Renewed Life for Greyhounds

It is with heavy hearts to tell you of our sudden loss of Al at the age of 10 due to bone cancer. We are so sad he is no longer with us but grateful that he is now pain free. Al came to us at the age of 5 at a time when our family needed him the most. He was instrumental in helping Scott, Tee-Time and I heal from the loss of Jack.

Al was one of a thousand greyhounds that were obtained illegally from the race tracks in Iowa and Wisconsin, then sold into medical research. Al and these greyhounds were inserted with pacemakers to test them for quality control. We will always be grateful to Cynthia Cash and Sherry Cotner for their investigative work and strong determination in getting these greyhounds out of the research lab. Out of 1000 greyhounds, there were only 98 survivors and Al was one of them. His journey from the research lab and eventually into our home is nothing short of a miracle! His racing name was Lighting Rod Al and his passion was running. He was so beautiful to watch running at top speed in our yard as Scott and I held our breath with worry as he was so powerful and fast. But the look of pure joy on his face was worth watching. His other passion in life was food, he never missed a meal and when Ezra did not finish his, Al was always eager to step in and help him. His favorite snack was steamed green beans and when fresh produce was in season we were able to fulfill his passion for them. He absolutely loved winter nights with a fire raging in our fireplace. He would look deep into the fire with eyes open for hours contemplating life. He had the most soulful eyes filled with many stories to tell. Al was also our "worrier" he would worry if we were sick, sad or just having a bad day. He could sense this and would not leave our side when we needed him the most. He would worry over any short term foster dog visiting our home if they came scared or in poor health and would stick close by to help them heal. We have learned many things about life from Al and the biggest lesson he taught us was to always believe in miracles!! Worry no more Al, we will be together again.

Forever loved, Scott, Kim and Ezra

"When I die let it be as a pet, so that someone will remember me." ~A Greyhound's Prayer