
enjoying her golden smile.

Maybe we are crazy
to add another dog, nah it's my family that's crazy for not loving dogs the way
we do. All I know is we've got the love to give and the knowledge to train and
live with our canine pack. So we’re off to the races for our next family member.