Is There a Greyhound in Our Future?

I have always thought that someday we might have a dog, but was never sure it would ever happen without some major spousal arm twisting. Not being the arm-twisting type, I was beginning to resign myself to the possibility that we would remain petless to the end of our days. As the kids got older, I half expected them to start pining for a dog and thus provide some back up. Together we could perhaps stage a household coup, sweeping aside all resistance with our incessant pleas. My kids, however, not having spent much time around dogs, have never taken up the cause. Instead of begging for a dog, they beg for deluxe Lego sets. (The catalogs inexplicably started showing up in our mailbox about a year ago.) Now, I think they like animals -- we had a cat a few years ago they truly adored, but most of their animal contact has been with the stuffed kind.

A crack in the spousal resistance appeared some months ago when I mentioned how my friend Carol had adopted 2 greyhounds. "Now if I had to have a dog it would be a greyhound because I've heard they're good dogs," he said. What's this? I didn't even have to mention all the wonderful things Carol said about her dogs. And frankly, I wasn't even going to attempt to make a case for getting one. I had no idea he had this information stored away in his head. Where did this come from? I decided to play it cool and let things gradually unfold. I bided my time, occasionally retelling stories Carol shared about her dogs. Finally, last Friday we got a chance to meet Ace and Chelsea, and at last, I think, resistance has been swept aside.

I did a little reading on greyhounds, but there are some things we learned from our visit to Carol and Jeff's that they didn't mention in the book:
1. They like to lean against you. Ace, the 90 pound one, particularly seemed to like to lean against Jack.
2. They have particularly bad dog breath. (This I personally did not notice during our visit. While Ace stood nose to nose to us as we sat on the couch, he politely kept is mouth closed.)
3. They fart a lot. ( Again, fortunately, this is not something I noticed during our visit)

Potential farting and bad breath aside, the pros far outweigh the cons. They are sweet, gentle, laid back and have really soft fur. They don't bark a lot, and contrary to what one might think, they only need to go for a short walk a few times a week. They must, however, be kept on a leash at all times because of their prey drive. If they catch sight of any chaseable thing, they could be gone for good. Frankly, I was quite smitten with Ace and Chelsea. I would've taken them home right then and there. As for Jack, I think he was equally impressed and the final reservations were laid to rest. We have some travel plans on the horizon, but when we return I think I'll be giving Adopt a Greyhound a call.