Greyhound - the perfect addition to a family?
 Jolene
In mid-January we were approached by an active racing greyhound kennel to help re-home some of their retired dogs. A week later we took two dogs, Jolene and Lady Penelope into our care, and now have had several Greyhounds signed over to us to find them loving permanent homes.
We thought it would be interesting to share some information about the breed and our experience of the dogs now they have been in foster care for a little while. |
 Lady Penelope
|
Greyhound Facts
They are an ancient breed dating back as far as 4000BC, where remains were found in Egyptian tombs.
They are lean, muscular, athletic sight hounds who, as their name implies, hunt by sight not scent. They can:
Health
They have very few genetic conditions as they are bred as sporting dogs, so need to have functionality and good health. They have deep chests to allow for heart and lungs, and can be sensitive to some anesthetics.
They are an ancient breed dating back as far as 4000BC, where remains were found in Egyptian tombs.
They are lean, muscular, athletic sight hounds who, as their name implies, hunt by sight not scent. They can:
- can reach speeds of 45 mph.
- live up to 12-15yrs
- grow to between 69 - 76cm
- weigh between 27 - 40 kg.
Health
They have very few genetic conditions as they are bred as sporting dogs, so need to have functionality and good health. They have deep chests to allow for heart and lungs, and can be sensitive to some anesthetics.
Character
Retired Greyhounds are gentle, affectionate and clever. They have an easy going temperament which makes them good with adults, children, other dogs and can often live alongside cats although each dog may vary. These characteristics makes them great therapy dogs.
They have an instinct to chase so may need a controlled environment when letting them run free for the first time. But our two girls have both been off the lead with no issues.
There is much advice saying greyhounds do not need a lot of exercise. However this is not universally true! It would be a shame to give a dog only 2 x 20-30 min walks per day – one of our fostered dogs, Jolene, enjoys 1 and a half hours and still could go longer. On the other hand Penny is older at 6 years, so an hour seems to be good for her.
Their short coat needs grooming and they love it. Their coats aren’t naturally oily so a good dry shampoo will help them shine.
They have an instinct to chase so may need a controlled environment when letting them run free for the first time. But our two girls have both been off the lead with no issues.
There is much advice saying greyhounds do not need a lot of exercise. However this is not universally true! It would be a shame to give a dog only 2 x 20-30 min walks per day – one of our fostered dogs, Jolene, enjoys 1 and a half hours and still could go longer. On the other hand Penny is older at 6 years, so an hour seems to be good for her.
Their short coat needs grooming and they love it. Their coats aren’t naturally oily so a good dry shampoo will help them shine.
Racing greyhounds
Approximately 25,000 racing greyhounds are registered in the British Isles every year. It is also believed that there is a large number which are unregistered.
The Greyhound Board of Great Britain regulates the racing and welfare of racing greyhounds. Whilst the welfare of racing and retired greyhounds has greatly improved there is still a long way to go and in reality most greyhounds live in miserable conditions. The kennels they live in are like dark prison cells. They have a raised metal bed filled with straw, a small peep hole. No life for a dog - especially one that makes humans money from their slavery.
The Greyhound Board of Great Britain regulates the racing and welfare of racing greyhounds. Whilst the welfare of racing and retired greyhounds has greatly improved there is still a long way to go and in reality most greyhounds live in miserable conditions. The kennels they live in are like dark prison cells. They have a raised metal bed filled with straw, a small peep hole. No life for a dog - especially one that makes humans money from their slavery.
If you are familiar with these dogs you will probably have noticed they have an ear tattoo. This will tell you where a dog was born in the UK or Ireland when they were weaned from their mum and their litter letter. You can look this up on greyhound-data.com although the site isn’t complete yet but you may be able to trace their racing history.
All registered racers are vaccinated against:
So if a kennel has lost their vaccination records, and they are a registered racing greyhound, they will have had these vaccinations.
Early Life
Pups are weaned from at 8 weeks and then stay with their litter mates until they are 5 months old. From then on they are paired with another dog they get on well with. Training starts from 5 -15 months when they are taught to walk well on a lead, to wear a muzzle, respond to voice commands and to chase a lure. This is why retired greyhounds walk so well on a lead (generally).
Their actual race training doesn’t start until they’re a year old and they aren’t allowed to compete in the full race until they’re 15 months. They will then race up to the age of 4 – 5 years if they remain injury free. Which is very rare. The nature of their life is that they race regularly and fracture bones often, following which they are then no longer wanted.In 2017 there were a recorded 4837 injuries and 257 track fatalities.
Prize money ranges from £50,000 minimum for win at a Derby, £12,000 minimum at a Category 1 Race and this goes down to around £1,000 at the low end races. They can race every 5 - 7 days, so potentially that’s a good income for an owner with have a kennel full of speedy dogs.
In previous years, as with many sports, there has been doping using drugs ranging from steroids and stimulants to Cocaine!
This sport generates a lot of greyhounds each year for which it is a struggle to find homes and although it is a regulated sport there are still a large number of retired racing greyhounds which “GO MISSING”. We’ll leave you to guess where they go. There are reports of them being shipped to China for the meat trade, or unnecessarily put to sleep because they’ve served their purpose.
These gentle, intelligent, graceful dogs deserve so much better having loyally served peoples’ greed for the first part of their life.Our dogs, Jolene and Lady Penelope, are amazing sweet girls. Both are off lead on walks, Penny even lives with a cat and other dogs. They love home comforts and are so grateful to be with us, you can really see the joy in their faces.
Let's stop supporting animal racing in order to make money for humans, they are not a commodity but a precious life which just want to be a loved family pet, a cosy bed, friends and care.
We hope to help more greyhounds soon, so please keep an eye on our website.
All registered racers are vaccinated against:
- Parvovirus
- Distemper
- Viral Hepatitis
- Leptospira canicola
- leptospira icterihaemiorrhaglae
So if a kennel has lost their vaccination records, and they are a registered racing greyhound, they will have had these vaccinations.
Early Life
Pups are weaned from at 8 weeks and then stay with their litter mates until they are 5 months old. From then on they are paired with another dog they get on well with. Training starts from 5 -15 months when they are taught to walk well on a lead, to wear a muzzle, respond to voice commands and to chase a lure. This is why retired greyhounds walk so well on a lead (generally).
Their actual race training doesn’t start until they’re a year old and they aren’t allowed to compete in the full race until they’re 15 months. They will then race up to the age of 4 – 5 years if they remain injury free. Which is very rare. The nature of their life is that they race regularly and fracture bones often, following which they are then no longer wanted.In 2017 there were a recorded 4837 injuries and 257 track fatalities.
Prize money ranges from £50,000 minimum for win at a Derby, £12,000 minimum at a Category 1 Race and this goes down to around £1,000 at the low end races. They can race every 5 - 7 days, so potentially that’s a good income for an owner with have a kennel full of speedy dogs.
In previous years, as with many sports, there has been doping using drugs ranging from steroids and stimulants to Cocaine!
This sport generates a lot of greyhounds each year for which it is a struggle to find homes and although it is a regulated sport there are still a large number of retired racing greyhounds which “GO MISSING”. We’ll leave you to guess where they go. There are reports of them being shipped to China for the meat trade, or unnecessarily put to sleep because they’ve served their purpose.
These gentle, intelligent, graceful dogs deserve so much better having loyally served peoples’ greed for the first part of their life.Our dogs, Jolene and Lady Penelope, are amazing sweet girls. Both are off lead on walks, Penny even lives with a cat and other dogs. They love home comforts and are so grateful to be with us, you can really see the joy in their faces.
Let's stop supporting animal racing in order to make money for humans, they are not a commodity but a precious life which just want to be a loved family pet, a cosy bed, friends and care.
We hope to help more greyhounds soon, so please keep an eye on our website.
