January 2015
NEWS & NOTES
A monthly newsletter to keep you informed.
Rescue Results for December
In December there were 8 adoptions and 33 new arrivals!  Of those 33, 9 dogs entered TGIE, 3 additional track dogs came into AG foster care.

The 21 others were the dogs that were stranded in Tennessee that we hauled to WI in the hauler.  (Check out this story later in the newsletter!)

This brings our 2014 totals to 102 adopted and 123 rescued!  What a great year!
Polar Bear Plunge Recap

On New Years Day the annual Polar Bear Plunge took place.  While many of us were warm and cozy in bed, others were a bit more adventurous with their morning.  This year over 40 brave souls endured the icy cold and nasty winter winds to raise over $18,000 to help find homes for unwanted greyhounds.   Temperatures hovered around 18 degrees and the bitter winds could not be offset by the New Years Day sun that shone on the shores of Lake Michigan.  But those winds also could not crush the plunger's courageous spirit  


 

Thank you to all of our plucky plungers as well as everyone that donated.


 

Check out AG plungers on the news here.

 
My First Freezin' for a Reason
 


 

This New Years Day I decided to participate in the American Greyhound Polar Plunge. This was a spur of the moment decision made back in late November. I decided I wanted to do this.... but I didn't want to do it alone. So, I asked Heather Peyatt, another American Greyhound volunteer (like myself) to do it with me. She thought about it for a bit, but then agreed to plunge with me. We were both thinking we were crazy, but hey, it's for the dogs!

5:30am (est) came bright and early New Years Day when we had to head to Chicago to plunge. We had a group of people from our area all carpool over to Chicago. When we got to the beach, about 7:30am (cst) it all set in. We were CRAZY for doing this. It was so cold out, and with wind chill it was even colder, making it about 2 degrees. The water temperature was around 34 degrees I was told. "The less clothing you have on the better.... Don't wear cotton because it freezes on you... Don't go too far out..." That was just some of the advice we got before plunging. Heather and I wore our bathing suits and shorts in, along with water shoes (a must-have).

You get this adrenaline rush right before you plunge, you're freezing cold standing there in just a bathing suit. Heather and I grabbed each other's hands and went in, climbing over ice chunks along the lake's edge. We ran in, dunked all the way under, and ran back out. As soon as we got out, we had great supporters waiting for us with blankets to cover us up. I immediately took my water shoes off and put on heavy socks and my boots. My wet swimsuit was quickly taken off and warm clothes came on just as quickly afterwards. Getting out of the wet clothes quickly was key to getting warm quicker and not getting hypothermia.

Would I do it again? New Years Day after the plunge I would say no (because I was so cold and miserable), but as I am writing this, days after the plunge, I'm not sure if I would or not. I loved being a part of this fundraiser and knowing the money I raised helps the greyhounds! I encourage everyone who is on the fence of doing the plunge to give it a shot once!!

Ashley Martin
Elkhart, IN
 
Robert to the Rescue!
On the morning of December 20th, I was awoken by a phone call from a group in Indianapolis. They had a haul of 32 dogs coming up from Daytona, Florida, and the truck hauling them had broken down in Nashville, Tennessee. They had found a vehicle to pull the trailer from Nashville to Indianapolis, but it could go no further north, and 21 of those hounds needed to get to Burlington, Wisconsin (near Milwaukee). Could we get our hauler down to Indy later that afternoon and haul those 21 dogs on to Burlington? 

I got on the phone right away and found someone, Robert Larson who was able to make the run. We got the hauler loaded up and ready to go and Robert picked it up at around 3:00 PM and headed out to Indianapolis, arriving in plenty of time to greet the pups as they arrived around 8:30 PM from Nashville. After unloading all the hounds and allowing them a chance to stretch their legs, the 21 destined for Wisconsin were loaded into our trailer and headed out on the final leg of their long journey. Upon arrival there, the dogs were off-loaded and taken by their respective groups. By the time Robert arrived at his home in Tinley Park, Illinois, it was around 4:30 AM Sunday morning. 

You can heck out a video about the experience here.
This is a wonderful example of our selfless and dedicated volunteers in action, as well as how American Greyhound utilizes the resources you have provided to us, to make lives a little better for unwanted greyhounds. And, none of these hounds were destined for American Greyhound, we only were involved because hounds were trouble and YOU put us in a position to help! 

Robert, I have seldom been as proud of our organization as I was December 20th. You are an inspiration to me and many who have heard this story. You make us all want to step it up just a bit 

Jeff Coggins
President, American Greyhound

PS-Robert also jumped into icy Lake Michigan for the first time on New Years Day!
 

 
Store News
We would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year. 

The year 2015 will have some new products to choose from online at the store. There will be a full front zip up hooded sweatshirt and a different shirt to choose from. But wait that is not all; we will be adding other different shirts to choose from in future months, so watch the newsletter and check out the website to see what's new in store. 


One more thing: do you have one of these t-shirts in you American Greyhound collection?  If not let me tell you on how to get one of these. Go to the following link: 


 
Along with this shirt come some pretty amazing discounts. So check it out and we hope to be sending out one of these t-shirts to you in the very near future.

Sheri & Chris Dill  
American Greyhound Store 

 
Do You Have a Story or Photo?
Do you have a story to share about your own experiences with greyhounds?  Do you have something you want to see in an upcoming newsletter?  Do you have a picture to share?  Please feel free to contact me at [email protected]! 

I'd be happy to include pictures of your dog and share your adoption story.  American Greyhound is YOUR group and I'd love to feature your story.
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