Dusty and me

Lucy poses for a portrait with Randy, whose attention is absorbed by his new beautiful lake view. ---------- Dusty again got to spend a couple of hours with Uncle Jerry and his dogs as Michelle and I took another drive to western Miami -- this time to deliver Randy to his new family. Randy really loves that lake view. ---------- Ric and Janelle and their two kids, Lucy and Austin, are going to share their large townhouse with Randy. The big red boy has a nice wraparound backyard with a great water view. Inside, he'll have plenty of room to roam. It'll take him a few days, maybe a week or two, to learn how to get upstairs. But when he does, he will have his own personal bedroom, which he graciously will share with Lucy's dollhouse. Michelle and I missed Austin. Lucy was really excited to welcome Randy, as were her parents. Looks like Randy has found himself a great situation to learn to become a family pet. A busy week ahead: Doc goes out Monday to a gr...

A lot of comings and goings at Friends of Greyhounds right now with new guests coming into the kennels and several greyhounds leaving for permanent homes. New FoG guest Stormy ---------- The flurry started with Ralph and Nadine going to new homes and Kango going out on an audition in Cutler Bay earlier in the week. Ralph returned to the Sunrise kennels today to get a microchip and to make his adoption official. A short time later, former guest Molly appeared at the permanent residence, where she'll be staying for a few days while her family takes a vacation. Dusty and I showed up a couple of minutes behind Molly for our volunteer shift giving noontime walks to the guests -- and to meet a couple of new arrivals Michelle picked up Friday in Hialeah. And that's when Dusty met her match -- Stormy, a shiny 3-year-old black female who could pass as Dusty's twin sister. Look closely: You can tell them apart by noting that Stormy has very little white on th...

"Dad, I think the Nutro Essentials is on sale." ---------- Dusty watched and waited patiently all morning as I assembled my new no-tools TV stand that arrived in a box from Amazon.com Thursday night. Morning is usually her time, when we get out for a long walk or a run in the park or something. "Some day, I'll have one of my very own." ---------- But it's getting a little harder for us to stay out long, what with the thick, humid airs of summer starting to arrive here in South Florida. And besides, that long, heavy box was propped up in the corner of the entryway calling my name for attention. As expected, that 20-minute easy-assembly piece of furniture ended up taking about three hours. Oh, the TV stand went together quite nicely and very easily. But one thing led to another, of course -- while we're here, let's adjust these TV legs; let's move those speakers over here, no over there; might as well empty these storage boxes and start...

Another day, another visit for Dusty with her buddies in Sunrise as Michelle and I drove south again, this time to introduce Kango to a prospective family. Kango, on red leash, with Rick and Bullet ---------- Kango, in case you don't remember, is a special-needs dog in the Friends of Greyhounds kennels. He took a nasty tumble in a race in December and suffered a skull injury that is robbing him of his sight. Janine and Rick and their daughters, who took in former FoG guest Bullet the Blue Sky a little more than a year ago, are considering adding another greyhound to the family. Janine is an avid reader of John's Happy Tales Report , the FoG blog, where she learned about Kango. She called FoG last week and asked if she and Rick could drive to Sunrise from their home in Cutler Bay to meet him. Michelle talked to them a couple of more times, and they decided it would be better to have Kango come to their home to see how he would react to the environment -- and how Bulle...

Nadine and her new mom, Angela, in her new backyard ---------- Dusty got to spend a couple of hours this morning with her friends over at the Friends of Greyhounds residence. Her visit with Mitzi, Chumlee, Yahtzee, Joy and Uncle Jerry was relaxing and uneventful as far as I know. At the least, it kept her occupied for awhile as I climbed into Michelle's van for a ride-along to deliver Nadine to her new home in Kendall. This is the second time I've gone with Michelle on a home delivery, and it's such a kick. It gives me a chance to bond one last time with a dog I've gotten to know at the FoG kennels. And the excited greeting we get from the new family when we knock on the door is the best -- after all, what we're delivering is much more highly anticipated than a big box from Amazon. Nadine taking a tour of her new home ---------- Nadine's new parents are a retired couple who recently lost their beloved greyhound and were ready to start fresh...

Michelle and Randy with an audience at Pet Supermarket ---------- Dusty is one tired greyhound. First was the three-day trip to Tampa Bay. Then she had a day of total confusion as strangers came into her home to remove the monstrous entertainment center and I rearranged everything else to create a new living room. But Sunday was not a day of rest for the weary greyhound.The day started with both of us getting soaked, caught too far from home on our morning walk as the sky opened up in a sudden downpour.  Dusty enjoyed a nice, relaxing towel massage once we got home. And then, she found herself dashing through the rain again to get loaded into the Kia Koach for a 30-minute drive north to Boca Raton to help out at a Friends of Greyhounds meet-and-greet at the Pet Supermarket at Westwinds of Boca. Dusty's always thrilled to go to any pet shop for a bit of window-shopping. But she was ecstatic when she walked into Pet Supermarket and saw Randy and Doc snuggling wit...

Family portrait at Grandma and Grandpa's house ---------- Dusty is back home, resting up from an exciting couple of days visiting her grandparents over on the state's Left Coast. I don't know who gets more excited about seeing each other -- Dusty or the Sharps. It's a pretty close call. Dusty goes into her head-bobbing, tail-whirling greeting every time one of them appears in her line of sight. And both Mom and Dad break out into a huge smile every time they see her. Sharing a moment with Grandpa ---------- It was Dusty's second visit to the grandparents' home, the first since Christmastime. She was a little cranky Wednesday evening, probably because her daily routine got all out of whack. But I got her out Thursday for a short pre-breakfast workout at nearby Northeast Park and Paw Place, and she felt right at home for the rest of the visit. Dusty got to spend a bit of time in dog heaven Thursday evening, when a couple neighbors stopped by ...