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Greyhound Gang |
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Greyhound Gang |
Greyhounds galore: Sleek canines gather at Kanab
By Karen van Splawn
The Spectrum, May 3, 1999
KANAB -- If someone visiting here this weekend heard about a Greyhound Gathering, it wasn't for avid bus riders.
Instead, it was a celebration of the sleek, fast and friendly dogs and those who make them a part of their lives.
For the first time a Greyhound Gathering was held in the West, said organizer Claudia Presto.
Presto runs Greyhound Gang, which finds homes for and rehabilitates the dog, that was bred thousands of years ago.
Participants held a parade, took hikes and even listened to those who race greyhounds. "They make easy pets, if you're willing to make them a part of your life," Presto said. "That's why we're so crazy about them."
Jack and Linda Becker of St. George brought their dog, Greta, to the gathering.
"They become our children," Linda Becker said.
Sue Ross, of Puyallup, Wash., said she wasn't a dog lover until I she adopted her two greyhounds.
"Having one changed my life," she said, with conviction. "They look into your eyes and grab your heart and soul."
Dick Ziebart, of Las Vegas, said most greyhound owners are very serious about their dogs.
One hundred and thirty-eight Greyhound owners came from Utah, Arizona, California and even England.
They made Best Friends Animal Sanctuary their headquarters.
Nearly all of the 150-plus greyhounds at the gathering were adopted.
"Kanab has been great," Presto said of the host town.
During a lunch at Angel's Canyon, someone blew a horn, and dozens of beautiful greyhounds howled in unison.
Saturday's parade was pretty impressive, gatherers said.
"People were in awe," Presto said. "They couldn't believe how gentle and sweet these dogs are. "Greyhounds have an undeserved reputation of being flighty and ill-tempered, but those who share a home with one said nothing could be farther from the truth.
"They're pretty relaxed," said John Bright of London. "They're couch potatoes."
Bright and his wife Mary traveled from Britain for this event, and made it the center of their holiday.
"We couldn't take ours with us, because there's a six-month quarantine," said John Bright, who petted someone else's pooch.
Greyhound racing is less popular in Britain, said John Bright.
He added once a greyhound's racing life is over in Britain, it's dumped on the street or ends up racing in Spain, where conditions for the animals are abysmal.
"It's a hard life," Bright said. "They race for a couple of years, and that's it."
The flip side is that there are British numerous "re-homing," or adoption, societies.
Although the racing industry might disagree, in the late 1980s, more than 50,000 greyhounds were killed, Presto said.
Arizona resident Cletus McMurty, who raises race greyhounds, had a different perspective about what he does.
"We don't put down dogs," he said, addressing greyhound owners. "We don't believe in that. All of our dogs are pets."
For more information on the Greyhound Gang, call (435) 644-2903 or e-mail Presto at claudia@greyhoundgang.com.
Presto said she hopes to hold a second gathering next year.
"We'll probably double the number," she added.
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