It was one year this past weekend that we went to meet a brand new group of hounds who had made the trip from the track in Birmingham to Cincinnati. During that freedom ride, those dogs had no clue that they were about to become beloved family members who would soon lead the charmed life of retirement. Among that precious cargo was our girl, Sugar.
Chris, my boyfriend, and I had made the trip to Birmingham, just weeks prior, to bring a group of hounds back to Ohio. During our trip, we met a lovely, fawn-colored girl named Dawn. I was smitten with her and gave instructions to the kennel master that she would simply have to be mine when her racing career was complete. I said a long goodbye to Dawn with lots of kisses and belly rubs. That's the last time I saw her.
After we arrived back home from our weekend at the track and Luke, our big, brindle boy, realized we hadn't left him for good, things were back to normal. I still thought about Dawn and the future day she would be a part of our family. The one thing I had yet to realize about all this was, sometimes our plans are not Gods plans. It wasn't long until I received an email that Luke's sister was coming to Ohio and the question was, "Would we give her a home?" That question posed the issue; what about Dawn? I already had my heart set on Dawn, so now what? After much debate, we rationalized that Dawn was very young and potentially would not be leaving racing for some time, so since Sugar was Luke's sister out of the very same litter of puppies, how could we refuse her?
It was already dark and the night was bitterly cold. The van was sitting full of anxious hounds who were ready to see where this long trip had lead them. One at a time, they jumped out. When the feet of the second dog hit the ground, I stood there....I stood and I stared at her. Finally, Chris nudged me on the arm and said, "That's her Steph, there she is!" I knew who it was, her name was plainly written on her muzzle, it's just I couldn't believe she was to be ours, so I stood there like someone who had been slapped. Up until then, we had no clue what she looked like, in fact, it was only during their freedom ride home that one of the phone calls revealed what color she was. We had agreed to take Sugar knowing nothing about her except that we had her brother. But as soon as I saw her, I knew all I needed to know. I loved her. I had always taken pride in being a self-proclaimed, unbeliever in love-at-first-sight, yet this was now the second time it had happened to me, first with Luke, now with his sister.
Sugar came home with us that night and it was like she had always been with us. There was no "getting to know us" period because it was as if she already did. The bond she and I had was instant and constant. We spent every single day and night together, along with Luke, until she had to leave us. The cancer that was killing her did not stop us from living. It's something that, to this day, I really cannot explain. She was meant to be my hound, she was meant to change my life and she most certainly did what she came to do.
In the days following Sugar's arrival to Ohio, I received news that Dawn, during one of her maiden races, had broken one of her hind legs quite severely. She was taken by the kennel master to Nashville where a greyhound group there saw her through surgery, rehabilitation, and finally to a forever home. I still think about her sometimes and I know she's happy with her forever people. She wasn't destined to be my dog. God had a different plan for all of us.
