Tails from Home -- Life in Black and White

Hello NLGA Dog Blog Readers!

Our mailbox received another 'tails from home'!  Today we learn about life in black and white...enjoy!

The Black Beauty

Five years ago, my husband Bill and I had recently released our beloved Echo to the Bridge, and there was emptiness in our home that only another Greyhound could fill.  We still had our little fawn girl, Ruby, and like us, she was obviously missing her buddy. That’s when we adopted Zelda, a beautiful black girl who had suddenly found herself without a home.

 We tried to provide her with a comfortable environment, but she was having a difficult time adjusting.  She wasn’t interested in food, didn’t play with stuffies, and generally seemed to be unhappy. A couple of weeks into her stay, Donna called and said that they had Zelda’s bed at the clinic, and asked if I wanted to pick it up.  I drove straight to the clinic, picked up the bed, and brought it home for Zelda.  When she saw it, she sniffed the daylights out of it, poked around a bit, and then curled up on it. From then on, it appeared that she finally felt at home.  

Zelda and Ruby pretty much ignored each other at first, and over the next few months they did have a couple of run-ins, but for the most part, they got along, and enjoyed going on walks together and lying butt-to-butt in the backyard. 

During these past five years, Zelda has emerged from her shyness.  She used to hide behind me at the meet-and-greets we attended, but over time, she became curious about the people who would stop and chat about Greyhounds. That’s when I would see her peek around me to check out what was going on.  She gradually got to the point where she would go over and ask visitors for scritches.   

For the most part, though, a meet-and-greet is still snooze time for her. She has walked with our NLGA group in several parades, but I suspect she would much rather be at home on the sofa.  

Zelda is still very discriminating when it comes to eating -- “Mom, that’s dog food. I don’t eat dog food!”   Hence, mealtimes can be a challenge.   Long ago she claimed her own corner of the sofa, where she curls up to sleep each night.  Zelda is still a very quiet girl (I prefer to call her “reserved”), has little to do with stuffies, and refuses to eat dog food.  

But she’s our Black Beauty (with bat ears!), and we love her dearly!

  

The “Dairy Queen”

Bree joined our family in July 2011 after we lost Ruby, and everyone who knows her will agree that she is a stark contrast to Zelda.  

Bree is a playful girl, who enjoys going for walks, playing with stuffies, riding in the car, barking at the neighbors’ dogs, and roaching on the sofa.  She lives life in the fast lane -- she plays hard, eats fast, chases critters with vigor, and drops into a coma (on her back with a foot in the air)after a walk.  She also has a goofy side that constantly surprises us.  We never know when Bree will erupt into song in a way that could shatter glass.

 Recently, we had an opportunity to babysit our friend’s two Greyhounds for a few days. We set up two crates in the spare bedroom.  Later, Bree was being unusually quiet, so I went looking for her.  Surprise! I found her curled up in the smaller crate, her butt plastered against the back.

Since Bree has space issues, we had to gate her out of the “crate room” so that the other hounds could sleep in peace.   Bree and Zelda both enjoy “prewashing” the dinner dishes.  The other night Bree took over a casserole bowl that Zelda had pretty much polished. But there was still some crusty cheese around the inside, so Bree took over. She licked and licked and licked, and appeared to be in such bliss that I couldn’t take the bowl away from her.  A few minutes later, she was sound asleep with her head resting on the bowl!  

  

Bree enjoys the occasional “puppy uppers,” which means racing through the house, the consequences of which unfortunately have resulted in bodily injury.  Bree has issues that we continue to work with and through.  But she’s our “Dairy Queen,” and we love to pieces!

Our girls are as different as black and white, which is just perfect with us.

Thanks so much for sharing the 'tails' of Zelda and Bree with us!