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| Emma, the queen |
Thinking stylish black
Adopt a black "grey" today
And bring the style back
When my husband and I decided to adopt our first greyhound, color was the last consideration. We asked for a female, and that was that. On the day we went to pick up our dog, several females were available. One at a time, the dogs were brought out for our inspection. Previously, I had thought that a fawn colored dog would be my choice. But ultimately, we went home with our little black girl. We were fortunate to be able to meet each dog and experience a little of her personality.
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| So cute |
Today, much has been written about BDS or Black Dog Syndrome. In many shelters, black dogs take longer to find their forever homes. In my research, some authors believe this is a real problem, and others say individual factors may dictate whether this is actually a “syndrome” or not. However, from time to time on rescue sites, you may see a push to acknowledge the beauty and personalities of black dogs. To differentiate by color seems to me to concede that there is an issue.
To dog shelter workers, BDS is a real problem. When they see a dog languishing in the shelter waiting for a home, their hearts hurt. The reasons for the inability to adopt these dogs out quickly points to several factors. First, black dogs, whether greyhounds or mixed breeds, don’t photograph as well as lighter colored dogs. When my husband showed me the photograph on the rescue site of our most recent dog, Emma, she was not a stand out (sorry, honey). However having had several other black greys, we knew that a picture could not tell the whole story. When we went to pick her up, saw her shiny black coat, and looked into her beautiful eyes, we fell instantly in love. Try not to base your choice on just a picture. Read the personality write-up. There is so much more inside that you don’t see. |
| Hanging out |
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| Resting on my throne |
In a shelter, black dogs do not show up well. Unless there is sufficient light to show off their features, a person may not even notice them. Black dogs’ muzzles may gray sooner and be more noticeable than a light colored dog making the dog appear older then they are. Just recently, at a greyhound outing, a person thought Emma was the older dog because her muzzle is beginning to gray. Emma just turned three.
Another thought is the number of black dogs to the general population. The black color in greyhounds is common. Randomly, I looked at a greyhound rescue site that had 32 greyhounds available for adoption. Nine of those were black. Having a number of varied, lighter colored dogs available may pull adopters awareness away from the lovely black greyhounds. When at meet and greets, people comment first on how beautiful Kiowa, our white, red spotted grey, is, and then they see Emma, who’s personality and beauty they realize is stand out.
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| Taking a selfie |
Three of our eight greys have been black. In my experience, each dog, no matter what the color, has its own unique personality. The lighter colored dogs may be more striking at first, but, if you really look at these black beauties, their exquisite features and delicacy will win your heart.
All greyhounds exude beauty of a singular sort no matter what their outer appearance. Whether fawn, brindle, blue, white, red, or black, spotted or solid, a dog brings with it a distinct essence. The soul of each individual dog is what captivates, and its grace shines through. When adopting, please take a few extra minutes to consider a black greyhound. As I watch my own little black girl laying majestically on the grass in our backyard, I wonder why there was any need to have written this.
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| Posing at GIG |
Resources:
Black Dog Syndrome en.wikipedia.org
Big Black Dog Syndrome
by Nancy Marano treetopsrescue.org
Black Dog Syndrome petfinder.com
