Foster Dogs
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There's nothing quite like the feeling of helping a dog learn to be a pet. The day he realizes the dog hauler isn't coming back is a red letter day for him and us too! And there's nothing quite as fulfilling as seeing him ride away with his new people and knowing you had a part in his successful adjustment to his new life as a family member. Here's a catalog of terrific greyhounds who have made their temporary homes with us.
Greyhound Adoption League of Texas (formerly Greyhound Pets of America/Central Texas) (May 2011-present)
A Place for Us Greyhound Rescue (February 1997-2005)
Greyhound Companions of New Mexico (1996)
Greyhound Pets of America/Austin (1990-1995)
Racers Recycled (1990)
Greyhound Adoption League of Texas (formerly Greyhound Pets of America/Central Texas)
Click here for this group's web site.
54. Turbo Simba
6/30/2018 - 11/1/2018
Simba
53. Che Mar Joyride
6/10/2017 -
Joy was another senior brindle, but she was more of a house guest than a foster. Her owner was in the process of moving from Florida to Texas, so bunked with us until he found a place to live and got situated. We enjoyed her sweet, quiet personality, but I know she was looking forward to enjoying more than regular visits from her forever person!
52. Waco
10/28/2016 -4/27/2017
Waco was one of GPA's "project dogs." He was found roaming loose in Waco, Texas - approximately 10 years old, severely underweight, heartworm positive, and covered with fleas and ticks. You'd never guess his age from his looks or attitude, though. When he wasn't lounging on the sofa with his head on my shoulder, he loved to play with toys or indulge in a game of chase in the back yard. As a VIP (Very Important Pooch), he rocked his bowtie on the runway at GPA's 2017 Greyt Gatsby event before going home to Terlingua, Texas with his new mom.
51. WW's Ballatore
5/17/2016 -
Ballatore was a gorgeous dog with the maturity that comes from have had at least a short racing career. With 9 wins and 56 races, we figure she had her priorities straight. She was bright and curious, and really obsessed with meeting that mysterious dog in the mirror.
50. Phoebe
3/25/2016 - 4/22/2016
Here she is, lucky number 50! Phoebe was very timid when she came to us, but with a little work and encouragement she was well on her way to being a fabulous pet. It was fun to introduce her to treats, toys, cats, birds, walkies, dog beds, and all the other things that go with being a pet dog.
49. Backwoods Justice
11/7/2013 - 4/2/2014
Justice was a handsome, friendly, energetic brindle boy. He enjoyed going to meet and greets, playing with Luna, and ignoring the cats, but mostly he liked to hang out with people (especially ladies, and most especially The Mom). He was a long term foster due to separation anxiety but was slowly learning to be more confident.
48. Limoncello
10/1/2013 - 10/26/2013
Limoncello was a striking fawn brindle, one of the best looking greyhounds I've ever seen. He enjoyed hanging out with little sister Luna and was intimidated by our cats. This boy was shy and afraid of all the new things in his world. He went to a home with two small dogs and a wonderful new mom who will guide him gently as he learns about being a house dog. As a bonus, he's also got a big yard and a family of deer who living on the other side of the fence. In the photo you can see that he is settling in nicely!
47. Harriette
3/28/2012 - 6/20/2012
Harriette was a greyhound-saluki mix who was rescued from the pound. She was young and enthusiastic about everything, which made things uncomfortable around here for the cats and birds! She loved to steal things (especially my shoes!) which she would carry around and then leave strewn around the house. She was a sweet, affectionate, fun dog who went to enjoy a new forever home with a dalmatian and a swimming pool.
46. My Dear Jody ("Sweet Cheeks")
8/5/2011 - 12/14/2011
Sweet Cheeks came from the same farm as Rhody, and looked very similar except for an exceptionally shiny black coat. She was born on December 2, 2009. Cheeks was a little diva who didn't hesitate to let the resident boy dogs know about it if they got into her space.
45. Rhody
6/5/2011 - 7/15/2011
Rhody was a tiny, one-year-old girl. Her coat was almost a chocolate brown, and we weren't sure whether that was from an old winter coat or if she'll stay that way. She was inquisitive - and acquisitive - but good with the cats and got along well with her foster brothers. Rhody went to live with three young men and a female husky.
44. Tricks
4/26/2011 - 5/1/2011
Tricks was a five-year-old with a beautiful dark red brindle coat. She was adopted by another foster who kept her for a weekend while we were out of town. She came in heartworm-positive but is undergoing treatment in her new forever home, where she earned the name Tigger by jumping up onto the kitchen countertop with all four feet.
A Place For Us Greyhound Rescue
Click here for this group's web site.
43. Rowdy
1/13/03 - 11/17/03
Switching to the opposite extreme after JD, Rowdy is a big although not-so-rowdy five-year-old boy. He was returned to the adoption group after snapping at a child, so he was looking for a home with no small children but he is cat-safe and very friendly. We officially adopted Rowdy in November of 2003.
42. Just Delightful
11/02 - 1/10/03
JD was a very sweet three-year-old girl, and beautiful and petite. She enjoyed spending the holidays in our home, playing with Lionel and learning to play nicely with the cats. She was lives in a home with no other dogs and only one other cat, where her name is now Nephertiti. She enjoys playing with her greyhound pal Lucy, who is a friend of her new Dad's.
41. BB's Tender Maid
5/02 - 6/02
Maid was a retired brood matron who had weaned her last litter of pups just before coming to us. She was about seven years old, and very sweet-tempered. Unfortunately, Maid only got to enjoy a short retirement, as she was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer while she was being spayed. Because we couldn't place her with her prognosis, she went to live with someone from our adoption group, where she was coddled and spoiled until she went to the Rainbow Bridge a few months later.
40. IB Vindictor
9/01 - 2/02
Sweet Vinnie was another "bounce back." When he was ten years old, his family had a baby, and then started keeping children in their home. They gave up Vinnie after he nipped at one of the kids, and A Place For Us discovered that he was very afraid of little ones. He was a real gentleman, and even though he insisted on sleeping on our bed and surfing the wastebaskets for goodies, he wasn't much trouble at all. Lionel chased him around the yard and kept him active. Vinnie is what we call a blue fawn brindle, and he is now living with his greyhound brother Indiana Jones in Kansas.
39. Ro Ro Windy
6/00 - 8/00
Windy's situation was one we in adoption groups see all too often. At ten years old, after
having a home for a number of years, she was returned to the adoption group because her
family moved into a place that didn't allow pets. Unfair to her, and also to the adoption
group which is now faced with the challenge of re-homing a senior greyhound. Windy is
very active for her age, healthy, and extremely sweet. And we know from experience tha
there's nothing more rewarding than giving a home to a senior!
38. Victory
3/00 - 5/00
Victory was one of a litter of six identical light fawn 18-month-old greyhounds that
were turned into the Roswell/Artesia animal shelter all at once by a breeder who couldn't
sell them as racing dogs. He found a new home with a family in El Paso, Texas, where he has
become a jogger.
37. Breanne
12/99 - 2/00
Breanne is a petite 3-year old from Oklahoma who was a little too small to be
competitive on the racetrack. She has a lovely hair ridge from the crown of her
head down the back of her neck. In this picture she is patiently being terrorized
by Indy, who thinks he is a greyhound. She is sweet but very shy, and needs a gentle home
to bring her out of her shell. Breanne gets along very well with our two cats. She also
lives peacefully with the dogs, but is not so sure about the birds.
36. Coal
4/99 - 9/99
35. Stillwell
11/25/98 - 12/4/98
Stillwell was six years old, and came to New Mexico from Abilene, Kansas, where he had a home
until health problems prevented his owner from exercising him. When he decided to start
taking himself for walks to the Greyhound Hall of Fame and other interesting places, she
decided he needed a new home with someone who could be active. Here you see him enjoying some
down time with our Rosie (Stillwell is the one in the foreground). He was affectionate
and well behaved, and got along well with our three cats.
34. Cocoa
4/20/97 - 5/10/97
Cocoa was a pet greyhound, picked up as a stray and adopted by someone four years ago.
Unfortunately, Cocoa's first mom encountered severe health problems that prevent her from
caring for Cocoa. She enjoyed living with our two greyhounds and three cats, and gradually
learning to leave the cats alone. Cocoa now lives with an older woman and her daughter,
sharing her people with a border collie and a herd of llamas.
33. Osage Rider
2/7/97 - 2/22/97
Rider was our first foster for A Place For Us
Greyhound Adoption in Albuquerque. He was a four year old live wire who was curious about
absolutely everything. He was especially fond of shoes, and both of us had to adjust to
putting our shoes away if we wanted to keep them. Lotus was put out because he wanted to play with all of her toys, but Rider got along well with the other dogs and—with a reminder now and then—with the cats as well.
Greyhound Companions of New Mexico
Click here for this group's web site.
32. Scarlet
2/18/96 - 3/29/96
What an angel this lady was. Our first female foster ever, and she was very special. As Nulife
Kolorme, she was a grade A racer at West Memphis, Arkansas. Scarlet was nine years old when
she came to Greyhound Companions of New Mexico, having spent four years as a brood matron
after retiring from the track. She was a very large (she had a good 12 pounds on our small
female) red brindle, with a lovely silver muzzle. She was calm and affectionate, just like a
good mother ought to be. Scarlet became Rosie, our second greyhound girl who went to the
Rainbow Bridge in September 2000.
31. Mikey
2/3/96 - 2/16/96
Our first foster for Greyhound Companions of New Mexico! This one was a five-year-old red
brindle, fairly small for a male. Mikey precipitated a minor crisis: Playing with Lotus the
weekend before he was adopted, he accidentally tore a hole about the size of a 50-cent piece
in the skin of her neck. Off to the vet we go, for four stitches. Perhaps this is karma;
Lotus also likes to play the "run and nip" game, and she had similar accidents with two
fosters in Austin. That's why we use muzzles for playtime these days!
Greyhound Pets of America/Austin
30. Sky's Cool Luke
9/17/95 - 10/8/95
Another one we'd have kept except for one problem: He really wanted to catch our cats. Luke
was another huge solid black guy, very friendly, affectionate and playful. Another good match
with Lotus, too. But his new mom was ecstatic, and took him off to live with a couple of
other greyhounds and some horses. (He won't look at the horses.)
29. Sir Charlie
8/12/95 - 8/25/95
Charlie was a big happy boy who found his new family right away.
28. Hershey
8/1/95 - 8/11/95
Right on the heels of our adventures with Wild Rumour. I didn't keep good records on
Hershey.
27. Wild Rumour
5/20/95 - 7/29/95
"Wild" was the right adjective for this 5-year-old solid black bundle of energy. He was
huge, and acted like a big puppy. Our biggest adventure was when he caught (but failed to
kill) a squirrel in our backyard just before I was expecting a contractor. The squirrel
kept tearing up Rumour's nose, but he wouldn't let go! The patio was spattered with blood
and there I was, trying to hold an excited dog still with a rag stuffed up one nostril and
an icepack on top of his nose. Luckily I got the whole mess cleaned up before the contractor
got there! Rumour landed in clover, though. He slept in the bed with his new mom the first
night home, and the next day the family bought a bigger bed so his new dad could sleep there
too.
26. Black Coordinator
1/14/95 - 4/21/95
More trouble for me! Cord was returned by his first adopter after several years, for
personal reasons. At 8 years old, he was a real special boy, solid black and a nice match
with Lotus. He had a small seizure right after we got him (with no history of seizures) and
scared me half to death. I decided on the way home from work to meet his soon-to-be adopters
that if they weren't the right match I was keeping him. But they were perfect—the kind of
match rescue groups dream about. Mom, dad, and little girl all fell head over heels (dad
says Cord's the son he's always wanted).
25. Mitchell
9/15/94 - 11/5/94
Mitchell was a jewel who was returned to GPA by a previous adopter. He moved straight into
the hearts of a single dad and his two teenaged sons, and has since been active in both
GPA-Austin and Special Olympics activities. Mitchell's dad claims that I spoiled him,
but I think it happened after he left our home!
24. Austin Bound
6/12/94 - 8/31/94
Another one who was almost trouble! I loved this dog, and would have kept him if we'd felt
we could take on a third one of our own. White with a red brindle saddle and ears. He went
to live with a new mom, dad, and a little girl who thinks he's the greatest.
23. Stetson
5/7/94 - 6/10/94
What a great name for a greyhound! A big (aren't they all?) fawn brindle.
22. Alex
3/6/94 - 3/15/94
Alex was a big gentle red brindle whose retirement was all too short. He went to the
Rainbow Bridge in August of 1994.
21. River Red
2/5/94 - 2/25/94
Red was just that, in fact a dark red brindle almost the color of mahogany. His adoptive
parents jumped right into GPA-Austin activities, and it didn't take them long to adopt
another greyhound!
20. Whitey
12/23/93 - 1/5/94
Whitey was another fella with striking good looks, white with red brindle ears. He went to
live in Aggieland (College Station, Texas).
19. River Keeper
10/20/93 - 12/18/93
Keeper almost was. He was just the way I like 'em: Huge, fawn, mellow. This was the first
one since Lotus I was seriously tempted to keep myself. His placement demonstrates the
magical touch required for adoption placements. Even though his new parents, both quite
short in stature, were looking for a small female, GPA-Austin sent them to meet Keeper.
It was love at first sight!
18. NXS Xavier
9/13/93 - 10/1/93
This guy was another hunk! Huge, bright white with big black spots, he was on the cutting
edge of the Holstein fashion trend. Adopted as the second greyhound to a doting dad who
wanted this one to be "MY dog."
17. Slim
6/29/93 - 8/27/92
Red brindle, alright, but Mr. Personality would stand out in anyone's mind. Young,
energetic, and full of affection, Slim fit right into a home with two kids to play with.
16. Louie's Pearl
5/26/93 - 6/15/93
Another tiger-striped red brindle. We like those big red boys!
15. Aztec Ben Tryin'
4/30/93 - 5/20/93
Ben was a real gem! A true blue, not too common among the greyhound crowd. On top of that
gorgeous color, he had a wonderful elfin face that looked full of mischief. A real
lady-killer!
14. Sports Buff
3/6/93 - 4/19/93
Buff met his new mom at the renaissance fair, where she took him for a long walk and was
impressed with his outgoing personality. He was a big hit, but his new mom had to give him
up for personal reasons in 1994 and he was re-homed.
13. DougNtodd
Uh-oh, foster mom didn't write down those dates! Todd was a striking hunk, great big and
white with brindle and red ticking.
12. NXS Get Back Jack
1/9/93 - 1/23/93
Jack was a big red brindle who really liked people and other dogs. His new family
experienced a tragedy right after his adoption, and he helped his new mom get through it.
11. Down and Out
10/1/92 - 12/1/92
Yet another big red brindle. This one was quite a pup, full of himself and very jolly!
10. Scoby Jones
8/31/92 - 9/12/92
Scoby retired from racing to become a country dog, living with several other dogs and
learning all about horses. Big dogs. Big BIG dogs.
9. Legs
8/18/92 - 8/28/92
Legs was first in a series of big red brindles, hard at this late date to keep separate
in my mind. Like several of our fosters, he want to a great family that jumped right into
GPA activities.
8. River Knight
7/5/92 - 7/24/92
Knight was a handsome fawn boy, very gentle and easy to place. He went to the
Rainbow Bridge in 1995.
7. Tyson
6/9/92 - 6/19/92
Tyson was a big red brindle who lived up to his name! Always a fighter, he was mellow enough
with people but real keen to eat anything small and fluffy. Always an adventure at
meet-and-greets! He found the perfect spot with a first-time greyhound owner who
wholeheartedly adopted both Tyson and GPA-Austin. Tyson went to the
Rainbow Bridge in 1995.
6. High Impact Big Boy
6/2/92 - 6/6/92
Here's another one who gave us whiplash, he came and went so fast. A huge red brindle who
inspired his new mom to rename him "Teeger."
5. Time Ticks By
4/5/92 - 4/13/92
Well, that didn't take long! This was a bigtime winner, very light blue fawn. He'd retired
due to an injury, but that didn't stop him from racing straight to the perfect home. This
guy impressed everyone around the GPA booth at the renaissance fair when he was unloaded
straight from the track and spent the next several hours surrounded by bellydancers and bagpipes, apparently unfazed by this new experience.
4. GG Gunsmoke
2/14/92 - 3/20/92
Another big fawn. This one's had more than his share of adventures in his life. He travelled
to Florida with his new mom, was kidnapped and recovered several years after adoption, and
later re-adopted when his mom had to give him up for health reasons. He's now settled happily
with people who wouldn't give him up for a million bucks.
3. NXS Texas Sun
1/25/92 - 2/7/92
2. Napoleon
October-December 1991
Napoleon was our first with GPA-Austin. He was a great big fawn boy, calm and gentle. But
we had him for awhile because he'd had a rough time. No one knows what he'd been through
before he hit Austin's Humane Society shelter, but he was very thin and covered with sores.
We nursed him back to health and taught him all about being a house pet, and he was a fine
introduction to the joys of fostering.
Greyhound Racers Recycled/Austin
1. Lotus
November-December 1990
Our very first foster, we picked Lotus up as a foster for Racers Recycled in Austin. Her
owner was calling her Greenie ("Because she's got a green muzzle and her sister has a
yellow one.") It didn't take her long to convince us that she'd found the right home (this is called "failing Fostering 101"). An interesting note: Butterfly later re-connected with Lotus' breeder via the Internet greyhound mailing list! Lotus went to the Rainbow Bridge in
December 2000.
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