Search the Community

Hey guys! I was hoping you could give me some advice, as I’ve adopted my first spanish greyhound! She has been with us for about a week and I'm not sure if I'm giving her enough stimulation or too much stimulation! At the moment our routine is as follows I wake up at around 08.30, have a coffee and wake her up (at the moment she sleeps in our conservatory,) since my partner does not like having her in the house! At around 09:00 take her for a 1-2 hour walk we have to walk around quite a bit until she finally has a wee! (Which at the moment she is only doing once a day) then come back home at around 11/12 she has her lunch breakfast half an hour after we arrive! she then just sleeps most of the afternoon I start work at around 15.00 but I work from home so I try to keep an eye out on her! I try to give her a snack by around 18.00 this normally comes in the shape of a kong! then finally depending on when my work finishes I take her for a long night walk usually around an hour! At the moment we've slowly started going to the dog park as sometimes she gets a bit fearful of other dogs! If we go into the dog park and there's a few dogs there she will run around with them until she pretty much exhausts herself 😂 we then come back home I give her, her dinner at around 9 and depending on how settled she is I don't really take her out again. Should I try to take her out more often? I've been told by other galgo owners that they (the galgos) get really bored on their walks and that I should just try to make her run more often! (But since she is a rescue and pretty recently adopted I do not feel comfortable releasing her!) Many thanks in advance for your advice.

Hello. I recently rescued a retired racer down here in Florida named Polly. She has been a little skittish but nothing that I felt was unusual for a retired racer. That is, until this last weekend when we had a large storm pass through. Although she seemed fine with the thunder, the sound of the wind rustling the palms seriously alarmed her. Unfortunately, when I took her out for a walk that evening, a palm frond fell out of a tree and landed near us, putting her into full panic mode and she yanked and nearly choked herself trying to get home. Now she's extremely reticent to go out the front door and continually pulls on the lead to get back in. I've been feeding her on my back patio so that she can hear the wind and palms and she seems fairly calm back there (even laying down on her dog bed), but no noticeable improvement on getting her out the door. Since I live in a condo, I have to take her out to do her business, but I'm afraid that forcing her to go out is only making matters worse. Any suggestions?

Hello! My name is Lae, living in the Saint Paul area of Minnesota! My boyfriend and I adopted Big Mike from GPA Minnesota about a month ago. I just wanted to introduce ourselves and let you know that I already lurked a little and felt a lot more at ease about some of his behavior (especially being suddenly afraid of being outside sometimes) I hope to learn more and maybe connect with some of you in my area 🥰😊

Long time reader, but this is my first post. Grateful to have such a robust and knowledgeable Greyhound community to follow and learn from. GT has helped us through many questions. Such as cuts, scrapes, our recent dental - and will he ever stop staring at my food plate (um noooooooo!) Raj has been with me for 6 years (hes almost 8 & on the big side of greys) and is my first retired racer. Ive spent the last 6 years falling in LOVE with Raj and the breed. Hes such a sweet angel and such a good boy. Just maybe a teencey bit spoiled. ;-) Once I figure out how to post pics, Ill add some of him of course!

Hi All! I’ve been lurking here for some time and finally decided to post. I have wanted to bring a greyhound into my home for about a year but just not sure and would love opinions. I’ve read a ton of “about greyhounds” sections in various adoption agency sites, and I’m about 1/2 through “Greyhounds for Dummies”. I would be a first time dog owner. I haven't heard back from the couple of applications I sent in this week, but hope to discuss this with agencies eventually. But I’m a little worried that in an effort to be polite, they won’t straight up tell me “Girl, what are you thinking? No Greyhound for you!” So I would really like some honest opinions and thoughts about whether based on your experience, you think my lifestyle and expectations are reasonable to bring a greyhound home. Please don’t worry about hurting my feelings, blunt honesty is completely fine! Plus, ya’ll seem like nice people anyways. Yes, I’ve read a lot of the other “thinking about adopting” and “just adopted, did I make a mistake” posts. And also just reading posts about behaviour/training questions gives me a lot of insight. But thought I would put my own situation out there. What do you think? Work situation: · I work full-time M-F and my workdays can be long, but there’s some flexibility as to when I’m actually in the office · Mornings, I leave my house anywhere from 8am – 10am and I’m home anywhere from 4-7pm. · When very busy, I’ll usually leave and work late into the night at home as opposed to having to be in the office late, so I could be at home with Dog in the evenings. · Can work at home 1-2 days a week. On the other days I would pay for a walker to take Dog out mid-day. Coming by at lunch myself is not an option (too far). · Work requires travel, usually 3 days but can be 4. Every 4-5 weeks tops. Sometimes less (have only travelled for work twice since January, so just depends). I assume I wld board Dog while I’m traveling. Having someone just come by to check on her doesn’t seem adequate. Lifestyle/the rest of the stuff: · Single, late 30’s, no children. · 1BR Condo, about 625sqFt. Dogs allowed in the bldg. · Never any type of “parties” or loudness at home. · Weekends usually consist of errands, working out, and visits to a coffee shop or restaurant to read and people watch. Lots of outside places, so I would love to be able to take Dog once I can assess how comfortable she is. · I don’t do the “nightlife” thing anymore so lots of weekend time with Dog. · Live in WashDC area, so fairly urban environment but nothing on par with say NYC. Tons of trails, walking paths, parks near home. Lots of people and dogs out walking/jogging/etc, esp in nice weather, but enough space to maneuver if Dog is shy at first. I hate crowds myself so I know what places and times to avoid. But if Dog is more social, there would be plenty of opportunities to meet other dogs. · There are dog parks in my ‘hood but I see that’s a bit controversial? I would assume I wldn’t be visiting dog parks at first, unless it’s really early in the AM when no one is there. Expectations/Concerns: · I want a friend to basically just hang with. While I’m somewhat active, I’m more of a leisurely walk/slow trail hike type of person. And then a sitting on the couch type person. This is partly why a greyhound first started to appeal to me. I love the other larger breeds, but most are just too high energy for me. · Little worried about aggression as a first time dog owner. I have read Grey’s can nip or bite if they get excited? Those aren’t small teeth so that would scare the hell out of me. I am not sure if this is something that can recognized on a dog by dog basis by the rescue organization. · Also a little concerned that I won’t be taking Dog out somewhere to “run free” on a weekly basis, much less daily. There might be some Grey appropriate closed-in areas within driving distance, but it won’t be regular thing. I don't have a yard obviously so Dog will ALWAYS be on leash. · Live on the 8th floor so every walk will involve walking down the narrowish hallway where people and even dogs might be close by suddenly (currently only 1 dog on my floor but obvs this could change and there are others in the bldg.). And taking the elevator every time. Will Dog hate that?? Ugh, that got too long. If you made it this far, I congratulate you. Any thoughts or ideas are immensely appreciated. In the meantime, I will lurk here and look at pics of all of your adorable guys and girls. Thanks much.

Hi everyone After many months of mooning after the idea of having a dog, I finally feel ready and the fiance is open to the idea. But. We have a 1.5 year old son. I decided on a greyhound after a ton of research, and falling in love with their general personalities. Couch potato! Goofy antics! Smiling and rooing! Lazy but loving! I've been lurking on here for a few weeks, and even have an application sent in to an adoption agency. My slight worry is though, I've come across quite a few posts on here about various aggressions. Food, bed space, etc. I plan on keeping the dog and my son separated and supervised, of course, but I'm just looking for some success stories I suppose, or even pointers for what to look for in that first home visit to make sure we choose the right pooch and set ourselves up for success. Also, my son takes zero interest in dogs. At most he'll look at them in interest for a few seconds, point and babble a little, but never any touching, pouncing, or hitting. Usually he straight ignores animals, even when they are trying to lick his face. He's a weird one.

Greetings from Southern Nevada! I've been lurking on the site for a while now in preparation for adopting a grey, and I figured I'd sign up and say a huge THANK YOU to all who contribute on this board, especially those with plenty of experience with retired racing greys. I had so many questions and had stumbled upon this site and have learned a lot. My significant other and I have been wanting to rescue for a years now. The new guy will be our first dog "together" and my first dog as a "grown-up." The past two weeks have been a little hectic because, of course, I'm frantically attempting to be as prepared as possible. Between ordering dog food to beds to toothpaste to reading books, it feels like I've been preparing for forever when in reality...it is all happening so fast! The placement rep of our adoption agency contacted my boyfriend last night and informed us our application was approved by the board. Just a day earlier she and another member of the rescue group did a home check, brought over our potential greyhound, and talked to us for well over an hour. Anyways, I had been a nervous, anxious wreck all day, and now the excitement is starting to hit and I can't even sleep. I'll be thinking about "my" grey all day at work up until we go pick him up later. Okay, done rambling, sorry. Again, hello...and I welcome any and all advice on these wonderful dogs. Thanks again!

Hi. I'm Adelaide. I have a four-year-old ex-racer named Dante. His racing name was Brooklyn Born and he is from Daytona Beach! I just adopted Dante on May 13, and he is my first greyhound, so I have lots of questions. I'm new to the forum and wanted to introduce myself. I'll be posting a lot! -Adelaide and Dante

Hi! I'm Adelaide, and I'm new here. I have a greyhound named Dante. He is four and he is my first greyhound. I adopted him on May 13, so we're still getting used to each other. One particular problem I seem to have is to get him to come when he's called. He does it sometimes... so I know he understands that he should come, but sometimes... he just doesn't. I've looked online for training methods for other dogs, but does anyone have specific greyhound-oriented training for this, or suggestions? Thanks! (This is him, by the way!)

Hi, there! Just stumbled across this forum while looking for information on my new grey's tummy issue (Blackheads, yuck!) and decided sign up. Please allow me to introduce Be Me (we call him Arrow now). He is 28 inches tall at the shoulder and he weighs 80.5lbs. He was born July 25, 2008 and was placed at Steel City Greyhounds in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in July of 2013. Arrow was adopted by another family for approximately 3 weeks before being returned to SCG's care because, "He's too hard to handle." I came across Arrow's photo in mid-September while looking for a dog to rescue and still debating whether I wanted to adopt a greyhound or adopt from the local Animal Rescue League. I also researched a few other greyhound rescues and finally decided to fill out an adoption application for SCG. (One rescue wanted around 10 references including the neighbors on either side of us - we just moved here, don't know our neighbors and for the most part don't care too: one's anit-social, the other is a house full of former frat guys with no manners and the rest keep to themselves, BUT that doesn't mean WE aren't responsible dog owners - skipped that rescue.) Three weeks later, I got a phone call from Chuck, the VP of Steel City Greyhounds. SCG houses their hounds in a Doggy Resort/Day Care (that donates kennel space) because they believe that it's less stressful on them than using a fostering program. The kennel was kind enough to allow us to come in a meet a few dogs and my husband and I fell in love with Arrow. A week later, we brought our new, furry bundle of joy to his new, forever home. That was one week and 5 days ago and it feels like Arrow has been a part of our family from the start. We had the typical incidents; a couple accidents on the floor in the first 24 hours, a little bit of growling as he found his place in our, "pack," (and learned that he can't claim the couch), and a bit of anxiety over stairs and our slippery hard-wood floors upstairs, but after we got through that, well, we couldn't ask for a better dog. I couldn't ask for a better companion. (He conquered the floors and the stairs all by himself - coaxing, nudging, bribing; all failed that day and we HAD to start our day so we went down stairs without him - and he has been racing up and down the stairs and across the wood floors like a champ since!) He's so brave, in the truest sense of the word. Arrow is so smart he simply blows me away. He's gentle and quiet yet exuberant and playful. He seems to have boundless energy but he's just as happy to fall asleep on one of his beds while I do things around the house. He really is a velcro dog too, if I leave a room, he follows and will plant himself anywhere soft (or at least flat) until I move again. Arrow is amazingly tolerant too; I can clean his feet, treat his blackheads, brush his teeth, and he even let me clean and bandage a wound I found on his back foot on day three with us. Meeting his new vet was awesome; he is such a lover and so curious, he did really well at the vet, greated everyone and took everything in stride...even having his temperature taken! LOL Walks are fairly easy though he loves to GO! That said, he has a little trouble remembering to walk slow enough to stay beside me but generally, I have no trouble with him and he'll walk on a loose leash. He doesn't bark at people or other dogs and as long as I'm confident, he follows my lead willingly past loud city buses, noisy construction and even aggressive dogs on the other sides of fences. He recently got a new coat, tummy warmer and boots and he was a total trooper getting used to the boots in the house! He went for his evening walk in the entire ensemble tonight and other than enjoying warm toes, it was no different than walks without the get-up. He's SUCH a good dog. Truly amazing. It's hard for us to believe that he was "too much," for anyone. Though, I'm just glad we were lucky enough to be able to bring him into our lives. Part of the reason we adopted a dog was company for me (Arrow is great company too) and partly because of my health issues. I have chronic pain; fibromyalgia, endometriosis and the doctor's still aren't sure there isn't something auto-immune going on but all the tests have come back normal. Still waiting on a new rheumatologist who can't see me until March! My primary doctor wants me to walk daily but with the anxiety caused by being utterly incapacitated and in moderate to severe pain all the time, it's been nearly impossible to do alone. Walking my mother-in-law's little 15lb rescue dog was company enough to ease the anxiety so we decided a dog would be helpful for me. Arrow has been wonderful to have around. I'm in a lot more pain from two, 40 minute walks a day, and several potty breaks, but over all, I feel SO much better. Happier. More like myself again. A little extra rest and a little help from my husband and I'll be able to manage the walks without any trouble in no time. I used to be in sports as a kid and have always been athletic and active so I know this pain will ease as I rebuild some stamina. Besides, my boy needs me and he never lets me down. He's always there with wet nose-bumps, face licks, and head-butt-hugs. Having an animal depending on me like this is helping me physically, mentally and emotionally for so many reasons. I also used to be a total work-a-holic before the health problems took away my ability to work. (My husband can walk Arrow if I'm having a really bad pain day, he can't however, go to work for me and employers don't much like it when their employees can't come in on time or even at all because of chronic illness.) Having Arrow to care for has given me a sense of accomplishing something more important than just cleaning the kitchen. I feel less useless and pointless now. (My hubby is my biggest supporter but he's not a magician and all the support in the world doesn't replace the sense of accomplishment that working brings and I've never been interested in the "homemaker," role my health has forced me into.) Any way, that's our little family. We gave Arrow a loving home and Arrow filled a hole in our hearts we didn't know needed filling. He's helping me get my life back and hopefully, long walks, good food, warm beds, loving "parents," and plenty of belly rubs are adequate for him in return.

Hi all I am reaching out for some help on deciding a good weight for Coco. Her racing weight was 64, her weight at the time of spay (done by adoption group) was 67, her weight with hook worms was 61, and her weight today is 70. How do I know what weight is right? Coco had a bad case of hookworms shortly after her gotcha date, and it took weeks to get resolved in that time she dropped to 61. After a lot of rounds of Panacur, she started gaining weight and is now at 70 pounds. I am concerned that it may have been too much of a good thing and that she needs to lose a couple or more pounds ( I also live in a 3rd floor walk up so I am mindful of the strain on her joints). but she sort of looks like she is at her pre-adoption weight. Thoughts? THANK YOU FOR YOUR GUIDANCE!!! Below are some pictures of Coco at different stages. Adoption group pre-gotcha picture After Gotcha day with hookworms Today

Hello! My name is Chris, I'm a 42yo single male and I live in the Greater Tampa Bay Area here in Florida. I've never had a dog and I recently decided that I would like to have one. After doing much research, a rescued Greyhound is at the top of the list. Here are some of my desires and circumstances: I live alone and work 8-5, M-F but I only live 1/2 mile from work and I come home for lunch. I live in a 1 bedroom apartment with a Den I enjoy running and walking outside. My dog would get lots of daily exercise. I would like my dog to be able to run with me for at least a few miles, several miles would be awesome. How far do you think a Greyhound could run at a moderate pace? I'm no Olympian Say, 10:00 to 11:00 minute miles. What about dirt trails? I'm goal and detailed oriented, but I'm a calm, laid back dude overall. Have had lots of cats, fish, gerbils, hamsters and birds...but no dogs before. Will not let the dog on my bed or furniture. Will provide them with their own Time to head for work, will post more later if I think of anything else to add to the list. Any thoughts? Thanks! (EDIT: I think I've been doing online dating for too long, lol. Sounds a lot like an online dating profile )