New Pup for Sylvia from Halfway Home-

Meet Malik (now Magic) adopted by Sylvia from Designs By Sylvia. His bio on Halfway Home -"Malik will work his way into your life and heart! He is a very handsome, mellow guy that takes everything in stride. He is not cat safe and has one registered race. Offspring of Trent Lee and Scarlet." Born December 15th, 2007.

"Malik transformed into MAGIC during his 4 hour trip to his Forever Home with his new Mommie....he told me he wanted a new name to go with his new home.....and he is definately BLACK Magic! More news about his settling in with Skye and Tink when I get home from work tonight....gotta run!Thanks for 'drooling' over my BEE-U-T-FULL babies!"

Later....Sylvia

I love his new collar she embroidered with his name and her telephone number!

New Foster Girl At Our House-

Meet Carly the toy gathering hound. She arrived on Oct. 17th, two weeks before her second birthday which is on Halloween. Her right back leg had been broken and according to NGA her tats show her as an unnamed female. She is busy gathering every stuffie we have to her crate. Dean puts them back in the basket and one by one she puts them in the crate again. For such a young dog she behaves well. Although this afternoon I heard her barking in the guest bedroom. The bed is close enough to the wall that she couldn't turn around once she got in there. I'm assuming the cat jumped down beside the bed and she went to investigate. By the time I arrived the cat was standing at the foot of the bed looking like a Halloween cat with his back hunched up and hair standing on end. He was just standing there looking at Carly stuck behind the bed. After a little coaxing she jumped up on the bed, walked across and jumped down. For two years that cat would not be in the same room with the dogs. He has discovered some of the foster dogs are afraid of him. If he can get the upper paw he will take advantage of the situation.

Carly is still busy with her new environment but stopped long enough for a hug. While I was hugging her she licked my arm. So she may turn out to be a big love bug.

Carly left for Alberta, Canada on October 28th. She arrived and is in a new foster home and doing well.

Abandoned Kitten Found a Great Home

On Friday, September 3rd while Judy S. and I were talking on my front porch a little kitten came along. She would run away if you tried to catch her but kept coming back. I asked Dean to get some cat food and when he came out with the food she got a whiff and went crazy. She was just starving. We didn't see her again until the following Thursday night. Dean's band was practicing in the garage about 8 in the evening. Once again I fed her and played with her for awhile. After that she came back every evening once it was dark. She was hiding in the neighborhood but I could not find her during the day. She was very loving and super playful. She would show up and eat and then want to play.

The week of the 12th we put an ad on Craig's list. I had hoped to get a photo of her during the day. Finally a flash photo at night was the best I could do. The first email from Craig's list was a bit unsettling. The lady had three kids and one cat. She said, "Grammy wanted my four year son's cat back." She wasn't going there! There were three other calls that faded away. Then a lady called, Friday, September 16th and wanted the kitten. We made arrangements to meet at the Andover turnpike exit once I could catch the kitty that evening. She lived in ElDorado and worked in Andover. I was so relieved when I met her and to see how thrilled she was to get kitty. She said she had bought flea shampoo, toys and had a name for the kitten, Willow. She also told me her co-workers had offered to find her a kitten if she didn't get this one. I WANT THIS ONE! Well she got THIS one. This morning I received an update on Willow and a wonderful photo too.

"HI!!! She is really doing well! If I'm right she is a girl! She uses the litter box and is eating good! She is very loving and playful! She is easily scared, though! I have noticed she doesn't like being picked up much. She is fine coming up to me if I am sitting down. But, she tries to get away if picked up! Little noises seem to scare her a lot. But, otherwise she is a lot of fun and a joy to have in my house. I will keep you updated!"
Click on her photo and you will see a larger image that is so sweet.

Sassy Elana On Her Way To Her Forever Home

Sassy arrived on July 14th and left for Tulsa on September 7th. She will be heading to Colorado in a week. Sassy was very shy but during her time here she did loosen up some and would come over for neck rubs. Her favorite times were meal time and walks. At feeding time she would walk over to Dean and stare at him. When he went downstairs to fill the dishes she would always follow him. Then it was time for her happy dance and tail wagging until she received her bowl. Even though fosters are not allowed on the furniture she insisted on napping on the sofa with Magnus.

Of course she enjoyed her dog beds and cookies too!









Hanging out on the front porch was her most comfortable spot. She loved being out there and would always come over for neck rubs.

Morning and evening walks were worth a tail wag too.

And then comes the sad day......... Time to head out. If she didn't want to be lead some where she would just freeze. So Dean picked her up and loaded her in Krista's car for the ride south. Goodbye, Sassy we love you! We hope you find the perfect forever home.


Thank you Pat B. for this goodbye photo.

Update: Sassy was adopted 11-14-2010 to a family in Colorado. She is with another greyhound, two cats and a thirteen year old girl.

Oh What A Night!

Never, NEVER have I had a pickle like this to sort out at 1:30 in the morning and even now I am amazed that my sweet Fable found a way to stop my heart. Cold. In its tracks. Mid-pump. Arteries seized completely.

Dear sweet Fable (racing name Bohemian Fable but don't let the word 'racing' fool you) came up to Nova Scotia on a puppy haul last week and Rusty met her on Saturday for the first time. No, I hadn't planned on getting another greyhound so soon. No, I wasn't prepared for her arrival. No, I don't feel confident that I can manage two big dogs way out here in the middle of nowhere all by myself. So of course she came home with us that night. And of course she cried all night because whatever had worked to settle in Rusty ten months ago (has it been that long already?) wasn't going to work with her. Clearly I had to find another way, a better way, to get through night number two.

Martha suggested that perhaps she wanted to be with Rusty in my bedroom and not all alone on the main floor so I decided that's what I'd try. Of course, she doesn't do stairs and I don't lift 70-pound dogs but we'll leave THAT part out and get to the real story. Once upstairs she paced and she paced and I kept repositioning her cushion until she was (sort of) satisfied and since she likes to be close to me, I set her up beside my bed. That way I could reach down and reassure her if she became disoriented in the night. I wish that was all that had happened.

My bed is a queen-sized one on a metal frame with castors. I chose that type of frame because it's easier for me to pull it out to dust behind. Well, at about 1:15 I was awakened from a sound sleep by the sound of something that sounded like a race of sorts, except that it was coming from under my bed. I swear, with the scrambling and scratching that was going on you'd have thought there was a caged animal trying to escape. I turned the bedside lamp on and looked down at Fable's pillow to see what could be happening but she wasn't there. In fact, all I could see on the floor was her tail. The rest of the dog had somehow disappeared under the bed, and in the process she managed to wedge herself in as tightly as she could, slipping in beneath the heavy metal frame. But she couldn't get back out again because her ribs wouldn't compress. She simply couldn't move, she was stuck, and all that scrambling was her spinning like car tires on dry sand but not going anywhere. Even with me using all my strength and ingenuity there was no way I could get her into a position where she could slide out the way she'd (apparently) slid in. And she was scared.

Picture it. 1:30 in the morning, Sunday night, not a person around that I could call for help, and Rusty (the CAD!) pretending he couldn't hear us. Can you imagine? So what I did with my poor sore arthritic fingers is I took apart my bed, dragging off the top mattress (and those double thick ones weigh a TON!) and the box spring so I could finally lift the frame so Fable could get out. And the little worm - as I was trying to put the bed back together again so that I could at least pretend to be going back to sleep she just walked over to where I'd moved her cushion and laid down on it as if getting wedged under the metal frame of a queen-sized bed was something she did all the time, like a midnight snack or a post-bedtime treat. I swear, I could see it in her eyes, "When is that woman going to settle down so I can finally get some sleep?"
Sent from Brenda in Canada

Nothing Comes Easy- by Rusty, Our Canadian Friend

There I was, minding my own business,
when gradually I detected the delicious
aroma of fresh fish wafting by.
How could I ignore a temptation like that?
So I barked and I barked but the fishing boat people just waved at me and kept on going.






I tried to get Mom to make
them come back but all she
did was laugh at me. Then she
took a picture. (Sigh . . . nobody
ever listens to me . . . )










Then I laid down in my favourite tidal pool, hoping to see a crayfish. I could lay there all day, it's so much fun, and sometimes a minnow will wiggle by and nibble my paw. They're so friendly!









But it wasn't a lucky day - not a fish in sight. I guess it was just too hot for them. Or maybe that boat caught them all. Oh no!!!! Oh well, maybe it just isn't a good day for fish. Maybe I'll just lay here in the buttercups and something interesting will come by.
Maybe . . .

New Fosters to Report

We have had a few new fosters recently. Jean Boyd had Festivity a black eight year old beauty. Pat and Tina had Oh Pear (brindle) that was a personality plus girl. She is now in Pennsylvania at her next foster home before adoption. Dean and I just received a black lady, Sassy Elana who turned four last month and ended her racing career on June 15th. She's very shy. Annie and Andy have the pleasure of fostering B's Miss Thang an eight year brindle old that has settled in nicely.

May Potluck at Lambertland

By Pat Bozeman

SUMMER TIME, SUMMER TIME, SUM SUM SUMMERTIME! *

Well, the pups thought so Saturday anyway, even if the calendar doesn't say so! The weather was just right, if you discount the wind, and Annie and Andy had a pool out for the pups to enjoy. It was so much fun to see their maneuvers trying to fit in the small pool.

Sylvia and Jim Pettit joined us on their way back to St. Joseph, Missouri. Sylvia owns "Designs by Sylvia" and makes wonderful things for our greys to wear. It was great to see them, and their whippet Odie. Sylvia should have brought a rain coat because every dog that got out of the pool went to stand close to her to shake. Don't know why she was so honored, but it sure was funny.


Odie trying to get his share of treats in the midst of all the greyhound butts!

Another face we don't get to see often enough is DeVon's. She and Randy came from Kingman. Randy was a RTW kennel dog and lots of our members remembered him. DeVon was Jethro's new best friend -- I think he begged half of her meal -- but who could resist those adoring eyes?

After another hard day meeting and greeting everyone and begging treats, I'm sure all the pups looked like this at the end of the day. It's the sleep of angels isn't it?

Thanks Annie and Andy for hosting us again. You're the best!!!

* (for those that remember -- that's from a song by the Jamies - 1958) Egads, I just counted back, and that's over 50 years ago!!!

Lobster Falls From the Sky and Rusty's Gathering

Northern Lights from Rusty's Mom, Brenda Rose

Now that the days are longer and Rusty no longer needs to go out into
the coyote-infested darkness of rural Nova Scotia for his late-night
pee, life has become more relaxed. That's not to say there aren't
any challenges. They just aren't life threatening.

Let's take the crows, for example. Crows are usually large but these
Atlantic birds could be used as cargo movers, their wing span often
wider than that of the local ravens and hawks. But their size is
definitely dwarfed by their cleverness.

Take the case of the disappearing frisbee, for example. Rusty's
favourite game is chase the frisbee and he used to spend most of his
outdoor hours trotting around the property, hoping I'd see him all by
his lonesome and take pity on him with no one to play with. But at
some time in April he seemed to have abandoned the game - almost as if he'd lost interest in it. Silly me jumping to conclusions, as he
hadn't lost interest in his favourite toy at all. He'd actually
lost the frisbee.

The first time I discovered it on the outside of the fence I just
assumed he'd tossed his head and it had flown out of his mouth.
After all, his underbite is fairly pronounced. But several days later
when once again I saw him wandering around with the same sad face I
went looking for the misplaced frisbee and found it a good 150 feet
past my fence line, and no matter how favourable the prevailing winds might be there's not a greyhound in the world who can manage a toss of that distance. So the mystery continued, until . . .

One afternoon when I was working in the garden I happened to look up and what did I see flying over the house? Yes, one of our enormous
crows, only this time it was carrying . . . (wait for it) . . .
Rusty's frisbee! Yes, the sneaky bird had clearly decided that what
could be more labour-saving than to have a pre-formed base for his nest?

But sometimes they bring unexpected joys as well. Take two weeks
ago, for example, when I was doing up a few dishes and happened to
look out the window to see what Rusty was doing and I saw him on one of the hills in the yard, busily gnawing on one of his red toys.
Awww . . . I thought, until I remembered that he doesn't have any red
outdoor toys. Time to investigate, and when I finally got to him I
saw that he wasn't chewing on a toy; he actually was deeply engrossed
in . . . a lobster claw? A COOKED lobster claw? And he wasn't doing
too badly either - had the claw mangled to the point where he could
actually get to the meat! The mystery continued until I was down at
the local dock one morning arranging to buy a few lobsters for my own
consumption and I happened to tell the story about my dog finding a
cooked claw in my field.

That's when one of the lobster fishermen told me the story about the
cauldron that the men had set up on the dock on May 1st, the first
day of the lobster season in this part of Canada. Apparently it's a
local custom for the men to come back to the wharf on the first day
of lobster season and cook up a feed of lobster, celebrating the fact
that the lobster are here for another year. But this year there were
onlookers . . . yes, you guessed it. The crows! And while one man
was stirring the pot, taking the freshly boiled crustaceans from the
scalding water, the entire murder of crows went into full flight,
creating a diversion while the most fleet-beaked of the flock was
able to make off with a few portable parts.

I'm still wondering whether Rusty's waiter just dropped the claw by
accident - after all, we're only a mile up the coast from the wharf -
or whether it was an attempt to make amends for having stolen his
frisbee.

On another subject, I'm always just a bit jealous when I hear about
the play dates all Rusty's mid-western friends have at Lambertland so
this month I decided to do something about it. There's only one
other greyhound here in Antigonish County, a lovely fawn female named Nova, so I invited Nova, her 'brother' the Basenji and her 'cousin' the Swiss Entlebucher and we had a play date of our own. Granted, it wasn't nearly as lively as your own get-together but we did have lobster so perhaps that makes up for our diminished guest list. In any case, Rusty decided that as the party was happening at his house, he should be allowed the first dip of the season. Fortunately the other three dogs weren't interested in getting wet because he wasn't getting out of his pool for anyone. "My house, my rules," is what he appears to be saying.

New Foster Turns Into New Resident at Our House

We flunked fostering and I'm so glad we did. Mama Lisa is now permanently in our home. I picked her up yesterday in Tulsa after all her vet work was completed. She is a sweetheart, very quiet and gets along so well with Maggie and Magnus. Maggie even allows her to lay on the same blanket. Lisa doesn't take up much room on the blanket since most of the time she is upside down.

Welcome Mama Lisa- Dean & Jan's New Foster

Last evening I met with Krista and picked up Mama Lisa. When Krista went to help out with the haul she kept teasing me about the puppies at the farm. Finally I told her to bring me a black and white puppy. Well, she's not a puppy but she's black and white. Lisa turned four on April 24th. After barking on and off during the night she is now napping. Seems to be well behaved and gets along with both our dogs. Her ears are precious! When something catches her attention both black ears stand straight up. Her nails were so long they looked like claws. First thing this morning she had an appointment with Dr. Dean and the dremel. Once she calms down I'll try for some better photos.

Hello Montana! Photo Link When the Haul Arrived

Since I wrote the information below, Molly is now on hold for Terri one of the ladies hugging her in the photos.

Photos of the arrival from Oklahoma http://www.gparockymountain.org/Montana%20Welcome%205-1-10.html

One side note on the photos. Judy Pfaff chooses the dogs on the Halfway Home web site that she would like for their group. One evening she was going through all the photos with her husband, Brett. He normally doesn't get too involved in her greyhound doings. As they were getting to the end of the list he told her to STOP. She thought he was kidding around. He saw Zim Bang Boom and told her he wanted that dog. That was in March and he's been waiting for two months to get him. So the photo of him hugging Zim Bang Boom is really heart warming. The one with Molly in the car brought a tear to my eye too.

Molly Left Today for Montana

Krista picked up Molly Thursday and headed for Oklahoma. The haul truck left today and will deliver Molly and several other pups to Run For Adoption in Montana tomorrow. Have a safe trip Molly! It seems strange not having a dog follow us in the bathroom. She sure was a velcro dog.

Robin Has a New Home

Today I heard from Robin's new dad! He is thrilled to have her and said she is doing great. I'm so glad to be able to check up on her now and then.

A Thought About Fostering

So far most of the dogs that have come from Kansas farms have been younger dogs. If you have been thinking about fostering there are older dogs waiting on the farms also. If an older dog would be a better fit for your home let us know. Dean and I have decided that it doesn't matter what age the dog is. We prefer to work with dogs right off the farm or kennel since we have a lot of time to spend with them. It's so rewarding to see the dogs learn about living in a house and their reactions to everything. By the way, our first foster ( Robin) went to her forever home last weekend. Molly will be headed to Run For Adoption in Montana at the end of April. I had a very hard time letting Robin go and Dean is in the same boat with Molly. One of these days it will be our turn to flunk fostering.

Fancy Update- March 29th From Jan L.

Fancy continues to bloom here! Our only problem is how much she likes to chase the cat! I still don't know if she just wants to play or if she is truly not cat safe! I have started squirting her with water and yelling NO now when I catch her chasing kitty. I have only been crating her at night now and like your average human 2 year old, she is never ready to go to bed and does a little whining until she finally settles down. She continues to be my alarm clock in the mornings but she is now (usually!) waiting until 6:30 to start her high pitched howl! Fancy is now doing a flight of stairs in both directions (thanks to the cat!) like an old pro! She loves her food but doesn't seem to have gained any weight. She is eating 4 cups of ProPlan a day with a little canned food or plain nonfat yogurt on top. All in all, she is a delight! I always muzzle her when I'm not home and one day last week she managed to get her muzzle off, but didn't get into anything! A wonder as I have lots and lots of yarn within her reach! Good girl!!!!

March 27th HGCOF Luncheon

From Pat B.

Lots of donatioins poured in at our Spear's get together this month! There were 4 boxes of dog biscuits, 1 large package of chews, 3 bottles of laundry detergent, 2 bottles of Clorox, 1 large package of paper towels, and a case of canned dog food. (Hope I didn't forget anything!) Plus, we passed the donation jar around and I sent along the money we had collected too.

Thank you Michael B. for picking up our donations and taking them to Ponca City yesterday. Russ (Teddy's husband) met him there to pick up Dasani, who has been fostered by Carol G. and Krista B. Here's Teddy's reply after seeing all the goodies we sent down:

"I left to meet a hauler before Russ returned from Ponca City. When I walked in the house the kitchen island was filled with so many goodies....It looked like he had robbed a store. Thank you all for the much needed items .

Each of you are very special to me and the HWH hounds. Special thanks to our Kansas foster homes for keeping us updated on how each of your fosters are doing. Foster homes and helping hands are the glue that holds adoption together."

Recent Photos- Click on Photos for a larger view

This past week I've been busy making collars. Dean wanted a red bandana type collar for Maggie so last night she got one. It looks really great on her and much better than the photo. That was taken with my new phone. Technology is amazing, the phone has a 5 megapixel camera! I blacked out the background since I'll use it in my Etsy store.


Jane Walker, a lady on Greytalk, designed this greyhound fabric which is sold in 4"x 36" strips for collars or trims. She has rust, blue and green. The fabric is a heavy cotton twill.




Dean wanted a good photo of Molly so we headed to the golf course at sundown. "Where's the bunnies" always gets the ears to go up. Of course Magnus wouldn't look at me.



This is Molly's (Hot Girl) new collar. Dean once again picked the color and fabric. She moved a bit as I took the photo so her head is a little blurry. I love those ears!

Why Greyhounds Make Good Pets

A friend of mine from Scotland wrote a greyt story on "Why Greyhounds Make Good Pets". She is fellow contributor on Handmade4Hounds.etsy.com. I'm going to add the link to her blog on the link list to the right. It's worth a read and the photos are really nice too.

Why Greyhounds Make Good Pets

Halfway Home Benefit Auction This Week

Halfway Home Greyhound Adoption is having an online benefit auction from March 14 to March 22nd. There are lots of cool items to bid on. Check it out at-

Click here for auction page

St. Patrick's Day Parade 2010-

March 13th, 2010 marked our third year marching in the Delano St. Patrick's day parade. The weather was cold, cloudy and windy. I found myself wishing St. Patrick's day was in May. Once the parade started we were too busy watching people admire the dogs to be cold.





The four legged ambassadors did their job along the parade route greeting lots of adults and children.




After the parade we enjoyed a potluck lunch with Andy's grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, salads and desserts. The dogs have so much fun wandering around the large fenced in field and getting treats they normally wouldn't get. Thank you so much Annie and Andy L.


Link to all gathering photos