King Sky!

Greyhounds get cold and need to dress warm so that they don’t catch the flu. I like running around in the snow. It’s fun, and Dad says I make a blizzard because I kick up lots of snow when I run fast.

I have a nice purple coat that my Mom bought me. How do you like my purple coat? My Dad says it makes me look like a king! I am not a king, I am Sky!

But what if I were the king? What kind of laws would I make? I think I would make a law that people have to be nice to each other! That’s a good law. And, that all dogs should have a family that loves them. Another law is that every dog should get 24 walks per day—that’s one walk per hour! Let’s see, what else? Oh, yeah, people have to use their turn signals—wait, that might already be a law. My Dad gets mad when people don’t say where they’re going—he says it’s common “courtesy.”

Courtesy, uh oh? Have to go visit The Google on that one. Be right back. Tick-tock. Tick-tock.

I’m back, The Google says courtesy is a “gentle politeness to each other.” Good, I like it, though it sounds a bit like my first law. Another law would be that Moms and Dads can stay home from work whenever they want and still get money. They would be allowed to stay home and play with us dogs! Dad said that is a very good law.

What law would you make if you were king? Wait, I got one more . . . dogs named Sky are allowed to have pizza for breakfast if they want it. I think that is a very important law.

Pretending to be the king is fun, I give it 3.5 roos.

Can we get an SUV?

As all my friends know, I really want Mom and Dad to buy an SUV. I’m a big boy and it’s a tough fit in Dad’s car. I started selling t-shirts to raise money to buy my own SUV, but I’ve only made $36.00 so far. Dad says that’s not enough to buy an SUV.

Every day I ask Dad if he is going to buy me an SUV. I usually wake Dad up and our morning goes something like this:

Dad: Good morning Sky, are you hungry?
Me: Good morning Dad. I am hungry! Can we have pizza for breakfast?
Dad: No Sky, no pizza for breakfast.
Me: Can I go for a walk today?
Dad: Maybe Sky, we’ll see how the day goes.
Me: Can I go for a ride today?
Dad: Maybe Sky, we’ll see how the day goes.
Me: Can we buy an SUV today.
Dad: No Sky!

Dad says “no” every day, but I keep asking so he doesn’t forget that I want one.

Well, on Saturday I ask Dad if we can buy an SUV, and he said, “Maybe”!

Maybe? That’s almost a yes and I was so excited that I nearly fell down the stairs! I couldn’t believe my ears. I was so excited. Mom and Dad were talking about it all morning, so I knew it was a good chance! After they left, I waited by the window all day Saturday afternoon to see if Dad brought home an SUV.

Finally, after waiting for what felt like forever, in pulls Dad . . . in an SUV! Yes, finally! I am so excited.

I rushed to meet Dad at the door and asked Dad if I could go for a ride, but he said I have to wait a few days till they spray it or something. I can’t wait!!

An SUV for me to ride in is very cool. I give it 5.0 roos.

Spend A Day . . . With Sky

A couple of weeks ago, ESGAO held their big event: Spend a Day . . . With A Grey. It was so much fun and if you were there, then you got to spend the day with me!

I was selling t-shirts, can covers and signing autographs at my table. I also brought some of my blogs so people could read about what I have to say.

It was cool having my table, but really I just wanted to play with all the greyhounds. There were games and I got to do a couple of them. That was fun. And, oh, I got my picture taken by a professional! I’m putting that one in my scrap book.

Mom and Dad were busy trying to make it a nice event, so I had to help out where I could. Next time, I don’t want a table, I want to hang out with my friends and talk about how we used to race but now we’re retired and we spend time with nice families.

ESGAO just got eight new dogs (wow!) and I can’t wait to meet them. There is another Spend A Day event in April. I hope you all will come see me and all of my friends.

What’s a Rotary?

I don’t like it when Dad uses words I don’t know. When I don’t know a word, I have go to The Google to look it up. It’s a good thing The Google knows everything.

Dad said his boss asked him if he wanted to talk about greyhounds at her Rotary club. He asked if I wanted to come and before I even knew what a rotary is, I said, “Yes, I’m coming!” When Dad came home and got my leash, I was so excited and jumped on the door three times. I had to check out this rotary thing!

The Google said it is a civic organization that does a lot of nice things for people. I was happy to meet the nice folks of the Rotary—and tell them that one nice thing they can do is adopt a retired racer!

When we got there, they were eating lunch. The ham smelled so good. They asked Dad if I can have some, and he said yes! That’s a good start to any meet and greet. Dad got up there and talked about what great pets us greyhounds make. He showed a video too. I walked around and said hello to some folks. I think they liked me.

At the end, the Rotary asked Dad to sign a book for the library. He signed it “Dad and Sky!” My name is in the library now! Maybe one day I’ll be in The Google. As we left a nice lady asked if she could take my picture. I said of course! I like my picture being taken. Not bragging, but I’m a handsome boy with some funny ears!

Rotaries are fun, I give it 3.5 roos!

Doggie Doo Two

Doggie Doo was so fun! I didn’t want to leave. I hardly took any breaks—I was meeting and greeting people all afternoon. It was raining all morning but the sun came out after we got there.

Mom and Dad went to meet Daniel, the miracle dog. They call him a miracle dog because he didn’t die in the gas chamber. Nobody knows how he survived. I could see him but he had too many fans for me to visit him. He looked so sweet and had a big special chair just for him. His Dad was signing his books. Daniel and his Dad tell people that they should pass laws that make it not okay to use gas chambers. My Dad told him that I write a blog and he seemed impressed.

Later I saw Fog—it was like a canine writer’s convention! We all like saying what we think. Fog has a new Mom and Dad and they seem very nice. He seems very happy.

While I was there, I met Ally and Sidney. They wanted a picture together because they said that out of all the dogs at Doggie Doo, and there were a lot of dogs, that I was their favorite. How cool was that? I almost started rooing right there—but I didn’t want to brag and make the other dogs feel bad.

Mom and Dad said that they are going to the Woolybear Festival on October 6 and because I was so good, I get to go to that too! I can’t wait! Maybe I’ll get to meet and greet Dick Goddard. Maybe he’ll say I’m a good boy and want to read Five Roos.

Doggie Doo gets 4.0 roos!

Daniel and Doggie Doo

I’m so excited, I just found out I am going to Doggie Doo in Oberlin on Saturday. I told Dad I wanted to go and he said I am allowed!

At Doggie Doo, I’ll see some of my old friends and my foster mom and dad. I can’t wait, there will be lots of other dogs there. And a parade! Poor Petey can’t go because Dad said he is too rambunctious. He don’t behave in crowds and wants to go where he is not allowed to go.

One dog that will be at Doggie Doo is Daniel “the miracle dog.” I hope I get to meet him; he is a special little dog. He was supposed to be dead—people tried to kill him by putting him in a gas chamber because he didn’t have a home or a family to love him. But he didn’t die and now he tells people his story. He’s from Alabama just like me and now has a happy home. He even has a book!

Doggie Doo will be a fun day! Come say hi to me and the other dogs! Lots of good dogs need a home.

Gas chambers get no roos; Daniel gets five.

Dad's shoes

I keep a close eye on Dad’s shoes cause when he puts them on, it means I might be going for a walk. Sometimes I get to go, sometimes he is going to work or someplace I can’t go. But whenever he grabs his shoes, I give him my hopeful face.

When I don’t get to go, Dad says, “No, sorry Sky,” and then he tells me where he is going. But when it is time for a walk, Dad says, “Okay, let’s go Sky!”

When I hear that I go nuts. I lose my mind. I am so excited. I can’t wait to go. When I see my leash, I know it’s official, I am going—and then I jump around like crazy and start barking and rooing. I knock over things and run into Petey. I go by the door and start jumping on it . . . I can’t wait. I get going so fast that it is really just a blur. At that point, I am not responsible for my actions.

Mom’s worried that I am addicted to walks and said I might have to join DWA (Dog Walks Anonymous). Dad knows stuff about addiction and said his shoes are my trigger. I don’t know what that means, plus I don’t have a problem. I just love walks and want as many as possible.

Sometimes when Dad is going somewhere and I am not allowed to go, he tries to put his shoes on quietly—so I don’t know. But I can hear him. He’s not fooling me. I come running and give him my face (see photo, by Chris Paulus)

Going for walks is the most fun thing I do. It gets 5.0 roos.

I am an entrepreneur!

Dad says entrepreneurs are people who do a business in hopes of living the “American Dream.” Right then and there, I knew I wanted to be an entrepreneur—I want an American Dream!

But what can a silly-eared greyhound make a business be about? I pondered and contacted business advisors to see what they thought. I tried calling a man named Warren Buffett to see what he said, but he wasn't home. After much debate, and practice spelling the word ‘entrepreneur,’ I narrowed it down to two ideas—lemonade or t-shirts. The advisors said that many people start out by selling lemonade, but I decided on t-shirts. I am a risk-taker and I think out of the box—so I am going to break all the rules and sell t-shirts.

I told Dad my idea and he said I could. I told Mom and she wanted to help me! So, the three of us sat around last week to make up some t-shirt ideas. But what do we put on the t-shirts? The advisors said to make a business about something you know. What do I know—I know me, and people like me, and my blog—so that’s what my t-shirts will be about. Me, my blog and what greyhounds like.

So here I go. I have two Five Roos t-shirts that I will be selling. When I sell one, I will give half the profit to the Erie Shores Greyhound group so they can rescue more greyhounds (Dad says that’s smart because it is tax-deductible) and I will save the other half for my American Dream.

I’ve already sold two t-shirts and the calculator said I only need to sell 45,251 more in order to get my dream—an SUV! Dad says we can deduct that from the taxes too. I don’t know what taxes are, but seems like nobody likes paying them. I have to look ‘taxes’ up on The Google later.

Being an entrepreneur is very exciting, I give it 4.5 roos.

Vacation is Over!

Well my Mom and Dad’s vacation is over and it is back to normal. I am so sad. I like when Mom and Dad are on vacation. They are home most of the day, and we get to play outside and get to eat lots of vacation food. We make sure we get our walks and lots of times we get a ride too—on the same day! One day we got a ride to the fast food place and I got a hamburger. I love hamburgers, Petey too!

Me and Petey got a new toy—a big squeaky ball. It’s fun. Dad throws it and I go get it as fast as I can. Sometimes I give it back to Dad to throw again; sometimes I take it in the house for safe keeping. Dad laughs when I do that.

When I get tired of playing, I lie down in the grass. I often fall asleep. It's very relaxing.

My Mom and Dad were gone for two days to watch tennis balls go back and forth in Cincinnati and my Uncle Dave came over to take care of me and Petey. Petey loves Uncle Dave; they go way back a lot of years. I like Uncle Dave too; he’s easy going just like me. He likes to get us to play. Petey likes roughhousing with Uncle Dave—to see who is tougher. Sometimes they wrestle like MMA. I just watch; wrestling is Petey’s thing.

I can’t wait until the next vacation! I give it 4 roos.

Doing an "S"

The other day Dad was cutting the grass and I was outside spotting for him. I look for things in the yard that he shouldn’t run over—like my toys! While I was on the lookout I saw a baby snake. I was so shocked; I never saw such a thing! I had to let Dad know this right away!

I probably would have been scared, but this was a small snake and he was anxious to get out of the yard. I watched him as he slithered away, doing his “S” to move real fast. He was scared of me, Dad and the lawn mower!

Snakes don’t have any legs like me, so I had to get on the computer and look up how they move on The Google. It’s pretty amazing they can move without legs by doing an “S.”

Dad told me that last year when he was jogging around the neighborhood he saw a baby snake in the road. It was trying to get out of the road, but no matter how hard he tried to do his “S” he couldn’t make it up the curb. Dad said he tried doing a fast “S” and a big “S” but neither worked. He was too small to get over the curb. Dad said he got a stick and helped the snake get out of the road.

Seeing a baby snake was pretty cool. I don’t know if I want to see a big snake; Dad says they can get pretty big! I give it 3.5 roos.

The Greyt Race

Last Sunday, me and Dad went to the Greyt Race in Rocky River to do a mile walk (I love walks!) and tell people what great pets us greyhounds make. We left early and I was a bit sluggish because I was out late partying the night before. I went to the South’s house and I saw all my old friends. We ran around and watched fireworks. I had so much fun.

At the race, me and Dad walked a mile in 9:43—and that included a poop break. I don’t care about my times anymore, and I don’t think that was really a mile, but we had fun and I got a medal. I also got to see a lot more greyhounds and other dogs—even two that looked like Petey! I told those dogs about Petey and that they looked just like him. They seemed excited that I told them that.

Before the race there was a very scary moment. Me and Dad pull up in our car and the guy in front of us stops his car and gets out to talk to the race people. While he is talking, his greyhound jumped out the window! I thought, “Oh my gosh,” what is this dog doing? The guy didn’t know or nothing. My Dad beeped, but the guy thought my Dad was telling him to get out of the road. My Dad wasn’t saying that at all, he was trying to tell the guy that his greyhound jumped out the window. The guy got in his car and then realized his greyhound was gone. Luckily, people caught the greyhound pretty quick and nobody got hurt!

It was a fun morning and I was worn out. I give it 4.0 roos!

Sharing the attention

I like attention, I admit it. I like meeting and greeting people, having my picture taken and being petted. Often, when Mom and Dad are paying attention to Petey, I get jealous and shove my way right in. I get in between them so that I can get the attention.

But Petey has been hurting lately. His little legs are bothering him and he gets medicine from the vet. Dad even has to give Petey a shot every Tuesday—something that neither Dad nor Petey looks much forward to. Because Petey is hurting, Mom and Dad are giving him lots of attention, and lots of love.

I think Petey needs lots of love right now, so I am trying to share the attention with him. I am being a nice boy and not shoving my way in.

I hope Petey gets better and the medicine works. He’s a bit of a blockhead, but he’s my friend. And, if he gets better, then I can go back to seeking all the attention.

Petey’s legs hurting are 0 roos, but the sharing the attention with my friend is worth 4 roos.

Lecture time

So yesterday I am there just lying on the deck when Dad says “Come here Sky, we need to talk.” I am enjoying the sun and thought we could talk later when Dad gets a little stern with me and says, “Now, Sky!”

“Uh oh?” I think I best go see what this is about. My Dad said he checked my blog and noticed that I have not been writing very much lately. I told my Dad that I have just been lazy, not doing much—taking it easy. Dad said that writing a blog is a serious responsibility and that I have to make a commitment to writing on a regular basis. He said my fans look forward to what I have to say—that I can’t just take the summer off!

Fans? I got fans! Well that’s some roos worth writing about. I told my Dad, okay, I’ll tell my fans that I am sorry for not writing for a couple of weeks. I hope they’ll still be my fans. I love having fans; they get lots of roos and kisses!

I promise that I will try to keep up with my blog, even in the summer when it’s fun just lying around. Thanks for being my fans!

Getting lectures are no fun, but I learned a good lesson about responsibility. I give it 2 roos!

Back to the scene of the crime!

Recently, my Mom asked me if I wanted to go for a ride. Without taking destination into consideration, I gave her a resounding, “Roo!” I waited for her to get my leash and off we went. The trip started great, as we passed Mr. Jim from ESGAO. I always like seeing him, he’s a nice human! But then, after a few minutes, I realized where we are going. Yikes! I need to remember to start asking more questions.

We’re off to the vet and, considering my last experience, I am a little nervous. Almost dying is no roos, and we’re heading back to the scene of the crime.

Once in the vet’s office, I am doing my best to be a good boy and not act scared. I am a brave boy. My Mom wouldn’t take me there if she thought something bad would happen.

I hesitated at first, but then agreed to get my shots. This time I knew they weren’t trying to kill me, cause they took real good care of me. They talked nice to me, gently gave me my shots to keep me healthy and then gave me a cool bandana. They even took me in the back to meet their staff because I was so good. I got VIP treatment. The vet said she wishes all of her patients were as good as me!

I told them about my blog and I hope they will read what I have to say.

This time going to the vet was fun, I give it 3.5 roos.

Petey Louganis

So, Petey has been fascinated with the small swimming pool, called a “swim spa,” since Mom and Dad got it. He likes warm water and thinks the spa is his personal water bowl. Mom and Dad don’t let him drink much cause it has chemicals in it. Well Sunday, Mom and Dad are swimming and Petey takes a trip up the ladder to get a better look and a few licks of water. Mom says Petey should get in the spa, cause it might help his joints. Dad says Petey wants in cause he wants to drink all the water.

As Mom and Dad are discussing, Petey’s patience is wearing thin. Next thing I know, the darn dog just leaps in the pool with Mom and Dad. That’s right, he just jumps right in like he knew what he was doing. Mom and Dad are holding him up in the pool, but now Petey realizes that this is more like a bath than a large water bowl. His face is all wet and he wants out. Now!

Mom and Dad swiftly arrange an exit up and out of the pool by the ladder he leaped from. Petey is all wet and takes to running around the yard and into the house to dry himself off—just like he does after a bath. When he was in the house, Mom would ask if Petey was okay, and I would go in and check and he was okay.

I don’t think Petey will be jumping in the pool again anytime soon. But it was fun to watch, he is such a silly dog. I give it 4 roos.

Bad Words

So Saturday I am watching Dad cut the grass in the front yard. Dad’s cleaning up the place and we’re excited because Mom is coming home. I have to watch through the window ‘cause there is no fence in the front yard and I am not allowed where there is no fence to keep me safe.

While I am watching Dad, I see a kitty I know come around from the side of the house and head over across the road. I always notice kitties. Dad noticed the kitty too and was watching to make sure he crossed the road safely.

All of the sudden, I hear Dad starting to say something and notice a car coming down the road. Dad is yelling to the driver to watch out for the kitty—and he’s pointing at the kitty so the driver can see that it is in the middle of the road.

The driver did not pay attention to my Dad or the road cause he was headed straight for the kitty. We’re all getting scared and holding our breath cause he is not slowing down or anything. Sure enough, the driver hits the kitty and we can’t tell what happened to the kitty ‘cause it went running.

I was so sad for the kitty ‘cause he got hurt, and, oh boy, was my Dad mad. He was yelling and saying “rated R” words about that driver. My Dad don’t usually cuss, except when the Browns are playing, but he was saying bad words really loud and didn’t care if anyone heard him.

Dad said he knows that sometimes animals get hit by cars on accident, but he was mad ‘cause there was no excuse to hit this nice kitty. There was nothing going on. No cars in the streets, no kids playing, it wasn’t raining, it wasn’t dark . . . it was just the road and a kitty in the middle of the road trying to walk to the other side. That man wasn’t paying attention to where he was going.

Dad says people need to stop being distracted when driving, especially in neighborhoods. People need to slow down and look in both directions—you never know when a kitty or a greyhound or a kid on a bike will come out into the road.

I feel very sorry for that kitty. He didn’t do nothing to that man to deserve to get run over. We haven’t seen that kitty so we don’t know if he is alive or not. The neighbor went looking for it, but couldn’t find it. Me and Dad were very upset the rest of the day.

Seeing a kitty get hit by a distracted driver is 0 roos.

Update: I saw my Dad talking with the neighbor today and he came in and told me good news. The kitty is okay! The neighbor said that the kitty is doing okay and staying away from the road. Me and Dad haven't seen the kitty so we were worried and thought the worst. The neighbor said they saw the driver when it happened and he had his head down like he was looking at his phone. I hope he learned a lesson too! The kitty gets 4 roos for being okay!

Week at Bernie's

Tomorrow I have to say goodbye to my Mom. Not forever, just for a week. She has been working really hard and did all her homework so she is allowed to go on vacation for a week. She is going to Panama City to get a tan and talk to the dolphins. Mom loves dolphins and has pictures of them all over the house. She loves them almost as much as she loves me!

Dad is staying home to take care of me and Petey. We’ll probably do some “man” stuff that we are not allowed to do when mom is home. We’ll drink beer and burp. After we burp, we'll laugh like it’s really funny. After Petey burps he has that goofy “Weekend at Bernie’s” look on his face. We’ll probably turn the music up real loud and do hip-hop dances. We’re going to make messes and not clean them up and watch lots of ball games in the living room (roo, roo Tribe!).

We’ll probably get lots of human treats and I bet me and Dad will play lots of fetch outside. We’ll probably stay up past our bedtime, watch a rated “R” movie and then have pizza for breakfast! We just have to remember to clean up before Mom gets home and then act like we were good boys the whole time she was gone.

Okay . . . we probably won’t do all those things, I think I have been watching too much reality television.

I hope Mom has a nice vacation and I’ll miss her. I bet she’ll be telling Sky stories on the long ride to Florida.

Mom going on vacation is 4.0 roos.

Mac the Rooer!

My Mom recently went over my Aunt Julie’s house and when she came back she told me something very upsetting. She said Aunt Julie’s dog, a Lab mix named Mac, is not just a better rooer than me— he’s a way better rooer than me!

Say what? I couldn’t believe my silly ears.

Please tell me that’s not true! That doesn’t even make sense, I am a greyhound and we are supposed to be the best rooers. I am so embarrassed, I want to hide in my room and not do any roos. Why did Mom even tell me that—she should have kept that information to herself and let me think I am the best.

I am glad Mac has something to roo about, but how can he be better than me? He must practice a lot; probably when nobody is home and people think he is sleeping. Maybe he got professional coaching—probably from a greyhound. Maybe he takes a special pill that makes him roo. Or maybe he was raised by a pack of greyhounds and that’s how he learned. There has to be an explanation for this travesty.

I haven’t met Mac, but when I do, I am going to get to the bottom of this—and find out how he learned to roo better than me.

Being out-rooed by a Lab mix is not very good. I give it 1.5 roos.

Rally to the Rescue

Last Saturday I was at the Rally to the Rescue event at the Midway Mall. It was a pet adoption and there were lots of dogs who needed good homes. The nice people at WOBL/WDLW and Leadership Lorain County worked hard to make the event.

I was there from about 10 am to noon greeting folks who wanted to learn more about greyhounds. There were also some people who heard about my Five Roos blog and who wanted to meet me. I was glad to make their acquaintance.

My Mom and Dad were on the radio talking about my Five Roos blog, about Erie Shore Greyhound Adoption of Ohio and all about the greyhound breed. They told folks how I started my blog and that it is fun and silly. Dad also said that my blog tells folks what good pets us greyhounds make and why we roo.

The man in the radio asked Dad to say what a roo sounded like, and Dad did a terrible couple of roos. I was so embarrassed, he didn’t do it right. The man in the radio should have asked me to roo for him. I am a good rooer!

The Rally to the Rescue also has a Facebook page. I looked on the Facebook and guess whose picture is there? Yep, a nice lady took my picture and put it on the Facebook. I hope people will “like” it.

I had a fun day and I am always happy when dogs get adopted. I give it 3.5 roos.

My Mom, the racer!

My Mom and my Dad did a 5K race last Saturday for the Red Cross. They said the Red Cross was nice to our family when there was an accident two years ago. They want to do one 5K race every month for different causes and to get some exercise.

My Mom did good in the race and the newspaper took a picture of her and put it on the front page! That’s right, she was on the front page and lots of people saw it. They said it was a “Fantastic Finish.” My mom looked cute in the paper, and she didn’t try to win the race like me—she just wanted to get healthy.

It’s okay when people do races, because they want to—it’s their choice. Us greyhounds don’t have a choice; the people who race greyhounds for money tell us we have to or we get yelled at. They say, “Go Sky, run faster.” I tried telling the people I was going as fast as I could go! I am Sky, not Jimmy John’s.

If we don’t run fast enough and win the race, then they don’t love us anymore and don’t care what happens to us. They don’t want to be our friends or feed us if we can’t win races.

Thank goodness rescue groups come get us because they give us to homes that love us and don’t care if we can win the race. I don’t care if mom wins the race either. I love her either way.

Seeing my Mom in the paper is pretty cool. I give it 4.0 roos.

Happy Anniversary!

On April 4, we celebrated my one year anniversary of my new family. That might not seem like a long time to you—but that is seven dog years to me!

I will always remember the day I got my new home; it was the day before my Mom’s birthday. That’s what she wanted for her birthday, a retired racer like me!

When I first came to my new family, I was real shy and tried to be real good and not get into trouble. I sat quietly in my bed to see if they liked me. I didn’t ask for any treats, and I stayed out of the kitchen and off the furniture. But I am not shy anymore, I like to run around and dance and roo. I think my family loves me. They always say they love me—and give me hugs and kisses. I think Petey even loves me!

It has gone so fast, I can’t believe it. It seems like yesterday. Now I have a nice family and I hope they are going to keep me forever—I think they will.

I am so happy ESGAO took good care of me and found me a new home!

Anniversaries are fun, I give it 4.5 roos!

A Murder Scene!

So we’re just sitting around last Tuesday when Mom comes home and says that me and Petey are going for a ride. I didn’t know where we were going, it was kind of yucky out for a walk, but I always like a ride so I was excited. Dad picked us up and off we went. Guess where we went . . . the vet! Right then and there I am thinking 0 roos, cause I wasn’t feeling sick or anything. Why I am going to see the vet?

I like the vet well enough, but they are always doing things to me—sticking me with needles, looking in my ears, my mouth (and other places). Turns out this time I was just there to get my nails clipped. No big deal, I thought. So I go in the back area and they do their thing. Clip, clip . . . a couple hurt, but I thought I was okay. I was being a good boy and not causing a fuss.

After I finished, I get into the car and Dad looks at Mom and says, “Look, there’s blood everywhere!” I did not know how the blood got there . . . until I saw my paw. It’s my blood! Mom rushed me back in there to see the vet. Mom also saw that there was blood in the parking lot . . . she told the vet it looked like “a murder scene!”

“A murder scene! Did the vet try to murder me?” I asked myself.

What did I ever do to the vet; aren’t they supposed to be nice to us pets? Mom and Dad paid the bill, so they weren’t roughin’ me up for money. Why would anyone want to murder me? I am a nice dog with funny ears that makes people laugh.

Turns out the vet wasn’t trying to murder me, they just didn’t do a good job clipping my nails. They cut my nail way too short and I bled a lot. Whew! It’s good to be alive!

Going to the vet is 0 roos and nearly being murdered is 0 roos.

Pit bulls and Parolees

Me, Mom and Petey have been watching “Pit bulls and Parolees” on the television. Dad doesn’t watch much cause he’s afraid he’ll see dogs who have been mistreated and that will make him sad. A couple of times Dad came in the room and we were all crying, but they are usually happy tears when a nice pit bull gets rescued or gets a treat.

Petey is an American bulldog mix; he is part of the bulldog family and has a big square head. The lady on the show said she likes all bulldogs. Pit bulls are often mistreated by people. They make them fight and hurt each other. And, if a dog is no good at fighting, they will sometimes just kill them or let them die. People bet on the dogs and who will win the fight, just like people bet to see which of us greyhounds will run the fastest.

The pit bulls are such loving dogs. They like playing with each other and lying around together. They love their owners, they don’t want to fight. People make them fight by doing bad things to them. Some people think that’s okay, but me, Mom, Dad and Petey don’t think it is okay. It’s against the law, and if you know of anyone making a pit bull fight, or hurting a dog, you should call the policeman.

It’s a good show and they do lots of good for the pit bulls, but bad people hurting dogs gets 0 roos.

Please, no touching!

Me, Mom, Dad and Petey took advantage of the nice weather last week and took a walk at the Beaver Creek Park. It was so nice and warm; I can’t wait until it is like that every day. We loaded up the car and got all hooked with our leashes and off we went. Petey must like the warm weather because he was doing good with his legs on the walk. He was having fun; he likes walks almost as much as I do.

There were a lot of other dogs out too, and Mom stopped to talk to this one dog who was walking his human. He was so cute, he looked like Petey a little, but bigger. And he was only two years old, that’s half as old as me, and so he did not know how to be a good dog yet. He was so excited to meet me.

We were just sniffing each other like we do, and our humans were talking when this young dog starts getting frisky with me. I liked this guy, but I don’t like other dogs touching me. When he jumped up on me, I had to give him a piece of my mind. I gave him a good roo and then walked away like the bigger dog. I was just warning him that he shouldn’t be doing that—that other dogs don’t like that so much. It’s not polite—sniffing is okay, but no touching.

But other than that, we had lots of fun. I was so tired when I got home. That’s a tough walk, there are hills and everything. We even got to go down and see the stream for few minutes. I got right in the stream, I don’t mind the water. I slept the rest of the day and all night. Petey too, he didn’t go upstairs all night.

Walks are always 5 roos, even if a young dog gets a little too friendly.

Special Treats

Petey is getting older and his legs hurt sometimes. The vet said he has arthritis and gave him some special medicine. Mom and Dad also bought him special treats; they’re supposed to help his joints. When we’re good boys and get treats, I get a normal treat and Petey gets a special treat.

Well I decided I wanted some special treats too! I have joints. So when Mom and Dad weren’t looking I got on the counter and opened the box of treats and ate some! I thought I was being sneaky cause I didn’t pull the container down, I just put my nose in there and started eating them.

But Dad came in the kitchen and figured out what I had done. He knew many of the treats were gone and he knows Petey can’t reach that high. I am a big dog and that gave me away. I tried telling Dad that I got them down for Petey, cause he was sore, but that didn’t fool Dad—he knew I ate them. Dad called Mom to find out how many I ate to make sure I didn’t get sick. I am not supposed to eat stuff off the counter without asking. Mom and Dad decided to keep the special treats in the cupboard so I can’t get them anymore.

I shouldn’t eat Petey’s special treats off the counter, that’s not very nice and I won’t do it again. But they were good, 2 roos.

Hope springs eternal

Me and Mom and Dad are about tired of winter. We want it to be spring as soon as possible. We’ve been gloomy and spring makes everyone happy.

My Dad has had a rough winter lately and has been pretty depressed. First he hurt his leg, then he was sad for a few days. Then when he wasn’t sad no more, his foot started to hurt and then his other foot hurt too. And then when he was better from that, he got sick.

He said he can’t catch “a break.” He said people who work hard and do nice things are supposed to have good things happen to them. But sometimes that doesn’t always happen. He said you just have to keep trying and never give up. Mom gives Dad support and tells him to keep his chin up.

I told Dad I’d help him too. I said just tell me what “a break” looks like and I’ll catch him. I’m fast, probably faster than “a break.” How fast can “a break” be anyways? I’ll go get him for my Dad and then he’ll be happy. Dad said breaks are fleeting and hard to catch, even if you see one.

Maybe good things will start happening in the spring and it’ll make everyone happy. Maybe if we all roo real loud, Mother Nature will hear us and make spring come sooner. Let’s give 5 roos for spring.

My new logo!

Hey folks, I have a new logo. Ms. Suzie Collins likes us greyhounds and she made this logo for me to advertise my blog. I hope people will see my new logo and want to come see my blog and read about the things going on in my life. I like saying things about what it is like to be a retired greyhound living with a new family. I have some good jokes too! And hilarious ears! This is the place for fun! I hope people will like me and want to adopt a greyhound too.

New logos are fun, I give it 4.0 roos.

One step at a time!

When us greyhounds come off the tracks, sometimes we have to learn things that most dogs learn as puppies—like about glass windows and how to walk up stairs. That’s why we go to foster homes, so we can learn that stuff before we get adopted by nice families.

I am good at going up stairs . . . but I have a system. First thing I have to do is square myself up with the stairs. Petey goes flying around the corners, but I take it straight and slow. Then I take my left paw and put it on the first stair. After a moment to collect my thoughts and remember what I learned about going up stairs, I take my right paw and put it on the first stair too. By then, Petey is all the way up the stairs and is laughing at me. After another short pause, I take my right paw again and go up to the second stair. From there, I have my confidence and I go up the rest of the stairs like other dogs.

It’s a good system and people can tell other greyhounds how I do it if they want to. Petey might laugh at me for being so slow, but the other day he went running up the deck stairs and slipped and crashed his head. He was shaken up, I could tell, he made a big “thud” and Dad had to bring him in through the other door. Good thing Petey has a big hard head. He was okay after a few minutes. Petey is all grown up; he should know to be more careful. Mom and Dad always say, “Easy, slow down Petey,” but Petey didn’t listen and must have been excited to go in the house. Maybe he thought he was going to get a treat.

I say take your time and be safe. Falling down the stairs probably hurts really badly. I hope I never find out. Learning how to be a dog is fun, I give it 3.5 roos.

Rooing Competition

Some people don’t know, but us Greyhounds “roo” when we are excited, being silly or when we want something. It’s fun and we can’t control ourselves. People like it and when they want us to do our roos, they will try to roo. Most of the time we’ll roo back to play along and be silly.

But people can’t roo as good as greyhounds.

The other day, Dad was rooing and he was trying to roo better than me! He was challenging me and I had to show him who was the better rooer.

Dad and me were playing and I would do one roo and Dad would do one roo. Then I would do three roos and Dad would do three roos. I even did three and a half roos—and half roos are hard to do—and Dad even did that. Right then I knew this was a serious competition. I bet the neighbors could hear us and wondered what the heck was going on. We were rooing very loud.

Finally, I got really close to Dad, almost nose to nose, looked him in the eyes, and gave out a bunch of loud roos. I don’t know how many, exactly—but no more than five roos. That’s the best. Mom was smiling and Petey was laughing. Dad knew I was the winner, that he couldn’t roo as good as me. Greyhounds roo better than people. Rooing competitions are fun. 4.5 roos.

Roaching

The first time Dad saw me “roaching” he laughed so hard and took a bunch of pictures and put them on the Facebook. Other people laughed too and made comments, and “liked” it. Sometimes when I do it in the office, it looks like I just fell down next to the wall. It doesn’t hurt, it just looks really silly. Dad and I weren’t sure why I do that, so we got out the laptop and looked it up on the Google.

Turns out lots of greyhounds do that. The Google said it’s because we have really big chests and it’s comfortable to us. When we lie down, we try to dig up some space for our chests to rest comfortably. The Google says that it is called “roaching” because when we are doing it, we look like a dead cockroach. I’ve never seen a dead cockroach, so I’ll have to take the Google’s word on it. Do you think I look like a dead cockroach?

Either way, it’s pretty comfortable and I get good sleep that way. I usually have a big smile on my face. I give it 3.5 roos.

Cahoon in June

I get lots of comments about my funny ears. Sometimes one goes forward and one goes back, sometimes one goes up and the other goes sideways, and sometimes, when I want food, they both point left. Yes, they are ridiculous and people have noticed and said things all my life. They are not mean things; people are often smiling and laughing when they are saying them.

I learned to use them to my advantage and in June last year I brought a nice trophy home as the dog with the “funniest ears.” That’s right, I am the reigning “Cahoon in June” funniest ear champion.

I went there with my dad, just to do the typical “meet and greet” with the nice folks of Avon Lake. We were almost ready to leave when this nice lady asks my dad if I could enter a dog contest. Dad wasn’t sure about that until the lady said there was a category for “funniest ears.”

There were five dogs in my category and each dog had to show the judges their funny ears to decide whose ears were the funniest. I looked at the other ears and there were some funny ones—I even laughed at a couple of them—but I was pretty confident that mine were the funniest. Sure enough, they made the announcement . . . “Winner of the funniest ear category is Sky!” I was so excited; it was much more fun than winning a race—and a lot easier. I got a ribbon with a medal on it and a trophy and my dad got a bag full of dog stuff. I couldn’t wait to get home and show my mom. I stood up in the car the whole way home.

When I showed Mom, she laughed so hard, and she was happy for me too! She started going around and telling people what I had done. Winning a trophy is definitely worth 5 roos.

So much for resolutions

Well it took no time at all for me to break New Year resolution number one. Dad went out to feed the birds and took out a couple slices of old bread. I wanted some of the bread and Dad gave me and Petey a half of slice each. I ate mine right away, but Petey left his on the ground cause he did not want it yet. I thought he didn’t want it at all and I tried to take it. Right then and there, me and Petey had a demonstrated disagreement about the ownership of the bread and started wrestling with each other.

Dad was on the other side of the fence giving the rest of the bread to the birds. When he heard us, he came running. He was not happy with our behavior and we both got a good talkin’ to. We stopped right away, and I went right into the house but Dad was still upset. He said it was my fault, and that I shouldn’t try to take Petey’s food until Petey says it’s okay—and, Dad said, it’s probably never okay because Petey likes food as much as I do.

Dad was disappointed in me. He made me and Petey shake paws and be friends again. We didn’t hurt each other, we were boys being boys, but it scared Dad anyways. When we came in we didn’t get no treats. We’re not supposed to be wrestling with each other.

I owe my friend Petey an apology. No roos.

Smelly Petey

A few weeks ago, when it was still warm outside, Petey did it again. Even though he is older than me, he still don’t know that skunks are nothing to be messing with. Skunks will make you smelly if you get too close to them. The Google says that’s how the skunks protect themselves from animals that want to eat them.

Mom smelled the skunk before she saw him and knew right then and there that Petey was in trouble and went out yelling to get him. Dad was in the basement and heard Mom and came running too. Dad didn’t know what was wrong but ran outside to see what was going on. It was too late, Petey already had his run in with the skunk.

Mom asked Petey when he was going to learn his lesson, but he didn’t answer cause he was trying to get the smelly stuff off of him. Petey was not happy about what happened and was running around the yard all silly trying not to smell anymore.

That didn’t help much and Petey got a bath in the backyard right there where everyone can see him. I stayed in the house and tried to cover my nose. He was so smelly. Mom and Dad cleaned him up and Petey was unhappy for a few hours but then he got better. That is not a good story, I felt bad for Petey. He still smells a little. 0 roos.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everybody! Now that it’s 2013, I keep hearing about New Year resolutions. I didn’t know what a resolution was so I had to look it up on the Google. The Google said it means making a decision to do something. So I guess a New Year resolution means making a decision to do something in the New Year. It sounds fun and Dad said it’s important for me to set goals for myself, so here are my resolutions for 2013.

1. I want to be nicer to Petey. He is such a nice boy, but sometimes I push him out of the way when I need attention. We should take turns. He also wants to lie next to me. I should let him since we are friends.
2. I will try to let Mom and Dad sleep longer on the weekends—until 7:00 or 8:00 am. My Mom works hard all week and wants to sleep a couple of extra hours. But when the weekend comes I get so excited that Mom and Dad are home. I want them to get up and feed me and play with me.
3. I will try to not “shake” Dad down every time he goes in the kitchen. I know there are treats in the kitchen and when Dad goes in there, I come running hoping I get one. But I can’t get a treat every time. I get lots of treats already.
4. I will try to read more, so that I don’t have to look up so much stuff on the Google. I like learning.
5. I want to do more “Meets and Greets.” I want to get out in the community and tell everybody that they should adopt a greyhound like me. Maybe they will put that on their New Year resolution list, maybe they will write, “Adopt a new greyhound”!

What are your New Year Resolutions? I hope you achieve them and meet your goals. Happy New Year!

4 roos for 2013!