"It took 6 months for him to wag
his tail and it took 8 months for him to
learn to play with toys."
It was nowhere close to a speedy recovery
for one former racing dog. Not long ago, he
needed serious help, but now, he's giving it.
In July of 2005, 100 retired, greyhound
racing dogs were rescued from a boarding
facility on Tucson's south side.
Animal control found the dogs in a sorry
state. They were covered in fleas and ticks,
some had severe hair loss, red sores, scars,
decaying teeth and many were extremely
dehydrated and malnourished.
The dogs were locked up in cages so small
they could barely move. They were in such bad
shape that animal control had to set up a
triage-center to treat them.
Now, 3 years later, one of those rescued dogs
has been adopted by a woman who trained him to
be a handi-dog. He's the first certified
greyhound service dog in the country and he
lives right here in Tucson.
Blueberry, the greyhound, began his road to
recovery as soon as he was adopted and Saturday
he was featured in a national magazine, proving
to everyone that dogs can make a difference in
anyone's life.
It's a greyhound alright, but he's a special
one: the first certified greyhound service dog
in the country.
Meet 6-year-old Blueberry, and his owner
Maggie. She's disabled and he's her guide.
"He has taken me from disabled to enabled. He
gives me the security to go any place and I
trust him implicitly," Maggie said.
The story of Blueberry is sweeter than that
he was rescued from this racetrack when he was
just 3 years old.
He was put up for adoption and given a life
most greyhounds would never have.
"I saw him and I thought, 'That's my
boy!' Maggie said. "He only weighed 80. He
was terrified of everybody and everything."
Now, he's way past that, taking Maggie
everywhere from the opera to dinner. He picks up
what she drops, opens the door and even pulls
her laundry out of the dryer.
He's featured in this summer's Celebrating
Greyhounds magazine, after saving Maggie's life
when she had a stroke.
"I said would you and get help and he walked
into the bathroom and pulled the help needed
cord, then he came out unlocked this door walked
down the hall and met the assisted living
person," Maggie said.
He went along in the ambulance and even in to
the emergency room.
She's OK now, and couldn't be happier to
have him right by her side everywhere she
goes.
Maggie said, "I was scared to go
places. I was scared I would
fall. I couldn't see. I was just one
big scared cat. Now, there's no place I
can't go, there's nothing I can't do."
For more information on Arizona Greyhound
Rescue, call (520) 886-7411 or for information
on how to train a dog to become a Handi-Dog call
(520) 326-3412.
