Two weeks on.
Marnie has really settled in now. He wakes at 6 ready for a walk (which is just right for me walking him before work), he’s sleeping fine at night and has been fantastic. He’s a credit to the people involved in rescuing and fostering him.
His recall is improving. I now use a whistle as this appears to be more effective than attempting to shout ‘Come’ accross half a mile of field. He’s still a bouncy excitable boy when it comes to preparing to go for a walk, which is a little disconcerting at first as he’s quite a tall dog but his enthusiasm is not unmanageable.
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Tags: dog
A week on
We picked Armani up last Monday, driving to and from his foster home in Norwich. I was excited and nervous, worried about one hundred and one different things but I needn’t have been. ‘Mani seems to be settling in really well, he’s very laid back and takes most things in his stride. I took a week off work to help settle him in and also so we could become better acquainted.
Walkies have been four times a day and we’ve been to various places too, just to see how he behaves. Holt country park, the lanes and fields round Bodham, to Stiffkey and to Wells. He is fantastically well behaved on the lead, only really ever pulling when he sees cats, rabbits, chickens or sheep. He doesn’t poop in the garden, preferring instead to ‘go’ whilst out walking which is great for us as we have three young children.
We’ve had a few late nights and early mornings (one or two nights when he found it difficult to settle) but nothing more than you would expect from any dog when he or she is settling in to a new home.
He obviously worries when we visit people that he is going to be left there, and for now I have decided that if he is becoming stressed I will allow him to lie in the boot of the car – with the intention of slowly weaning him off the security it provides over time.
One behavioural quirk he has, which I am led to believe may be a result of his race training, is that if he poops on a dirt path (such as you might find in woods), after wiping his feet he feels compelled to run off at full speed. This is apparently due to greyhounds being prevented from emptying their bowls until immediately prior to racing, resulting in mentally conditioning the dogs to expect being required to run after toileting.
‘Mani already had a good grasp of basic commands when he came to us
- lie down
- come
- wait
- off (the sofa, or out of the boot of the car)
- up (into the boot of the car).
His recall is fairly good. He does come back – with the proviso that there is nothing interesting going on elsewhere and it is in is own time – so am hoping soon to be able to let him off the lead.
We’ve insured him (just under £17 per month with Tesco – lifetime insurance for conditions like diabetes and epilepsy, £4,500 cover per individual injury and also third party cover) and registered him with the local vet.
It’s been a busy week and now I’m back at work I’m missing the (not so) little fella. Just don’t tell him that!
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Tags: behaviour, insurance, racing, sleep, training, walkies
D-day
that’s dog day…
…will soon be upon us. I’m all excited now. We’re picking Marnie up tomorrow woohoo. Ok enough of the exhuberance, I need my beauty sleep.
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Tags: adoption, Armani
Armani
We’ve met the hounds. Both were gorgeous dogs and I wish we could have taken both home with us there and then. You can only do as much as you can do, though, and we’ve decided we are going to adopt Armani.
We only had a short journey there, but in true Peacock fashion we managed to make it difficult for ourselves by losing our way. Once we arrived the dog foster carers were great; warm, welcoming and full of useful advice. They clearly loved the animals they were caring for very much.
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Tags: Armani, foster
Going to visit adoptees
Great news, today we’re goin to visit our prospective adoptees – Armani and Larry. Really looking forwards to meeting them but not at all looking forwards to having to choose between the two! If only we had time, space and money for both.
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Catch up
So, after deciding we would like a dog, we had to decide what kind and where it would come from. To begin with my wife wanted a small dog (like a pug, or terrier of some description). I suggested, after reading a little about greyhounds, that we adopt a retired greyhound.
My wife’s initial reaction was not too favourable, but after reading lots about greyhounds she came back to me saying ‘I really want a greyhound’.
So we began to look at different kennel’s websites. Eventually we happened upon kerry greyhound connection. I filled in one of their adoption forms, and a few days later we were contacted by Jill, who arranged to visit us that week.
When Jill arrived, she bought with her Biddy. Jill had a look around and a chat with us, and we discussed various aspects of adoption. Biddy also had a good look around, then settled down sprawled out on a folded duvet we had fished out of the airing cupboard for her.
Jill left with the promise that she would consult with the foster carers of some of the hounds awaiting adoption, to see which of the animals we would be best match up with.
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Tags: adoption
Today’s news
Is that it is frustrating waiting! Even though I understand these things take time and are best not rushed, it is not easy.
We did hear, last night, that there might be a certain dog that we are being considered for. I am crossing my fingers and hoping to hear soon, poorly resisting the temptation to telephone our contact every evening for fear I may be becoming a stalker (just kidding).
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Tags: adoption
Add a bit more
Made a page from “The story so far…” called “Back story” to make it more easily accessible and added an “Adoptees” page, which I’ll endeavour to keep updated. Ideally would like to embed the Kerry page on the adoptees page but can’t do that so I’ve stuck another link on the end.
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The story so far…
A dog?
Alright, I’ll admit it – to begin with I did have mixed feelings. I love dogs, but had my concerns.
Ancient history.
My extended family has, to a degree, a history of sharing house and home with canine companinons and I have fond memories of my childhood family dogs. Peggy, Rex, Tara, Tess (to name a few) have left me with a love and respect for these animals and an acute awareness of the beneficial impact they can have on family life. Tess, in particular (my aunt’s collie-alsatian cross) will always hold a special place in my heart, but that’s a story for another time.
Fiercely loyal, intelligent friends who I shared many Saturday afternoons with. I enjoyed immensely playing games with these animals and felt proud to be given the responsibility of taking them for walks.
That’s the love part.
…And more recent history.
Three years ago, our son was bitten by Gizmo, my mother’s dog. Gizmo had never before shown any aggressive tendancies and her biting our son was, as it so often appears at first glance, out of the blue. One moment our son was fine, the next he was running into the living room screaming, blood pouring from his eye. He was rushed to hospital in the air ambulance, accompanied by my wife, whilst I drove to the hospital by car. He is fine now, the surgeon having performed plastic surgery to an excellent standard on our son’s eyelid. The physical scars have all but been obscured by time, and his fear of animals has diminished to such a degree that, as I’ve mentioned, he has now asked if we could have a dog.
With hindsight it is clear that Gizmo wholeheartedly believed she was the pack leader. Filling in the missing pieces, I think what happened was something like this:
- Our son wanders into the conservatory, Gizmo is on the sofa
- he wanders over, with the intention of stroking or petting her
- Gizmo bites him.
From the dog’s perspective:
- I am the leader of the pack, therefore no junior pack members may approach me without permission
- a junior member of the pack has broken this rule therefore they must be put in place
- to do so I give him a warning nip.
Unfortunately
- children are unaware of these rules
- are less aware of body language
- are less well protected (by having no fur and more delicate skin)
- have slower reactions
- their faces are often at dog’s head height
- and from a dogs point of view are noisy and unpredictable.
Truly, I no longer blame Gizmo for her biting our son. I also believe neither our son nor my mother were to blame. What I think is that, were all of us to be better educated and given the tools and knowledge to better understand our dogs, incidents such as these would be few and far between.
And there lay the basis for my misgivings.
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