The Forever Home Flyer

It took me a while to realize that I didn’t want to be just a Forever Home for Greyhounds. 

I thought I was doing a wonderful thing when I adopted Buddy and Tucker on 14 October 2002.

And I was:  I was giving 2 handsome Boyz the home that they deserved and had never had.

For years, I’ve either worked for or volunteered for the 2 local shelters.  And even the poorest animal has had some sort of home – albeit some not-so-good homes.

But Greyhounds have never had a home of ANY kind.  No warmth, no love, no soft bed on which to lay, no freedom to move about as they wished.    

Giving care for animals takes not only time, but resources and funds.

I’m a non-participant in the making of the calendar (therefore I’m not touting myself), but I understand that it is a labor-intensive, time consuming, expensive undertaking.  The people who put it together are volunteers and give freely of their time and talent and even treasure without expecting, nor asking for, any monetary gain.

Part of their joy when choosing the pictures is payment for their work and even if there are only 12 months to showcase 12 Hounds, every, yes,  every picture that is sent in is placed in the calendar.

The other part of their joy is to know that the calendars are raising funds for the FSGR and realizing their commitment to finding Forever Homes for the Greys that come into our care.

And that is the purpose of this letter:  if every one who has adopted a Greyhound from us in the past would buy an FSGR calendar, those funds would come rolling in.

Yes, times are tough.  The economy is tanking, jobs are being lost.  But we still have dogs to help, to place in homes, to whom to provide medical attention if needed. 

The number of Hounds doesn’t fall because the economy is falling.  They still need every moment, every penny we can give.

Time has run out for 2009.  A new year has begun and with it new horizons to face, new tasks to perform, new dogs to love and place in homes.

Please consider donating $14.00 for a calendar.  It’s not much to ask. 

And please don’t let your participation in the wonderful rescue that is FSGR, wane.  Stay involved!  Keep in touch!  Come to the Meet and Greets with your Hounds.  Buy a calendar and a cookbook.  Donate prizes for our picnic.  There are lots of things you can do to help. 

You did a tremendous, wonderful thing by adopting a Greyhound or two or more.

Can you please think about continuing to help FSGR help the Hounds?  It’s not too much to ask, is it?  Not in the grand scheme of things – like having these beautiful animals to love and to love us in return.

Thank you.

 Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy New Year

 Joan M. Fish – FSGR volunteer.

A note from the editor...Joan may not have participated in the creation of the calendar, but she is the driving force behind the cookbook, and a wonderful job she did, too!  To order either of these wonderful items, please click here.

First State vet Lindsay Shreiber shares this information on the canine flu...

A Primer on Canine Influenza

Canine influenza was first discovered as a new disease causing virus and brought to attention by research veterinarians in January, 2004. Researchers in Florida had discovered that a strain of Equine Influenza had jumped species and had acquired the ability to infect dogs in a greyhound racing kennel, and is the “new” canine influenza virus. There is some speculation however that outbreaks of severe “kennel cough” in racing kennels as far back as 1999 may have been caused by this virus.

Symptoms of Canine Influenza include both nasal symptoms (runny nose, sniffling, sneezing) and other respiratory symptoms such as coughing and difficulty breathing; in addition to possible malaise, lethargy, loss of appetite, and fever. Illness may occur in up to 80 % of dogs who become infected, and reported death rate is 1-5 %. Up to 20% of dogs who may be infected, but show no signs of disease may still spread the virus.

The new Canine Influenza vaccine was first brought to market in June 2009. The vaccine may not completely prevent infection, but is reported to lessen the severity of disease. Additionally it may lessen the amount of virus an infected dog sheds once a dog is infected. At this time, the American Veterinary Medical Association is officially calling the vaccine a “lifestyle” vaccine, and is not recommending it for every dog. Rather, the recommendations are that dogs who are boarded, kenneled, or housed in group situations should receive the vaccine. The vaccine is given as a series of two injections 2-4 weeks apart, and is recommended in puppies as young as 6 weeks of age. Peak protection is likely not reached until 2-4 weeks after the second vaccine. Annual re-vaccinations are recommended. The vaccine is currently listed by the USDA as “conditionally approved,” that is the USDA will continue to monitor data before granting full approval. The vaccine is made from a killed virus, therefore it cannot cause disease, and no serious adverse effects have been reported to date.

Valley Veterinary Hospital has not specifically seen any cases of Canine Influenza thus far, but cases have been reported in Philadelphia city shelters, as well as verbally reported outbreaks in community housed dogs in the greater PA/NJ/DE area. Although the vaccine is not specifically recommended for all dogs, it may be of value for dogs who are boarding, kenneled, participate in shows and other group events, travel, and for dogs who may be exposed to newly acquired dogs in the community.

Please contact us if you have any questions regarding your dog and canine influenza.


Lindsay Shreiber, VMD

Valley Veterinary Hospital
710 Main Street
Phoenixville, PA 19460
610-935-8110
vvhdesk@comcast.net

Shelby French writes...

And Ellen Link writes...

Tina Stout and I did a M&G with the Park & Rec kids at the Lower Nazareth Township Park on July 14th.  We had roughly 70-90 kids that we presented to.  They even got to see Mavis and Fletcher run in their baseball field.  This was the best photo as I was so busy presenting and forgot to pull my camera out until the last minute!  We spent about an hour and a half with the kids and went over greyhounds, neat facts, history, and dog safety.  They ended up donating $100 to FSGR and Christine has the wonderful letter that they sent.

And lastly...

On June 27, 2009 Jenn Earley and her 8 year old son, Jimmy, along with Shelby French and Pam & Andy Lloyd attended the Concord Pet Food & Supplies sponsored "bring your dog to the ballpark" day.  Greyhounds in attendance were Foxy and Molly (Jenn's girl's) and foster's Joker and Player.  This annual event is held at Frawley Stadium in Wilmington, DE, home of the minor league Blue Rocks.  This customer appreciation day was well attended for the pre-game festivities as well as those just coming for the game.  Concord Pet gave away a bag of goodies to anyone that came with their canine. These reusable bags were filled with various assortments from treats and collars to dog food scoops and coupons.  Nearly ever vendor that sells food at Concord Pet was present with lots and lots of free samples.  First State was one of the few rescues present.  Wellness pet food suppliers donated 10#'s of dog food which Jenn was able to use to feed her hungry foster's, Joker and Player.  Later that week Shelby stopped by a Concord Pet store and struck up a conversation with the clerk about the dog's day at the park.  He began filling a bag with more food samples that were left!  Thank you Concord Pet!  There are 19 store locations in Delaware, Pennsylvania and Maryland.  You can visit their website at www.concordpetfoods.com