"I thought 'it's like getting a dog with a cheat code'"

I literally waited 20 years to adopt a dog. I always had dogs growing up. You know when you're a kid and you beg your parents to get a dog and they give you the "you'll have to walk, feed, brush, bathe, etc" it talk? I did all of that for my sweet husky, Tasha, as kid.

Once on my own, I really wanted my own dog, but I knew I wasn't ready. I looked at dogs in shelters every once in a while, had bunnies, took in a kitten, but I still wasn't ready.

Finally, last year, my husband had finished school, got a great job, I was doing well so we were ready. We saw some greyhounds at a meet and greet and my husband and I thought they were really cool dogs, but I had my heart set on a husky. I started doing research and found out that greyhounds do well in apartments. Having grown up with labs and huskies, I didn't want to keep one in a one-bedroom apartment so we agreed on adopting a greyhound.

I started browsing available dogs in various adoption groups and found one I really liked, so I pulled the trigger and sent a message wanting to put in an application. That dog was just adopted. I was frustrated but continued browsing for weeks until I found another I wanted. I emailed and they had me fill out an application. So I did, super excited that I would soon have a dog I've waited so long for.

Unfortunately, this process was tedious — I was two weeks into playing phone tag and trying to line up references, etc when a lady came into the dog-friendly restaurant i work at with a greyhound. I commented on how cute her dog was and told her that I'm in the process of adopting one, myself. She introduced herself as Sharon Dippel gave me a business card for GST's Sun State Greyhound Adoption and told me that if I have any questions once I get my hound, to feel free to call her. I thanked her and put it in my pocket.

Two weeks later and this group had pretty much stopped answering my emails. I was beyond frustrated. I've waited so long, I'm finally trying to get a dog and we've hit every obstacle. So I wrote Sharon an email asking if I could adopt a dog from her group. She replied right away and told me the dog she had with her that day was available. It turns out she was at the restaurant that day to meet a potential adopter who changed her mind and didn't show. I said I'LL TAKE HER!

A few weeks and a Hurricane Irma later, Sharon came to our home with this sweet girl. After a couple of days of adjusting to the cat and stairs, she settled in with no problems. I was amazed. I thought "it's like getting a dog with a cheat code". No accidents, no barking, no whining, no chewing, no counter surfing, no fights with the cat.

Then I got invited to a meet and greet and the rest is history! I never had an opinion about racing, but I learned a lot from my fellow volunteers — now friends.

This is my sweet girl, Ellie (FKA Kenro Benelli). I take her everywhere and she's spoiled rotten! But, she deserves it because she is so well behaved. I have the racing industry to thank for that. She was worth the wait.

Mary Beth Constante