Colorado Greyhound Adoption

While working for the SPCA in Los Angeles, I attended an adoption event that brought several groups together; one of the groups was Greyhound Pets of America who only had one volunteer and dog there.

Since greyhound racing is illegal in California, I'd never seen a greyhound before in person and could not get over this regal, elegant and incredibly sweet dog.

Later that month, I ran into another greyhound at the bookstore. A beautiful black male named Cairo. From then on, I began to see greyhound adoption groups at local Meet and Greets and kept thinking, "Can they all be this sweet?" They can! They are!

When my beloved mixed breed Ziggy died, I adopted Jet, and then came Meerkat and Argus along with Kira the "Sheperman" (German Shepherd/Doberman - greyhound wannabe)

Once you've been loved by a greyhound there's no turning back. --Roxanne

I adopted my mom from Colorado Greyhound Adoption one year ago this week. Since mom always cries when she tell my story, I think I tell you all how I find my forever home. Here my story:

I used to race in Tucson, Arizona. I love to run, but I really just wanted to play with the other dogs instead. I tried and tried to go fast, but I always lost. Nobody know what happened to me after my last race in January 2006, but when Colorado Greyhound Adoption got me in March 2006, I was starved real bad and 30 pounds underweight. To survive I had to eat sand. I almost die on the operating table when I get spayed cause my insides so swollen full of sand and dirt. I was a very sad, sad girl. It would have been easy for CGA to give up on me since it was also very expensive – over $5,000 dollars to get me better. But CGA save me anyway. My guardian angels were my foster moms, Joann Beltrame and Cami Ross. I had to take lots of pills and get poked with big needles. It take me 3 months to get better. My foster moms cleaned up after me when I got sick. They didn't even get mad at me for making big, stinky messes all over their house and car when I had tummy problems. They cared for my body and nourished my spirit and healed my soul. I start to think that maybe the world isn't such a sad, scary place after all. Marcia Greer coordinated lots and lots of vet visits. CGA paid the big bills. When I ready to be adopted, Chris Benedict even take me on Petline 9 where I show off my butt. There so many CGA people who never give up on me.

Finally adoption coordinator Sam Quitman send me my forever mom in May 2006. I so happy to see my mom! I waited for her for a long time! Now I am a so happy girl! Mom promise I never have to go hungry again. I have lots of people I love now. Sue Brown teach me good manners. The bestest vet in the world, Stacey Jones, keep me and my sensitive tummy healthy. Aunt Sam Quitman invite me over and give out the yummiest treats ever, plus I get to play with Jayjo and
Cosmo. Aunt Kay Roberts let me be Ambassadog at CGA events and let me hang out with my best bud Jasper. Jeff and Pat Spranger run the very first Meet n Greet I ever go to with my mom and show me how to find the suckers who give good ear scritches. Malcolm MacGreygor teach me to use the computer to write about my adventures.

I gots lots of friends now. We go to CGA events all the time. I love everybody, and mom joke that we slowly paying off all the big medical bills by volunteering. Har Har!

So on my one year anniversary with my forever mom, we both say big thanks to everybody at CGA.

Love,
Coffee Doodlebug Sweetpea Fuzzbutt Henderson

Growing up, I would see the occasional commercial for greyhound adoption, and from those commercials I decided that one day I would have a greyhound. I would try to convince my parents to get one, but they never fell for it. Well, I went off to college, got engaged and finally moved to an apartment that allowed dogs. My fiance at the time was convinced that he wanted to get a "sporting" dog (i.e. a spaniel or setter) until the day we were at the Ren Fest and met the greyhounds there. He was won over by the greyhound, and we decided to adopt our first grey.

We were living in Laramie at the time, so we had someone drive up from Ft Collins with Warrior, who was also his foster. He spent several hours with us and ended up going home without his foster. :) We decided that we would not get another dog until we were able to buy a house and had more room. Well, that idea didn't even last a year when Jenny came to live with us, a shy, scared little girl, as an emergency foster that never left.

Well, I have made several moves, gotten married and divorced, and through it all my greys have been with me. My new fiance is now won over to greyhounds and is reluctant to let me have any other breed of dog, not that I can even imagine not having a grey in my life. --Naomi

I too was a cat person for many years (mostly because my mother never would let me have one), but I loved dogs too and just about everything else with four legs and fur. I moved up to the mountains in 1995 and by the following year kept thinking about getting a dog to keep me company on all my runs, hikes and bike rides. My husband at the time was fine with whatever I wanted to do...not that that would have made any difference :-).

Well, in early Spring of 1996 I happened to be at PetSmart in The Springs and GAP was there with a few dogs and I spent a good while petting all of them and talking to them and was so amazed at how sweet and laid back they were. From that day on I knew that a greyhound would be the perfect dog for me and in May I went to the track in The Springs where GAP was located along with one of my kitties. I will never forget that day because amongst all the barking and jumping hounds was this beautiful dark brindle girl named Cutie who was just quietly laying down in her crate and looking at me as if to say, "Hey you out there....I'm going home with you."

And of course she did and we spent many hours together on rides and hikes. She saw me through my divorce and in her last year through major surgery and my first cancer diagnosis. She was always there for me and was my best friend for the eight years I was privileged to have her. I then saw her through her last months and made her life as comfortable and happy as I could, but finally had to say good bye too early when she was 10-1/2 in the summer of 2004. After spending all those years with her I knew that I would always have one (or more) of these sweet hounds in my life. --Christina