Many times in the past 6-1/2 years, questions would arise about Tanner’s racing name, and if he won any races. We always replied we had no information on Tanner because two of his tattoo numbers were blurred and very hard to read. When we first adopted him from Hemopet, we called the National Greyhound Association trying to find a match. After many unsuccessful attempts, we finally gave up.

About two months ago, I got a call from Diana Anderson, the Greyhound Genealogist Extraordinaire. The conversation started out very strangely. Did Tanner have a lot of ticking? And were his fawn markings much redder when he was young? Could one of the blurred numbers be a 5? Diana had found him! Tanner’s racing name was WR’s Bishop. Diana made up a complete package with all of Tanner’s pedigree. It was very interesting to see the names of his littermates and the entire genealogy of his father and mother (including a couple of famous greys in his background). But there’s more to Tanner’s story.

Last month, I helped out at a NNC show that I originally was not going to attend. And my foster was having a difficult time, so I took only Tanner with me. While still in the parking lot, a couple stopped us with a greyhound in the backseat of their car. "Oh look", they said, "your greyhound looks just like ours". Janice and Martin Carbone had just lost their male greyhound and they were taking Alexandria on an outing. As we talked for a few minutes, we discovered that Tanner and Alex were both 10 years old. And, they were both born in November of 1991. Could it be possible? We checked Alex’s tattoo numbers and, well, the numbers were very blurred and hard to read. Janice had mentioned that when they adopted Alex from Operation Greyhound, her name was "Lynn". The first thing I did when I got home that afternoon was to check Tanner’s paperwork. One of his littermates was named WR’s Lynn. All this time, Tanner and Alex were living a relatively short distance from each other. Did they recognize each other after so many years? Who knows? Both Tanner and Alex wagged their tails, and Tanner play bowed to Alex. With all the weird circumstances surrounding this story – anything is possible!

Some of you will remember Justin from Hemopet.  He won the prize for the most "Wild & Crazy" at the 1996 reunion picnic.  He had quite a reputation of being aggressive and strong.  We fell in love with his wild nature. He still manages to charm everyone he meets.  Two years ago we moved to Santa Fe.  All three of our greyhounds Justin, Jenny and Darla have adjusted to our new home in the hills.  We have lots of land for them to run and play.  But in August, Justin developed a limp that would come and go.  We thought maybe he had stepped on a cactus or rock.  By early Sept, his front right leg was swollen.

After an examination by our wonderful vet, Dr. Bob Gruda, and x-rays, we knew Justin had osteosarcoma.  And a biopsy confirmed our worst nightmare.  Luckily, it hadn't spread to the lungs. Now what should we do? The thought of amputation just broke our hearts. I went on-line to see what the latest research showed and our vet consulted his mentor Dr. Steven Withrow of the Oncology Group at Colorado State University. We discovered that early detection, amputation and chemo provided the greatest chances for survival. Here are the numbers: 

Before relocating last December, from Orange County to Colorado, we had to have our 11 year old male Grey, R.J., put down because of an aggressive blood borne cancer. We decided we would adopt another Grey in Colorado and assumed we would go through the usual process with an adoption group. That thinking changed when we heard about a breeder from a mutual friend. After a brief round of phone tag we made contact with the breeder’s wife and learned they had two or three dogs available to be "petted out", one an 8 1/2 year old female that had been used as a brood bitch for several years. We made arrangements to visit.

Spaying would be put off for a couple more weeks until the infection was under control. Once her mouth was cleared up and she got on a regular diet of Eukanuba kibble, her skin stopped flaking and her coat became very soft and full of color. After six weeks, Dusty has blossomed into a wonderful pet and companion. She follows us from room to room with a distinct smile on her face and a glow in her deep dark eyes. I’ve never seen a Greyhound that wagged its tail more than this little girl. You can see in her eyes that she truly appreciates her new home. She has a lot of personality, gets along very well with our other two dogs and is always ready to play. Dusty has a lot of love to give in her remaining years. Too often when we consider adopting a Grey, we don’t think about the plight of these wonderful animals, it’s always "all about us". We want a younger dog, a certain color, a male or female, etc. We don’t consider the older dogs for various reasons and miss out on an opportunity to experience the love and affection they have to offer if only given the chance. Sure, they may only have a few short years of life left, but, given the chance, they will make those years very special to their new people. Take it from us - you won’t regret the experience.

THEY JUST KEPT COMING!

Wow!!! Have you ever seen so many people?? To all who volunteered your time for a shift at the America’s Family Pet Expo, Thank You!! Many came from as far away as San Diego and Sunland. Many pulled more than one shift in order to cover last minute and emergency cancellations. You all struggled with a severe lack of parking, a long trek to the building, and the huge crowds. And that was just to get to the Needle Nose Crew booth!

Once at the booth, you all worked up a huge thirst talking with the waves of folks enjoying the Expo. Was it all worth it? You Bet! Would we do it all again? You Bet! However, it doesn’t get done without each and every one of you who so generously volunteer your time to help.

In addition, a huge Thank You goes to Carole Oglesbee for her heroic efforts, in an extremely busy time, in pulling this show together. Putting together shifts of not only the appropriate people, but also appropriate dogs for a three-day show, takes many hours of volunteer time. Your courtesy, enthusiasm and commitment to the greyhounds make it all worth while to those who spend their own free time putting together any and all of the shows the NNC does. Look at the greyhound at your feet right now. There lies the reason we all do the volunteering we do. Thank you from them and thank you from all the other greyhounds in various foster homes, pet kennels and track kennels waiting for a home just like yours. Your hours of volunteering are very much appreciated. See you at the Expo next year!

Bill & Jacki Dahl for their loss of big boy Shooter. Robert & Marie Mason for their loss of sweet Amber. Jerry & Lynda Schulte for the loss of lovable Shelby. Dave & Greer Bunch for their loss of heroic Mickey. Marilyn Merritt for her loss of soulmate Mick. John & Denise Konecny for their loss of tolerant Volocity. Lorri Tracy for her loss of the queenly Miss Buffy.