Maggie and the Easter Bunny

Following the lead of Bunny at Tales and Tails, Sawyer and I took Maggie to Bass Pro Shop to see the Easter Bunny today.

That deer is neat but it's not a bunny.

That great, big white fish is cool, too, but it's not a bunny.

THAT bear sure is not a bunny!

Maybe this huge map will help us find the Easter Bunny.

Here's The Easter Bunny!  I know this looks like Maggie is standing in front of a green screen.
She really isn't.  I don't know why the photo looks pixelated.

This was the best part of the visit to Bass Pro Shop for Maggie.  Lots of love from kind strangers.

Happy Easter, everyone!

Dog Food

When we adopted Truly we were encouraged to give him a quality kibble and one that is devoid of corn.  We asked other greyhound families what they used and we selected Nutro.  We've been using it for the almost seven years we've had him.

A 30 lb. bag is $51.00.  That's an expense of about $1,300.00 a year to feed three greyhounds.

Then I read on the SEGA listserv that several greyhound experts recommended a new Costco product, Kirkland's Nature's Domain.

A 35 lb. bag is $36.00.  That's an expense of about $900.00 a year to feed three greyhounds.

Here's the really good part:  Dog Food Advisor rates Nature's Domain slightly higher in quality than Nutro.

Truly, Maggie and Walker like the Nature's Domain kibble.  They still get yogurt, veggies or chicken mixed in occasionally, too.

Truly hears the rustle of the dog food bag.  I thought that door was closed.
He comes to see if a treat is available.
The treat is what I "accidentally" drop on the floor.

Maggie follows Truly into the tiny laundry room.

Walker won't come into the laundry room but he's standing by awaiting his kibble treat.

If I'm not careful, Maggie will stick her head in the kibble stream in order to snag an extra treat.

They' waited patiently -- this time.

What to do with the $400 annual savings?  Maggie said she would like a sister hound . . .

New Bed

Sam's Club has a new style of dog bed - it has side bolsters. New dog beds make me happy! They usually make Those Brindle Kids happy, too. Since I could only find one bed in a color I liked, I bought just that one. Thank goodness. Truly and Walker found it too confining. They sometimes like to stretch out and they like to lie flat. They can't do that with the side bolsters. Maggie appears to have inherited the new bed. She likes the bolsters and it's plenty big for her.

We call it the "Cast Away" bed because it looks like a life raft.  If Tom Hanks had it in the movie,
he could  have rescued himself from that deserted island.

Maggie likes the Cast Away bed.

She says it's very comfy.

She posed nicely, suggesting this photo be used by the Cast Away Bed Company for marketing purposes.

Demonstrating the effective use of the bolster as a pillow.

Demonstrating the roominess of the Cast Away bed.

Note:  Maggie requested the old bed remain under the new bed so she can have extra cushioning. Little princess . . .

The Greyhound Railroad

We went on another Hound Haul last week.  We met the man who brings the retired hounds from the tracks on the first leg of their journey.  He and his wife have been hauling hounds out of Florida for as long as I've been associated with SEGA.  I like to think of these wonderful people as Conductors on the "Greyhound Railroad."  The Greyhound Railroad transports hounds over the road to the safety and security of their Forever Homes - with a stop or two along the way.

The Conductor came rolling in to Perry, GA exactly on time.  There were seven hounds - three boys and four girls.  

The Greyhound Railroad Car.

Two big boys can't wait to get out.  It's time for a potty break!

The Conductor unloads the hounds one at a time.

The were a total of three additional Greyhound Railroad cars waiting for the Conductor in Perry.
These volunteers take the hounds on the second leg of their journey, from Perry to the SEGA kennel in Ackworth. 

Each hound gets a dose of Capstar to kill fleas and ticks.  They don't like it.

Then each gets a SEGA collar, leash and muzzle.
They get muzzles because they won't be riding in crates and no one wants any boo-boos along the way.

Here comes her muzzle.

Then each one gets a long walk.  This boy pulled Sawyer around the entire field.

She's being a good girl.

Hounds and their volunteers in the Potty Field.

Awww!

Tim and Sawyer.

Potty breaks are over.  Time to load up for the next leg of the journey!  Next stop:  SEGA kennel.

We took two girls that happen to be sisters.  This is Rowdy Ringo.

This is Rowdy Ruffles.

Ruffles lives up to the Rowdy part of her name.  It took her a while to relax.  She was so excited.

Ringo was a little less exuberant than her sister.  She was happy to lay down for most of the ride.

Ruffles and Ringo had a number of conversations with each other.
They were worried about what was happening to them.  

"It's o.k., girls.  Everything is going to be all right."

"Ringo, I promise you everything is going to be fine.  You will end up in your Forever Home with your Forever Family."

I told them stories of what their Forever Homes would be like.

They loved hearing about their Forever Families, too.

After a couple hours, we arrived at the SEGA kennel.  More volunteers were waiting to give them baths.
Then a volunteer will take "glamour shots" of each hound for the SEGA adoption web page.

The very next trip these hounds take will be to their individual Forever Homes.  No more track, no more racing, no more Greyhound Railroad, no more kennel.

The Southeastern Greyhound Association (SEGA) is a volunteer organization.  They are an amazing group of people.  Everybody has his/her own part to play and they play their parts with diligence and good will for each other and for the hounds.  Just recently, the members celebrated the adoption of the 2,000th hound.  2,000 greyhounds found their Forever Homes through SEGA.  Wow!

The Mini-Me's First Trip

Thanks to my job, I get to participate in some awesome events.  Last week, I got to go to a conference in South Carolina.  I couldn't take Those Brindle Kids with me so, as promised, I took the Mini-Me's.

Our destination was The Citadel.

The conference itself was one of the best I've attended.  The Citadel community - the place and the people - were amazing.

I've worked with college students for more than 20 years.  I have NEVER, EVER been in an auditorium with 1,000 + students without having to intervene in some level of inappropriate behavior. At least, not prior to this trip.  The Citadel cadets are 18 - 21 year old men and women and they take their creed very seriously.

 The campus environment is pristine

 and beautiful

 to include even the doors.

 The famous bell tower.

Another Citadel landmark.  The company that sells the famous Citadel class rings to graduates provides this giant replica each year.  The giant ring sits at the main campus entrance.  Yes, it really is huge.

Another famous Citadel sight - the red and white checkerboard square inside each barracks hall. Lots of hollerin' goes on in this area as "knobs" are initiated into the class system.  I must have heard "Drop and give me 20" at least a couple dozen times.  Notice the creed above the entry arch.

The discipline required of the cadets, along with The Citadel creed, makes events like the Corps Day parade possible.  

Those Brindle Kids Mini-Me's enjoy the lawn at the Citadel just before the parade.

 TBK Mini-Me's and their new friend, The Citadel Bulldog.

 Being this close to the plane scared Maggie.  It didn't scare Truly or Walker.

 Mini-Me's and Annette, the plane.

Another really big Citadel Bulldog statue and the Mini-Me's.

Can you find the Mini-Me's?

Since The Citadel is a public institution, it relies heavily on the financial support of alumni and other donors. Everything has a sponsorship attached to it.  Buildings, programs, events, etc., are named for their benefactors.  I thought this was funny:  a very nice brass plate indicates Col. Richard L. Irby donated the funds for the Light Dimmer in 2008.  This illustrates the Citadel's appreciation for every donation.  It also indicates that the Citadel has a sense of humor.

The trip to South Carolina was professionally successful . . . and it was fun to share it with Those Brindle Kids Mini-Me's.  They're resting up now.  They can't wait to get on the road again!