Increasing the Handsome factor

A Handsome family in Fort Myers
Kristi, Lola, Tony, Handsome and Anthony, soon to follow his father into service with the Navy
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Another longish van trip, another successful FoG adoption.

For the second day in a row, Michelle and I took a long drive in the Friends of Greyhounds van to introduce a hound to a new family. And just like Friday's journey to Vero Beach with Starsky, Saturday's turned into a successfully productive trip.

This time it was Handsome's turn. The 3-year-old brindle boy with the gimpy leg went with us to Fort Myers to audition for a family who found him through a Google search. Lifelong dog owners Kristi, Tony and Anthony were looking for a greyhound to live with their 3-year-old English bulldog, Lola.

Lola and Handsome
Lola checking out Handsome checking out a stuffy toy
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Kristi contacted Michelle a couple of weeks ago to start the process and spent several days asking questions via email and doing some research into the greyhound breed.

It was a little touch and go when Handsome and Lola met for the first time. Lola was ultra-excited to meet the new humans, Michelle and me. But she didn't seem at all interested in Handsome. Handsome, meanwhile, got a little aggressive trying to get Lola's attention. I was holding onto his leash for dear life when he lunged to get right up in her face a couple of times.

Tony and I decided to take the two dogs on a walk together in some nearby green space, and Handsome settled down instantly. They walked together happily and peacefully, everybody was satisfied that it would be OK to see how they reacted to each other in Lola's house. Lola immediately seemed to welcome Handsome eagerly, engaging in a little affectionate play and following him around as he inspected the new surroundings.

At one point, Anthony took them over to Lola's toybox, and both dogs gave each other some space to sniff, chew, shake and chase a couple of tossed stuffies. Watch Anthony toss a toy for the two dogs in a subtle attempt to give his mother a heart attack:


Lola was happy to let Handsome check out her beds, her water bowl and everything else in the house. The two dogs got along great after that initial rough spot.

And Michelle and I drove away fully confident that we successfully boosted the Handsome factor in that Fort Myers family.

Location: Fort Myers, FL, USA

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