heisman's story

After we lost Romeo, Jackie went into a deep depression. It was clear she needed another dog in the house to ease the loneliness. After all, she was now an only dog and although she was an alpha, she still needed the companionship of another dog.

After visiting one adoption group with 15 dogs available, Jackie decided no on each one she met. Sadly, we returned home with Jackie to keep searching.

It wasn't but a couple days later, I received a phone call from the track adoption kennel. Both Romeo and Jackie had raced at the Woodlands and the adoption kennel manager knew Romeo had went to the Bridge. She also knew how challenging Miss Jackie was and suggested we bring her by for her very own "Greyhound fix". We scheduled a visit for the next day.

My daughter and I got Jackie ready dressing her up in her dress collar, her purple sweater and grabbed her hot pink muzzle. We loaded Miss Jackie into the car and off we went.

We arrived at the kennel compound and the guard waved us on through. Jackie began to shake and looked a little sad. After a few words of loving encouragement, she stop shaking but still looked a little sad. We told Jackie that we weren't giving her back. After all, she captured my heart and I was not going to let my baby girl go back. She was a part of our family and that was that.

We entered into the adoption kennel where in front of us were 30 dogs available for adoption. One by one, they were let out of their crates for a turnout and to meet Jackie through a secured fenced door. 29 dogs passed by that door and I was beginning to feel we weren't going to find that special dog Jackie was looking for.

Then, it happened. The last dog to be turned out was a huge black guy with a white face. When the kennel manager opened the crate door, this guy bounded out, leaped up placing his paws on my daughter's shoulders, gave her kisses all over her face and then promptly went over to meet Jackie. Jackie let out her little snappy bark. The big black guy smiled and wagged his tail. My mouth fell open when I saw Jackie's tail wag for the first time in over 2 weeks! Bingo! We had a match!

Jackie and the big black guy were placed in a turn out pen all by themselves. They got along greyt! I asked about the boy and the kennel manager said his name was Heisman and he was almost 6 yrs old. He raced grade A and was retired due to age. We let them play and get to know each other for a while. Finally, it was time I had to go home and tell my husband all about the guy Jackie met.

A few days later, we got another call from the kennel manager asking if we could foster a dog. She needed room for more incoming dogs and since Jackie liked Heisman so well, she wanted to know if we could foster him. My husband and I scheduled a time to meet Heisman again the next day.

We arrived at the track compound with Jackie in tow. When we left, we didn't leave with just Jackie. We left with Heisman and Jackie. Heisman wasn't a foster dog either. He was ours. We decided to go ahead and adopt Heisman because not only did he charm Jackie, my daughter and I - he charmed my husband, too! Heisman was a very happy camper!

Heisman proved to be a very special boy. He cockroached, smiled, playbowed and was just a joy to have as our own. Jackie knew what she needed and what our family needed, too. We needed Heisman.

Heisman has gone on to become a somewhat famous boy, too. He's helped other Greyhounds in need due to serious medical problems through his store "Heisman's Greyhound Art". He's been an ambassador for Greyhound Planet and has held countless raffles and auctions to help various groups.

Heisman was diagnosed with Wobber's Disease in February of 2004 just about a month short of his 9th birthday. He had his good days and his bad days. He still had all the charisma he had when we first met him and his most favorite thing in the world are human babies. He smiled and melted right there when a baby was placed near him. You can just see the love he had for babies right there.

Heisman brought alot of joy to our family and we were very proud to have him as a part of our family, too. We were hoping to have him around for a few more years. He was getting a little shaky in the rear end sometimes but he still loved his short walks.

That was our boy Heisman and we wouldn't have changed him for anything in the world...... but he changed us totally. Thanks Heisman....... Love ya Big Guy!

It is with profound sadness that at 1:15pm, Monday, October 1, 2007, Heisman crossed the bridge being held in my arms and surrounded by his loving family. Heisman was 12 1/2.

His Wobbler's finally took it's toll on him. He started collapsing very badly Sunday and got progressively worse. He had a very hard time controlling his back legs (especially his left leg - it's swinging all over the place when he walked) and had to be supported now while standing. He was knuckling under very badly. He couldn't stand for longer than 30 seconds or so before he collapsed so it was time to sadly but lovingly let him go be with Jackie and all of the other pups we've lost. After 3 1/2 years with this slow progressive disease of Wobbler's slowly robbing my boy of his mobility, it was time he rested in peace.

This was not an easy decision for me to make but I know in my heart it was the right decision and the best for him. I set aside my selfishness, stood up and fulfilled my promise I made to Heisman when we first adopted him over 6 1/2 years ago to love him, honor him, care for him, cherish him and to let him go when the time came. It wasn't fair to him to keep him going just for me. As much as I dearly loved him, I had to let him go and be with Jackie.

He will be greytly missed. Heisman was what most would call a legend in the Greyhound world. Many people knew Heisman's name before they could recall mine. He was my 4th adopted Greyhound and Jackie's dog love. I credit her for choosing Heisman to become a member of our family and I'm so glad she picked Heisman. Heisman was a Greyhound full of pride, goofiness and genuine love. He helped many, many pups through donations from his store with thousands of dollars of donations. He was one of my inspirations for starting Greyhound Planet. He was my ambassagrey here locally to represent all of the Greyhounds throughout the world and my very first service dog for me. His sweet and gentle disposition with children especially can not be replaced. His nurturing the baby bunnies outside will always be remembered. His smile, his roo and his goofy ways will always remain in my heart.

His personal vet came to our home around 1pm central time and helped us assist Heisman to the bridge. We felt this was the best for Heisman - to be surrounded by family in the comfort of his own home. We were lucky to have found a very compassionate vet 7 years ago when we first adopted Hannah. Dr. Cupp is one of the greytest vets I could know and to see him shed tears for the loss of Heisman Monday, touched my heart.

Heisman's Greyhound Art store will continue on serving other Greyhounds in need in other groups and his younger sister, Ashley will help me fulfill that promise. His youngest and newest sister, LuLu, will continue on filling our days with smiles and laughter just the same as Heisman the BIG guy did when he was her age.



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	Heisman's Story
Heisman Jacob Skinner		May 7, 1995 to October 1, 2007
After we lost Romeo, Jackie went into a deep depression. It was clear she needed another dog in the house to ease the loneliness. After all, she was now an only dog and although she was an alpha, she still needed the companionship of another dog. After visiting one adoption group with 15 dogs available, Jackie decided no on each one she met. Sadly, we returned home with Jackie to keep searching. It wasn't but a couple days later, I received a phone call from the track adoption kennel. Both Romeo and Jackie had raced at the Woodlands and the adoption kennel manager knew Romeo had went to the Bridge. She also knew how challenging Miss Jackie was and suggested we bring her by for her very own "Greyhound fix". We scheduled a visit for the next day. My daughter and I got Jackie ready dressing her up in her dress collar, her purple sweater and grabbed her hot pink muzzle. We loaded Miss Jackie into the car and off we went. We arrived at the kennel compound and the guard waved us on through. Jackie began to shake and looked a little sad. After a few words of loving encouragement, she stop shaking but still looked a little sad. We told Jackie that we weren't giving her back. After all, she captured my heart and I was not going to let my baby girl go back. She was a part of our family and that was that. We entered into the adoption kennel where in front of us were 30 dogs available for adoption. One by one, they were let out of their crates for a turnout and to meet Jackie through a secured fenced door. 29 dogs passed by that door and I was beginning to feel we weren't going to find that special dog Jackie was looking for. Then, it happened. The last dog to be turned out was a huge black guy with a white face. When the kennel manager opened the crate door, this guy bounded out, leaped up placing his paws on my daughter's shoulders, gave her kisses all over her face and then promptly went over to meet Jackie. Jackie let out her little snappy bark. The big black guy smiled and wagged his tail. My mouth fell open when I saw Jackie's tail wag for the first time in over 2 weeks! Bingo! We had a match! Jackie and the big black guy were placed in a turn out pen all by themselves. They got along greyt! I asked about the boy and the kennel manager said his name was Heisman and he was almost 6 yrs old. He raced grade A and was retired due to age. We let them play and get to know each other for a while. Finally, it was time I had to go home and tell my husband all about the guy Jackie met. A few days later, we got another call from the kennel manager asking if we could foster a dog. She needed room for more incoming dogs and since Jackie liked Heisman so well, she wanted to know if we could foster him. My husband and I scheduled a time to meet Heisman again the next day. We arrived at the track compound with Jackie in tow. When we left, we didn't leave with just Jackie. We left with Heisman and Jackie. Heisman wasn't a foster dog either. He was ours. We decided to go ahead and adopt Heisman because not only did he charm Jackie, my daughter and I - he charmed my husband, too! Heisman was a very happy camper! Heisman proved to be a very special boy. He cockroached, smiled, playbowed and was just a joy to have as our own. Jackie knew what she needed and what our family needed, too. We needed Heisman. Heisman has gone on to become a somewhat famous boy, too. He's helped other Greyhounds in need due to serious medical problems through his store "Heisman's Greyhound Art". He's been an ambassador for Greyhound Planet and has held countless raffles and auctions to help various groups. Heisman was diagnosed with Wobber's Disease in February of 2004 just about a month short of his 9th birthday. He had his good days and his bad days. He still had all the charisma he had when we first met him and his most favorite thing in the world are human babies. He smiled and melted right there when a baby was placed near him. You can just see the love he had for babies right there. Heisman brought alot of joy to our family and we were very proud to have him as a part of our family, too. We were hoping to have him around for a few more years. He was getting a little shaky in the rear end sometimes but he still loved his short walks. That was our boy Heisman and we wouldn't have changed him for anything in the world...... but he changed us totally. Thanks Heisman....... Love ya Big Guy! It is with profound sadness that at 1:15pm, Monday, October 1, 2007, Heisman crossed the bridge being held in my arms and surrounded by his loving family. Heisman was 12 1/2. His Wobbler's finally took it's toll on him. He started collapsing very badly Sunday and got progressively worse. He had a very hard time controlling his back legs (especially his left leg - it's swinging all over the place when he walked) and had to be supported now while standing. He was knuckling under very badly. He couldn't stand for longer than 30 seconds or so before he collapsed so it was time to sadly but lovingly let him go be with Jackie and all of the other pups we've lost. After 3 1/2 years with this slow progressive disease of Wobbler's slowly robbing my boy of his mobility, it was time he rested in peace. This was not an easy decision for me to make but I know in my heart it was the right decision and the best for him. I set aside my selfishness, stood up and fulfilled my promise I made to Heisman when we first adopted him over 6 1/2 years ago to love him, honor him, care for him, cherish him and to let him go when the time came. It wasn't fair to him to keep him going just for me. As much as I dearly loved him, I had to let him go and be with Jackie. He will be greytly missed. Heisman was what most would call a legend in the Greyhound world. Many people knew Heisman's name before they could recall mine. He was my 4th adopted Greyhound and Jackie's dog love. I credit her for choosing Heisman to become a member of our family and I'm so glad she picked Heisman. Heisman was a Greyhound full of pride, goofiness and genuine love. He helped many, many pups through donations from his store with thousands of dollars of donations. He was one of my inspirations for starting Greyhound Planet. He was my ambassagrey here locally to represent all of the Greyhounds throughout the world and my very first service dog for me. His sweet and gentle disposition with children especially can not be replaced. His nurturing the baby bunnies outside will always be remembered. His smile, his roo and his goofy ways will always remain in my heart. His personal vet came to our home around 1pm central time and helped us assist Heisman to the bridge. We felt this was the best for Heisman - to be surrounded by family in the comfort of his own home. We were lucky to have found a very compassionate vet 7 years ago when we first adopted Hannah. Dr. Cupp is one of the greytest vets I could know and to see him shed tears for the loss of Heisman Monday, touched my heart. Heisman's Greyhound Art store will continue on serving other Greyhounds in need in other groups and his younger sister, Ashley will help me fulfill that promise. His youngest and newest sister, LuLu, will continue on filling our days with smiles and laughter just the same as Heisman the BIG guy did when he was her age. Please join me in lighting a candle for not only my boy Heisman for a safe passage to the bridge but for all of the Greyhounds we've all lost over the years. Run free and ROO loud my boy.... I will miss you, never forget you and I will always deeply love you. Mom
Hannah's Story	Romeo's Story	Jackie's Story

Heisman's Story	Ashley's Story	LuLu's Story

Story of Heisman's Greyhound Art	Patrick's Story	Story of Greyhound Affair

	Story of Greyhound Planet

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