Stepping into the terminal with wagging tails and high spirits, four former racing greyhounds arrived at O’Hare International Airport Monday afternoon, destined for a new lease on life.
Karen Wolfe, a Hoffman Estates resident and volunteer with Greyhound Racers Recycled, is one of the Chicagoland greyhound advocates who assisted with this cross-country rescue effort, involving 16 dogs which were discovered near death at the home of a “back yard breeder” in Denver this year.
“It is so exciting knowing that these dogs-who would have died otherwise-are getting a second chance,” said Wolfe, who assisted this local effort by helping the dogs out of their crates in the baggage area, guiding them through the bustling terminal, and delivering them to the Chicago-area veterinarians who have agreed to board the animals until they are adopted into private homes as pets.
Seven of the dogs that arrived at O’Hare via several free flights donated by USAir, had spent their early retirement from racing confined to a 14-by-14-foot pen littered with their own waste.
Moochie, a friendly male, was seized by Denver-area representatives of the national Greyhound Protection League. The dog was freed from a storage closet at an auto body shop. At the time of the rescue, the dog weighed only 30 pounds. He arrived at O’Hare weighing a healthy 75 pounds.
While the Denver greyhound advocates initiated the rescue efforts, they were unable to find homes for the animals in the Colorado area.
A phone call to the Palo Alto, Calif., Greyhound Protection League put them in touch with Chicago-area animal welfare advocates, who agreed to assist with the cause.
Wolfe said that due to the greyhounds’ low body fat, the dogs who will arrive at O’Hare this month-a total of 16-will not be sedated before their flights.
Yet according to Scott Janiak-Ross, a volunteer with the Greyhound Welfare League of Joliet, the dogs which arrived Sunday seemed to be unperturbed by their maiden airline voyage.
“They came out of their crates happy as can be, greeting and sniffing and kissing us on our hands,” Janiak-Ross said. “As we walked the dogs through the terminal, we’ve met so many curious people asking questions. We expected the dogs to be nervous, but they acted like it was an exploration day. They were great, little ambassadors.” For greyhound adoption information, call Karen Wolfe at 882-2188.
