The Brothers
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‘Friday Shane’, RIP
Shane slipped through our fingers yesterday surrounded by professionals making daft soppy noises. Smoothing his path to the bridge were some very old friends. Kenzie who has worshiped him for four years and also a previous love, our very own Becca. Becca knew him from the beginning at Moorside and now works for Donaldsons. He had more love around his bedside at the end than most humans.
Our thanks to Donaldsons who have taken care of him for years. They feel it too.
At Tia, our geese are not swans. On a track he was a stone cold killer, and much time has been spent watching videos of Shane, totally unrecognisable as the snoring lump down the end of the sponsor block.
He wasn’t bred to run, he was bred to fly. A brother was exported to Chile and Shane must have cost an eye-watering amount. He came to England with a Derby entry and dog men started to take note. Sidaz Scotty was the fastest dog of the year at Monmore and favourite for the Gymcrack. Shane slammed him on to the rails and his ante post backers started to look worried. Scotty was off the track for five months and never the same dog.
Next up Shaneboy Alley. A fellow Derby contender. Our boy was smart and attacked him after they crossed the line. The writing was on the wall. Watch what happens after the race. Trainers were starting to square up to each other.
Shane had lost interest in winning, his skills were now perfectly honed as a cage fighter. The victim, Black Jedamac, had the audacity to beat him to the line. Shane chased him for a further 50 yards and attempted to lift him out of the track and into the carpark. Calculated, brutal, blood chilling aggression and the forums exploded.
A selection of comments from the threads (still available) reveal a lot.
this dog does have a terrible kink but also has breathless speed in full flight
mike tyson would be counting his ears after a couple of rounds with this dog
the dog would have taken shaneboys head off if he wasn’t muzzled
It’s disgusting its still allowed on a dog track…dirty b…..d
you must be on drugs if you think this dog has done sweet fa
the dog is a raving screwball , yes the dog is fast
Shaneboy Alley was knocked over by third-placed Fridays Shane ten strides after the line and rolled around on the sand for what must have seemed an eternity to connections. Racing Post!
We get the final say!
Shane was returned to Ireland under a blanket to let the heat die down. When he re-emerged he wasn’t the same dog and came to us via the flapping track. An absolute gentlemen with his girls, he has never put a paw wrong and yet……….he has remained himself. Very much his own man and with something of the night inside. The quiet man in the pub, says nothing, yet you are careful not to knock his pint over.
We loved you Shane and will miss you.
Bracing ourselves…
Corrigan AKA Colin, Captain Cook bn 26.03.10
He had 84 races at Belle Vue and came to us as in a right state in June 2014. Bob showed a surprising pair of heels that day. Read Corrigan’s sponsor page, “a take him or else” ultimatum.
Shane, Friday’s Shane just a year younger came to Tia a few months after Corrigan. Racing’s bad boy. Blisteringly fast and fully worthy of the comment “seen friendlier pitbulls”. Rival trainers refused to risk their dogs against him. Marquess of Queensbury rules did not apply, Fridays Shane was and is still essentially a violent street fighter and more than one trainer quietly thanked us for removing him from striking distance.
Both were highly desirable because of their colour, but it was apparent early on that they wouldn’t be going anywhere.
Corrigan fell poorly early week and spent a couple of nights at the vets. He is back home all his results are clear and he is on the mend….but I have a niggling doubt. I am convinced he is on borrowed time.
Shane however has just been diagnosed with a tumour on his lung….we have fetched him home to spoil him. It won’t be long.
These 2 stunning boys would have been put down years ago if they had landed elsewhere. They would never have passed an assessment test or resisted a small furry. They have both remained true to themselves and sometimes one has to admire life’s misfits.
Their home is the sponsor block. Other oldies in the care home include, Simon 10, Tarzan 9, Boe 9 all right little b******. and all worthy contenders of the top dog spot vacated by Ross. Mo 9 and Molly 10 are wearing dresses too big for them and Harper is greyer than I am under the highlights.
The age grouping means that we may be in for a pasting. Part of life but we are bracing ourselves. Stay a while yet you two. We really are not ready for you to leave us.
Foster update: Rafford (‘Rafa’)
News from Rafa’s foster home…
Rafa is a stunning boy, beautiful from tip to toe. He’s been with us for 2 weeks, coming directly from kennels into his first home environment. Apparently he’s an accomplished racer, but you’d never know as he is such a loving home boy.
He is clean in the house (no accidents so no training was required). He pee marks the garden bushes, just so that the local cats know who’s in residence, but always saves his ‘big jobs’ for walkies. Rafa is a real character- when he wants to go out he starts bringing us hints: shoes mostly but he even once brought me the car keys (he LOVES going in the car)! He has never been fed from the table so he doesn’t beg, but he is always hungry and any food left unattended is considered fair game, worktops are regularly scanned to see if we can be caught off guard. He has never damaged anything in the house, he has his own toys which he loves and sticks too. He doesn’t sleep on the sofas, even though he is welcome to and he can’t climb the stairs, but that’s fine for us as he sleeps at night contentedly on his own bed in the kitchen.
He walks perfectly on a loose lead so is a pleasure to take out, he hasn’t learnt to walk with us off-lead and will wander off in his own world. Recall is perfect when he wants to come back and totally hopeless when he’s distracted (most of the time) so he stays on the lead and everyone is happy. He is good in the company of other dogs, but needs supervision as he is still “complete” and can get easily excited which could lead him into trouble. We expect that when his tackle is off his exuberance will diminish. He loves to play with our grandchildren and is calm and gentle.
He is very affectionate, loves his cuddles and in my opinion will make a wonderfully rewarding family pet.
Vasco
Breed: Greyhound
Sex: Male
About me
Great name! Drinksonthehouse whelped 10.8.15
Won 7 races at Tralee and Belle Vue. His last win at the latter was in a race called “Friends of Belle Vue we need your support”. That aged well. Vasco last raced in March 2019. For some reason, he just stopped dead in a race, although the writing had been on the wall with deteriorating form for a while. Came last in his final three races…..form reads 6, 6, 6. Sometimes you swear they know something! Maybe he’d just had a guts full.
Vasco trialled a couple of days later and failed to qualify. Arrived at Tia a week later in lovely nick. He is no fairy princess at 36 Kgs.
Vasco has been with us nearly 4 years. He won’t even go down into the big paddock unless Kiona is with him and even then he’s not overly happy about it. He loves his life, no fuss, no drama. A lovely quiet big lad.
Mo
Here is the lovely Mo enjoying the cooler weather. She came to us just over four years ago…
I remember driving back to the farm from the stray kennel in Doncaster. We were coming through a built up area and she saw a small dog being walked on a lead at the roadside. She nearly went through the window on the back of the pick up. Great, another nutcase…
She did go out briefly once but didn’t get on with the other greyhounds in the house..
She has just gone 12yrs old …she started coughing a while ago and she has been diagnosed with an enlarged heart, massive in fact..She is on medication and fingers crossed we will have her a while yet.
She struggled in the hot weather but is enjoying chilling in the back yard. She lives quite happily in the garage with Mollie, Uriah and Lana..
She is a lovely old lady…bad habits aside….
Deb
Rehoming update: Torre
Torre has been adopted by Helen and Paul, and they’ve provided us with an update on how she’s doing:
We just thought we’d drop you a quick mail to say how lovely Torre has been and how well she is settling in.
We both absolutely adore her and she has quickly become a member of our family, we are all extremely happy. Her spay wound is healing nicely and we are so looking forward to the stitches being removed on Wednesday so we can take on longer walks and introduce her to our local countryside.
Thank you so much to you and TIA rescue for such a wonderful dog.
Adopting a Tia dog: Adoption donation
Adopting a greyhound or lurcher from Tia is the beginning of a long friendship with one of the kindest, gentlest, and quietest dog breeds you will ever find. (They are smart too: which one of you has to go to work to feed the dog….?) Greyhounds and lurchers make wonderful companions as anyone who has adopted one before will be only too keen to tell you… whether you want to know or not!
Adopting one of our dogs is a journey for both you and the dog, but you may not realise that your adoption donation will help all the other dogs here at Tia too.
Before you adopt your new companion, we will have cared for him or her, possibly for many months or even years. The dog will have had a check-up with a vet, they will have been neutered, ‘micro-chipped’, possibly had dental work and will definitely have had lots of feeds! This, of course, all costs money and your adoption donation goes some way to helping us meet these essential expenses which really are never-ending.
Sadly, for various reasons, not all our dogs can be rehomed: perhaps they have health or mobility issues or, occasionally, they are just too nervous to make adoption practical. This means that we will have to find the means to look after our ‘for-ever’ resident dogs for the rest of their lives. Of course, we just love to do that, and we try to make their lives interesting and varied as well as safe, but to do this means that we have to keep funds coming in.
So, when you make your adoption donation, you are not just giving a new home to your new family member, you are helping lots of other Tia dogs as well. Your donation will help pay for staff, vets, accommodation, food and even treats.
It is up to you to decide how much to donate, but we ask for a donation of at least £300 which will help to cover some of the costs of caring for your new dog before she or he decided to let you adopt them. As an animal rescue charity, Tia will be able to claim Gift Aid on your donation (if you are an eligible UK taxpayer) and this makes your donation go even further.
So, thank you from all the dogs and their staff here at Tia for making a home for one of our four-legged friends and for helping to look after all the other dogs both now and for the future. Every penny helps and we all deeply appreciate your kind donation.
A Tale of Two Doves
A few weeks ago two baby doves were born.
A beautiful white fan tail dove in the beautiful purpose built dove cote. She has a big family in the beautiful dove cote but was being picked on by some of the older ones. She sought refuge on the top of the house.
Meanwhile in the stable block a common rock dove had been born around the same time. He could see the beautiful fan tail dove and flew onto the house to keep her company.
They are inseparable….Just saying….Deb@Tia
Vets back at Tia
Thanks to everyone who have been waiting for Chris, our vet from Donaldson’s, to start operating here again.
He will be starting next week..
I have a very long list and i think i have everyone but could you email me anyway…JUST EMAIL…to make sure that i have you all…
We have a back log here so please be patient..
Thank you Deb