Up and Down....

It is a wonderful New Year and Tori has been really great at all of the "News" so far.

She has been very quick to learn how to play with New toys. Her favorites are squeekies that she can chew.

New treats of all kinds are thoroughly enjoyed.

She loves New people so much. She thinks that all people are put around her to love her. In fact, if you can see her, you are meant to love her! She gives kisses if you ask (and sometimes if you do not).

And then there are the big New One: STAIRS... Up has been way easier than Down. She has had Up for days now. Originally, we would have to lead her to the base and she would rumble right up them. Today she did not even need the lead. She ran right up after the boys.

Unfortunately, unknown to her, the door at the top was not open! We rounded the corner and there was the greyhound-log-jam at the top of the stairs. Tori decided to not participate, so she bailed. The only way to do that is Down.

Right - I was getting to Down. Down has not been as easy. That Gravity thing is always daunting for newly-off-the-track hounds. And stairs are a bit too close to the time-to-test-gravity front for most. Tori is no different.

Over the past few days, she has been getting more steady. But greyhounds have seem to have a natural challenge. Greyhounds have this very unfortunate reflex: when they are nervous, their feet arch. When their feet arch, they are walking on their nails, not their pads. The combination of arched feet and slippery floors is pretty bad. Make that slippery stairs and re-introduce the darned gravity thing and it is not hard to see why stairs are such a big deal for the newbies.

So, in the middle of the log-jam she managed to turn herself around, and walked pretty well down the stairs. Then she did a U-turn and came right back up.

Pretty soon, she will be following the boys Up and Down with no issue.

Tori will continue with the all of News in the New Year - will she help you have a Greyt New Year?