Help us give a retired racer a good home!

July 1, 2009 2:14 PM

My wife and I are looking to adopt a rescue greyhound from Greyhound Friends or Greyhound Welfare - what do we need to know?

I know the basic breed information from handouts and googling. I've read the thread about the poor guy who was thinking of giving his greyhound back after just a week.

We live in the Boston area, condo, no yard, with a dog park just a short walk away. From my reading (and seeing many other greyhounds on the streets of the 'ville), I think a greyhound might make a great dog for my wife and I.

I've grown up with dogs, but never been 100% responsible for one. I plan on taking it to training. I'm a bit anxious about house-training it, but figure that will come in time.

We're hoping to get one that's been fostered, so at least some of the initial socializing has been done, but wondering how hard it will be to teach my dog things that most dogs already know - how to play tug of war, how to bite a Kong. Some of the dogs at the rescue we visited were sweet enough, but very aloof and passive. From what I can tell, once the dog settles in a new home, they'll relax and you'll see more of its personality.

Any greyhound socializing or training advice, anecdotes, warnings or encouragements gratefully accepted.

One wrinkle:
Our upstairs neighbor is allergic to some dogs (mostly longer haired ones.) To not be a dick, we're going to try to find someone in the area with a greyhound to pay a brief visit to see how she reacts before we bring a dog home (we have completely separate HVAC systems, so she'd only have to worry if she visited us or ran into us out front.)

posted by canine epigram to pets & animals (30 comments total)

Some of the dogs at the rescue we visited were sweet enough, but very aloof and passive.

My experience as a friend to greyhound owners is that greyhounds are like this a lot. They're nice lovey animals who like their exercise, but when they're at home they're pretty mellow lie-about dogs. They're more like cats than dogs in some ways [except physically, obviously]. Most of the ones I've known [which is not that many] don't really do kong/tug-of-war stuff. This may be particular to their owners or their own personlities, but I don't think of greyhounds as very doglike dogs.
posted by jessamyn at 2:18 PM on July 1 [1 favorite has favorites]

seconding jessamyn's comment.
though it's true the dog might settle in with you and show you more of its personality, greyhounds are not known to be playful, goofy dogs. they're pretty quiet.

good on you for taking into account your neighbour's allergies. that's very considerate!
posted by gursky at 2:23 PM on July 1

Yay! Greyhounds are the best dogs.

Socializing - Greyhounds tend to be good with people and other dogs because of their life at the track, if somewhat reserved at first. (Of course mine forgot to read the greyhound manual and is super friendly and goofy like a golden retriever in a greyhound body.)

Stairs - Depending on if/where the dog is fostered, he may not know how to go up/down stairs. This will come with time, although mine is still kind of clumsy and dumb about stairs. She also doesn't seem to be able to transfer the learning/skill set from one set of stairs to the next, so new stairs are always scary at first. You will get all kinds of tips from the group about how to teach dogs stairs, but for us it was just a matter of a lot of encouragement and some tugs on the leash (not dragging her, but happy words and treats alone weren't going to do it.)

Playing - It took years for our girl to learn how to play tug-of-war, but she understood how to squeak stuffy toys from day one, and still loves it. She doesn't destroy her toys, just squeak them, so she had accumulated quite the collection over the years. She still doesn't really like rubbery/chewy toys and we gave up on the Kong pretty quickly.

Separation Anxiety - Some greyhounds have this, because they've pretty much never been alone their whole lives. The adoption group may have some idea of individual dogs and issues like that, and will find the best dog to fit your lifestyle if you and your wife both work.

Allergies - Greyhounds are NOT hypoallergenic, so definitely a good idea to check with the neighbor. My sister isn't even allergic to a lot of dogs, but one lick from my greyhound will start her scratching. It's just a weird individual reaction thing.

I guess my biggest thing is, greyhounds aren't like a lot of other dogs. They are wonderful companions in their own right, but it's better to accept them for what they are rather than wishing they were labrador retrievers. They're not a hardy dog that will run around in the woods off leash for hours and hours and return on command. But they are quiet, gentle dogs that are great for apartment/city living. And I disagree with the above posts on preview, they can be quite goofy and playful, it's just that their idea of playing is running around in circles rather than wrestling. My girl does play a mean tug-of-war now and will even growl back if I growl at her during the game. Took a few years for her to learn that, though.

My background: Live in Chicago, apartment, small yard, adopted my first greyhound (first ever dog of any kind) 6 years ago and still think she's the greatest.
posted by misskaz at 2:27 PM on July 1

P.S. Here's a link to a video of my girl (the fawn one) and her greyhound boyfriend playing in our small back yard. This video was taken after they had already run around in circles and gotten most of the crazies out, so they are a little tired, but it shows you that they do have fun! It also shows that dogs are individuals and don't always follow the rules of their breed - greyhounds aren't typically barkers, but Wyatt (the brindle in the video) barks quite a bit.

The next video in the set shows what happens after greyhound play for a few minutes - total greyhound pancakes.
posted by misskaz at 2:35 PM on July 1 [1 favorite has favorites]

We looked into adopting a retired racing greyhound, so some of the things they told us were specific to the retired racer. Whatever rescue you go to may have a few on offer so I will thow these out.

(general) Make doubly sure your condo association allows dogs that big. Sometime after We moved into our condo, the board changed the rules to limit dog size to 35 pounds or less and never told us. We got a nice surprise when we started going through the adoption process and GPA asked us to verify that tidbit. Make sure you are in compliance or be prepared to battle with your condo association. Its a stupid policy that still pisses me off when I think about it.

Glass Doors. If you wind up with a retired racer, it was suggested that we put some of those cheap glass friendly stickers at about eye level on any glass surface until they get used to it. Like Misskaz says about stairs, a lot of racers may have no experience with glass doors or windows and could hurt themselves trying to move through one.

Short leashes. I'm sure you've seen it in other places, but never put a retired racer on a leash longer than six feet and don't use retractable leashes either. They have tremendous acceleration. If it decides to chase something and is on a long lead there is a very real risk of injury to both you and the dog when it hits the end of the leash.

Don't expect a retired racer to be like the image of a "normal" dog (which is a myth anyway). A retired racer has been either in a crate or running its entire life. All the ones we met were very sweet, loving, and low-energy dogs, but there is a lot of stuff they have not been exposed to so they may seem like little aliens sometimes.
posted by Lord Widebottom at 2:46 PM on July 1

My greyhound was goofy as hell...with me. With everyone else he was nice, though hardly polite - his preferred method of acquaintance was to stand over you on the sofa (he was enormous, 90lbs) and sneeze in your hair before circling 3 times and flinging himself down next to you. People got used to it.

But it was 6 months before he played with a toy (I cried the day it happened), and he was never an interactive player with toys. He did enjoy being cheered on as he gutted a stuffed animal, but didn't care for balls or tug or anything. He also liked being cheered on as he ran laps around the yard, and would play a sort of tag with me where he would run at me at full bore and then swerve at the last second and I would try to touch him (this game was ESPECIALLY fun if he got out the front door and I was trying to get him home). We also played a sort of hide-and-peekabo where I would crawl around the furniture and he would pretend he didn't know where I was until I jumped out at him. He had a tremendous sense of humor, for a dog.

He had gone back to his farm when he retired and would hang out with the owners on their porch, but was not well-versed in things like slick floors, stairs, or plate glass windows. He figured out the sofa and bed in about 3 minutes, and the only accident he had inside was maybe the second day I had him when he was still a very early riser and I was still a hard sleeper. Racing dogs usually do their business in a sand or gravel lot near their kennels and so are quasi-housebroken already.

If you go to training, know that greyhounds can be taught to sit but generally do not do it naturally. A full down is how they rest (well, actually, they rest on their backs on the sofa with their feet in the air, known as the Cockroach Position in greyhound circles or Upside Down Dog Disease in my house), and I would work on that on command before moving on to sitting if you choose to teach him that. Find out when The Greyhound People go to the dog park; the dogs tend to recognize greyhounds as different from other dogs, and they have a big time play-racing.

The one thing I never did that I would at least look into now would be pet insurance. They have really delicate skin and no bone-padding fat and spindly legs and tails of doom, and you will probably deal with injuries to at least one of those at least once. A dog that raced for years is also going to have bad teeth eventually, they don't eat a lot of crunchies during the racing year. Also be prepared for a long dog that is capable of being quite tall when it wants to - you may need to dogproof up to shoulder height and well back from the edge of counters, depending on how long yours is.

They are more or less giant cats in a lot of ways, and how they express their dogginess tends to be very individual to the dog. They are wonderful pets and I miss my buddy every day.
posted by Lyn Never at 2:58 PM on July 1 [1 favorite has favorites]

I live in Somerville -- condo, no yard -- and own a rescue greyhound (from Greyhound Welfare). Booyah!

The above comments are spot-on. Greyhounds tend to be shy, but if you want a goofy-doggie one they certainly exist. Be totally clear with the adoption group what kind of temperment you want and they'll help out.

Feel free to contact me via MeFi for local info, or if you want to test-drive our dog (perhaps at Nunziato).
posted by nev at 3:11 PM on July 1

(oops, "via MeMail")
posted by nev at 3:12 PM on July 1

I'm glad misskaz (and others on preview) has had a great experience with her grey, but I must say I had bad experiences with two retired racers (at different times) and ultimately gave up on the breed. Personally, my advice would be to cut a check to the placement agency to support their mission and adopt a friendly mutt from the pound. Owning a greyhound is tough, particularly in the city, and especially if you are not adopting more than one so they can keep each other company.

My ex-SO and I had adopted through an ex-racer placement group in Philly when we were living there. We had done a lot of research, both on breeds and on the placement agencies that were operating in Philadelphia, and we were rigorously screened by the program (which itself took weeks, with essays and interviews and home visits).

Each of the two dogs had already been fostered (to a degree), but neither was 100% housebroken, neither could go down stairs, neither liked non-greyhounds and neither liked being in the city. The dogs I had did NOT like the dog park, so don't count it as a given that yours will, either.

But the most trying factor was the soul-crushing (for everyone) separation anxiety that wracked each of them. As misskaz notes, these are dogs who are used to being with their doggie friends all of the time. They were inconsolable when left alone. And please know that my ex and I did everything we could to get these dogs comfortable being alone. Multiple kongs, laden with frozen peanut butter and jammed with a zillion treats, toys, playing recordings of our voices, leaving the radio or TV on, leaving the apartment for 30 seconds, 1 minute, 2 minutes, etc.--and they just could not adapt. At one point, my ex had essentially dropped out of med school to sit at home with the dog so it would not be anxious--and I think this was in response to someone calling the ASPCA because we had left the dog for the morning and it was howling like it was being murdered.

Sadly, we gave each in turn back to the placement agency, with a sizable donation to help them continue their great work. In the end, the two doglets went to families that 1) had large property elsewhere in PA and 2) had other greyhounds (which I was told was the norm in terms of ownership--they had had very few positive placements in the city). Maybe you'll have better luck.

I really cared about those dogs, though, and I hope they are sprinting around and having a great time. Here's to you K's Sparky Homer and Primo Payday!
posted by Admiral Haddock at 3:14 PM on July 1 [2 favorites has favorites]

Yeah, we lucked out in that ours had no separation anxiety and she's a champ with stairs. She also loves the dog park, but that part took a lot of work: months of visits until something just clicked in her little brain and she started playing chase games with any dog who was willing.
posted by nev at 3:29 PM on July 1

This might be because NorCal dog owners can be weirdos, but there are always people at the meat counters ordering 2 pounds of organic chicken livers because their greyhounds just can't eat anything else (it's a rescue, you know!). I'm guessing this is mostly an Owner/Berkeley boomer issue but I'd maybe check into diet stuff just to be safe.
posted by small_ruminant at 3:37 PM on July 1

Oh yes, small_ruminant, that's a good point--special food. We fed our hounds I think only (or supplemented with?) a boiled chicken and rice dish. This is all a long time ago, and I can't remember if the vet or the placement folks told us to do this, and I can't remember why (I think they generally had upset stomachs and trouble with regular dog food (i.e., IAMs or Science Diet or something, not Alpo)). It wasn't terribly expensive or anything--just bought bulk chicken at the equivalent of Shaw's--but it was something of a hassle.

And riffing on something from above, yes, greys have thin delicate skin. One of ours sliced his leg pretty badly during one of his separation anxiety freakouts and needed to go to the emergency room. I was definitely more upset about it than he was (he was just happy I was home, the poor thing). But I didn't have a car, and I couldn't get a cab to take me and a bloody dog, so I ended up walking / carrying him the mile or so to the vet. He weighed about 70/80 pounds and my back has never been the same. Doc patched him right up, though and he was fine, thankfully.

Again, YMMV--but it all goes to show, it ain't necessarily easy.
posted by Admiral Haddock at 3:53 PM on July 1

Howie ate whatever I could afford, which for years was PetsMart's house brand, but early on I added yogurt for gas and canned pumpkin for fiber since he was coming off a track diet. That's what everyone else on the old greyhound-L mailing list did in the 90s, and I still use them when my current dogs have issues.

I don't know anything about having greys in apartments personally, I'm told tons of people do it, but I will say you need to expect that these dogs, built for sprinting, DO have energy and do need to burn it off, and a short stroll won't do it.
posted by Lyn Never at 4:04 PM on July 1

Greyhounds can be very lovely and very loving, but as everyone has said, it is not usual for them to bouncy and frolisome. They're mostly soulful and wry. (If Terriers annoy you, then greyhound charms are what you're looking for.)

The stairs thing is not just because they haven't learned - they are built differently. Greyhounds, especially giant males, need a little help with stairs, jumping up into cars, etc. etc. This is really really obvious if you, for instance, make a trip with a border collie and a greyhound.

They can also be cat and critter chasers - especially if their training methods involved being allowed to chase cats and critters.

If you take your dog to obedience school - and you should - be sure to work with a trainer who is sight-hound friendly.

Unless you are a serious runner, it might be helpful to train your dog to lunge. (Google fails me on training tips for dogs and it is not the same as with a horse!)

As far as their health goes, they've been bred to live 3 or 4 years at most - Greyhounds can only race for a short time. Then enter their first race with one rank, and that rank goes up or down depending on how they place. Once a dog has been a non-winner in enough races, the career ends. (And most often in a dumpster or worse.) As a breed, the racing greyhound has a lot of cancers and adult-onset problems. If you get the dog, try to find a vet who has some experience with the breed (I'm sure the rescue group can recommend) so that any troubles will be spotted early.

They're not the breed for me, but I have known and cared for some wonderful, wonderful greyhounds. Good luck!
posted by Lesser Shrew at 5:07 PM on July 1

Greyhounds live about as long as many similar breeds.
posted by nev at 5:30 PM on July 1

My cousin and her husband adopted a greyhound. It was a very sweet, gentle dog. It also thought it was a lap dog. It loved to cuddle with you on the couch...which it took-up most of, of course. Cooper is gone now, but well remembered.
posted by Thorzdad at 5:35 PM on July 1

The rescued greyhounds at my dog park vary in temperament quite a big - but a few have problems with the smaller, furry dogs. Maybe because they are used to going after the rabbits? Anyway, I like greyhounds alright (not my fav dog personality) and hold no ill will, but one did bite my dog and continue to chase him around. Might want to have a muzzle on for that first dog park trip just to be safe.
posted by quodlibet at 6:24 PM on July 1

we adopted our gray "Schuma" in Nov 2007 she used to race somewhere in florida. She was with her foster fam (they have 4 greyhounds) for about a week off the track and then she moved in with us. We are both 24. At the time, we were living in a rented condo near va beach. From the moment we got her she was very loveable, we mannered but definately aloof.

We had no problems with potty training, furniture destruction etc etc. The first month or so all she did was sleep all day. We would find her passed out on the landing between floors sleeping on her back (roaching) . We would take her on walks almost daily and every other week to a nearby dogpark in norfolk (at PETA).

After about 6 months her personality changed completely. She went from an aloof outsider to a member of the family. She was much more interactive with us always plays always runs around. Loves being itched etc etc. She gets along very well with other dogs and breeds. Although if a very small very dog shows up at the park, she doesn't always do well due to the whole rabbit thing.

Now we are living in ny renting a house that also doesn't have a backyard. She is in a crate home alone for about 10-11 hours daily and we try to take her to a park about 3 or so times a week. She has no problem at all with this schedule.

Greyhounds are hypoallergenic and have very short hair. I have bad allergies but no problem with the dog

She came pre-trained (sit stay, potty, etc) Very obedient dog, no need for training.

our dog does very well with stairs, carpeted or wood. No slips or falls.


Luckily we didnt have any issues with seperation anxiety.



We really want to adopt another but are waiting until we are in a house with a fence. Schuma has made a profound impact on both of our lives. She is an awesome doggy. I definitely recommend adopting one.

This forum GreyTalk, has tons of info on greyhounds, including adopting owning healthcare problems etc

http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php?act=home

check it out. we are on there as lovingschuma feel free to pm
posted by nuke3ae at 7:56 PM on July 1

oh yea Lesser Shrew isn't right about the age thing, ours is 4 right now, they normally live to about the same age as any other breed.

One of the good things is that greys have had most doggy diseases bred out of them which lends to a longer life and mostly succumb to diseases like lukemia and cancer. If I have a chance ill find and post the article.
posted by nuke3ae at 8:02 PM on July 1

As far as their health goes, they've been bred to live 3 or 4 years at most

Actually, greyhounds are extremely healthy for a large breed. They have a fairly long life - I'd guess 12 years on average, and I've known of some living amazingly long lives. Because they have been bred for a function rather than to look a certain way, they have virtually no hip displaysia, unlike many large breeds. They don't seem to have any predisposition to cancers or other major diseases.

Greyhounds genetically (not because of their "track diet" which is actually remarkably similar to the BARF/raw food diets that are all the rage these days) do have bad teeth, so be sure to budget for annual teeth cleanings. And the thin skin thing is true, I've had to rush her to the vet to get stitches for what would only have been a scrape on another breed. But really not a big deal overall.

And here you see one of the more annoying drawbacks (to me) of owning a greyhound - everyone's misconception of their life on the track and how you rescued them and oh you're such an angel and isn't it awful what they do to those dogs. I will not get into the politics too much, but I will say that having visited the track where my dog raced, seen them feed and care for the dogs, met my dog's particular trainer, and conversed with racing owners and trainers over the internet, there is a lot of misinformation out there about greyhound racing. There are good people and bad people in the industry, and good ways and bad ways to run and regulate greyhound racing, just like there are good and bad people and regulations in the show and pet industries.
posted by misskaz at 8:02 PM on July 1

Former grey owner (he stayed with my ex). He's now nearly 10, adopted at 3 after a very average racing career - we adopted him through the rescue in Mendon MA although he raced in NH.

I read as many forums, including GreyTalk, as I could. What I read did not really sink in until we brought our boy home - we did not get the 40mph couch potato with excellent leashwalking skills and an outgoing personality, and I think those are the minority in the retired racer pool. Instead, we got a timid dog on constant high alert, who is terrified of wind and outside, who is happy only on a very short leash so he can do the greyhound lean, who is good with his immediate circle of humans but is a 90-lb ball of wibble when he meets someone new. I miss him tremendously in my daily life, and I still love other people's greys, but it is unlikely I'll adopt another unless I have the opportunity to foster my potential adoptee for a month or so.

As misskaz says, be sure to budget for the teeth. Greys have CRAPPY teeth. You will also want martingale collars, which are harder to slip than normal ones for a dog whose neck is bigger around than his head. The forums on GreyTalk have a few people who make very nice ones, and I ended up buying ones to fit our border collie as well. Also, if your local dog park is not fenced, you will probably be barred by your adoption agreement from loosing the dog there even if everyone else is doing it - remember, the dog's a sighthound trained to chase small moving items, like squirrels or chihuahas.

Good luck. I do miss my boy.
posted by catlet at 8:32 PM on July 1

Nothing really to add here, except my envy of those living in places with Greyhound adoption organizations. A friend of mine in the States does fostering for National Greyhound Adoption Program, and I wish there was a similar organization here in Japan. I'd adopt in a second. But, since Japan doesn't do Greyhound racing, there's really no need for such an organization. And I'm not about to pay the thousands and thousands of bucks that folks here want for a pure breed. Good luck with your racer!
posted by snwod at 11:52 PM on July 1

I help out with a local greyhound adoption agency, and have three in my house right now, so altogether I've probably known about twenty or thirty individual dogs well. Although there are qualities that are intrinsic to the breed, there's a massive amount of variation between individuals - we have had retired racing greyhounds that hate being alone / are fine being alone / hate other dogs / chase other dogs / love other dogs / like playing fetch / can be let off their lead anywhere / will never be safe off their lead for the rest of their life / like to cuddle with cats etc. etc. There are exceptions to everything. Hopefully your adoption agency will know about the dogs, and will be able to find one that fits your lifestyle and that loves you. Having said that, things that we've found to be overwhelmingly consistent between dogs:

- they're affectionate and like to cuddle on the sofa
- they do bruise and cut easily - definitely get insurance
- they are pretty much all "aloof and passive" when they come from the kennel - they simply aren't use to personal attention, but most come to like it
- they like sunbathing

Look for an individual who "clicks" with you, and be prepared to accept any eccentricities. Mefi mail me if you have any other questions.
posted by primer_dimer at 2:57 AM on July 2

I recently adopted a greyhound from the GAP program in Australia.

She was never a racer, as she is a bit too small. At first she was very timid, but now is delighted to see us and comes over for a pat when we're on the couch.

She is taking to her training, but is a bit daft in general. Our other dog is a kelpie / staffy cross, and is pretty smart, and a lot more energetic. They play together pretty well, though I do tell them off if they get a bit aggressive.

If you do adopt a greyhound, get used to things being moved around the house. Ours likes to take things like shoes, socks, small cushions etc and relocate them.
posted by tomble at 6:06 AM on July 2

Everyone, thanks so much for the answers so far! A lot of good tips about glass doors, pet insurance (any suggestions where to start?), yogurt, teeth, and temperament.

A few clarifications and comments:

Our condo association is just two units, so we're quite sure there won't be any changes to the rules without our knowing.

We do both work, so we're hoping we can find a dog with minimal separation anxiety (even though we're able to do some schedule-rearranging and have a walker come in.) Depending, I could see us having two.

I run regularly, and both my wife and I are committed to ensuring the dog gets enough exercise. Our local dog park is fenced.

I'll admit, I've grown up with Labs, but know they'd be miserable in our current place (and our upstairs neighbor is particularly allergic to them apparently.) So I'll probably look for a greyhound on the goofy side (we met one while visiting a rescue) and I'm fine with a more mellow dog in general.

Thanks to everyone with the links and mefimail - I'll definitely be going into this with eyes open.
posted by canine epigram at 6:42 AM on July 2

I have two male greys, Hoover and Artemus, and they are as different as Felix and Oscar. Even after a year and a half, Hoover is still a little aloof, but definitely blossomed at the six month mark. Artemus came to us straight from the rescue kennels having never been in a home (we were his foster family), and was a goofball and completely confident from the first minute.

For a year, whenever I left home, they would wait outside for my return, which is kind of crazy when it's in Tucson and 100+ outside. This summer, finally, they have decided they can trust me to return even if they wait inside in the air conditioning. They have a doggy door so they can come and go as they please, but it sort of makes locking my door moot--the doggy door is about 2 feet high and 18 inches wide.

They let me know they would like a little petting by standing beside and just behind me and touching me ever-so-softly with their nose, or sometimes just breathing on me.

Vigorous ear-rubs are likely to produce moaning ear-gasms, and Hoover will do a slightly obscene butt-wiggling dance when patted on the rear.

If you have wood, laminate or tile floors you would be wise to put down rugs--when excited they will come down from the couch or bed at full speed. They can reach their top speed of 40-45 miles an hour in two strides.

Greyhounds are sprinters, trained to run all out for half a minute a few times a week, and might not be up for long runs.

Though one earlier commenter had a dog she trusted off-leash, I would recommend you never do it. Greyhounds don't have a sense of where they live, are unlikely to find their way home, and are very fearful when they realize they are lost. They are single-minded when chasing prey, will be totally oblivious to any cars, and will have completely tuned out to the sound of your voice.

It's true many have exceptional health--because of their large hearts and lungs and because many greyhounds have a blood type that is universal, they make great blood donors for emergency dog hospitals. You can often get free or reduced-cost care for your greyhound if he regularly donates. Many greyhounds come off the track with injuries, and all of them with scars. (Artemus runs like a mis-aligned car, seeming to come at you with his back end slightly off center from his front end, and seems to have a weakness in one of his rear ankles.) And while most live a long time, they often die of bone cancer. You must have a vet who understands greyhounds, as some types of anesthesia are fatal to them. Some greyhounds have thyroid disease, but many are misdiagnosed, as low thyroid is normal in greyhounds.
posted by QuakerMel at 8:16 PM on July 2 [2 favorites has favorites]

There's lots of good information and advice above this, so here's a few pretty random observations from my new experiences with my retired racer, who just came home just a couple of months ago and with whom I'm completely smitten.

In choosing a pup -- the rescue group did a phenomenal job of "matchmaking", though to be honest my pup was their second choice for me (I could have easily loved their first choice as well, and the third, and the fourth... but this one "listened" to me as soon as we met). At the rescue kennel, it was near impossible to get a good glimpse of the individual dogs' personalities, but I trusted the rescue's assessment and my instincts; my pup (term used loosely -- he is a 95-pound five-year-old) is a gentleman, sweet, very smart, and very responsive. He is very respectful of my indoor cats, but I cannot fully trust him with small dogs that are off leash outdoors (for this reason we don't go to the dog parks unless it's either only with other greys or when he can be the only dog there). He loves meeting new people, and has gotten much better at meeting other non-grey dogs; at first, he would literally hide behind me when another dog approached, now he's confident and friendly. I think it just took him time to realize they were actually dogs, since he'd never seen anything but other greyhounds.

I tend to think of greyhounds as introverts who show their real personalities once they're comfortable. We're only a short while into our transition to home life, but I can see my pup getting happier, more playful and more confident every day. I'm sure that you've read that they are sensitive dogs -- I'm seeing the truth of that, and am careful to not overwhelm my pup with heavy-handed corrections. He learns very quickly, and I make every effort to be encouraging, patient and consistent -- and praise him to the gills. He is quietly affectionate, gives kisses and loves rubs and scritches, but doesn't really cuddle yet. My pup has yet to get on the couch, though I encourage him to join me there just about every evening. Some things take more time...

It's obviously a huge help to get essentials ready before your pup comes home -- food, dishes, toys, crate, beds, ID etc. (If you'd like, I can MeMail you my actual shopping list, which I'm still adding to). One of the best investments I made early was two huge, extra cushy beds from Mammouth, one for the living room and one for the bedroom; he absolutely loves them, and easily learned to go to his bed when told. I would not allow a grey to sleep in my own bed, since they often easily sleep startle and besides, my bed is cat territory. Your grey should sleep in the same room as you do, though.

Stairs were only a challenge the first day he came home. After the initial conquest, we just had to learn to take them slowly and one at a time rather than in great leaps, which he does now with ease in this three-story home.

I use a harness for walks rather than a martingale for a couple reasons: the first is security, since he cannot slip it; second is that he's so large and so strong, even a wide collar could hurt his neck or trachea. He does walk very well on the leash. Indoors, he wears a tag collar with ID.

His favorite toys are oversize stuffies that have both sqeakers and grunters, and he will play tug-of-war and sort of fetch with them -- everything he fetches is brought back to his bed rather than to me even as he makes it clear that he wants me to toss it again. In fact, he brings even bite-size treats given in the kitchen to the bed to eat before he returns to get another. Peanut butter-filled Kongs are more for quiet crate time.

An odd point. I thought I had the house fairly well dog-proofed before bringing him home, but there's something I've never thought of or seen mentioned -- he went for the knobs for the gas stove burners and tried to turn them with his teeth. The second time he did it, I figured it wasn't a mistake, and the knobs are still off except when I'm cooking.

My pup was kennel-trained but not house-trained when he came home, but we quickly established a schedule of outdoor breaks and it worked. A daily routine is comfortable for these dogs; they've been on a strict schedule all their lives.

We don't have a yard to speak of, but live right next to two large parks with lots of walking trails, and that's where we head for exercise most of the time; always on-leash and not just because it's required by law here. I was cautioned by the rescue to be careful to not overdo exercise at the beginning, so we've worked our way up from short one-mile walks to being able to do four or five miles when we want. He's perfectly content if he goes on three 20-minute walks a day, though. He likes the company of other greyhounds, and has one special girlhound in the neighborhood we walk with often.

It's a huge transition from the track or rescue kennel to home life, and it's amazing to see how well these dogs adapt, given the fact that they've had nothing even approaching a "normal" dog's life until they're adopted. We had a follow-up visit from the rescue just two days after he came home, and she commented on how he seemed so happy and relaxed, it looked like he'd always lived here.

I am tremendously happy with my pup, and hope you will be with yours. If there's anything I can help with, please feel free to MeMail anytime.

Best wishes and congratulations!
posted by vers at 7:17 AM on July 3

I had no idea I'd written something so long. I really, really, really love my dog.
posted by vers at 7:21 AM on July 3

For anyone who sees this, we adopted a lovely greyhound and he's settling in nicely!
posted by canine epigram at 10:05 AM on September 24

Hooray -- congratulations!
posted by vers at 6:56 AM on September 27