A Barrel On Four Legs

I have found homes for alot of greyhounds. I always told people if they had any problem to call me and some of them have. You never know what will happen in someones life and they may not be able to keep a dog any longer. (i.e. people move or get sick or have a kid that is allergic) So I would just go get the dog and find it another home.

One day I got a phone call from a lady and she told me that something was wrong with Rachael. Rachael was a greyhound that I had given her. I asked her what was going on and she told me that Rachael was not eating. I asked how long this had been going on and she told me about a month.

I almost had a heart attack! A greyhound that hasn't eaten in 3 days is ready to go to the vet for an IV. I had a picture in my mind of an enormously emaciated creature on the verge of death. I raced to her house without asking any more questions.

When I walk into her backyard I see absolutely the fattest greyhound I have ever see. She was so fat that she looked like a barrel sitting on stilts! She was running around the yard playing with her friend the plotthound. (a plot hound looks like a giant greyhound sized beagle) I ask the woman what did she mean when she said that the dog was not eating. If anything the dog was getting fed entirely too much. I asked her to describe exactly what the dog's routine was.

She said that the dog would go to the food bowl and nibble a few bites and leave, but she did this continuously all day long. Every time the dog would leave the bowl the woman would refill the bowl to the brim thinking this would entice the dog to come back and eat some more. This went on all day long. I started to laugh (mostly with relief). I assurred her that the dog was indeed healthy. I told her to take a few days and only refill the bowl of food once a day, that way we would know exactly how much the dog was eating.

I petted Rachael and left and I called the woman a few days later. It turns out that Rachael was eating 1 1/2 to 2 bowls of food a day. (It was a large bowl too) Everything was fine.