Leashing Your Grey

[Guest Stripeyfan]

Always. I'm constantly working on Kelly's recall and he's pretty good, but I would never trust him 100% as he's very cat- and bird-keen. If we're going for an off-road walk we use a harness and a lunge line (10ft) so he can go off and sniff.

 

Edited for spelling!

Edited July 12, 2011 by Stripeyfan

[GeorgeofNE]

I'd have to dig out my adoption agreement, but I think my adoption agreement states that you are actually a co-owner with the rescue as the other owner.

Never heard of that and would never sign that agreement.

Technically though, unless you have a signed blue slip, wouldn't the legal owner still be the racing owner?

I seem to faintly remember this coming in useful in an adopter abuse/neglect situation quite a while ago.

 

I agree with this--

 

I signed the agreement that I wouldn't let him run loose, and I abide by that. However, I have a piece of paper designating me the owner of Greyhound 92a-15005, and I don't think the adoption agreement would stand up in court for five minutes. The owner of the dog, Driven Racing, Inc., signed over ownership to ME, not my adoption group.

 

In Mass., a dog is property under the law. Not sure how you "adopt" property.

 

That being said, the only thing in my adoption contract I didn't do was the group training class since he doesn't like dogs that aren't Greyhounds, and I trained my first dog when I was 10 years old and didn't feel I needed to pay some kid to tell me how to teach a dog how to heel!

[Guest lynne893]

Always within a fence, or on a leash. Some risks just aren't worth taking...

 

This is how I feel.

 

I don't have that yearning inside of me to "let the dog run free"-- I think they're happy and fulfilled leashed and walking beside me. I don't see a benefit to unleashing them. I can only think of downsides, and it's not worth the risk to me, at all.

[Hawthorn]

Attitudes to off-leading greyhounds are more relaxed in the UK, as in other european countries, and as far as I know (I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong) the view that no-one should ever off-lead their greyhound outside of a fenced area in any circumstance is peculiar to the US, as I believe are leash clauses. There seems to be more acceptance here that some greyhounds are suitable to be off-lead and some aren't. In fact, I can think of at least one adoption group that has a question on its application form that asks if you intend to have your greyhound off-lead and if you answer “yes” will match you with a suitable hound. That said, opinions and practices vary in the UK too, from those who would never off-lead their hounds in any circumstances, to those who off-lead in situations that would give me a heart attack, but I've never come across such extreme views here in the UK as some of those I've read on GT. My own view is that, whilst generally speaking I am not in favour of greyhounds being off-lead outside of fenced areas, each dog/owner/situation is different and there are exceptions.

 

The thing that would worry me about off-leading on trails (bearing in mind I have no idea what your trails are like) is: can you be sure what wildlife you might meet and how your dog will react? Where I live, for example, we could meet deer or hares on walks in open countryside, and because we don't ever meet these on our usual fenced walks, I couldn't be sure how mine would react, so I wouldn't risk it despite the fact that they have excellent recall.

 

As for recall training, you generally get out what you put in, assuming that you're a competent trainer. My observations tell me that most people don't recall train their dogs, or if they do, they do so half-heartedly or just train the first stage and don't go on to train the more advanced and most important stages.

 

People always bring up Amber Alerts in any thread about off-leading, as if to suggest that off-leading is a major cause of lost dogs, but last time I looked greyhounds lost whilst being intentionally off-lead amounted to 0.8% - the least common reason. You also have to consider the individual circumstances in this small number of cases, because a dog allowed to go from car to house unleashed, or a dog let out of the back door into an unfenced area and allowed to roam out of sight and unsupervised, can in no way be compared to a dog who is well-trained and taken to a quiet area away from traffic and other distractions/dangers and supervised by a vigilant owner.

 

Oh, and here's another quote from Jennifer of NeverSayNeverGreyhounds, taken from her blog dated 15 April 2010 entitled Off the Leash:

 

“As you know, if you have adopted a greyhound, that all the ex-racing greyhound adoption manuals, books, websites, FAQs, meet & greet attendees, screening & placement coordinators, the adoption contract, and dedicated greyhound adopters will tell you that you are never to unleash your greyhound in an unfenced area. "Get a Labrador Retriever if you want to take your dog off leash" they say. What do I think about this rule? At the risk of causing an uproar, I think it is silly. There are so many factors to consider.... the trainer, the dog, and the area, but not the breed.”

 

If anyone wants to read the full article, here's a link:

 

http://neversaynevergreyhounds.blogspot.com/2010/04/off-leash.html

[Guest BrindleBoy]

Nice post, Hawthorne. I couldn't agree more. The more I learn about dogs in general, and Greys in particular, "it's the individual dog/owner, not the breed" pretty much covers it.

 

I'll admit to being a rookie dog owner, and certainly wouldn't do anything foolish with regards to letting my Grey off-leash, however I think the "across-the-breed-'ban' on off-leashing" is silly. Just like with pit bulls- blame the dog, blame the owner/training, but don't blame the breed.

 

This has been a very interesting thread, and maybe someday, with my Grey becoming more & more a part of the family, and also with recall training, maybe...just maybe... someday I will feel comfortable letting him off-leash. A good friend has a Jack Russell (the most hyper/crazy dog I have ever seen), and thru training & trust, can be let off lead in certain situations... trail hiking being one of them.

[gazehund]

I wasn't going to bother with this subject yet again, but I don't have to now. Bravo Hawthorn, you

said everything I was going to say and Jennifer finished it in her article.

 

To the OP; yes, my hounds go off leash.

Yes, it can be done.

No I am not saying you should do it, I am saying it is possible.

 

My current dogs came directly from the track and their racing owner. No "contracts'" involved.

Just knowledge and trust between us that I would never put my dogs in any kind of bad situation. And that I will let them be dogs.

 

BrindleBoy; my dogs enjoy our off leash hikes and beach runs more than almost anything else in the world. I think food trumps hiking but that is it.

[Guest Levriero]

Since Europe has been called in the discussion I will bring my Italian experience! Leash is required by law, as well as you are required to have a muzzle with you in public places at all times (not on the dog, but with you and ready to put on the dog in case police or other officials ask you to). This is regardless of breed or size.

 

We did not sign any adoption contract because we have a national register of dogs. As soon as the property is transferred to you, they record the microchip number to you and you are the legal owner of the dog.

Nevertheless the adoption centre staff has always been very clear to the risks of a sight hound off-leash.

As for the leash thing, Patch is always on leash or off leash in fenced dog areas. I do this not only for the dog's safety, but also as a sign of respect towards people. I d not like when other people's dogs come to us sniffing and jumping around, and I believe that everyone (even who is afraid of dogs) has the right to have a peaceful walk without being approached by any dog, big or small.

[Guest verthib]

I wasn't going to bother with this subject yet again, but I don't have to now. Bravo Hawthorn, you

said everything I was going to say and Jennifer finished it in her article.

 

To the OP; yes, my hounds go off leash.

Yes, it can be done.

No I am not saying you should do it, I am saying it is possible.

 

My current dogs came directly from the track and their racing owner. No "contracts'" involved.

Just knowledge and trust between us that I would never put my dogs in any kind of bad situation. And that I will let them be dogs.

 

BrindleBoy; my dogs enjoy our off leash hikes and beach runs more than almost anything else in the world. I think food trumps hiking but that is it.

 

So if you're hiking and your dogs see a squirrel they want and they run and get lost, what would happen? That's scary to me. Not sure if you've been following the post about Blu a lost greyhound. She's been out for a month in the cold weather. I'd personally never put my dogs in that *potential* danger.

 

maidmarcia, I suggest you bow out of this thread right now. Asking about letting your greyhound off of a leash is the best way to get eaten alive here. I'm not kidding! having said that, please don't let your dog off the leash unless he's in a completely enclosed area. if something in the distance catches his eye, something that you can't even see, he's gone and nothing you can do will stop him.

 

Thank you!!

 

Gunda was off leash on almost every walk (4 or 5 times a day). We let Spriet off leash also, but not as much. Now she doesn't get off leash anymore (we don't want to let her run), due to an accident a few years ago (broken heel).

We got both Spriet and Gunda when they were 8 weeks old, so we trained them as soon as they came here.

 

Training has nothing to do with it unfortunately.

[AnneGTS]

Gunda was off leash on almost every walk (4 or 5 times a day). We let Spriet off leash also, but not as much. Now she doesn't get off leash anymore (we don't want to let her run), due to an accident a few years ago (broken heel).

We got both Spriet and Gunda when they were 8 weeks old, so we trained them as soon as they came here.

 

Training has nothing to do with it unfortunately.

 

Of course it's not all about training. I'm just saying it took us a lot of training to teach Spriet to go off leash. I'm talking about my own dogs, I'm not judging someone else.