Lil Ally 12/22/98-12/16/08

GPA-Richmond lost one of it's own this week. Lil Ally was loved by all who met her.
Her owner/mother, Nerice, said it best:
"There will never be another dog quite like Ally. She was so incredibly special. She loved to be loved and to give love- She always wanted to be in my lap or in my arms, despite the fact that she was no small girl. I remember the day we picked her out at PRH- she was supposed to be my parents dog and while I knew I would love her, I just never foresaw how much she would come to mean to me and how much of my heart she would be taking with her when she left this world. The longer I had her the more she wormed her way in my heart until it was completely hers.

Nothing I can write will ever be able to truly capture the love I felt and still feel for my amazing girl. She touched so many, was a great ambassa-dog for greyhound adoption, and is already missed more than I can even begin to describe."

*GPA-Richmond wants to honor all greyhounds lost throughout the year. They are all special. Please email gpa@greyhoundsvirginia.com with pictures/bios if you would like a tribute.

November haul

GPA-Richmond had 8 newly retired racing greyhounds arrive on November 9th. A large group of volunteers gathered at Crittertown Bath house on a Sunday evening to welcome this crew. A special thanks to Pam for bringing these hounds up for us!
The hounds arrive:and the bath process begins..
Four of the hounds went straight to their forever homes.
Okie VickieLamorge QueenBBr Quit CryinMKM By the Bay
-no photo
GPA has 4 new dogs in the foster program!
The following dogs are available for adoption
Fleetwood- 3 year old cat safe male who is easy going and very sweet
Kay Firewater- 4 year old who is not safe around cats but his tail never stopped wagging the entire evening. He had a great personality and would be great with children
KL Hello Darlin - a 2 year old cat safe femaleKL Avery - a 2 1/2 year old male who is cat safe. He is very happy, loving and has a big personality that anyone would love!
If you are interested in any of these hounds, please email adoptions@greyhoundsvirginia.com or fosters@greyhoundsvirginia.com or fill out an application! Feel free to come visit us at any of our events.

October festivals

October was a busy month for festivals in the Richmond area. GPA-Richmond attended two events to spread the word about what great pets retired racing greyhounds make.
The Dog Days Festival in Ladysmith, VA was a great event with a lot of fun activities and games. GPA-Richmond had a tent and ran the 'bone hunt' game.The Bone Hunt game was a simple but entertaining game. Treats were scattered throughout the enclosure and the dogs had to find them without eating them. Once they touched the treat, the handler could put the treat in their bag. Whoever got the most treats won!
There were dogs of all shapes and sizes at the event
This one discovered our water bowls were meant for a 'taller' breed. Macy enjoys the breezeA few weekends later, GPA-Richmond attended the Blessed Sacrement Huguenot Academy Fall Festival in Powhatan. The weather was great and it was well attended





And finally, 20+ greyhounds and their owners came out to Stony Point mall on a BEAUTIFUL sunday afternoon for a group walk. We attracted a lot of attention and hopefully sparked some interest in greyhound adoption
Keep up with the upcoming greyhound events on our events page. If you are interested in adopting a retired racing greyhound, check out our website or email gpa@greyhoundsvirginia.com.

2008 Membership picnic and September haul

On September 27th, GPA-Richmond received 4 hounds from JCKC. We did things a little differently this time and met a Hickory Hill Canine Rescue who graciously allowed us to use their bathing facilities. It was an early morning and volunteers gathered to greet (and feed) the new arrivals.
We got
Seco Almond Joy a 3 year old female who is going to her forever home this weekend!
Cmon Make Me a 3 year old cat safe female who is available
BB's Mastermind a 3 year old cat safe male who is loving, sweet and always happy!
And the fourth hound was none other than 6 month old Sammy..who is very much adopted and being spoiled as we speak.
On Sunday, GPA-Richmond had its annual Membership Meeting. This a great time for all members to gather for an official meeting to go over fiscal year spending/financial situations, to form committees for next fiscal year's activities and to elect next years Board of Directors. It is also a great time to shop and socialize.
Lin and Nerice man the registration table to make sure all renewing members got their goodie bags!
Nerice chats with Mark while he keeps up with merchandising
Dinah strikes a pose
Dana looks on
The meeting begins with about 50 members and their hounds presentAlways make time for shopping!The 2008-2009 Board of Directors and officers are:

Mark Lane- President (gpa@greyhoundsvirginia.com)
Brian Shaunessey- Vice President
Deborah Messersmith- Secretary
Susie Canby- Treasurer
Katrina Stumpf- foster coordinator (fosters@greyhoundsvirginia.com)
Sharon Letender- merchandise coordinator
Bob Brown- dog haul coordinator (doghaul@greyhoundsvirginia.com)
Karen Shea- events co-coordinator (events@greyhoundsvirginia.com)
Julie Singleton - events co-coordinator
Nerice Lochansky - events committee

Join us this weekend!

Attention all GPA-Richmond adopters! Please join us Sunday September 28th at Harry G. Daniel Park in Chesterfield (near the intersection of 288 and Route 10 Iron bridge road) from 1-4 for our annual Membership meeting!
The meeting will start around 1:15 and we will discuss the treasurer's report for the past fiscal year as well as future financial goals. Additionally, the members will elect the Board of Director members for fiscal year 2008/2009. We will have merchanidise available so bring your checkbook! We will also be conducting a raffle for various items to be displayed at the meeting. Feel free to bring a picnic as well as your hounds! We will have a fun run following the meeting a local ball field.
If you aren't a member, you will have a chance to join as well so stop by and say hi!

questions: gpa@greyhoundsvirginia.com

Labor Day Haul and September Events

What a great Labor Day weekend for 6 lucky JCKC hounds! On Saturday, a great group of GPA Richmond volunteers greeted the newest members of our hound family. Volunteers fed, bathed, and spiffed up the hounds, and many of the dogs went straight to their forever homes!

Here are Bob's Edition and Ultraviolet just after arriving at CritterTown BathHouse.

It looks like Run The Table and Patmos became good friends along the long trip up from Florida.

Ultraviolet enjoys a meal before her bath.

FWD Star Gala has the prettiest ears!

Bob's Edition enjoys one of the Crittertown sofas.

Silver Go Go takes her turn on the sofa.

And now, our Labor Day roster!

Patmos and his new family.

Bob's Edition with her new mom.

Silver Go Go.

Star Gala.

Ultraviolet.

And here's Run The Table, who is available for adoption!

Also available for adoption, Odd Hunter.
If you are interested in these fosters or any retired racing greyhound please visit our website for more information.
Also, don't forget to join the greatest greyhound forum www.greyhoundsmakegreatpets.com If you are new to greyhounds, please peruse this forum to find valuable information from greyhound owners across the country and world! And if you are a GPA-Richmond member/adopter, keep up with Richmond events easily in our own forum found on www.greyhoundsmakegreatpets.com. Forgot the password? Email fosters@greyhoundsvirginia.com

Finally, please join us for our annual GPA-Richmond membership meeting on September 28th at Iron Bridge park from 1-4PM . Email events@greyhoundsvirginia.com or gpa@greyhoundsvirginia.com for more information.