"I went to see what they were like in person"

My journey with retired racing greyhounds began in 2011 after losing my last Bernese Mountain Dog. I loved my Berners but felt I needed to step away from the breed with its extremely high rate of cancer due to a limited gene pool. I also wanted to step away from the AKC show world. Although my two Berners had finished their championships, I had witnessed first hand that the winning dog in many a show ring was more about either exaggerated traits or who was holding the leash. I did some research and came across greyhound adoption. I had very little awareness about racing. No strong feelings really, only some vague notions, most likely from seeing some anti-racing people somewhere along the line. But my research and logic told me that these purporse-bred athletes had relatively few health issues and life expectancy of years. So, off to a meet and greet at a local pet supply store I went to see what they were like in person. While there were no "adoptables" there that day, I did get to meet a few dogs and speak with their adopters. I submitted an application and began to look at the available dogs on the website of my local group, Greyhound Friends of NJ. After my application was approved and I spoke with one of the group's representatives, I had narrowed the candidates down to a few, with one strong candidate in mind, a stunning brindle and white male "Howdy Lou Do U Do". Meeting him sealed the deal and the journey had begun.

I discovered the greyhound adoption community both locally and on a much larger scale via Facebook. In 2012 I began volunteering, helping with intake of new dogs and various fundraising efforts, eventually fostering as well. And through Facebook, I quickly saw the never ending arguements between the pro and anti-racing communities. I traveled to other states to meet fellow greyhound adopters and in discussion with some of them, was pleased to learn the A.R. rhetoric was not true. In 2013 when the ProGreyhound Movement Group was born, I connected with Shelley Ann Lake and others who knew my Lou when he raced at the Woodlands, and Melony C Holdren and Jenn Boswell, who knew him when he retired from Birmingham. I discovered Bec J Maier had Lou's littermate sister Shania (Ready For A Couch) and later adopted a littermater brother Peyton (Swingin Beef).

After losing my Lou to osteosarcoma in September 2015, I received a call from Linda Lyman, the president of Greyhound Friends of NJ. She had been contacted by the Greyed A Greyhound Assistance and Placement Services, Inc. in Palm Beach, Florida about a dog who had recently been returned. His foster family had intended to adopt him, but could no longer do so because one of their other greyhounds had developed serious health issues. Would Greyhound Friends of NJ group take him? She of course said yes and then reached out to me asking if I would consider adopting him. Although it was only a month after saying goodbye to my Lou, I felt compelled to say yes. “What’s his racing name?” I asked. “Tytin” – a one word name like Cher or Bono. After hanging up, I fired up my computer and researched Tytin on a website which lists racing greyhound pedigrees and racing records. It was then I discovered my Lou had sent me a new dog to fill the space in my heart left when he crossed the Rainbow Bridge. You see Tytin’s dam’s (mother’s) name was Skippy Lou. Needless to say, he fit perfectly in my home as if he had always been there.

One of the many benefits of adopting a retired NGA - National Greyhound Association racing greyhound is that you can research their pedigrees and siblings. And through the internet and social media, you can make contact with their breeders and trainers who knew them before they came to your couch. In my case, I was able to see that Tytin had four other littermates, three of whom were still racing. It turns out that the breeder of this line of dogs, the W.H. O’Donnell and the North Shore Kennel family, is known for naming the pups with quirky spellings. In this case, the litter had football-themed names: Tytin (Tennessee Titans), Packkuh (Green Bay Packers), Wreckuhlect (call name Raven) and Dawmuhknows (call name Cowboy). The fifth sibling was named Ram. She did not show interest in racing and was adopted directly from the farm as a youngster. I followed the other littermates’ racing careers. In April 2016, saw that brother Packkuh was recently retired and was with Greyhound Pets of America - Canada. I inquired about adopting him but found out that he was being fostered with intent. Glad to know he had found a family, I let the breeder know and inquired as to how the other two siblings were doing. I was told they were both still racing but would be heading back to the farm in Kansas. I asked if they would keep me in mind for when the siblings retired from their second careers as brood matron and stud dog. Fast forward two months to the end of June when the group in Canada contacted me. It seemed Packkuh’s adopters, being first time dog owners had discovered they were not ready for dog ownership and had returned him to the group. Would I be interested in adopting him? Once again, the universe had seen fit to place another wonderful North Shore dog in my path. I drove up to Canada in July and Packkuh, now called Jack, was reunited with his brother. To see these two play and enjoy each other’s company was very special. With so many adoption groups all across the country, I felt truly fortunate to have been able to adopt two littermates.

I kept in touch with their trainers and breeders via Facebook and Messenger and was excited to learn in June of 2017 that Raven was expecting her first litter of pups. On August 22, 2017 she gave birth to eight puppies, two male and six female. Mamma Raven and babies were all healthy and happy. At the end of October, I received a message that Raven was ready for her couch and could come home to me if I still wanted to adopt her. They had her spayed and health checked in Kansas in November and a friend of mine graciously agreed to pick her up for me in mid-December and let her stay at her house in Indiana for a couple of weeks. On December 29th I drove out to Indiana with the boys and the three siblings were reunited.
I am so very proud of my three retirees who are not only amazing athletes and wonderful pets, but also as blood donors they are canine heroes .

Reasons why retired racing greyhounds make ideal blood donors:
“Universal Donors” – 70% of greyhounds have a blood type that allows their blood to be used for donation in all other breeds.
Athletic conditioning – Racers are bred and conditioned to be in prime health. They have a higher packed cell volume/red blood cell count and lower white blood cell count than most average canines. They also have a lower than average platelet count.
Anatomical advantages – Very little fur or body fat makes finding an access vein much easier on a greyhound.
Disposition – Racing greyhounds are accustomed to being handled by many different people during their racing careers.

Breeders and their farm staff and families, trainers, racing kennel assistants, track officials, veterinarians, lead outs. This in addition to their overall calm and gentle nature make them well suited as donors.

I have so many people to thank for these wonderful dogs, both in the racing aindustryand adoption. The O'Donnell family - Danielle O'Donnell, Billy O'Donnell, Ryan Odonnell) who bred, raised, trained and owned these beautiful pups. The racing industry trainers who cared for them during their racing careers - Jaime Testa, Stephanie Brooke Elrod, and Brianna Burkhart who also cared for Raven as a brood back on the farm and helped her whelp 8 beautiful pups last August. Adoption folks fom Florida to Canada who worked with me to bring these three together: Jennifer Rosenblum, Mary Ann Dituro, Robyn Kessler Schulman from Greyed A, and Linda from GFNJ, Erika Gowanlock, Dominie Watts, Sheran Alwis from GPA Canada, and Danielle, Bec, Bob Crossland who helped get Raven to me.

They say it takes a village and in my case the village is large. I view retirement/adoption as the next phase of the racing greyhound's life after birth and their puppy days on the farm, and then their professional athlete days training and racing (with the addition of time back on the farm for breeding for some). No other breed has such a diverse and healthy gene pool, exceptional care, socialization and training and as successful and adoption program. We cannot loose this treasure of the canine world.

Maria Hladczuk