PLAN BERTHELOT March 2013 I = happiness

Plans driven by love, passion, friendship and beauty are bound to make people happy

I love Spanish Greyhounds/Galgos Written by: Melanie Berthelot - planberthelot.wordpress.com

NEUS | PHOTOGRAPHY BY RICHARD HADLEY August 2012

LIVING FROM YOUR PASSION

Ultimately this is what we all dream of. I want to share

stories of people who make a living doing something they

LOVE

PHOTOGRAPHY BY RICHARD HADLEY

AND THE EFFECT THEY HAVE ON PEOPLE AND HAVE HAD ON ME ...

I have a soft spot for dogs in general as they are such loving and loyal creatures but about a year ago I truly fell in love with the Spanish Greyhound or Galgo because of their soft and kind character, beauty but mainly because of the horrible life most of them have here in Spain. No animal deserves this so they need our help and attention.

QUICK SKETCH The life of the Spanish Greyhound, known as the Galgo is mostly short and grim. They are seen as disposable items, working tools.

Most people are familiar with Greyhound racing but few know about hare hunting activities with greyhounds in Spain.

The so-called galgueros (people who hunt, race and participate in hare coursing with the Galgos) are at the very origin of the problem. Thousands of dogs are bred just to find those few that will perform well and bring them great profit. When they

do, this will only last for a short amount of time.

Each year, hunters ex-change their dogs for

younger and faster ones, abandoning thousands

of “old” Greyhounds aged mostly between only one

and four years!

The rest are simply dumped, often in an extreme and cruel manner, or brought “en masse” to the killing stations at the end of the hunting season. Even those who were part of the “crème de la crème” will not get a break. The moment they pass their peak, the same fate is waiting for them.

There are no adequate regulations and many people still do not seem to be aware of the problem. Without entering into too many political and legal details, the reality is that many galgos are killed or live in atrocious circumstances malnour-ished, chained, abused or abandoned. Often, these Greyhounds are burned

alive, dragged by cars, beaten to death, tortured, thrown into wells, stung with bleach, abandoned with both their front legs broken, or they are wounded with a knife. They say more than 50,000 Galgos are killed each year!

This broke my heart and obviously I’m not the first. Their sad situation has filled the hearts of many before me and has put them in fighting mode, resulting in the foundation of many organization fight-ing for these amazing creatures by rescu-ing them, getting them back into shape, familiarizing them with living in a house with people and finally finding them their forever homes. A lot of these Galgos go to other countries such as Belgium, France, Italy, the Netherlands, the UK, USA, etc.

A dear friend of mine, Sophie started fos-tering Galgos for an organization called SOS Galgos.

Fostering a galgo means that you take them into

your home with all their fears and traumas and

give them their first ex-perience of living with a

family.

There is much to be learned (going up on stairs, walking on a lead, slippery floors, eating food normally, doing their neces-sities outside, trusting humans, etc.) and there is a lot of information to be gath-ered from the experience (are they good with cats, do they need the company of another dog, can they get used to city noises, do they get along with children, etc. ) to allow these rescue organizations to find the best possible home for them.

I had been yearning to have a dog but my work schedule and the frequent trips do not allow it at the moment. Sophie was taking care of a galgo so I decided to meet up with them and I was SOLD.

Most people think these dogs need a lot of exercise

but that is not true.

PLAN BERTHELOT March 2013

I

She arrived in August and what a beauty she was. She had been in a foster home for a month but they were leaving on holiday so they kindly dropped her off as they were heading from the South of Spain to Ger-many so there she was, shy, afraid but cute and friendly.

Already towards the end of the first day she was following me around and very soon she turned out to be a play-ful dog at home who was happy as a bunny when she could chill on

her big bed on the ter-race. The challenge was to get her outside of the flat for her walks, as she did not like the noise, people, cars, etc. ...

We were determined to teach her that nobody would hurt her and that there was no reason to be afraid. In the begin-ning, we had to carry her out but little by little, she became more confident. We had her for over 3 months and it was a fantastic experience. I did not even know I had such a capacity to love, no effort was too big.

She was attracting a lot of attention in the street and we met loads of people showing her affection and dem-onstrating a genuine curiosity for the rea-sons behind her fear. She now found a great family and is living with a little white furry friend, Kyra.

Galgo number one: NEUS

Luna arrived straight from a hunter in Toledo. I looked her in the eye when she arrived in the dog taxi and I fell for that sad little “Love me” look.

She was again a very pretty dog, quite skinny but she seemed very brave and not at all afraid. She did not really know what to do with herself inside the house so we spent the first 2 days mostly outside, walking in the park, on the beach and she just fol-lowed and patiently learned all these new things: trains, wooden promenades, metal bridges, etc. Whenever we stopped, she put her head in our lap and rested. Whenever she was not sure about something she just looked you straight in the eye with those lovely brown eyes to seek sup-port. “What a cute creature”.

She was easy to manage but in the beginning, it seemed as if she was numbed ... My boyfriend had to go away for a few weeks and I was looking forward to having the pleasure of Luna’s company. She was great to have around but as she opened up, she also devel-oped a fear of being alone and started having panic attacks when

left alone even for only a few minutes. I was more than willing to try and find a solution, change my work schedule, etc but I felt I had to inform Anna from SOS Galgo. She thought it would be better for her to be in a family with another dog. I took her to them (a wonderful couple). I’ve seen her a few times since and she is doing very well! She is still looking for a family (with dog) to adopt her. She is a wonderful, loyal and easy dog with a lot of character. One look at her and you will want to hug her forever.

Galgo number two: LUNA

SOS Galgos was founded 12 years ago in Barcelona to defend the rights of the greyhounds, rescue them and put them through their adoption program. They also try to change legislation and promote education and awareness to challenge the root problem: the lack of control over breeding and absence of truly effective legislation.

I’ve gone to a few SOS Galgos events and had the plea-sure of meeting Anna Clements (General Director and

Co-founder). She has an incredible force and relentlessly fights for these noble animals. I have an immense respect

for her.

This is a non-profit organization constantly in need of funding, help and adoption families.

As I got more involved, I started following the work done by other rescues such as Galgos del Sol, run by Tina and Gaynor. They are located in an area where there is a heavy concentration of abandoned Galgos. Day and night they dedicate their time to galgos.

Every day they see them in the streets abandoned, hun-gry, wounded, trapped inside a tiny space, thrown inside

a deep well, the atrocities are endless but every day they fight back with LOVE. How amazing is that!

Galgos del Sol is a small rescue based in Murcia, Spain that rescues abandoned and injured galgos, rehabilitates them and finds them forever homes in the UK and other parts of Europe. This charity is entirely dependent on fundraising for its survival and is run by two dedicated women, Tina and Gaynor, assisted by a group of dedicated volunteers based in Spain, France and in the UK.

Like their facebook page to see what dogs are up for adoption or

just to show your support

Click on the button below to make a donation through paypal

Like their facebook page to show your support

Visit www.SOS Galgos.com to see the dogs available for

adoption and to help or donate

I wish to express my utmost admiration for all people who are dedicated to rescue galgos and animals in general. I understand the battle may seem hopeless at times but when the going gets tough just look at all those happy Gal-gos with their new families, take a deep breath, sigh with all you have in you, stay calm and carry on. Your work is a work of love, your work is amazing and an inspiration to many. Don’t ever give up.

They do not need any more than any other dog and at home they are real couch potatoes. As soon as I knew I would have a period without travel, I contacted SOS Galgos and signed up as foster mummy. The whole experience has been amazing.

My mum who is afraid of dogs completely fell in

love with Neus and my boyfriend who was never much of a dog lover can’t

stop thinking about the lovely Luna. They fell for

each other from day one.

HAVE A look at this video to discover more about their nature: Dogs 101 - Greyhound