Reddit reviews Retired Racing Greyhounds For Dummies

Try checking out Lee Livingood's "Retired Racing Greyhounds for Dummies" if you haven't already. There is a lot of good information in there covering a wide range of breed-specific topics.

Are you looking for an adult Greyhound, a very young Greyhound, or a puppy to raise how you want?



Retired racers are prone to separation anxiety and come with a longer adjustment time than some dogs due to the major upheaval of rehoming to a strange new world, but some adjust faster than others.


You should look at reputable adoption groups in your area/state if you're interested and do your research. I know several people who keep Whippets and Greyhounds, notably vet Jennifer Ng, and she does a lot of amateur sporting with both. You can look through her numerous sporting photos and albums through her Facebook page.


Freshly published by Dennis McKeon

Retired Racers for Dummies If you want to borrow this from me, I can loan it.


Another essay for the new adopter



You can find other info on groups' websites, and that info will vary in quality and accuracy, so do your own research.

Most of the dogs come up from the US to groups locally, although possibly not directly in Ottawa. I used to have a retired racer, but that was in Vancouver and we drove down to Washington to pick him up. You could try flagging down an owner as someone suggested, or contact some of the local rescue groups http://www.adopt-a-greyhound.com/info.html or http://www.gracanada.com/. You can expect a bit of a process in adopting, as the groups will likely want to do a house visit and you would go through a meet-and-greet to get to know potential dogs before adopting. I totally recommend adopting a retired racer, but as with any breed, you have to look at your lifestyle and see if that type of dog fits. This book is a good primer, but the basis of it is that greyhounds are super calm, very sweet, and very sensitive, which is great, but the flip side of that is that they can have separation anxiety (so if you are out of the house 10+ hours at a time, it won't work well) and aren't as "dog" like as people are expecting, a lot of people are surprised that they have to always be on a leash unless it is a completely fenced in area. They pretty much want to sleep most of the day (preferably near you) and despite what people think, they are very low energy, but bringing them to an enclosed area to run briefly and some walks is all it takes. Good luck :)

> I think I'm going to buy a book to familiarize myself with them so that I can be prepared.

There are two I recommend based on how you like to get your information:

• Cynthia Branigan's Adopting the Racing Greyhound: Kind of dry, serious and clinical, but a great reference to own.
  
  
  
• Retired Racing Greyhounds For Dummies: A more enjoyable read that is a bit less serious but informative.
  

Yeah, a lot of rescues have odd personalities due to being raised, basically, like livestock.

They're certainly not rough-and-tumble rasslin' dogs like a lab or retriever. They wanna run for about 5 minutes once or twice a week, and lounge/sleep the rest of the week. They have terrible recall. Most of them, if they see a squirrel or a cat or something off in the distance, they're going to zero in and take off (35 mph in 3 steps). And then get hit by a car or get lost. So anytime they're out of the house, they need to be in a fenced-in area (yard/dog park) or on-leash. Those are the down sides.

For me, I picked a greyhound because they are the absolute chillest dogs ever. They love to see you come home and they'll greet you for a couple minutes, then just hang out near you. They don't chew up furniture, they don't demand hours of play/exercise every day, they're not yappy. (It was about four months from when I adopted my 6-y/o until I heard her bark for the first time.) All the rescues are house-trained. They can be mostly command-trained if you put in some time. I taught mine "sit", "stay", and "down", but "come" never worked outside the house. Also, they're raised for health and good genetics, so there aren't chronic medical issues like bad hips and stuff that you'll find in other purebreeds.

If you do start seriously considering it, I highly recommend "Retired Racing Greyhounds for Dummies" and "Adopting the Racing Greyhound". After those you should be pretty set on what to expect. Also, the rescue agency should work with you to find a dog that fits with your situations and what you want. (Some are not cat-safe, some are more high-energy, some are more comfortable with new situations, etc)

I'm really glad I adopted (and fostered). But rescue greyhounds are really unlike any other pet dog out there.

...Wow I just typed a lot, haha. Let me know if you have any questions!

I recommend this book!

I wouldn't say they require more work or special care than most other dogs. There are a few things to take into account:

• 1. They don't have that second coat of fur (that causes dander) for insulation, so they will get too cold or overheat outside depending on the weather.
     
• 2. They have thin skin that will tear easily when injured (even after a small scuffle with another dog).
     
• 3. A retired race dog that has never been in a home before will need time to learn things like stairs, TV, ceiling fans, and not to potty in the house. Puppies grow up with all this stuff, but a 2 year old dog has only known the kennel. They learn pretty quickly, though.
     
     There are some great books out there if you're serious about it. This one and this one.
     
     Oh, and, if you do adopt 1 or more, be ready to become greyhound obsessed! Don't fight it! :)

I live on a different coast, so I can't talk about AZ, but we've all been through this. Everything will be fine.

Get yourself a copy of the greyhound bible, Retired Racing Greyhounds for Dummies. Stairs are a completely surmountable obstacle. Yeah, it might be rough for a week, but they'll get the hang of it. As long as you're willing to put in the walking time (most orgs recommend 2 walks, 30 minutes each), a condo is a totally fine situation. Everything will be fine.