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Diary of a Dog Run
On August 12th, GALT made a "dog run" to pick up some newly retired greys. The following is a diary of the adventures by first time "runner" Heather Clark, mom to Ancho, AKA "Al".
5:15 AM
- My alarm goes off. Ugh! Why is my alarm going off at this ungodly hour?
This is why I freelance, so I don't have to set an alarm . . . then I
remember. GALT. I'm going on a dog run today. Hmmmm, it seemed much more
enticing as I described it to my husband, Mark, sitting on our front porch
Saturday night sipping cocktails.
5:45 AM - Showered and dressed in "old nasty clothes" as I was
instructed, I bolt down the stairs into the darkness. My 5-year-male brindle
greyhound and marathon sleeper, Ancho, thumps his tail as a "good
morning". Little does he know he'll soon be trotting his sleepy self
outside for a potty break a few hours earlier than normal!
6:35 AM - Plano, TX. I am about five minutes late, cruising one of the many Blockbuster parking lots in Plano searching for Susie McQuade and Carol Sahlfeld, who have taken vacation days from their jobs to make the run. My cell phone goes off and Susie politely inquires of my whereabouts - I have turned too early. We meet at the Preston Park Animal Hospital, where Dr. Jeff Ellis performs the majority of GALT's adoptee care, shots and surgeries. I greet Susie and Carol and climb into the enormous white van with GALT logo magnetic signs. I am not much of a morning person and down my coffee; we have more coffee and muffins for our journey. Always the educator and multi-tasker, Susie points the van down the tollway south as she tells me we are meeting Lynn Alexander of A to Z Kennels at the Texas Greyhound Association (TGA) in Lorena, TX, just south of Waco. The drive goes quickly as we chat about recent adoptions, GALT events, and life in Dallas.
8:40 AM - Lorena, TX. After exiting a bit early we locate TGA right off 35 South. We have been unable to connect with Lynn via cell phone; luckily, Zelda with TGA arrives and invites us into the their air-conditioned offices. Zelda has just had hip replacement surgery and thanks GALT for sending her a book to read during her recovery. Suzanne with TGA arrives and we spend a few minutes chatting about how their business has grown, we receive a tour of the almost completed office expansion that will include a mini greyhound museum and meeting room.
9:10 AM - Lynn has still not arrived, so Susie takes Carol and me on a tour of the grounds. TGA has turn out pens, kennels and a track, where greyhounds are doing practice runs. The greyhounds are in transporters that are like enclosed kennels on wheels, hauled behind trucks. They are taken out 2 at a time to the track, loaded into chutes, and released to chase a fake, furry lure about 30 feet ahead of them, 1 and ¼ times around the track. The dogs are lightning fast, even out of the chute. The workers curiously glance at us every so often and Susie gives them a friendly wave. I comment to Carol that we are taking the dogs on to a much, much better life and she agrees.
9:30 AM - Lynn arrives in a Suburban, along with 5 greyhounds in the back, the males crated. She has been driving since 5:30 AM when she left A to Z Kennels, just south of Houston. We unload them one at a time into turn out pens so they can potty and we can exchange Lynn's muzzles and collars for ours. Carol gives them each a pilll that kills all fleas within an hour. Lynn goes over their medical records with Susie; one of the dogs has had a reaction to some tick medication. The dogs are excited, pacing around in their pens, some whining, already racing up to the front for our attention. Our precious cargo consists of:
- CJ: A red and white female with unusual spotted legs
- Daisy: A beautiful petite dark brindle female
- Gail: A petite black female with a white tuxedo and the cutest little white paws
- Pye: A big dark blue male that doesn't want to stay away from the girls
- Ridgeback: A big red male that has a strip of hair on his neck growing in the opposite direction
As we are preparing to leave Lynn only has eyes for her dogs and is gushing over all of her "babies." "Daisy, Daisy, Daisy, you sweet girl, I'm going to miss you, come give me a hug before you go". Daisy rears up and places her paws on Lynn, covering her face with kisses. "Daisy was a favorite at the kennel," she confides. She leaves each of them with individual goodbyes and hugs.
Granted I have never met another kennel owner, but I have to think Lynn must be an extraordinary example. It is very apparent that this woman truly loves her dogs. As I watch her I can't help but wonder, what would the plight of retired racers be if all kennel owners were even a little bit like Lynn?
10:00 AM - We hit the road. Susie asks me if I would rather drive or ride in the back with the dogs and Carol. I don't tell her, but the last time I drove a van the size of GALT'S (a rental from Hayes Truck Group), I hit the drive-thru at a Steak and Shake. I climb into the back with Carol. The dogs are way excited, pacing around, panting, drooling, wondering where this next adventure is taking them. Carol and I have our hands full trying to keep the boys and girls separate.
10:15 AM - The greys' personalities are already emerging. Pye does not want to leave Gail alone, who Carol suspects is coming into season. Gail and CJ are tough cookies, snapping back at Pye and Ridgeback when they become too friendly. Another 15 minutes, and they all settle except for Ridgeback, who stands for the entire drive back to north Dallas. As I take inventory of the dogs sprawled out across the back, I can't help but think of how they could each fit into my house with Ancho. Daisy has passed out close to me, with her head on my leg. "Susie," I call up to the front "I'm in love." Susie gives a knowing chuckle "Which one?" "Daisy," I replied. "Ah, yes, she's sweet, isn't she?"
12:15 PM - Plano. We arrive back at Preston Park Animal Hospital. The dogs are taken out one by one so their blood can be drawn for a CBC and tested for tick-borne diseases. It is hot in the van, and the dogs are excited, pacing and running to the windows to see what awaits them.
1:00 PM - Carrollton, Houn' House. We arrive at Houn' House, a large boarding kennel and training facility, owned by the Chaillot family, out in what used to be the "country" of Carrollton, where GALT rents 6 kennels to house greys while they are waiting for foster and "forever" homes. We let the dogs out into an enclosed grassy area to potty. They are excited and curious about this next stop on their long journey and race around, sniffing and ever curious.
1:15 - After confirming the spaces with the Houn' House manager, we take the dogs to the bathing area. Now comes the really fun part . . . bathing, cleaning their ears, clipping nails and looking, looking, and more looking for dead ticks. Other GALT volunteers have arrived to help, and being new to the process, I assist Carol as I can, bathing, hoisting the dogs up, drying them off and searching for ticks. We do 2 at a time, and place the others in crates for their turn. The dogs being bathed are a bit shell-shocked and are pretty cooperative. We scrub and scrub CJ, hoping to reveal more of her beautiful white furs underneath her brown spots that we suspect are dirt. Susie says her coat may have to shed and then grow in again to see her true colors. It is hot, dirty work, but a kind Houn' House employee has brought in fans that we turn on the anxious, waiting dogs. As we finish each one they give greytful shakes, and have a new life in their eyes and prance in their steps as if to proclaim, "I feel like a new dog!"
2:30 - With so many hands, we have finished early. The dogs are settled in their new "digs", awaiting the results of their bloodwork and dreaming of their "forever" homes. Susie stays to talk to the Houn' House manager; Carol, the other volunteers and I leave, dreaming about our showers!
3:30 - Dallas. I arrive home, and can't even get through the doorway. Ancho is thoroughly inspecting me, sniffing over every inch of me with intense curiosity. I didn't think it was possible, but something about the day has drawn me even closer to him, perhaps an appreciation for what he has been through. I give him a big hug and head for that shower!
