Articles from March 2013



Find the love of your life…

… by adopting a retired racing greyhound. April is National Greyhound Adoption Month. Celebrate it by welcoming one (or more!) of these wonderful pets into your home and into your heart.

Get Ready to Bark in the Park!

Making friends with a greyhound at Bark in the Park!

Calling all dogs!  Bark in the Park, an MSGAO-sponsored event for all dog breeds, is scheduled for Saturday, April 13, from 11 to 2 p.m. at Levitt’s Shell in Overton Park in Memphis.

The entertainment will be “Young Guns,” an amazing young group whose members are under 16 years old.  MSGAO Director Vicki Cohen saw the band when it opened for ZZ Top and called the performance “amazing!”  Young Guns plays a mix of rock and blues.

A cool new feature this year will be the appearance of food trucks to satisfy your hunger.  Central BBQ and  Rock ‘n Dough Pizza (wood-fired pizza) will be there, along with several vendors.  So come out and enjoy beautiful spring weather!  At least we hope it will be beautiful spring weather.  Keep your paws crossed!

Please keep in mind all dogs must be on leash.

Adoptions Set a Record!

Greyhounds literally flew out of the Mid-South Greyhound Adoption Option kennel in January and February.  Vicki Cohen, director of the adoption program housed at Southland Park Gaming and Racing, believes the amount of adoptions in those two months set a record!  Included in the total are three dogs who joined the GPA Nashville adoption program, where volunteers foster the dogs until they can be placed in homes:

  • BS Dodge This
  • WW’s Feet Beat
  • Shaddix

Here are the happy hounds and their wonderful adopters (with racing name, nickname and adopters listed).  We wish them a greyt future together!

January 2013
Programable Pro Brad and Beth Rainey
Little Cassie Cassie Robert Weller
Ellesar Eugene Anne and Hank Wynn
Oshkosh Edna Edna Aaron and Lauren Blackstone*
Dodgem Bullets Bullet Chris Spence
Rare Effect Ivory Gail Black
February 2013
CG’s Mia Mia Cheryl and Marvin Comption*
WW’s Texaco Texaco Marge and Wally Newburn*
CG’s Cora Cora Kati McFarland
Art Argo Argo Brian and Shirley Faulkner
Effective race Ichabod David and Beth Chartoff
PRS Carpet layer Muncher Bobbie and Wade Mallette
Janis Gold Goldie Diane and Jason Garrett
Kenro Katoya H Mira Stephanie Shaw*
CS Glitter Glitter Chris Vickers
Ponda Haftahurry Hafta Michael Whitley

Curious about those asterisks?  These mean the family who adopted the greyhound has another at home.  We call those chippers since, like potato chips, you can’t have just one greyhound!

 

Walking for a Good Cause

Greyhounds helped raise funds for Youth Villages by participating in a 5K in 2012.

Greyhounds and their human friends are again approved to walk in the annual Youth Villages 5K (YV5K), and for the first time MSGAO will also set up a Meet & Greet booth at this major fund-raising event for the private non-profit organization dedicated to helping emotionally and behaviorally troubled children and their families live successfully.

The event will occur April 20 at 1000 Ridgeway Loop, Memphis, TN. Race time is 9 a.m. on the dot. Last year’s 5K had more than 2,000 participants, so you will need to give yourself time to find a parking spot, pick up your YV5K T-shirt, and locate the MSGAO booth (that’s where we’ll meet). There will be a band and lots of post-race food, usually hot dogs, chips, ice cream, chocolate milk, and water.

Our team name is “Greyhounds for Youth.” I’m having team T-shirts made this year. They’re still in the design process, but I think everyone will like them. I’m excited. The MSGAO logo will be on the front. A greyhound running with a kite (similar to YV’s logo) and a boy attempting to chase the greyhound will be on the back. These shirts will be pre-ordered because the kennel isn’t paying for them. The shirts will be available at cost to those who walk in the 5K. If anyone wants to buy a shirt but not participate in the 5K, part of the proceeds will go to the kennel and part will go to YV. As soon as I know the cost of the shirts, I’ll let you all know.

For liability reasons our dogs must remain at the back of the group. Please remember poop etiquette.

A 5K is the equivalent of 3.1 miles. To prepare your dog: walk at least for days per week and add ½ mile each week to gradually build up endurance. I’d rather err on the side of caution than to push the dog too hard. The greyhounds seem to know that the 5K is a competition. Therefore, they want to walk faster than usual. If the weather is warmer next month, you might want to bring water for your dog during walks.

 To register:

  • Go to www.youthvillages.org.
  • Click “Events” on right side of screen.
  • Click “Memphis/Mid-South” tab.
  • You will see “YV5K & 10 miler.”
  • Click “Learn more.”
  • Click “Teams” at the bottom of page.
  • Click” I would like to join an existing team.”
  • Now you will see a section that says, “Team company.”
  • Scroll to Greyhounds for Youth and select. There will be a “join” red link to the right.
  • Choose YV5KWalker$20.

I would like to have a team of at least five people. More would be even better. We had a good time last year. Your donation and/or time will go to a good cause and will not be wasted. Sylvie and the kids appreciate it.

– Paula Pilgrim