Scott (left) and George take a break with their pack, (from left) Perla, Violet, Raul, and Cali.
Lifelong dog lovers George Knott and Scott Gulledge have been dedicated advocates for Galgos and Podencos since 2012, when a chance encounter at an Atlanta yogurt shop on Dec. 3 changed their lives forever.
“Scott and I had three dogs at that time, a greyhound named Rio, a beagle mix named Violet, and a greyhound/Whippet mix named Cali,” George recalls. “It was an unusually warm November afternoon, perfect for a stroll along the newly opened Beltway Line, a pedestrian walkway running alongside an abandoned railroad track near our home in Atlanta.”
Entering the walkway, the couple headed south, eventually meeting up with friends who joined them on the walk. As they headed towards downtown, the group took a break and stopped at a nearby yogurt shop.
“We sat outside with the pack while our friends went inside to order,” George remembers. “As we waited, both Rio and Cali suddenly started excitedly wagging their tails and adjusting their stance. We could tell they both were very interested in something they just saw. We turned to see what we assumed was another American greyhound coming up the walkway.”
It was a beautiful dog, brindle in color, but wire-haired, quite unlike any greyhound they’d ever seen before. After meeting the owners, they asked whether the dog was from a rescue center or a track – the usual source for most American greyhounds.
“They responded by telling us that actually she was not a greyhound but a Galgo, or Spanish greyhound, cousin to the American greyhound.” Unlike the American breed, which is used mainly as a racing dog, Galgos are primarily hunters. The couple went on to explain how the dog was adopted from Spain, after it was abandoned by its owners and rescued by a local rescue center in Spain.
“We went home shortly thereafter and my mind was racing with curiosity about this ‘cousin of the American greyhound,’”George says. “So I went online and Googled ‘Galgo’…and our lives and hearts would never be the same.”
Eventually the couple adopted Raul, a Galgo, and Perla, a Podenco.
The following year George and Scott moved to Palm Springs, Calif., where they currently reside.
The couple launched Galgopod.org a 501(c)(3) Public charity organization in 2018.
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