Hi everyone!
A few months ago, I adopted a retired racing Greyhound 1.6 years old from Ireland to the deep north of Sweden. He is a wonderful boy and I love him to bits but I have questions about some of his behaviours.
At night when it's dark outside, he will look up really intensely and bark and growl at the stars or at moving clouds when they're visible. I've never seen a dog do this before! 😅 It doesn't really bother me, I'm mainly curious as to why he's doing this. 🙂 He doesn't look playful as he does it, it looks like he's annoyed by them and never behaves this way in daytime.
Then onto my second question. Is it common that ex-racing Greys aren't playful? I can get him to fetch and he enjoys that, but he doesn't play with toys, my child or even my other dog who's the same age as him. We've tried so many different ways and my other dog invites him to play on a daily basis but he's just not interested.
Number three - He is very possessive and guards resources. He also growls if anyone but me walks near him when he's resting which is understandable, so I mention it just for context. How do I best get him to tone this down a bit? Even when he has his own, he will steal the other dog's treats, bones or food if I'm not watching closely, and then he will growl if the other dog tries to take it back or reclaim his bowl.
Lastly - My other dog has a small amount of separation anxiety but my Greyhound is way worse. I understand it's most likely heightened because he has moved from far away into a very different way of life with new people and has chosen me to be his safety-person. However, I don't want to encourage this behaviour so that it sticks and I'm wondering how I should approach this "issue".
If I leave the room he's right on my heel. Even if he's in a deep sleep in the middle of the night and I sneak away to use the bathroom, he will fly up and run after me. If I shut the door to the bathroom, he will whine and cry. The one time I had to leave him alone to go to the doctor's (my partner was at work) I came home to the bedroom curtains on the floor and ripped in half. He had also chewed the bedroom door handle(wooden) and the mosquito nets.
Additional info: We live in the countryside, with fields and woods all over so he gets to run free at least two times a day. We spend a lot of time outside, he also gets 3 walks a day. He digs in the fields, gets to chase balls and frisbees, and I'm trying to teach him some basic tricks since he doesn't know anything.
He did not come from a shelter or a rescue, I adopted Skott from his breeder because he suffered a leg-injury during a race. It has since healed but he cannot race anymore and therefore he needed a new home. I don't know much of his history or how the dogs are treated at the breeder's, but I'm told they have okay lives over there.
I appreciate all the help I can get! I'm not new to the breed but I'm definitely new to an ex-racing dog. Sorry for the wall of text and for bad English. Thanks in advance! 🌷
