From kennel kid to couch potato, Elsie’s adoption journey is a testament to love, patience and trust.
Elsie, a former kennel kid named Analah, is an incredibly sweet five year old girl who “loves pats, belly rubs, neck scratches and any sort of attention really.”
When paw-rents Matthew and Claire first brought Elsie home, they were cautious about Elsie’s comfort with their back stairs, but “as soon as we got her out of the car she ran through the backyard, flew up the back steps and waited at the glass door to be let inside. When we opened the door she immediately launched herself onto the couch and refused to get down, we couldn’t even lure her off with food. It was like she’d been waiting for this her entire life and didn’t want to waste a moment!
A lady of leisure, “her favourite thing in the world is to curl up on the couch with her humans for pats and cuddles. In fact as long as she has somewhere soft to lay down she’s happy, we come home from work and she’s often on the same spot on the couch where we left her in the morning. We joke sometimes that God put a lazy house cat’s brain inside a giant dog’s body!”
Like life, the adoption process has had its ups and its downs, but “the most special thing to me is how she has really opened up to my kids” Matthew explains.
“In the first two weeks we had several incidents of sleep startle, usually aimed at the kids because they tried to pat her while she was sleeping or lying down. My small children were very upset and it did concern my partner and myself, however after consulting with Greyhound Rescue they gave us some tips and suggestions that avoided any further problems. For a while she was still a bit wary of my loud, unpredictable children… In the last few months she’s done a complete 180, she now loves my kids and is perfectly happy being petted by them. In fact she loves curling up next to them on the couch for some pats (or a bed if she can get away with it),” says Matthew.
With care, love and lots of cuddles, “after a few weeks it felt like we’d had her forever, there was almost no settling in period”.
“She’s so easy to live with, she never barks, she doesn’t beg, she’s remarkably clean for a dog and she’s just so calm and docile it’s easy to forget she’s there sometimes. We had a tradesman over recently who was working in the house and hours before he realised we had a dog!”
While she may be quiet, her presence in the family home isn’t.
“Our lives are so much richer now that we have Elsie as part of our family” Matthew says. “My partner and kids absolutely adore her and I can’t wait to get home each day so I can see her. In fact everyone who meets her loves her, from my friends and family to strangers on the street.”
“If anyone reading this is on the fence about adopting a greyhound contact Greyhound Rescue today, there are so many beautiful animals that would love a new start at life. You’re not just saving their lives you’re also making your own life that little bit more special.”
“When we had our early dramas with sleep startle, Greyhound Rescue were in constant communication with us, they not only reassured us but also proposed practical solutions that actually worked.”
“If you’ve never interacted with a greyhound before it’s hard to overstate what beautiful creatures they are, both inside and out. I love all dogs and have owned many different breeds but there is definitely something special about greys.”
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