Greyhound groups team up to help Spanish Galgo greyhounds

Two Galgos rest on the patio at Scooby (photo by Gayle Uyehara)

In the world of greyhound rescue, and especially when it comes to rescuing the Spanish Galgo greyhounds, many volunteer groups work closely together. To find out about the plight of the more than 50,000 Galgos that are killed or abandoned each year, visit the website of the Scooby shelter in Medina del Campo, Spain.

Forever Home Greyhound Adoptions of Middleburgh, NY, provides major support for the rescue of Galgos. Volunteers visit the shelter, donate their time to work, select puppies and dogs to bring to the US for adoption, and then accompany them home on the plane. To date, Forever Home has brought home seven Galgos and placed them in loving American homes. Forever Home also rescues American greyhounds and places them with adoptive families. To find out more about this organization and about adopting a Galgo greyhound, contact Paula LaPorte, President. As LaPorte says, "Adopting one greyhound will not change the world, but oh how the world will change for that one greyhound!"

Other organizations are also actively involved in sending volunteers to Spain to work at the Scooby shelter. One group is Leaving Tracks from Woodstock, GA. Amy Ross of Leaving Tracks sums up her experience at Scooby: “It was the most incredible thing I’ve ever done. I know I’ll go back. I can’t stop thinking about it. I’m even thinking of ways that I might be able to go there permanently to work and to help out.” She was very grateful for the new friendships she's forged with the other volunteers on her trip.

Another organization is the Galgo Rescue International Network, or G.R.I.N., based in Wellington, CO. G.R.I.N. volunteers also travel to Spain to work at Scooby and bring home dogs for medical care and ultimate adoption. Gayle Uyehara from G.R.I.N. has worked for many years with wildlife rescue. This was her first time volunteering with dogs in two decades. She said this about Scooby: "I went there knowing it would be an emotional roller coaster. I expected to be hurt and inspired by the things I saw. But I didn’t realize beforehand that I would make friends there, with both the dogs and the people. You leave your heart with the dogs. I will go back."

Ross from Leaving Tracks and Uyehara from G.R.I.N. traveled to Spain with LaPorte from Forever Home to volunteer their help and accompany Galgos on the start of their best adventure, their journey to real homes. In the picture at the left, Uyehara (left) and LaPorte have just bathed Truda, a Galgo that their group later brought back to the US for adoption.

Ohio State University is also involved in work with Scooby. Guillermo Couto, DVM, led a group of Ohio State veterinary students there in 2008. Read about their trip here. In yet another Scooby connection, Uyehara of G.R.I.N. first heard about Scooby and the Galgos from a speech that Dr. Couto gave.

Here's another story of how several groups cooperate to help these deserving dogs:

Pictured at left is Galgo Rocio at the event called Greyhounds in Gettysburg, a huge gathering of greyhounds and their people every year in Gettysburg, PA. Rocio traveled what's called the "Greyhound Underground Railroad" across several states on her way to her new home. In the picture, Rocio's transporters stopped in Gettysburg to meet the next volunteer on the route to give her a ride to her forever home. Rocio was transported by a number of volunteers, including people from Greyhound Welfare, a group based in the Washington, DC, area. Each person drove her for a couple hours and handed her off to the next person until Rocio arrived at her new home in S. Carolina.