Tucker (was Thor)

Hello!
First, my husband and I would like to give you, Laura and Heather from GSNCR a big thank you for taking us through this adoption process. You guys really do know your stuff, and you ensure that the dog picks the family - so important!
Now on to our update! As you know, we fell in love with Tucker (his name at the kennel was Thor, but he's so shy, we couldn't call him that for long!) when we came for our adoption appointment. We thought we'd be bringing home a smaller greyhound, and ended up with a big gangly fawn boy! Tucker was a little nervous on the 3 1/2 hour drive home, but soon adjusted with lots of calming words and pats.
He's been at his forever home for just over two and a half weeks now, and we are both continuously amazing at what a smart, beautiful boy he is! He appears to be fully housetrained and learned our somewhat steep inside stairs in a few days - now he bunny-hops up them and walks down them like he has been doing it forever. He still likes a soft hand on his back when going down the stairs, just for confidence! He's learned to sit and lie down on his downstairs bed while waiting for a treat, and to wait until his humans walk through the door, first, before he barrels through. He walks beautifully on his leash, and is gaining confidence with other dogs that he meets at the dog park.
He has adjusted to our cat, Kisa (he only had a passing curiosity, and now seems pretty bored with cat antics), and she is very curious (but cautious) about him. Nevertheless, they sleep in the same rooms much of the time, and hopefully they will become friends. She has no fear of standing right in front of him and analyzing the behaviour of this newest family member.
We took him to our vet for a full checkup and a tooth cleaning. While he had a lot of plaque buildup, and our vet thought he might have to have quite a few teeth pulled, he ended up only having one that was broken and badly decayed that needed to be taken out. Now his teeth are shining bright, and he doesn't feel any pain in his mouth. He is a favorite at our vet's for his calm, gentle nature, 'a model patient'!
He enjoys spending a lot of time on his three beds, including one in my husband's home office. He's not sure about the winter cold and the sudden influx of snow we've received, but he now has a nice warm coat and he's adjusted to wearing greyhound boots to protect from the salt on the streets. He still prefers napping to walks outside for the moment.
He is slowly coming out of his shell, giving us tail wags and happy snorts (especially in the morning), and lots of wet noses. He loves back scritches, ear rubs, nose kisses and especially TREATS and seems to realize he is 'home'. Tucker has added so much to our life, and we're so pleased that he chose us.
Thanks again (and we'll send photos soon!)!
Julia and Tim Cropley, Tucker and Kisa

<- Back to Happy Tails