GREYHOUNDS AND CYBERSPACE
By Carole Oglesbee

For any of you out there who want to know what is going on in Greyhound rescue....check out the Internet!!! It is absolutely amazing how many sites are dedicated to greyhound information. Just in case you're not familiar with all of them, we thought we would list some that are local, national and/or just plain interesting. To start with, the Needle Nose Crew's previous newsletter issues can be viewed by visiting the Greyhound Journal's website at http://www.greyhoundjournal.com/. The five rescue and adoption groups in Southern California each have their own web pages, all containing wonderful information about our marvelous hounds as well as individual group activities. You can reach Operation Greyhound at http://members.aol.com/opgrey, Greyhound Pets of America-CA at http://www.greyhoundog.org/, Hemopet/Pet Life-Line at http://www.home.earthlink.net/~philepler/hemopet.html,Greyhound Pets of America-CA-OC/GLA at http://www.fastfriends.org/, and Retired Racers at www.qnet.com/~buncepride. There are a couple of auxiliary groups that should be of interest to many of our readers. Those of us who have adopted some of the Operation Greyhound greys and a lot of the Hemopet and Retired Racers greys are tied to the wonderful folks at Greyhound Adoption League in Tucson. Through GAL, Gary and Lorri Tracy provide a steady flow of greys into the Southern California area. Their web page can be accessed by logging onto http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/greyhounds. Many folks have had the pleasure of meeting Maggie McCurry who operates Wings for Greyhounds, an organization whose members fly our wonderful greys to both rescue and permanent homes. You can check out Maggie's group web site at http://www.wingsforgreyhounds.org/. Two of the most popular and well-recognized national web sites come from Bruce Skinner's A Breed Apart at http://www.abap.org/ and Greyhound Project at http://www.adopt-a-greyhound.org/. These two web sites allow our readers to hook up to almost any greyhound group's website in the country. They also include wonderful information and resources for those who want to expand their knowledge of the greyhound. Two other sites that are full of information and plenty of on-line chatting are Fastdogs and the Greyhound-L. Fastdogs can be accessed by logging on to www.fastdogs.com. The Greyhound-List is a subscription site which you can sign up for by e-mailing Lynda Adame at listserv@apple.ease.lsoft.com. If you are interested in on-line interaction with other greyhound addicted folks, check out these spots. Just for the fun of it, try logging onto Greyhound Greetings at www.geocities.com/heartland/pointe/8290 and Daisy Mae's home page at http://www.greytdaisy.com/. Both are intended to be fun and interesting, and both succeed. We all need a little silliness and sweetness in life, and these two sites can certainly fill the bill. Remember, as you look through the above pages, they will all give you more "links", other pages to investigate, which will provide you with hours of fun and education. Cyberspace is a great tool for all of us . . . so log on and start investigating the wonderful world of Internet Greyhounds!

DOG PARKS REVISITED . . .
By Mike Gallas

The long days of summer are just a few days away. Time to get the greys up off the couch and outdoors for some fresh air and exercise. But Where? I am sure that every greyhound person has heard "The Warning" repeatedly. "Greyhounds can only be off lead when they are in an entirely enclosed area." This limits possible recreation areas substantially. The obvious choice for many is one of the local dog parks; Laguna, Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach; just to name a few. At first glance this may seem like the perfect solution. Yet, in actuality, dog parks may prove problematic for several reasons. First, Disease! Veterinarians all over the county agree that dog parks are a breeding ground for illness, especially kennel cough. Sharing water and toys with so many strange dogs as well as the high concentration of dogs in a limited area greatly increases the chance of spreading disease. Another area of concern is the aggression problem one faces at dog parks, especially at peak hours, i.e. weekend afternoons. I have visited most of the dog parks in the Orange County area at least once, many several times, and there is always at least one "schoolyard bully" who gets his jollies by picking on the other dogs. This is a hard situation to avoid since the dogs are not on lead. One does not have the luxury of turning the dog away from the troublemaker to avoid an altercation. To make matters worse, these canine troublemakers are often times the property of some muscle bound bonehead who thinks it's cool to watch his dog beat up the other dogs in attendance. Anyone who has spent anytime around greyhounds knows that greyhound flesh rips amazingly easily. It would not take much of a struggle with another large breed to create a serious situation. Yet, it is not uncommon for a greyhound or greyhounds to be the problem if all the right elements are present. One must always remember that before your sweet, wonderful grey entered civilian life he or she was a professional athlete, trained to chase down anything small enough to be considered game. There are greys all over Southern California that will "hunt" anything that moves from rustling leaves to the neighbor's cat. A dog park is certainly no place for dogs with a prey drive this high. More surprising and, indeed frightening, is the pack dynamics that develop when a group (three or more) of greys show up at the same time. I have seen very docile, seemingly low prey greys, turn into very determined hunters in the presence of fellow ex-racers. Greyhounds are very gregarious and love to interact with each other, which is great until another dog's life is at risk. Letting greyhounds get together for a group run is a great idea and beautiful to watch, but safety precautions must be enforced. 1) The area must be fenced. 2) The area must be free of anything that could be considered game, including small children. 3) Ideally, all dogs participating in the run are muzzled for the safety of all concerned. Many a mild sweet natured grey has turned into a snapping maniac when the adrenaline starts racing and the competitive spirit of track life floods his memory bank. A final warning about the Laguna Beach dog park in particular, is that it is only fenced on three sides. Park officials say this is because the wildlife living in the vicinity of the dog park comes down out of the brush at night in search of water. This open area can lead to some really scary situations as Carole and I personally found out several years ago. The queen of our castle, Addie, noticed the open area behind the park and decided to go exploring. Who knew Carole could move so fast!! Satisfied with her adventure, Addie returned scrapped up but intact. An incident we don't wish to relive any time soon! In summary - running your grey is a fun thing to do for both of you to enjoy. Just remember to keep certain safety precautions in mind, and if you must use a dog park ( a fenced in baseball field or schoolyard is probably a better choice), do not go at peak hours. Try a weeknight or early morning. Have fun with your dog, just do it safely.

THE WHEELS OF THE BUS WENT 'ROUND & 'ROUND
By Eric Shelman

Well, the strangely controversial GPA Los Angeles/Orange County bus trip to Calienté took place, and it was a pleasure. The bus was filled to capacity, with over 50 people joining the trip to see the rescue kennel and the beautiful greys in it. After seeing and playing with the dogs, we had a lovely lunch in the dining area, followed by the spectacle of what our dogs did before we acquired them. As they flew around the track, the dirt flying behind their feet, we couldn't but cheer them all on, still wondering which dogs we would be washing and kissing in weeks to come. So, this editor says begone controversy; the trip raised money for the dogs, and people enjoyed themselves. Thanks, GPA-LA/OC. We all came out winners that day.


REMEMBRANCES:

• Jeremy & Lisa Gause for the loss of Phoenix; 

• Steve & Gloria Carle for their loss of Harvey; 

• Ron & Barbara Pavek for the loss of their ten-year-old "Mama", Missy; 

• Tom & Joyce McRorie for the loss of Andy; 

• Dick and Sharon Lehman, for their loss of their beloved, nine-year-old, Ace. 

The Last Will and Testament of an Extremely Distinguished Dog By Barbara Meyer I ask my (owner) to remember me always, but not to grieve for me too long. In my life I have tried to be a comfort to her in times of sorrow and a reason for added joy in her life's happiness . . . One last request that I earnestly make. I ask her, for love of me, to have another. It would be a poor tribute to my memory never to have another dog. I would like to feel that once having known me, she cannot live without a dog!"