Uncle Geno told my then boyfriend, Steve, that since Steve worked from home (as my Uncle also did) he should DEFINITELY get a dog. Dogs, apparently, are the best way to keep you sane while you’re alone at home all day long. It planted a seed in Steve’s head, but he dismissed it as he had other things to think about (like how to propose to me, I assume).
Flash forward almost a year later. Steve and I are now married and Steve remembers, “I might want a dog.”
Perfect. May I introduce you to my lifelong dream of owning a Greyhound?
...Oh wait. Back up. That means the story actually starts with my Uncle Lane.
Uncle Lane first told my family about Greyhounds when I was young. My family went up to Michigan to see my Aunt Jane and Uncle Lane one year in the late 90’s and we visited a festival where a Greyhound Rescue group had a booth set up. Uncle Lane, who has a wealth of random knowledge, told us how wonderful this breed was and when my Mom said, “They’re just so big!” Uncle Lane told us about the Whippet, a smaller version of a Greyhound. So my family got a Whippet, Buddy, and he was awesome. But in the back of my mind, I always wanted a Greyhound.
Okay, so back to me telling Steve about Greyhounds…
Calm, gentle giants who look a little underfed and prefer to just eat and sleep most of their days. I mean, could the breed be any more perfect for me and Steve?
On July 4, 2015, my parents and Steve and I spent the holiday grilling out and taking a little trip down to Mason, OH to visit Queen City Greyhound’s Meet N Greet. This would be Steve’s first encounter with a Greyhound.
During the meet-n-greet, there was one dog we noticed, that was timid and shaking and I’m pretty sure I said, “Poor baby.” a lot to him. I snapped some photos of Steve with this handsome and shy Greyhound. By the time we left, Steve seemed to like the idea of making a Greyhound his first dog.
A few months later after lots of “If we had a Greyhound” type conversations, it finally happened. I filled out the adoption application and hit “Submit” on the Queen City Greyhound online form.
Soon phone calls were had and we told Queen City we wanted the Greyhound named “Web” (because Steve works for the World Wide Web and that’s funny, right?) We were advised that a dog named “Ace” might be better for us. But he was older and timid and clingy and I said, “Uh. No.”
So we went to a meet-n-greet in October to meet Web. And Web was…. wild. He ran right between my Dad’s legs when we met him and I said, “Uh. No.”
Then there was Ace, whose racing name, we were told, was Bruce Wayne. Timid and shaking, but quiet and gentle, Ace was sweet, good with kids, and we noticed he didn’t run through anyone’s legs like Web. We walked Ace around and agreed his chill demeanor would fit us well.
A few hours later, we texted saying we wanted Ace. By that night, there were plans that he’d be dropped off the next day.
After years and years of wishing and hoping, I was finally getting a Greyhound. And I was kind of worried.
