Mia Pasha a.k.a. Miss Mia, the Greyhound with Attitude! The story begins when I started to foster her around springtime last year. (The idea behind fostering is that the Grey stays with you until a family wants to adopt them.) It was a complete surprise when I decided to adopt her. Didn’t want to. Wasn’t going to. In fact, she and I had a rather rocky foster period! But…well…she kinda grew on me.
Probably, the most difficult thing was stepping back to let Mia BE Mia. What happened was that my favorite girl, Callie, crossed Rainbow Bridge about five months later. Callie was an exceptional Greyhound. Callie was also a red fawn and black brindle. And she was MY girl. But Mia is more independent. Plus, she had learned some unacceptable behavior before she came to live with me. Nevertheless, no matter WHAT she did, I compared her to Callie.
But I made myself stop comparing. “Mia is NOT Callie,” I told myself. “It’s unfair to expect her to be Callie! Their personalities are polar opposite. And that’s not a bad thing. Just different.” I had some hurtful disappointments, but it finally sank in. Mia Pasha is NOT Callie.
And you know what? Since I gave permission, both to me and to Mia, to let Mia be herself, she is growing into her own personality. She likes to play and pounces on everything! She is VOCAL! Her tail is very expressive from whipping about like a snapped cable to the three inches at the tip wagging side-to-side when she is on the floor.
I think mutual love is growing here. Who would have thought?
We can not foster because we can't give them up. All our dogs have separate and distinct personalities and we love them for who they are. We have a friend in Lancaster, PA who adopted a retired greyhound and it was heart breaking to hear how they are treated as racing dogs. He had to teach the dog to climb stairs, if they raised their voice it would start shaking and lose its hair. Congratulations for doing what you do. Dogs should not have to live like they do as race dogs.
ReplyDeleteYes, fostering can be challenging. My first did not know what "glass" was. Taking her home, she kept bonking her head into the car window. I "X-ed" off my glass patio door with masking tape. Things like that, that they wouldn't have had exposure to living in crates at the track.
DeleteI get a kick out of Mia when she announced my visits with her "Roo" and then she looks over toward Max as if to say "Come on, Pat's here!" All of your dogs have been special and you are a wonderful "Mom" to each of them!
ReplyDeleteHugs, GraceinAZ
Oh, she STILL gets so excited, and runs to wherever I am to "tell" me that you're coming!
ReplyDelete