Greyhound Gardens

The dominant gene

October 21, 2011 Fonzi, Pet Blog Hop, vintage photos 11 Comments

Hunters, probably around 1916

For as long as I can remember, I have been passionate about dogs. I love all furry critters, but dogs have a strong-hold on my heart. I always wondered why, that was until I got a hold of few old family albums and shoe boxes. I don’t know who these people were, they were in my grandmother’s album surrounded by pictures with dates from 1912 to 1918.

I wonder if this gorgeous hound dog had a place at the foot of the bed. I’m going to pretend he did.

Jake, my dad and Buster

My grandmother on my dad’s side was a great photo labeler. This is my dad, they called him Maurice. The photo was labeled Maurice, 9 months and Buster. Buster must have been a much loved farm dog. Dad’s family homesteaded a wheat farm just outside of Oshkosh, Nebraska. Dad was born in 1922, so this was taken in 1923.

My dad on a riding toy with Bruno

According to grandma, dad was 18 months old here. Now I’m impressed. My grandparents not only marked my dad’s age milestones on film, but they also captured the dogs.

Maybe I’m not so much of a black sheep as I thought.

Photo labeled "Coyote truck"

Hark! Two dogs again. My dad is driving, his sister Lela Mae is riding shot gun and his younger sister Wanda is in the back. I’m guessing dad is probably about 17, so this photo was taken in about 1939.

Wanda and Lela Mae

Wanda is the young girl holding the dog. She has got to be my kindred spirit. Every picture I have found of her includes a dog. As a young girl, I remember visiting their house. She had a pair of pekingese then. I’m guessing around 1942 for this one.

Going off to war

My dad was a bomber pilot in WWII. This picture was taken the day before he left. I’m pretty sure I remember being told that he enlisted when he was 19, so this was probably around 1941. Note, dear old Aunt Wanda has her dog. I told you she must be my kindred spirit.

Mom and Yip

Now my mother loved her dogs too. This is Yip and as a young girl, I must have heard 100 stories about this dog. He was my mom’s guardian protector. He was there through her teenage years and beyond. I’m thinking about 1940 for this one.

The wedding day

November 7, 1943. Mom and dad are the happy couple in the middle, my mom’s dad on the end and I think the two older women might be mom’s aunts. And… yes, a dog. I bet that is Yip. Mom left with dad, so grandma and grandpa must have had dog duty while she was gone. Dad flew in the European theater and when he left, she came back to Nebraska.

Muffin

I was an oops and an afterthought. My brother and sister were nearly grown when I surprised the whole damn family. There are probably lots of dogs that I don’t even know the history about.

None the less, that adorable poodle back there with me is Muffin. I got him as a tiny puppy and he lived to be nearly 20 years old. This was taken in about 1973.

Megan, Holly, Sadie and Caleb

Once I got married, if I had anything to say about it, we were going to have a dog. These cute little iggies are Sadie and Caleb. They are living with my older daughter Megan now. And I’d like to do a shout out for Megan, her birthday is tomorrow. Maybe I should dig out some old bathtub photos. 2001.

Fonzi

And in 2002 I adopted my first greyhound, Fonzi. I totally credit Sadie and Caleb for this.

Not only did Fonzi introduce me to the digital age, but also to the wonderful world of greyhounds.

The rest is all history. I only had to wade through a few photo albums and shoe boxes to find these. So sorry for my daughters who will have to wade though terabytes and multiple hard drives to scavenge for pictures.

I now believe my love for dogs is thoroughly embedded in my genes and since both of my daughters each have two dogs, it must be a dominant gene.

On to the Saturday Pet Blog Hop.

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