Archive for the ‘Hammer’ Category

Today is the day – March 15 – PetFinder’s Adopt the Internet day!

I have two posts:

One on About.com:

• Pet Adoption and Fostering – My Stories
  Probably ‘old news’ for those of you who visit this blog

One on K9Cuisine:

• 5 Fabulous Reasons to Foster
  From me, who always said “I could never foster!”

Sophie says: Go forth and adopt! (or at least help out)

Blogathon 2010 donation badge and info is in the sidebar!→

I underestimated the time it would take to do 24 blog posts. I envisioned myself checking the computer while reading my new yoga magazine, eating chocolate, knitting, and walking the dogs during Blogthon 2010. hahahahahaha The dogs had potty breaks, but did not get their usual walk. Neither did DrV’s dogs, apparently.

The knitting project I envisioned for this weekend isn’t happening, either. But that is OK. I have more projects in mind than I can finish in any reasonable amount of time. I keep having to remind myself… knitting is much slower than making glass beads. Still getting used to the Knitting Schedule.

I learned to knit last February after watching a video on YouTube. Hooked! My first big project was to make a sweater for Hammer, our foster Greyhound. I had no idea what I was doing. No pattern. But that didn’t stop me. I used Argos as a gauge for general Greyhound shape. The trouble was… he is a very tall, big Greyhound. Hammer was not.

The Greyhound Sweater Project

A little rough, but functional

A little long, but useable

Even Sophie is laughing

I re-capped the Hammer story on About.com today, since I hadn’t mentioned Hammer as much over there. (Surprising, I know.) I also created a new piece on About.com – a Reader Responds area for viewer submissions. Unlike a blog comment, these are mini-publications from each viewer. Submitted and published upon approval. A little more permanent part of the site.

Whether you have been inspired by the Blogpaws Be The Change movement or have been doing this for years, we’d love to hear your Be The Change story!

As promised earlier, here is the rest of Hammer’s adoption story, along with a couple of parting photos. I am so happy for Hammer!

Hammer finds his forever home - at VetMed Connect

Handsome Hammer!

Hammer, doing what Greyhounds do best -- at least in retirement.

Well, it happened. My first Greyhound foster, Hammer, was adopted last night!

It turned out to be quite a party, and I’ll be honest… I miss him. BUT! I couldn’t have chosen a more perfect family for him! We are all very happy. I am going to write more about this later today on VetMed Connect, but for now, here are some photos.

Barnie is kidding. (Well, sort of.)

Even though we are meeting prospective adopters for our foster, Hammer tonight(!), we went to one more adoption meet-and-greet, because the more the merrier! It’s a party.

Greyhound Twister! I don't pose these photos. Silly dogs!

That’s Hammer peeking under Lunar, another foster, and Argos. Lunar is also coming to our pre-adoption meeting tonight – the family is considering adopting two Greyhounds! How exciting.

Argos needs a head rest.

It was a very beautiful day — my daughter (and Greyhound wrangler) and the dogs were begging to go to the park after the meet-and-greet, so we did.

Everything about the park is fun. Fun!

Argos comes alive. Squirrels! He is doesn't pull or go crazy, just super, hyper-alert. So still.

Sophie and Argos have a silent communication – they get it – there’s squirrels here. How exciting! Neither dog makes a sound, but they look at each other, back to squirrels, and back to each other.

Hammer is not-so-much into the squirrel thing.

I heart you, Sophie.

To be continued…

This post is a little bittersweet. I took  Argos, Hammer, and Sophie to hang out at PetsMart today for the regular Greyhound adopt-a-thon and meet-n-greet. The dogs love it, the people love it, and it is great for socialization purposes. Oh, and someone might be interested in adopting, too. Not today, though. Kind of quiet at PetsMart. I was secretly thinking maybe we should just adopt Hammer. He is such a love. And hey… I can deal with being a “foster failure.”

Then I got home to a message from my rescue group. A family is very interested in adopting Hammer. They live 2.5 hours away. Hmmm. Stop and think. A little panic. Would I ever hear about him again? I called the family. Wow… could be a perfect fit – two dog-loving kids about my two dog-loving kids’ ages, flexible work/home schedules, and they have done their Greyhound research. We are meeting next week to see if Hammer is a good match. My rescue group says that “Greyhounds choose you,” so Hammer will be the center of all of this. For now, here are some photos from today.

Someone is coming to pet us!

My sweeties - Argos and Sophie

Argos has really come out of his shell since we adopted him in December. He loves the attention!

Hammer and another foster boy, Lunar. Also a mellow sweetie!

Greyhounds love to use each other as headrests. How heavy can their tiny heads be?!