Magee
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Magee - What a difference a year can make!
We started thinking about adopting a greyhound last year after meeting two in Edinburgh. After contacting Diane for advice, (we live in a flat and already have 2 chinchillas); we went out to meet Diane’s gang and the lodgers. At that time there was nobody suitable for us, but in February I went alone to meet a lurcher that had come in with Peter’s one comment of “I don’t want a small dog!”, firmly in mind.
Unfortunately the lurcher, although lovely, was very nervous and not suitable for city centre living but standing in the middle pen making no noise at all while all around barked their heads off stood a veritable faun giant! “Who’s this?” I asked Diane, “Oh that’s Magee he’s just been returned, he started showing too much interest in the cat at the home he’d gone to.” To be truthful Magee at this point still didn’t look as though he’d be interested in anything, (although he did prove the cat thing the evening after we collected him by almost taking Peter with him up a tree after one of the neighbourhood moggies!) but I took him out to the field and despite being almost totally ignored, fell for his charms and dragged Peter out to see him the following Saturday. Needless to say we returned home with the back seat of our Corsa full of greyhound!!!!
We have now pieced together some of Magee’s history and know he was racing, and winning, in Ireland up until July last year, at this time he was nearly four so had had a fairly long career. He then turned up in Stirling in November. Quite how he managed this is still a mystery but it has been suggested he had been sold at auction and brought to Stirling for “flapping”. What happened to him to reduce him to the state he was found in is also unknown, but we will always be grateful to Elaine for rescuing him from Bandeath, and Julie for all her care and attention while he was fostered.
Magee is now almost totally recovered from his ordeal although still very bald underneath and on the rear end, this just means he has an ever increasing wardrobe of coats and at this time of year sleeps in a fleece with a heat pad (Spoilt? Never!). His tail is completely healed, apart from a few hard calluses at the tip, and does a very good impersonation of a helicopter rotor blade when used in greeting.
Despite all he’s been through Magee has developed into a cheeky, loving dog with a huge sense of fun, (He can hear the rustle of a bread wrapper from the other end of the flat, but will raise only one James Bond like eyebrow if you tell him to get off the bed whilst in the same room), He adores people and is gradually learning to trust, at first he was wary of men particularly if they were carrying anything. He has won over my father in law who was scared of dogs and now when he occasionally stays here the two enjoy nothing more than a brisk stroll around Hazlehead Park. From the day after we collected him Magee has also gone on the greyhound walk every Sunday and socialises well with the other dogs although he does like his own space, and he is now doing his bit for the many greyhounds still needing help. He attended the New Deer show in July and did such a good job we considered putting a sold sticker on his head, he’d had so many offers of a new home, and has now also done a couple of home checks which generally involves being really nosey and then falling asleep while the humans talk.So thanks goes to the cat who started to awaken Magee’s interest in life that allowed him to come to us, and especially to Diane for allowing us to adopt what is definitely one of the gentlest giant’s I’ve ever met!
Marion, Peter and Magee Drysdale