Duke - the Irish Wolfhound

I have been an Irish Wolfhound fan for many years but have not had the opportunity to adopt one. In August of 1997 we moved out of Chicago (where our yard was 20 ft x 20 ft) to the one of the suburbs of Chicago We found a beautiful 3 acre lot with 6 bedrooms and a price that we could afford. The yard and house are the perfect place to raise an Irish Wolfhound.

The search was on for a puppy - but none came up for sale and when I heard of a litter they were always oversubscribed, until the last week in April 1998. My other passion is the Studebaker Automobile and the annual swap meet is the first weekend of May in South Bend. I heard of 4 puppies available just outside of Indianapolis, so I called. The female was sold and 3 males remained, but there were 5 people coming to see them on Saturday May 2nd, so I confirmed that I would come on Friday May 1st to beat the crowd.

Early Friday morning I loaded up my old '56 Station Wagon and made the 2 hour trip to South Bend, I spent a couple of hours there picking up a few bits and pieces for my cars but my mind was on the second part of the trip. At about 1pm I grabbed a bite to eat and headed off to Indianapolis, which was about 3 hours away. I found the farm, which was 20 miles past Indianapolis and met the breeder. Not being an expert on kennels or breeders I was cautious and asked all the usual questions, she grilled me again about his new home and my family. The parents were gorgeous, I am 6 ft 2" and it seemed that I hardly had to bend over to look the father in the face, mom looked healthy and the pups were playing as I selected my dog. He was the biggest, weighing 23 pounds, but shyest of the bunch. I confirmed his shots and deworming were up-to-date, got about 10 pounds of the food he was used to, paid the bill, then loaded up ready for the 4 hours back to Naperville.

The '56 Wagon at South Bend Indiana

I had confided in my eldest daughter, Jaime, what I was going to do. For my wife and other 3 kids it was going to be a surprise. I would have surprised Jaime too but seeing that she was going to take care of him whilst I was a work I wanted to get her input as to whether she would prefer a male or female (if the female became available). My cell phone rang every 45 minutes on the way home as she checked my progress. It was a very special moment cruising down I65 into the sunset in my beautiful Studebaker, the mufflers roaring as only an old V8 can, and my Irish Wolfhound on the seat next to me. His name was to be "Duke", I pushed for a more Irish name but ever since Jaime had seen the hounds on the Swiss family Robinson she was determined that it would be Duke if we got a male.

At 9:15pm I got the last call "Dad where are you?", I was just pulling off I55 getting ready for the final 5 miles to home. Jaime had primed the others that something special was about to happen (My wife was dreading another Studebaker being pulled behind the '56 Wagon as we already have 4 Studes). They ran up to the car as I pulled into the driveway, I ushered them back and carried Duke out of the car. His long legs were stiff after the 4 hour ride and my body was wasted after the 9 hours of driving, he walked out on the lawn and did his business - No mess in the Studebaker!!!!

My wife was speechless, but she is a great lady and knows that I have wanted one since I was boy growing up in Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia). Duke being so shy was a little overwhelmed at the excitement he was causing. Well we all settled down and he licked each child's face in turn as if to acknowledge that he was home. We were all pretty beat so bed was not far away. Jaime had a friend over so all of the kids slept in her room with Duke between them.

Our first Saturday started early (5:00am) Duke needed to be “walked”. Well as the weekend progressed we all bonded. Duke loved all of the attention and soon came out of his shyness. His long legs were not used to this much space so he tired quickly but with 4 kids (ages 3, 5, 7 and 9) he needed to build up stamina as they constantly wanted to play.

Our 12 year old Pom Gizmo was not too impressed, but there again he was not too impressed when the kids came along either. He still thinks that it should be him and us - no kids and certainly no other animals! However over the months Duke has been with us Gizmo has become younger at heart at he and Duke enjoy their long walks together.

Dukes first minute in his new home with 3 of the Children

After a long drive Mom takes a picture of the family