I Thought I Was Getting A Lab...meet Isaac

[Guest Isaac]

I did not know he was a greyhound mix until I saw him move and asked a local rescue to come look. Based on behavior and some of his looks he might be greyhound. I know he is because I see him run and chase. He is a sight hound. I have had others check him out. The only decenting opinion was maybe hes a whippet. Either way I have a sight hound mix and don't know what to do.

 

Here it is:

 

During a hurricane I saw a black dog chasing a man on a bike who was kicking him and trying to drag him. I pulled over and intervened and got the dog in my truck. It wasn't until I got him home and sedated him, that I realized he had third degree burns down his back. It was either acid or a taser (vet). Long story short I ended up with a greyhound/lab. Nobody wants him. I have fostered him for months. I have come to find out through his form and behavior he is a greyhound mix with a very very very strong chase instinct.

 

I have so many questions. I am a duck hunter with rescues labs. I am not a greyhound person. Until now.

 

First of all, his chase instinct is most strong in my truck. He attacks oncoming vehicles with enthusiasm only an Olympian could appreciate. He got away from me once in the yard and chased a semi down the highway and got the tire. He lived. I do have a place I bring him everyday where he can run off leash. But at times I have no control.

 

Second, he is difficult to house train.

 

Third, hes very vocal to the point of irritating and scaring people.

 

The list goes on. But I wanted to introduce myself and see if anybody here has ever met a feral or street greyhound. here are some details:

 

Black with some white on chest and toes and tip of tail.

found in New Orleans during a hurricane

40 pounds at the most.

Rail thin, even with weight.

Recovered from intentional burns/torture.

1 year old

Sponsored by Humane Society and made TV

Never been on leash until 8-30-12

Strong chase instinct

One perky ear one that flops despite his efforts

Longest nose

Runs, like a gazelle

 

 

Left

 

Left:

 

When I found him after he received emergency medical treatment (the back was shaved to reveal a burn to the spine):

 

Healed:

 

In a bar in New Orleans:

 

Dirty:

 

 

Left:

 

 

I would appreciate any advice on how to begin to deal with a feral sight hound, forums, local expert (southeastern louisiana), etc.

 

Thank You for your attention...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[silverfish]

Wow, poor, poor dog! And lucky too, that you found him, picked him up, took him on and healed him!

 

He's a mix. His muzzle is too broad at the front and his tail a bit too fluffy to be 100% greyhound, IMHO. He looks like a nice natured dog though!

 

You do have your hands full, especially since you're inexperienced with sighthounds. We took on a greyhound (possibly not 100% but really, hardly anything else because he looked ALL greyhound) who had belonged to Travellers (gypsies). He wasn't quite feral, but he hadn't seen the inside of a house, or known much discipline. He had a really strong prey drive, too, but only ever chased wild animals, luckily for me. He was afraid of cats, too, so even though he'd chase them, if they turned and looked at him, he backed off. I do not envy you trying to deal with a vehicle fixation - that's dangerous.

 

Your best bet would certainly be to find a local group, or even a behaviourist/trainer, but try to find one who is experienced with sighthounds. As you've noted, they're a bit different to other groups of dog. However, you can take a look around the Training & Behaviour forum and use the search box to find similar problems - other people will have some insights on where to start with him.

 

You will, I'm afraid, have to learn to manage him so he doesn't escape. If he's getting out of an opened door, you might find babygates useful to confine him in an area where he can't reach the door. You may have to use two (one on top of the other) if he's a jumper. Make sure your fences are high enough to contain him, and keep your gates locked - or at least bolted from the inside so other people can't accidentally let him out. If you're travelling with your dogs in an open truck, you can't let him ride in the back if he's going to jump out to chase things. Have him in the cab, or at least get a crate you can have in the back so he can't jump out. You may have to secure the crate. Determined dogs can move them around and you don't want him falling off the back still in the crate!

 

By the way, just as a FYI. It is NOT recommended to let sighthounds ride in the back of open trucks. This is for two reasons: one, they can jump out to chase things, but two, they usually have thin skin and thin, non-waterproof coats, so they suffer really badly in both heat and cold/wet.

 

Good luck!

[DocsDoctor]

Thank you for rescuing Isaac! I agree with silverfish, he looks like a lurcher (sighthound/other breed cross) rather than pure sighthound. She's given you lots of good advice already, additionally I can recommend this article by a British trainer called David Ryan, on controlling the chase instinct: http://www.dog-secrets.co.uk/how-do-i-stop-my-dog-chasing/

[Guest june]

What a beautiful pup! Excellent advice given above. I love that you have him on a harness instead of a collar, but if you decide to use a collar be sure to use a martingale so he can't get it off over his head. Also, it will allow you better control. Your best friend is going to be lots of exercise which it looks like he is already getting. More specifically; controlled exercise. Walking on a leash; brisk forward motion with no stops so he has to pay attention to you. He does not have to heal but the goal is to get him to walk quietly by your side and pay attention to you. After you have walked like that at the beginning of the walk then some more relaxed walking to sniff and potty and finish the walk again at a brisk pace paying attention to you. Greys respond best to lots of positive reinforcement; praise and maybe some small treats when he is paying attention to you. God bless you for taking him in. Bonus for you: Greys are really smart. Although, come to think of it sometimes that isn't a bonus

june

[juliemac]

Thank you for taking care of this little one ... I'm not able to give you advice on feral greyhounds, but can share with you that the activity level of greyhound puppies is extraordinary, and tends to calm down as the dog ages.

 

What a sweetheart ... and Welcome to Greytalk!!

 

[Guest IrskasMom]

Welcome to GT. I realy have no Advice but Comment you for stepping in on a bad Situation and taken care of this Pup.

[a_daerr]

Oh wow, you are a wonderful person for intervening and taking this little guy on. Here's my $0.02. The behaviors you are describing (minus perhaps the prey drive), are typical of ANY dog that is not used to being a pet. I don't feel as though you need an expert on sighthounds necessarily to help deal with these kinds of problems. However, if you are intent on keeping him, he will probably need some type of formal training program. For a dog that has sustained abuse, the training has to be based in positive reinforcement. Contact a certified trainer in your area (avoid places like PetSmart), and sign him up for a basic obedience class. Most of the people I know who start obedience training with their dogs love it, and they go on to do subsequent classes. But even if you only do one class, you'll gain a lot of tools needed to continue the training at home. It sounds like Isaac just needs some socialization and self-control, and of course, an owner who will give him a chance to be a dog.

 

Unfortunately, the one draw about owning sighthounds is their speed and prey drive, so it's never a good idea to let him off-leash in an unfenced area, especially not until he has a reliable recall. If he lunges at moving vehicles, it's probably best that he wear a well-fitted harness on walks. This behavior can be mitigated with desensitization (walking by cars so much that he starts to learn it's no big deal) and positive reinforcement (lot of encouragement and treats). For barkers, there is a training method to teach "quiet" and "speak." But it's also important to ignore the barking and not give him any attention for barking or obnoxious behavior. Dogs who have difficulty with housetraining benefit from a strict feeding schedule (only giving access to food and water at specific intervals in the day) and a housetraining method that is based in crating, confining, or the umbilical method.

 

If you've only had experience with labs, try to give Isaac a clean slate. Labs and sighthounds are very different- they each have their own benefits and challenges. Isaac may be a dog that takes a little longer to build trust and gain confidence. He may be a dog that you have to work with for a long time. But in my experience, the ones with the quirks and issues are the ones that offer more special and unique relationships with their owners. Good luck and have fun with him- he looks like a handsome, deserving boy.

[Guest zombrie]

Maybe he has greyhound in there somewhere, but he just looks like your typical mutt to me personally. I'm not an expert by any means, but it sounds to me like Isaac's problems are fear based - not typical breed quirks. My golden chases and acts aggressively to anything he is afraid of, including cars. I agree that a trainer and behaviorist is probably needed to guide you on how to resolve these issues.

He is very cute, good luck with Isaac. And thank you for saving him

Edited January 14, 2013 by zombrie