Now, here's a little story...
Mike writes: (with photos at the end of his article)
Globetrotting Greyhounds – Paddy, Jewel, Rufus (and Arthur)
We’d lost Clive, our eleven-and-a-half year old greyhound, in November 2006. I was devastated and beyond console. Almost a year later, I was feeling the pain slightly less and was once again able to look at greyhounds. We were both the wrong side of fifty however and had decided (or so we thought!), not to have another dog. Lynne, after a lifetime of dog ownership, was ready for an easier, less-tying life. I didn’t want to go through the pain of loss again.
In September 2007, I decided that if I wasn’t having a grey of my own, I’d like to get involved with our local ex-racer rescue centre. I became a regular volunteer walker and occasional helper up at South Charlton. What’s the very first thing I see? Rufus, a white and brindle Irish lad who looked just like our beloved Clive (as well as 30 odd other beauties). Fatal Attraction. But more about that later. The time I spent at the kennels was bitter-sweet, with some of the happiest and saddest moments of my life. Such is the nature of being with rescue greyhounds.
Over the next three months, we walked the dogs three or four times a week. We came to feel attached to all of them, racers as well. It was perhaps inevitable that we’d make the move to ownership once again.
We took a real shine to a black and white bitch who barked all the time whilst in the run, but who took every opportunity she could to lie-down whilst out walking. Her name was Jewel and we seemed to connect with her.
In the next run to Rufus, was a big, boisterous (proverbial ‘bull-in-a-china-shop’) boy from Ireland called ........ yes, Paddy!! Almost entirely white, with a touch of tan and with slight dark lines like mascara setting-off his almond eyes, he was very handsome. He was very happy around people, but in the kennel was somewhat withdrawn. He seemed (and it has since proven to be the case) a dog who would need special care and attention.
Well, we now had a dilemma. Three dogs, equally deserving. We had talked before about having a grey again and had decided that if we did get another, we’d have two, as company for one-another. But not three. Another volunteer was also keen on Paddy, but couldn’t take him for a month or so. We hatched a plan ....
.... we’d take Jewel as Lynne adored her and foster Paddy until he could go to this other home, at which point we’d take my particular favourite, Rufus. This was in December of 2007. It didn’t work out that way however and Paddy stayed with us. The two dogs settled really well with us and all was fine. I couldn’t stop thinking about Rufus however. I consoled myself with the knowledge that Rufus had always been a robust dog and – as George had told me, ‘the kennels will be like a hotel compared to the dark shed where he had been kept’, so I lived with it.
Joy and delight was mine when I heard that Rufus had found a home! It turned to sadness and despair when I heard a week or so later that it hadn’t worked out. Our hearts opened and we had to take him. Given Paddy’s nature, we weren’t sure how they’d get on and we’d been warned about possible friction. As it turned-out, there’s not been a single moment of trouble between them – look at the picture ‘let’s get our heads together’!
So, we’re all settled in Northumberland when .... we decide to move to Sweden! I’ll not bore you with the complexities of the passport scheme, suffice to say that it was time-consuming and costly. In September 2008, we took Paddy and Jewel by ferry to Amsterdam and then drove the thousand-odd miles to their new home in Dalarna, central Sweden. I flew with Rufus from Edinburgh to Frankfurt to Stockholm, where Lynne collected us. That journey was, to-say-the-least, difficult. However, we got them there.
They settled well and were very much enjoying the wide-open spaces and the freedom – we lived in a house with 4 acres and no neighbours. We knew there’d be snow and ice from November and wondered how they’d cope, given their lack of body fat and thin coat. On October 31st we woke up to a foot-and-a-half of snow. How did they cope? ...... look at the photos and you’ll see .... very well!
Condensing time, we spent a wonderful 11 months together in Sweden but then decided ..... we’d move to Germany! And so, at the beginning of September 2009, we left Sweden with a Volvo and caravan, a high-cube long-wheelbase transit, a lot of furniture and three dogs! We drove 1250 miles, through Sweden, over the Oresund bridge sea crossing, through Denmark and down to the beautiful Mosel valley in mid Germany. Taking our time so as not to stress the dogs or ourselves, we took four days to do the journey and we had a ball. Never let it be doubted that greyhounds are excellent travellers!
So from one extreme to the other, Sweden with its minus 25c snow and ice, to the Mediterranean climate and vineyards of wine-producing Germany. The dogs have just taken it all in their stride and are wonderfully settled, but my mind was wondering again ...
All of the dogs I knew from my time at the kennels had by now found homes or had been moved on. Except a little, noisy and shy-to-the-point-of-stupidity, black bitch called Sasha. After much coercion and persuasion. Lynne agreed we might give her a home. When I spoke to Diane at the kennels to share the good news ..... Sasha had found a home and was having a super time on a farm! But she told me about Arthur, a lovely dog with only a couple of teeth left and a life-long condition called pannus, leaving him partially sighted. He also turns out to be the brother of Rufus! Well, given that I’m partially sighted too and that he’s Rufus’s brother, what’s a man to do!!
Arthur is currently being fostered by friends of ours, until 21 December when his passport requirements should be completed and we’ll collect him and bring him over too, just in time for Christmas.
Will this be the end of our greyhound re-homing and travels? Who knows. One thing’s for sure ....getting involved at the kennels and deciding to offer a home to these beautiful and graceful dogs – willing, affectionate and gentle – is a choice that we don’t regret, not for a single moment.
If you want to see more of their life with us, keep an eye on Lynne’s blog at www.bunmountain.blogspot.com