October fears

October is known for involving scary times, bloody backdrops and creepy situations. We have had quite a bit of that lately!
First..the obvious..Halloween!!
In years past, Jason has used his artistic abilities to carve some mean pumpkins. This year was no different!
the process..the final results!And yes..one was a GREAT replica of my calf tattoo
So on Halloween, Scott and Iva came over to enjoy the festivities and scare the kids!
Jason ..being the bruteWe had a smoke machine and the kids had to come to jason to get candy. Which was made more difficult by Scott who hung out in the driveway..he greeted the kiddies in style..

Iva and I..well we did what we do best.
i stayed behind the camera..but looked very similar to year's past.

The bad scares of the month came with Henry. He went in for a dental and to have 2 growths removed. They told me what I thought were 'old dog bumps' and moles..were potentially Mast Cell Cancer. So they removed 6 tumors that day, the biopsy results will be back in 3 days. One of the offenders was removed from his gum above his canine. He also has Erlichia which we were aware of but the downfall of this is low platelets. so the 24 hours post surgery, I spent putting fingers in the dam so to speak. the first night, he bled profusely from his gum incision for 4 hours. I should have photographed the aftermath. You would not have believed the towels and dog bed. however..he and I pulled through with no problem. he is now feeling MUCH better and is healing. he doesn't look so good..Erlichia leads to serious bruising. You can see 3 incisions on this photo. One more is on the inside of his back leg, another at his butt and the 6th in his mouth. The bad thing is that if it comes back positive, they will need to remove many more. the only cure to stage 1 skin cancer is complete removal. We won't talk about Stages 2 and 3 until we get a diagnosis. I should know by Wednesday.Have no fear, he is on pain meds and getting lots of loving. He is back to his old self again, wagging his tail and begging for ear rubs.
I will update when I know more!

Fall picnic

Fall is finally here. The leaves are starting to changeAnd the weather is cool and crisp! When the sun is out, everyone gets out to enjoy it! Cali, Dana and Henry stop (briefly) for a rare trio photo!Even though most nights are spent sacked out on the couch..We did have a foster for a few days, Rosie. She is already in a potential forever home. she was a sweet girl
We finally were able to have our picnic this past Sunday. It was scheduled for the Spring .. which really should have been called the Rainy Season as it rained constantly. So after postponing it 3 times, we pushed it off to the Fall. And then we had to postpone it from last weekend. but finally..our patience was rewarded! You can check out GPA's blog for more photos.
Henry shows off his new collar from Houndstown in true style.We had a radar run, which was quite entertaining.
Cali posted the fastest time of the trio at 29mph
Henry came in 2nd with 28mphAnd most of you know 'at home Dana' aka "comfortable Dana"... the Dana in strange places is much different..her Eeyore comes out a bit. So she followed up by basically trotting down the course..turning around and running back to Daddy at 27mph.I have to thank nerice for this next photo. i was holding everyone while Jason took them to the start. So the squawker was tempting everyone waiting!We also had a membership meeting to elect the new board of directors (we welcomed Scott of Beau and Belle fame to the board), go over financial stuff and give a general end of year report. Well..my hounds found the whole thing rather boring (again..thanks to nerice..Cali is laying on my shoe).
I think Henry is a full fledged member..don't you?
Pumpkin and Halloween photos to come..Happy Halloween!!

Welcome to Virginia!

One week ago, this was my view..It was 80 degrees, blue sky..just wonderful convertible weather!
This weekend..winter arrived! 40 degrees, windy, rainy..just gross! so this is my view..I usually hate using the flash on my camera..I think I may have actually used it once since buying it 1 1/2 years ago. But last night..I couldn't resist using the flash to capture these grainy photos. Dante loves the fireplace.

But oddly, it is supposed to be 70 degrees again next weekend. For now..we are just trying to stay warm.

Farewell, Tamale

It is amazing how close we become using only words and photos. IHateToast was one of the first blogs I followed and quite the inspiration to many of us. Even though she is on the other side of the globe, I feel as if I know her and her hounds well. Even though she no longers blogs, we all still maintain that link just in case.
And her hounds Tamale and Omo. To get the news today of Tamale's passing was hard.
Even though I've never met her, she will be missed.
Katy..there are lots of hugs heading your way from the US and your greyhound family is weeping. Find another memorial at GBD and read about Tamale's wonderful retired life..

Happy dogs make Happy People

So I guess it isn't anything unusual for me to say we had a lot of dogs these past few weeks. it will actually be noteworthy when we only have our dogs (in about 1 hour we will be boarder/foster free for the first time in 3 months).
But we have enjoyed the pack and the weather lately has been great for outdoor playtime!
We had Hemi, Bella, Amy, Blue, Ana, Cali, Dana and Henry playing one afternoon. They seemed to really enjoy themselves!
Jason gets the party started by throwing the beehive.
Amy launches..
Everyone seems to be doing something different in this oneSomeone heard the starting pistol..And They're OFF!!Cali does her best impression of a tigerIf you are wondering how Henry is faring these days as a full fledged Stumpf clan member..I would say he is doing pretty good..His vaccines are up to date, he is on all his preventatives/vitamins and just seems like a happy boy to me!
We went to the Metro Space Gallery for First Friday's Arts on the Sidewalk event this weekend. The gallery was featuring an artist who owns/paints greyhounds. so they invited us to attend the event. It was crazy crowded and quite the Friday night scene. It was pretty neat all in all. Before the action got started, we were able to peruse the gallery offerings. Chuck and Sharon try to culture Twister and Cleo a little.But Twister is better suited for this attire.Henry and Dana make great donation dogs for a while..Henry found himself a soft bed to lie on for most of the evening. Notice Henry's new martingale courtesy of Houndstown.
Then we added Beau and Belle to our pack for the weekend. Belle found the chaise lounger and has not left it since! She is very photogenic!

And then there were 5....

I struggled for a bit with how to write this post. Typically, i try not to air dirty laundry in this forum b/c who knows who will read it. But then I realized..if someone shows no respect to me or their dog..why should I have respect for them? This might come back to bite me, but for now..here it is...you deserve to know the story.
Henry..he came to us 8 weeks ago as a boarder. He was to stay with us for 3 weeks while she moved. He came with 3lbs of food (lasted about 1 week), ears full of ticks that were engorged, nails like Hawk's talons, filthy and without a leash or martingale. His owner called on day 1 to see how he was doing. That was the last time she called me. three weeks later..I called her to find out if she was picking him up. She needed more time. Two weeks later (no word from her), I call back. She needed more time.
2 weeks later..i call back again..this time she says she will come pick him up that evening but then says she needs to find him another home due to their new jobs, location, life.
I tell her she needs to sign a relinquishment form and if she would like to come to my house to sign it and say her goodbyes..she could. That was 1 1/2 weeks ago, I have not heard or seen her since. Needless to say, we have no form, no vet records and we won't even mention my boarding fees.
But..the silver lining is that we have adopted Henry (WR Red Eye). He is 10 years old and was in his previous home for 6 years. He is a very good boy, seems healthy and happier now. He has gained weight, is silky clean, nails are short, ears are clean.
i can't say how his last 6 years were..I can guess but it would only be that. but I can guarantee he will have a wonderful last few years.
So..the Stumpf geriactric clan increases...
We now have Shiloh, 12, Dante, 11, Henry, 10, Dana, almost 9, with Cali skewing the numbers at 6. it will be hard to have another senior..and might take an emotional toll. but we just felt we were what he needed.
There is something special about adopting a senior...

and I finally have my big goofy boy..and he is white with brindle spots. I have a soft spot for that color.So welcome him to our gang. I will get better photos of him in the future. It is cold and rainy today.

Sand, Sun and fun..Beach Bound Hounds

Kristen and I loaded up the FX and headed to Myrtle Beach, SC for Beach Bound Hounds...400+ greyhounds on one beach..it was awesome. We had a great time! but you don't want to hear about it...you want to see it..enjoy!
Dana's first view of the ocean from our balcony The first day was overcast and mild. So we all sat on the beach for about 7 hours..just soaking up the rays. we were joined by 10 other dogs (8 greyhounds, 1 afghan and a whippet + our 4 hounds)..just lounging.

Sand became and issue throughout the day...someone said "Hey..let's dig a hole!"

and lay in it!Or try..
Which led the humans to be a little naughty to Jaime...
She was like that for a while..so it must not have been too bad!
With all that sand getting kicked around..it started to get everywhere..

I felt sorry for Cali now and took her down to wash her face off in the ocean. I brought her back all clean and sand free..and laid down and did this..on purpose.

But don't worry..there were plenty of treats on hand. Michelle hands out some goodies

We even ran in to Seka and Roxy of Greytblackdog fame! thanks for hanging out and drinking on the balcony, Greytblackdog! My head didnt' thank you so much the next morning, though!

We gave them a quick nap and headed out to Barefoot Landing for a stroll and dinner.The were even restaurants who pre-planned for our arrival. We had 8 hounds and 4 people ..we enjoyed a wonderful meal with our hounds!

Dolly thinks this lighting suites her best.And then realizes her 'good looks' won't get her any food so she uses Diego's hiney for a pillow.
But Cali's persistance won out over Nerice..you knew someone would cave!
the next day..the weather is better for sunbathing than greyhounds. so we give them the day to recooperate. Then we head out in the afternoon for some fun in the surf! Cali wasn't sure about the moving water at first..but after watching Nerice and Dolly having so much fun.

She was chomping at the bit to enjoy the waves.


Nerice with Dolly and Diego
Kristen with Stanley and Jaime
Me with Cali and Danathe Park and Stumpf kids pose
After all this..we had some very tired dogs...

the last morning on the beach, we had a sunrise ceremony. The sight of 200 people and 400+ greyhounds in one place is quite awe inspiring. We check out the group from the balcony.. then walk down and join the group..We end our trip with a group roo..I feel sure they heard us way down the beach. Dana of course cut her paw (she can't go anywhere with hurting herself)..so although she was in attendance she was not in the mood for roo-ing.