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Old October 14th, 2006, 08:12 AM
Sariss Sariss is offline
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Greyhounds

I have already determined that I will be getting a Doberman from a breeder in the coming future, probably when I get into a house. But, before then I was thinking about other dogs I could possibly get, and the idea popped into my head "what about a rescue greyhound?"

So now I think I want a greyhound. Has anyone had any experience with them they wish to share?
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Old October 14th, 2006, 12:51 PM
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rainbow rainbow is offline
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I don't but Ontario Greys will be able to give you all the information you need. She should be logged on soon. Good luck.
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Old October 14th, 2006, 01:48 PM
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LM1313 LM1313 is offline
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I think some dobermans have issues with dogs of the same gender . . . Just something to keep in mind when you pick your dogs. Rescue greyhounds make great dogs, from what I've heard.
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Old October 14th, 2006, 02:20 PM
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greyhounds

my daughter has 3 now and hoping to get another she lives in ontario, and she knows tons, they are truley wounderful dogs, where do you live???? any info will be glad to help brenda.
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  #5  
Old October 14th, 2006, 06:43 PM
Sariss Sariss is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LM1313
I think some dobermans have issues with dogs of the same gender . . . Just something to keep in mind when you pick your dogs. Rescue greyhounds make great dogs, from what I've heard.
The Doberman will come after the Greyhound has passed.
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Old October 14th, 2006, 07:21 PM
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Nah.. No need to wait IMO... I was waiting for OntarioGreys to answer (she's got 5 retired racers), because I don't know much about greys, but I do know about dobies (but I'm not an expert like MaryAndDobies). Dobies are very docile and easy to train. If they're raised with any doggy, they'll generally be ok with that doggy. The two I grew up with never had any issues with any doggies.

But of course, if you have a neutered male and a non-neutered male, you can get into trouble, regardless of the breeds of the two.
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Old October 14th, 2006, 07:32 PM
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I'm surprised Ontario Greys didn't reply yet as she was logged on earlier. Especially because the title says "greyhounds" but I guess she somehow missed it. Hopefully, next time.
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Old October 14th, 2006, 09:38 PM
Sariss Sariss is offline
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Originally Posted by Prin
Nah.. No need to wait IMO... I was waiting for OntarioGreys to answer (she's got 5 retired racers), because I don't know much about greys, but I do know about dobies (but I'm not an expert like MaryAndDobies). Dobies are very docile and easy to train. If they're raised with any doggy, they'll generally be ok with that doggy. The two I grew up with never had any issues with any doggies.

But of course, if you have a neutered male and a non-neutered male, you can get into trouble, regardless of the breeds of the two.
Well, it may happen, but probably not. Down the road when we are all settled in, I want to get a Dobe and my fiance wants to get an EB. So we were thinking of a Greyhound before all that.
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Old October 15th, 2006, 11:02 AM
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OntarioGreys OntarioGreys is offline
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Here I am !!! Seen the post last night but was too tired to make sense responding.

If you are interest in adopting a greyhound I would suggest first reading "Retired Racing Greyhounds For Dummies " by Lee Livingood, it is considered the bible for adopters and an excellent resource for helping you help your new greyhound adjust to life as a pet. Because of their unique upbringing they can find coming into a home very overwhelming and scary, so the book will prepare you with what to expect how to overcome problems, and offers training tips. Most adoptions groups do require you to read before adopting

Kathleen Gilley travels across the US and canada in a motorhome with her 5 greyhounds putting on a dance and comedy show for free at a adoption events to help raise awareness about greyhounds and to offer training advice and to seniors home for entertainment and she has wrote her own article on training to help owners of adopted greyhounds, I have been fortunate to meet Kathleen on a couple of ocassions now, she is a delightful and funny person

First here is there website and photos, the main page photo was taken in Hamilton Ontario http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/8332/

And this is her training article No fear no pain method of training with is a fun read as she adds her witty humor to and allows you to view what becoming a pet is like through a greyhounds eyes
http://www.geocities.com/katnexta/nofeartraining.html


One thing you should know is that part of the adoption agreement will include a clause where you will agree never to have your greyhound off leash except in a fully enclosed area, This is important in protectiong your greyhound, they are sighthounds they can spot a squirrel or rabbbit moving 1/2 a mile away and most are going to want to chase it and once out of your range they have a mind of their own and will likely not heed your calls, also if something spooks, they can cove large distances in minutes and being they use their eyes more than their noses can easily become lost and not know how to find their way home. Trying to recover a lost and frightened greyhound is a nightmare and often the outcome is not good. A couple years ago not to far from me a 12 year old senior had wandered off something his owner of many years never expected and he became lost , it was 4 days later with dozens of volunteers needed to find him, and he had to be rushed to the vet as he had become severely dehydrated, another day and he likely would have died. So if you want a dog that can be let off leash than a greyhound is not for you.

To find an adoption agency near you this site has listings of most of the adoption groups from around the world.
http://www.adopt-a-greyhound.org/directory/list.cfm

Each group has their own policies and methods of adopting out, so if one turns you down check out another(some won"t adopt to those who have young children, or live in apartment or will refuse if your yard is not fenced).

Adoptions fees can vary a fair bit, but it's good to enquire what medical stuff is included in the adoption fee, some groups do very minimal vetting and others do very extensive prior to adopting their greys out, If you have to pay for the extra vetting yourself thru your own vet it can get quite costly especially if the dog has an injury or is heartworm positive, or has a severe internal parasite load or needs a dental, so the more vetting that is done prior to adopting the less your costs to adopt will be, sopmething I learned the lard way, my vetting costs ended up $1000 ontop of the adoption fee, Had I went to another group to adopt all the things I paid for would been taken care of before I recieved my grey for only an addtional $100 higher adoption fee

If you havesmall pets or young children going thru an adoption group that tests and screens greyhounds in those situations can be a huge bonus in knowing your new pet will fit eill in your home, there are some greyhounds who will view a cat or small dog as prey/dinner and others that will view them as buddies, An active bouncy greyhound may repeatly knock over a toddler in a home or may be to bossy with a child or be terrified of the child and could potentially bite/nip if it feels trapped into a corner.

About 90% can live with a small dog or cat "inside" the house where they will view that particular animal as part of their pack, but they may kill or chase a small animal that comes into the yard including cats another reason it is important to keep your greyhound on leash and know what your greyhound is like with small animals before ever heading to the local dog park.

Most adoption groups will want to visit you in your home and ask lots of questions to get to know your lifestyle inorder to help find a greyhound to best fit into your lives. They come in a large range of personalities and activity levels so having the right fit makes owning a pleasure, the wrong one can be a lot of frustration so it is best to let the adoption group steer you to dogs that will fit in well, some groups have kennels so can bring in larger number of dogs or have a larger of foster homes which allows you a choice in dogs, others have a small number of fosters homes and inorder to process a larger number of adoption requests will pick out a dogs from the track for you based on your risks factors(young children and pets) and lifestyle and then test them in their foster homes to ensure they will fit and also to help get them housetrained and begin adjustment to life as a pet, surprising this method works extemely well, the number of failed adoption is far, far less than adoptions where the owner pick out their own greyhound. The homevisit is not something to fear or a test of your housekeeping skills

Many people feel a greyhound will good jogging or marathon training partners, greyhound are sprinters and do not have the endurance for distance some with proper conditioning can be worked up for a few miles, but in hot weather you need to restrict activity as they overheat and die, another thing to note is their skin including on their feet is quite thin and delicate, hot pavement can lead to burns and running on gravel or cement can result in severe abrasions as they have be used to soft sand all their lives, so even the pads on their feet need to be built up and condtioned.

Generally they are a genetically healthy breed and being they are bred for performance do not suffer from hip displaysia like other large breeds and have longer lifespans for their size normally 12 to 14 year compared to 10 12 for other breeds there size though many are living to 16 with the oldest being 20 year old who passed away a couple years ago the biggest health problem though is osteosarcoma which is common among most long legged large breeds but in recent years the numbers seemed to be climbing dramatically and usually strikes when they are 7 to 9 years old the first signs are often a limp.

Unlike many large breeds they seem to age far better, and many will still enjoy a good hard sprints even at 9 to 11 years old, it is usually between 10 and 12 that they just start showing signs of slowing down, though Suzy who passed away at 20 years old still enjoyed short runs on the beach right up to 18 years old. My second grey that I lost at 9 to osteo was still outrunning and outlasting young greys fresh off the track just a couple months before she passed away. when the youngsters were worn out blowing she was still running circles around them and leaping over them trying to coax them into running some more with her. On the track they race a 30 second sprint and then are rested for 3 days, if they are getting lots of playtime and running in a yard their running endurance will improve which was the case with Callie allowing her to outrun the youngsters even though she was 3 times their age.

Greyhounds will often grey prematurely especially noticable in brindle and black greyhound, my black girl started getting her first grey hairs at 18 months old

Males are generally more laidback, easier going, goofy and affectionate in nature, and can fit in a larger range of home lifestyles, females are generally more bossy, active and aloof so often do not fit as well in homes with young children as they are more likely to correct a child.
The size range can be anywhere from 45 lbs to just over a 100lbs, though females are most commonly 60 to 65 lbs males 70 to 75 pounds.

Greys that are 2 years and under are usually racing school dropouts, as such they do not have the crating and routine experience and have spent much of their life in long outdoor runs, so have not learned the manners, don't have some of the people skills that a grey that has been of the track for a bit will have , and they will still behave much like a big over grown puppy. so can be more difficult to house train, may not be used to walking on leash and will take longer get used to the house routines and will have a harder time being alone when you leave the home especially as an only pet. So 3 years and up generally tend to adapt much easier to pet life with a lot less problems.

I used the words generally alot to describe as there are exceptions but for new ownere who do not have had little to no dog experience, I will generally recommend a male greyhoud 3 to 5 years old who is outgoing and laidback. and if you enjoy goofy you will generally find that is the bigger makes, greys with white hair tend to shed the most, red and fawns are close second brindles tend to have longer softer coats, balcks shed the least and they shed their kennel coats will have a short dense very glossy coat if on a good diet.

Some websites will state that greyhounds are not good with other animals, most will have never seen a cat or other breed of dog before in their life, so most on first meeting will have no idea that the fuzzy thing is a really a dog so may bark or growl or run on their first encounter but if carefully introduced the can learn to realize that hairy thing is a dog and won't hurt them and learn enjoy the company of other animals and not view then as some scary looking monster.



If there is anything specific you would like to know about greyhounds that I have not covered I can likely answer or can direct you to a website for answers, I have spent a few years volunteering with groups locally as well as doing my own research about greyhounds. I will check back later to see if you have more questions.
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  #10  
Old October 15th, 2006, 04:44 PM
Prin Prin is offline
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Wow OG, when we said you'd have info, we weren't kidding!
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Old October 15th, 2006, 07:33 PM
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Yeah, OG, always gives great information.
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Old October 17th, 2006, 04:44 PM
Sariss Sariss is offline
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Wow, thank you so much! That was a lot of help.

Do you know the criteria for adopting a greyhound? If I can, I would like to adopt one while still in an apartment, but if I can't then I can always wait.
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Old October 17th, 2006, 05:49 PM
Prin Prin is offline
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The one in Montreal adopts to apartment people. It depends on the organization. You're going to have to fill out an application and speak to them directly. Good luck.
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Old October 17th, 2006, 10:17 PM
~michelle~ ~michelle~ is offline
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theres a place just outside london, ON that adopts to apartment dwellers
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Old October 18th, 2006, 08:24 AM
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OntarioGreys OntarioGreys is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sariss
Wow, thank you so much! That was a lot of help.

Do you know the criteria for adopting a greyhound? If I can, I would like to adopt one while still in an apartment, but if I can't then I can always wait.
The majority of groups in North America will adopt to those living in apartment, there are the odds ones that do not, individual groups set their own policies so if one does not work out try another group.
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Old October 18th, 2006, 06:20 PM
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though many are living to 16 with the oldest being 20 year old who passed away a couple years ago the biggest health problem though is osteosarcoma
WOW 20 years!!!! I never knew that bout greyhounds. ( but then again I dont know much bout them at all) Amazing!
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