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(Hopeful) Future Owner!


Guest RockChalk

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Guest RockChalk

Hi guys! My name is Torri and I've been creeping around here as a guest for a while but finally decided to make an account yesterday in preparation for the coming year (and because I had just a few questions...)

I'm a Nebraska native, but I'm currently a college student at KU (in case you missed the RockChalk username lol), and as I'll be living in an apartment for the next three years, and am incredibly dog obsessed, I started researching what would be an ideal breed for a 750 sq. ft. apartment. Long story short, I settled on greyhounds, which I was thrilled about as I have a few friends with greys, but none of them are retired racers. So that's a short little intro about me!

 

I've done research into grey groups in Kansas, and am hoping to send in an application to MoKan this fall! So my first question is if anyone here knows what all is included in a MoKan adoption. I've looked through their entire site, and understand the adoption process and everything, but while looking at other groups, almost all of them included a martingale collar and muzzle in the adoption, and as someone who is just a little OCD and likes planning for the future (and making budget spread sheets) I was wondering if MoKan was similar?

 

Second question: I looked through the recommended vets list, and saw some good vets around Olathe, KC, and so on, but does anyone know if any of the vets in Lawrence are at all grey savvy? I have no problem driving out of Lawrence, but figured I'd check just in case!

 

Third question: As mentioned before, I'm kind of obsessive about planning ahead, and so I've been trying to figure out the approximate costs of the initial adoption, as well as regular monthly bills (food, possible vet bills, toys, pet rent, etc.). Doing this means that I've been trying to make a list of things that are essential right away, and things that I might be able to get away with not purchasing immediately. While I've done significant research on the breed, and have had dogs in the past (at my family's home in Nebraska) as I can see, greyhounds are special. So if I could get some input into what to buy immediately, and what to wait on, I'd appreciate it!

 

Last question (for now): Going along with the last question; what collars do greyhounds need (martingale + tag collar, just tag, just martingale?), are harnesses really better for walking (I know this is kind of a personal preference, but I'd appreciate opinions), MoKan fosters their dogs, so will I need a crate? and the infamous food question, I'm a college student and I want to feed the best I can for him/her but I honestly could not afford high end foods like Acana/Orijen (which I understand are normally too rich for greys anyway, but my mom feeds our Cavies Orijen so I'm familiar with it) and I know it comes down to the dog and probably what the foster home was feeding him/her, but opinions? There isn't a Sam's or a Costco particularly close to Lawrence, so not worth the cost of getting a membership or I'd try the popular Kirkland's brand. =)

 

I know this is a really long post and I'm sure I'm forgetting one of my many questions, but I'm so excited to get y'all's input! I love reading through the forums and everyone here seems so wonderful, so I'd really appreciate any advice that I could get. Thank you all in advance!

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:welcome ! I am from Canada, so I really can't help you with vets and adoption groups near you.

About your planning ahead, you would need beds, a crate (depending on foster's experience, you might or might not. He/She might need/want it or not), raised bowls, toys, leash, harness, food and basic care, toothpaste, nail trimmer, shampoo...or whatever you may need. I counted and with the adoption fee, it was about 1000$ for us (Canadian money!) to adopt during the first two months (included preliminary vet visit also). We had nothing! The second one, we paid the adoption fee (and flights, long story) and another bed and that was that. I budget about that each year in case of emergency (about 1000$ Canadian per year per dog). I rarely buy toys now, so my monthly cost goes on tick/flea/heartworm preventive and food.

Your group might provide leash/harness/collar. Mine always wear a tag collar in case of an accidental escape. When out walking, he also wears a harness. I really prefer that for walking as he seems much more comfortable and he can look left and right without being pulled by the leash. We use the martingale for short outings or for the good looks :P As far as food goes, you will get a lot of different opinions! Personally I feed Fromm and love it and it is a great price/quality ratio.

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Cynthia, with Charlie (Britishlionheart) & Zorro el Galgo
Captain Jack (Check my Spots), my first love

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Hi there! Welcome to Greytalk. I've only had one greyhound but will try to answer some of your questions. My dad's a Kansas native (from a tiny town called Iola), but unfortunately that's the extent of my knowledge of the area so I can't offer much help with the first two questions. :)

 

For #3, I'd say the essentials are food (preferably whatever the foster fed to ease the transition) and treats, flea/tick/heartworm meds, a dog bed, a tag collar with ID plus a martingale collar and a leash, basic first aid supplies (there's a recent thread about that if you search "first aid" on the site), poop bags, nail clippers or dremel, a brush like the Zoom Groom, and Nature's Miracle or similar cleaner for any accidents. A baby gate might come in handy but probably falls under the "can wait" list until you know the dog. Things that can almost definitely wait: a crate (see #4), coats, toys*, dog shampoo/conditioner (greys don't need frequent baths), and supplements or other food additives.

 

*You might buy just one to see if s/he likes it, but some hounds are just not into them, so don't go wild yet! The grunting hedgehogs are very popular, and are my own girl's favorite.

 

#4: You'll need a tag collar and a martingale; my adoption group provided a simple nylon martingale and 6 foot leash. Dogs should never be left unattended with a martingale on, since by design it tightens when they pull against it and can be a choking hazard. Some people leave tag collars on 24/7; we take Sweep's off last thing at night and put it on first thing in the morning. We walk her with a harness, because she is not good with non-greyhound dogs and will lunge and gag herself with a martingale on. So, in our case the harness is easier on her neck and back, but I'd start with the martingale and file the harness under the "can wait" list for now. Many hounds do fine with the martingale.

 

Crates can be useful for dogs that tolerate them, but there's no guarantee that they will. Being crated at a kennel surrounded by other dogs is totally different from being crated solo in an unfamiliar home, so the dog's foster can likely guide you there. You might be able to borrow one from the group or a friend, so I'd hold off on investing in one until you know how the dog likes it.

 

Lots of people here feed Iams Proactive Health (known as "the green bag" around here), which is available at most grocery stores, Target, Walmart, etc., but again, start with what the foster's feeding if you can afford to and the dog does well on it. In the early days, the fewer changes, the better. That's also why I said to hold off on supplements like fish oil and additives until the dog (and the dog's GI tract! :lol) is fully adjusted.

 

ETA: One thing you might want to consider for your budget is pet insurance, especially if you don't have funds set aside for an emergency. For a young healthy dog, it should be very reasonable. Healthy Paws is the one we use.

 

Hope this helps!

Edited by ramonaghan

52596614938_aefa4e9757_o.jpg

Rachel with littermates Doolin and Willa, boss cat Tootie, and feline squatters Crumpet and Fezziwig.
Missing gentlemen kitties MudHenry, and Richard and our beautiful, feisty, silly
 Sweep:heart

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Guest RockChalk

:welcome ! I am from Canada, so I really can't help you with vets and adoption groups near you.

 

About your planning ahead, you would need beds, a crate (depending on foster's experience, you might or might not. He/She might need/want it or not), raised bowls, toys, leash, harness, food and basic care, toothpaste, nail trimmer, shampoo...or whatever you may need. I counted and with the adoption fee, it was about 1000$ for us (Canadian money!) to adopt during the first two months (included preliminary vet visit also). We had nothing! The second one, we paid the adoption fee (and flights, long story) and another bed and that was that. I budget about that each year in case of emergency (about 1000$ Canadian per year per dog). I rarely buy toys now, so my monthly cost goes on tick/flea/heartworm preventive and food.

 

Your group might provide leash/harness/collar. Mine always wear a tag collar in case of an accidental escape. When out walking, he also wears a harness. I really prefer that for walking as he seems much more comfortable and he can look left and right without being pulled by the leash. We use the martingale for short outings or for the good looks :P As far as food goes, you will get a lot of different opinions! Personally I feed Fromm and love it and it is a great price/quality ratio.

Thank you two! I guess a follow up question would be what kind of flea/tick/heartworm meds would you recommend? I think I read somewhere that Sentinel was good?

 

Hi there! Welcome to Greytalk. I've only had one greyhound but will try to answer some of your questions. My dad's a Kansas native (from a tiny town called Iola), but unfortunately that's the extent of my knowledge of the area so I can't offer much help with the first two questions. :)

 

For #3, I'd say the essentials are food (preferably whatever the foster fed to ease the transition) and treats, flea/tick/heartworm meds, a dog bed, a tag collar with ID plus a martingale collar and a leash, basic first aid supplies (there's a recent thread about that if you search "first aid" on the site), poop bags, nail clippers or dremel, a brush like the Zoom Groom, and Nature's Miracle or similar cleaner for any accidents. A baby gate might come in handy but probably falls under the "can wait" list until you know the dog. Things that can almost definitely wait: a crate (see #4), coats, toys*, dog shampoo/conditioner (greys don't need frequent baths), and supplements or other food additives.

 

*You might buy just one to see if s/he likes it, but some hounds are just not into them, so don't go wild yet! The grunting hedgehogs are very popular, and are my own girl's favorite.

 

#4: You'll need a tag collar and a martingale; my adoption group provided a simple nylon martingale and 6 foot leash. Dogs should never be left unattended with a martingale on, since by design it tightens when they pull against it and can be a choking hazard. Some people leave tag collars on 24/7; we take Sweep's off last thing at night and put it on first thing in the morning. We walk her with a harness, because she is not good with non-greyhound dogs and will lunge and gag herself with a martingale on. So, in our case the harness is easier on her neck and back, but I'd start with the martingale and file the harness under the "can wait" list for now. Many hounds do fine with the martingale.

 

Crates can be useful for dogs that tolerate them, but there's no guarantee that they will. Being crated at a kennel surrounded by other dogs is totally different from being crated solo in an unfamiliar home, so the dog's foster can likely guide you there. You might be able to borrow one from the group or a friend, so I'd hold off on investing in one until you know how the dog likes it.

 

Lots of people here feed Iams Proactive Health (known as "the green bag" around here), which is available at most grocery stores, Target, Walmart, etc., but again, start with what the foster's feeding if you can afford to and the dog does well on it. In the early days, the fewer changes, the better. That's also why I said to hold off on supplements like fish oil and additives until the dog (and the dog's GI tract! :lol) is fully adjusted.

 

ETA: One thing you might want to consider for your budget is pet insurance, especially if you don't have funds set aside for an emergency. For a young healthy dog, it should be very reasonable. Healthy Paws is the one we use.

 

Hope this helps!

I never would have thought to wait off on toys, that's great advice. That'll definitely be a change; all of our past dogs have absolutely loved squeaky balls or plushies that they can tear apart haha. And I'll definitely look into the pet insurance; that's another thing I hadn't considered!

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We use Sentinel for heartworm and Bravecto for fleas/ticks, and in the past have used Comfortis (flea) and Iverhart Plus (heartworm). Those are all oral meds, but some people prefer the collars (Seresto and Preventic) or topicals like Advantage. Like Cynthia said, there are lots of options! The only one that comes to mind to avoid is Frontline, because apparently fleas have developed a resistance to fipronyl, making it not as effective as it used to be.

52596614938_aefa4e9757_o.jpg

Rachel with littermates Doolin and Willa, boss cat Tootie, and feline squatters Crumpet and Fezziwig.
Missing gentlemen kitties MudHenry, and Richard and our beautiful, feisty, silly
 Sweep:heart

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The expenses you're focusing on are so minor in the grand scheme of things--a plain collar can be had at the pet store for $15 or so (Lupine makes a martingale, although as far as I know, ALL hounds are adopted out with a collar) although pretty ones can run you a lot more. A muzzle? Again, all groups seem to provide, but they're not at all expensive.

 

Most groups seem to have a crate or two around they can loan out so you can see if your dog likes one or not.


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Susan,  Hamish,  Mister Bigglesworth and Nikita Stanislav. Missing Ming, George, and Buck

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Guest RockChalk

Again, thank you everyone! I really appreciate the help. You've all given wonderful considerations!

 

I know it seems ridiculous to try and plan ahead and prepare so far in advance, but I'm the type of person who will stress out over not knowing the tiniest detail of what I'm getting into (probably explains why I'm a pre-med student lol), and so truly, y'all have been big helps so far!

 

 

Rock chalk! And welcome to greytalk :). Hubby and I are both ku alums and our 3 current greyhounds are Ronee, Jill and beware of phog :). We are in oklahoma and Overland Park and Lawrence on game days lol.

 

I love meeting fellow KU fans! Absolutely adore the name "Beware of Phog" :beatheart

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As a thank you from our group, halfway home greyhounds, we got to name phog as an unraced puppy :). We followed his awesome career at derby lane and when he was injured and his racing career was over, his owner was kind enough to let us adopt him! We've had the big fella since January of 2016. Fit right in like he'd always been here with the other two. Let us know if we can help in any way

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Welcome! The best way to find out what your prospective adoption group supplies is to ask them directly. :) They also probably know of vets in your area. Just e-mail them.

 

I walk one of my dogs on a harness only because he has an amazing ability to tangle up his leash, and a harness reduces the number of times I have to untangle him. Most harnesses do not give you any extra control because the leash attaches further down the neck/back than a regular collar. It keeps a pulling dog from hurting its throat, but gives you less ability to guide its direction. Another reason people use harnesses is if they have an easily spooked dog who might manage to back out of even a martingale collar.

 

Money saving ideas -- I'd say wait on buying the bed, because dogs tend to have definite preferences. An old quilt or two is a good way to start. One of mine always preferred quilts to beds -- she was quite the pawing nester. Toys -- you could start with human baby toys from yard sales. Just remove any plastic objects on them like eyes. And don't tell the moms you're buying them from that you're getting them to let your dog rip them up. :lol

 

Maybe start a list of dog-friendly apartments in your area in case you'll have to move. An alternative to pet insurance is to put the money you'd pay for premiums into an imaginary or real separate account and pay for vet bills from that -- if you have the financial discipline not to spend it otherwise. :) Only one of my dogs had any significant vet bills in its first years, and that was a senior dog who I knew going in had some health problems. My adoption group provides the basic vetting under the adoption fee, and many vets do not charge for a first, "just get acquainted" visit.

 

If the group you adopt from is a registered non-profit, you can take off the adoption fee on your taxes as a charitable donation. Woo hoo!

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Ellen, with brindle Milo and the blonde ballerina, Gelsey

remembering Eve, Baz, Scout, Romie, Nutmeg, and Jeter

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On another note about pet insurance. My two Galgos are healthy as they can be so far. But, all of my Greyhounds ended major insurance. MRIs (plural), surgeries, bone cancer (two of them), corns (two of them) and on multiple medicines..DaVid was on 5 pills 3 times a day..Lady was the same. My vet could not believe the maintenance involved with my hounds. I feel it was just the "luck of the draw"..maybe the next ones will not ever need to go to the vet except for their yearly.


hounds needed major insurance. I use Healthy Paws, but Trupanion is good too (just high on the premiums).


Oh and one more note: Harnesses give dogs much more pulling power (example: sled dogs), but I always start out with a spook harness because they cannot get loose from it. Sometime I use a collar and a spook harness at the same time. Just depends on the dog. I still use a "gentle leader" and a collar on Mousie. Her prey drive is tremendous. Best to you and hope you find the perfect hound. (most of them are).

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Never used a tag collar.
See if you can borrow a crate initially until you see if you need it or not or get one off Craigslist - there are tens of thousands of dollars in barely used crates gathering dust.. Often baby gate blocking off a kitchen, etc. work better. It really does depend on the dog. Some like their crates as woobie spots.
Every group I've known has sent a martingale and muzzle and those are all I've every used. The Lupines mentioned above are excellent non poofy collars a guaranteed to last a lifetime.
Greyhounds are dogs. Sometimes quirky dogs with different blood values, but they're dogs - a lot of people just don't want to admit it. ;)
"Greyhound savvy vets" is the most over rated term ever. For day to day any component vet should be able to tend to a grey. If you educate your OCD self on greys you can turn any vet willing to listen into a "grey savvy" one. :) You'd shudder if you knew how many dogs I've had treated by rural "horse doctors" that were just fine. They did just as well as the vets from the hallowed GH savvy Ohio State.
I've usually fed IAMs green bag (because of a colitis boy), Purina One or Pro Plan. The Costco brand is mad by Diamond and I believe it is siimilar to Diamond Naturals - which you can get at the feed store.
I used Heartgard and am totally in love with Bravecto for flea/tick.
Budgeting for toys :dunno very few of mine had any real interest in them - wait and see if your dog does.

Best of luck to you and your new upcoming buddy - keep us posted!

Edited by Hubcitypam
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About toys..All of my dogs have loved stuffed animals that I buy from Goodwill. I take any plastic parts off (just cut them out) and I am careful about internal parts like batteries and squawkers. I also learned my lesson about those tiny round plastic balls (millions of them in a toy) and make sure I do not buy any stuffed animals with them because I was vacuuming forever trying to get them all..lol. The Humane society here in Savannah has many crates, all sizes, sitting outside of their buildings just rusting away..I would check with them. My Galgos love to sleep in their crates, but not all dogs like them. Baby gates are really handy. My dogs all wear tag collars and wear them whenever they are not on walks and then I use the martingale collars. I buy my tag collars from 2HoundDesigns.com and my Martingale collars from Unruly Tails. Unruly Tails make great collars at a very reasonable price. I use the 1 1/2 inch ones...Just google them.

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I live in the UK and over here it is a legal requirement to have your dog microchipped (something you might consider) and wearing a collar with identification of owner when out in a public place, consequently mine wear a tag collar 24 hrs a day just incase they should ever escape from the house or garden.

 

I was taught many years ago that a harness just gives your dog more strength to pull into (think of draught horses) so for my greyhound with a smaller head than neck I use a martingale collar. This was really useful for the first couple of years when she would leap 6 feet up into the air when she saw another breed of dog when walking out in the forest. With practice and experience I would have my hand tight on the loop of the collar right behind her ear and she would be leaping up right beside me and couldn't pull away, when I had it looser she would do a back flip and I always worried that she would hurt herself.

 

As for toys, you could have a 'killer', in which case beware that it might eat the stuffing from a soft toy it has disembowelled or one that loves to cuddle up with a favourite stuffy.

 

Whatever you get it will take time to adjust on both your parts so be prepared for things to happen that you really never expected.

Miss "England" Carol with whippet lurcher Nutmeg & Zavvi the Chihuahua.

R.I.P. Chancey (Goosetree Chance). 24.1.2009 - 14.4.2022. Bluegrass Banjoman. 25.1.2004 - 25.5.2015 and Ch. Sleepyhollow Aida. 30.9.2000 - 10.1.2014.

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Thinking this over - if I could only give you one piece of advice it would be don't try too hard to make your new grey love you. Give him/her attention then go about your business at first but listen to the dog. It'll talk to you without human words.

 

Internet forums are double edged swords. In a way I am sort of glad that they didn't exist when I got my first grey. She taught me about greyhounds and I taught her about being a pet.

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Hi there and welcome from Rogue and I. I know you've gotten a lot of answers, but I thought I'd weigh in since my experience is fresh (first time adopting a dog as an adult, first grey) and I've only had my guy since April. I am also very anal retentive. ;P

 

My dog came with a martingale collar, leash, muzzle, wormer (Pyrentel to last 4 months), and a bottle of pills (can't remember the name but I'm pretty sure it was a basic antibiotic to cover anything he might have from their kennel). Side note: he also came with all of his medical history, including from when he was still racing. On the day I picked him up, I also purchased a fleece coat ($20), grooming mitt ($5), his microchip registration fee ($17), and Advantage Multi ($80, six months worth of doses, covers fleas, heartworms, and a few other worms) from the adoption organization.

 

As someone mentioned earlier, Lupine makes quality leashes and collars that are guaranteed for life. Best of all, they won't break the bank! Basic nylon martingales are $14. Because my doggo came with both, I did not buy him a new collar until about a month later. I do not use a tag collar.

 

I needed to house train my dog so the organization recommended a crate. The best price I found was actually online from Amazon and the AmazonBasics brand. I got it for $72. My only issue what that crate is that the edges around the door were sharp. I covered them with 2 layers of duct tape, which was enough to protect in case Rogue's head or back touched it but thin enough to allow the door to still close and latch. I also bought a bowl to hang in the crate for water. Rogue was easily trained so I probably only used the crate for a month or less, but the convenience of it was totally worth it, plus I never know when I might need it again. Since you have time, a used crate might be a good thing to try and find. Also because I was house training, I bought a pair of rubber gloves and already had carpet cleaner (useful for when Rogue threw up in my car).

 

I ended up buying a food dish from the grocery store for about $3. I use an old large mixing bowl as a water bowl.

 

I went price comparison shopping at 3 different pet stores to find the best price on a large bed for about $40. I also picked up a soft toy and a chew toy on sale. Bought a couple packages of treats which run $5-8 each. I only buy treats made in the USA.

 

My dog did not come with any food so I used DogFoodAdvisor.com to find a quality food. I went for the highest rated food and eventually downgraded because it wasn't settling well with Rogue's tummy. I'm now very happy with Nutro Essentials, which runs about $40 ish for a 15 or 20lb bag that lasts me a month (this is a guess, I haven't calculated that yet) Be prepared to try different foods before finding the right one. I bought a smaller bag when testing food. While dealing with runny poop on the first brand of food that I tried, I did discover Olewo carrots thanks to this forum and they can be a lifesaver. I now don't need them to keep his poop solid but feed it once a day as a supplement. Also can be bought in bulk from Amazon Prime with free shipping.

 

Definitely wait on buying many toys and treats so you can see what your hound likes and dislikes. Wait until you have your hound with you before buying clothes so that you can take measurements. Your hound may run hot or cold so you don't want to stock up on layers until you know what you need. I only bought a harness when I built Rogue's stamina to take longer hikes with me because I didn't want to have pressure on his neck for long period of time. You will probably want multiple beds but again, wait to see what your dog likes. I have a bedroom bed, car/outdoor bed, and living room bed. The living room bed is extra large and is the only one he can stretch out on and not spill onto the floor. I only bought a raised feeder last week. I bought a couple different slow feeders later on so he wouldn't chug his food, but adding water helped before that. They really are clean dogs, so I didn't buy shampoo until later (I have given him 2 baths in 3 months and I live on a farm). I bought a Seresto collar for ticks eventually because we walk in the woods a lot. Eventually you can build up a canine first aid kit.

 

If you have wood floors, you will definitely want a rug to place food and water bowls on. But then I would wait and see if there are problem areas before purchasing more rugs. I ended up buying one for the bedroom and then recently one for the kitchen because I noticed Rogue slipping when he took the turn in front of the fridge.

 

I have a flashlight that I use when I take him out at night for his last pee break.

 

Treat your dog like a dog and don't be worried if they seem withdrawn or unaffectionate at first. Rogue growled at me the first day I tried to cuddle, but now I lay with him on his big bed. It's really awesome seeing their personalities come out with confidence.

 

That's all I can think of for now on things to get now, things to wait on, and random things. Hope this helped!

 

Edit:: Oh and nail clippers are another thing you could wait on since ideally your hound will be freshly bathed and clipped. Rogue has rather large nails so I'm still trying to find the best pair of clippers.

Edited by fastpointydoge

Sarah with P Kay Ruger "Rogue"

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Guest RockChalk

All of this is really helpful! I was originally planning on waiting until Thanksgiving or so to adopt (just to give me time to prep) but I really can't wait! So now I'll probably be turning in my application in late August/early September just to get the process started. If anyone thinks of anything else I would of course love to hear it =)

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