HazeyJ

Hi everyone. A big thank you for all of the kindness and understanding you've shown me. I ended up returning Jack. To the credit of the rescue, they were incredibly understanding and made no argument about it at all. It all happened very quickly and a new set of foster parents picked him up the same evening. I was a snivelling snotty mess and felt just awful handing him over. He was quite happy to jump straight into their car! They had just fostered two other greyhounds and their first statement was 'wow, he really is massive'. They've kept in touch with me and they might just be trying to make me feel better, but the foster mum has said that she's an experienced dog handler and even she can see that he's difficult to stand up to. I think I'd like to try again some time, but need to lick my wounds and understand how I could have handled various situations better.

Hey there. I understand what you're saying and the thought was very much in my mind. I had read a lot on positive reinforcement training and about trading up and treating dogs for good behaviours. It was always my intention to be the leader and I very much tried to do that through hand feeding him, doing obedience training every day, making him wait at doors for me to go through first etc. The very first time he snarled at me, and I think you commented when I posted about it, he jumped up onto my chest and scratched me. He's about my height when he jumps up and I was very clear in my mind that I didn't want that to happen again. Unfortunately that meant I lost some confidence addressing him and asking for behaviours. I completely agree that in the right home with a more confidence and secure owner, he'll absolutely thrive. He's a cuddle bug and loves a belly rub and is a lovely dog in so many respects. I like to think in my message I wasn't demonizing Jack. I know it's not his fault and I accept responsibility for allowing things to get to where they go to.

Hi all, thanks so much for your comments. He is my first dog yes. So I know I don't come with a breadth of experience with this. It's really interesting to hear about someone getting through it and having a lovely dog on the other side. My concern is that Jack knows instinctively that he has the upper hand and the air between us just doesn't feel right. I don't think that's his fault at all, I think it's my fear getting in the way and that's not something I can get on top of. I went through a hard time earlier this year with my ex-partner who made me feel a bit afraid (sorry if that's TMI) and I think that Jack has made me feel afraid and it's brought something out in me that means I'm exacerbating it. As I say, that's my problem not his, but that doesn't mean it's all going to be okay. Jack's routine is fairly simple, I'm repainting the flat which is a wee bit disruptive but he's in his crate a lot, gets lots of kongs and stimulating things, and we do very familiar walks. I work on obedience every day but I can see he's not thrilled by it. I called the adoption centre yesterday to chat and then immediately after took him for a walk with a local greyhound owner. It was overwhelming to watch his dog walking like an angel on a lead (and always has done) and Jack was intent on dragging me around here there and everywhere. For reference, he's about 37kg and I'm 5'2 and weigh about 56kg, so it just didn't feel good. I think the lead pulling was something I felt we could work on as he was such a cuddle bug inside the house, but now I'm so nervous in the house with him. I think I'm going to return him. I'm devastated about it as I really thought I'd be his forever home. I've got giant bags of treats and the world's most luxurious bed and I was so excited to have him, but i just think I've freaked myself out and I have to be kind to myself and say this isn't working.

Hey everyone. Feeling more than a bit stressed about my rescue grey Jack. I've had him for about 9 weeks and I KNOW that's a short length of time, but a few things have come up that make me quite uncomfortable. Firstly, when I got Jack I commented to the rescue that he was absolutely huge (definitely top percentile of greys) and that this was a bit of a concern for me. The idea was that he was a such a sweet and shy boy that his size shouldn't be a problem. He was very pully on the lead and still is (I harness him) and that's helped manage it but every walk is quite the workout. The main issue is his behaviour. Last week he sprinted to the kitchen to steal something from a bin. I imagine you'll say he's resource guarding but strangely enough I was able to pet him while he was eating his loot. When I went to get a high value treat to trade up he wouldn't give me his attention. I didn't come near him but it seemed the act of me getting his attention (saying his name is a high pitched tone, not shouting) pissed him off and he actually ran over to me to growl and try and bite me. We've had a few other instances where he's come right into my space to snarl or growl. It is usually related to food but I never try to take it directly off him and he has no stress if I'm around his food bowl. This morning I took him out to the toilet and then fed him and let him up on the bed, at this point he usually has a wee cuddle with me. Sometimes he's a bit playful rolling around for belly rubs but today he was crouched on the bed and staring at me quite intensely, I thought he wanted to play so I did some playful movements away from him (thought he might break into zoomies) but he stayed very still and stared. I felt uncomfortable so I left the room and he was barking at me from the other side of the door. Just didn't feel right to me. I really love him and want to make this work. But I'm also very aware that I'm a young woman trying to look after him solo and at this point I'm quite scared of him. I can't sleep for anxiety as every day it just feels like it's getting worse. I've put a real effort into basic training so I give him a lot of rewards and love. It just doesn't feel right to be scared of my own dog.

I'm posting a lot here as my hound is so new and I'm a first timer! Jack will walk beautifully on the lead a lot of the time, which is great. He's most comfortable in the morning and likes to go to the park and is as good as gold next to me. However, sometimes when we're out walking he pulls really hard. At first I thought I needed to train it out of him, and I was trying the 'stand still and make them come back to you' trick. However, I've realised over the last few days that he's not pulling because he's confident and wants to sniff things, he's pulling because he's scared and he wants to go home. I've only had him for 8 days so I feel that I should listen when he's had enough and wants to go home. He's not going to absorb any training when he's really scared, right? When he tugs his tail is generally between his legs and he loses interest even in fresh chicken pieces. His foster dad said he pulled at first and then when he was comfortable he walked much better. I guess I'm nervous because I don't want to reinforce 'bad' behaviours. What do you think - shall I let him drag me home (I try not to be dragged too much) when he's nervous so he can settle in at his own pace?

Hi Racindog, Thanks for your comment, although I admit it made me very nervous! I've thought about it but I think Jack really acts out of fear more than dominance. He's a nervous boy and this is his reaction to being overwhelmed. He responds to training quite well even though it's only been a week and in general I think he respects me. In this specific instance, I think I was in his space and I was trying to be firm but it probably came out quite frustrated. I think I just agitated him and then when I leaned over him he couldn't handle it. I will keep an eye on it.

Thanks everyone! I thought I'd test out the 'ignore until it's time for me to wake up' thing - might take a few weeks but he will eventually get the picture that his whining will do nothing to get me up! He's a really bouncy boy in the morning too and I've found that even if I take him out, when I bring him back in he's really playful and won't settle down. I have apologised to all of my poor neighbours for what's coming! I'll check back here to let you know how it goes. Can't wait to feel human again and actually get a full night of sleep.

Hey everyone. Don't think I'm really looking for advice as I know what I did wrong - would love to hear that I'm not the only stupid new greyhound owner in the world! I know all about positive reinforcement and have been working really hard on doing that with Jack. Today Jack was trying to lick up the open dishwasher door. I gave a firm no and moved his head gently away. He kept going back so I kept saying no. Looking back I obviously should have got a treat and lured him away with it, but I just wasn't thinking and kept saying no. He gave me a little growl and then when I said no again he turned around and jumped up on me, he barked in my face and did a big growl. I don't think he tried to bite me (a small positive). but his claws jumping up have given me a big scratch on my tummy. He snarled a lot and then we just looked at each other for a second and then he got down and was back to his gentle lovely self. I feel so stupid. He gave me a warning growl and I didn't take it seriously enough. Lesson obviously learned to remember positive reinforcement training and not get into his space. Has anyone had anything similar with their newly adopted grey? I love him so much but I am so aware that not only did I get a greyhound, but I got a massive one! (37 kilos and oh so tall!). Will he hold it against me? Will he trust me less now or is it an in-the-moment thing for them? Is there anything I should do?

I know it's common behaviour for greys to be a bit whiny or barky in the morning. However, my new boy is 35kg and he will jump onto me and bark right in my face. He sleeps mostly on a bed in my room and then comes onto my bed to sleep at about 3am. He gets restless about 5ish, then starts whining and then moves onto barking. I know I need to ignore the behaviour so that he learns not to do it, but I'm wondering if it will work if I put him out into the hall when he starts barking? That way I can easily ignore him and he might get the picture? I physically can't ignore it if he's on top of my in my face, but I've also heard that reacting at all is negative, so will it work against me if I shut him into the hall?? He's still new so I want him to feel safe and sleep in the room with me....just for a little bit longer each morning preferably! Help!

I got my new boy Jack very recently. At first he just didn't acknowledge dogs at all. Now he has more confidence and he REALLY wants to say hi. He's friendly and not aggressive, just has a nice sniff, but the problem is that it's not a great behaviour. He's friendly, but that doesn't mean every other dog he meets will be. He is so big that even if I have his harness on and hold his leash really close, he can still overpower me to run to another dog. What's the best way to train this out? He's not that into treats when we're walking outside - and because he's friendly I don't want him to think having a sniff is bad, just the part where he legs it to them with no manners! Any advice welcome!

Hey! I adopted a greyhound last week and I've never had a dog before, much less a greyhound! I feel very nervous about getting things wrong and right. Yesterday he was a charming thing that slept all day and didn't make a peep. Today he got up promptly at 7am to pee in my plant pot and has been restless and frustrated all day. He snapped at me a few times (I don't think it was aggressive though) and whined and even barked at me! No idea why, we'd been out plenty of times, he had water and was fed not that long ago. I also give him a LOT of cuddles and attention. He wakes up very early in the morning. When he whines I try to ignore it but I'm hoping not to have too many more pee accidents first thing. I've started feeding him some raw food and he loves it but he also seems totally ravenous after a few hours. When he barked I gave him a half cup of kibble and that calmed him down, but I know I'm not supposed to let him train me into getting what he wants! That being said, he won't empty his kong when I give it to him so he can't be THAT hungry? I love him to bits and I'm very excited to have a greyhound, but I just feel like I must not be getting it right.