Achilles, aka Doe’s Achilles, is a handsome, 5-year-old red male born June 10, 2005. His sire is WW Apple Jax, and his dam is Niche.
Achilles has no races recorded on Greyhound-Data, although GALT was told he was a racer. This is one handsome boy and sweet as he can be! After battling happy tail
in a GALT boarding facility, Achilles was placed in a foster home for rest and recuperation. Unfortunately, this happy, happy, happy boy lost his happy tail, due to
his constant hitting it because he is so jubilant! Achilles was adopted and returned after a short time through absolutely no fault of his own. He is now ready for
his forever home!
Achilles’ cat test: Achilles made it clear from the start that he is NOT cat trainable. He was intensely excited about the cat and was on the prowl for more all the way back to the car.
Achilles is a big, happy – and goofy – boy! He just can’t seem to stop his incessant tail wagging. He doesn’t counter surf, but his crazy tail has knocked my coffee cup off the table more than once. Unfortunately, his unbridled enthusiasm recently resulted in further injuries to his tail, so he is scheduled to be “bobbed” in late September. While we hate to see Achilles lose such an endearing part of his anatomy, we know it is the best thing for his health and well being – and we don’t expect that it will temper his personality one bit!
After the waggy tail, the next thing you notice about Achilles is his massive neck. Since he has no races on record, perhaps Mr. Achilles was the Sumo wrestler of the kennel! He is quite a big boy, weighing in at about 84 pounds – and his strength could rival that of Stone Cold Steve Austin. If this boisterous boy and my other greys get a little rough at playtime, I just pull out the muzzles -- and everyone is happy.
House training is not a problem for this bright boy; he caught on to the doggie door right from the start. Leash training and bark controls are still works in progress, but Achilles’ behavior in quiet meet-and-greet settings is impeccable. He doesn’t do quite as well when visiting the pet store, because he is way too interested in cats and small dogs. Achilles gets along famously with my other three greyhounds, however – so I expect he would be happiest in a home with greys or other large breeds.
It’s quite amusing to see Achilles and my other two greys being bossed around by their itty bitty sister, who weighs in at a whopping 42 pounds – half the size of her big foster brother! This alpha female rules the household with an iron paw, and Achilles obeys her every command. Don’t let his deference fool you, though. He is undoubtedly the smartest grey in the house; at times it seems like Achilles can actually read my mind. Before I think about grabbing a leash or even putting on my shoes, he seems to know when it’s time to go for a ride in the car. It’s no trouble at all to get this big boy in a vehicle, but getting him out is another issue. He is a perfect car rider, never hanging his head out the window - but he just never wants his magic carpet ride to end!
Achilles is the quintessential Velcro dog. He wants to be right by his human’s side all the time. He follows me all over the house and lies quietly at my feet (often in the “roach” position) when I’m reading or watching TV. He doesn’t have much use for toys, but he will grab one and play with it in front of me when he wants to get my attention. Achilles is always the first grey in the house to empty his food dish, but then he waits patiently for the others to finish. Once he’s sure they are through eating, he saves me the KP duties by licking their bowls as clean as a whistle!
Achilles has had no issues with loud noises, thunderphobia or separation anxiety. He is just one big happy boy whose biggest fault is that his love for people results in over-excitement. Although Achilles enjoys socializing with humans, he doesn’t jump up on them. He just surrounds them with a lot of tail-wagging happiness and love. How can you resist such a goofball? He’s just waiting to adopt YOU!
Achilles' Foster Dad
