I have 2 lovely ex-racing greyhounds, they are gentle, loving, superb with children and a delight with other dogs large or small. I walk them regularly round a couple of local parks and meet many nice people who also have nice dogs. Frequently they ask if they are rescued dogs and I reply that they are dogs that were rehomed from kennels. I occasionally go into it further if the person does show an interest. However, to be totally honest rescue is an inappropriate word as they were not in any danger when I took them on. The greyhound industry has received a bad press due to a small minority of nasty owners, trainers or breeders but most racing greyhounds are well looked after and every effort is made to rehome them. Many racing kennels contain dogs that the trainer keeps on after they have retired at his own expense. There will always be a small percentage of racers that should not be rehomed and these will either be kept in kennels for their lifespan or PTS. Now I love the greyhound but I do accept that for a very small number euthanasia may be required, better this than the possibility of the dog attacking and killing another animal. I used to go to a kennel with a hundred greyhounds in and never have any problem in entering the kennel of any dog there. I could have had a problem if I had been a cat but it is a myth that all running dogs will attack small animals and most of those that might can be trained away from it. Probably more terriers would attack cats though I do accept that they probably wouldn't catch them. I am happy with people who don't really like racing and put their efforts into improving the welfare of the dogs and I am certainly against sending racers to China as Ireland seem to want to do. I do not accept the views of people who want to just ban racing, they possibly are well intentioned but ban racing and the greyhound becomes a different dog in a decade and will cease to be the superb athlete that it is today. I do think it would help if we all wanted to "rehome" greyhounds rather than "rescue" them.
your dogs are rescues...they are rehomed. im thinking abiut the chap paid by the industry to bury loads of surplus greyhounds in his back garden. says it all for me. the onus...or the 'help' as you put it...isnt on the public to take the burden by rescuing/rehoming more x racing greys, the onus is on the industry to not produce a surplus in the first place.
You answer is neither to the question of either are they rescues or rehomed. For all dogs not only greyhounds that have to find new homes I prefer the term rehomed. When some one states that their dog was rescued I think to myself did they rush into a burning building to save it?
I see a rescue dog as one come from a rescue centre. However, I know lots of people will refer to privately rehomed dogs as rescues just for the ease of it. I say I have two rescue dogs because it's a lot less of a mouthful than "I have one dog from a rescue centre and one from a private rehome because the owner couldn't keep her anymore"
I have 2 'rescue' dogs, a lurcher from a rescue centre who would still be there if he didnt come home with us as they have a never PTS policy, so I didnt rescue him from death , I adopted him and gave him a home that is far better for him than a life in kennels, my other is a greyhound , she never made it racing for whatever reason and again would have lived her life out in the kennels if we hadnt have taken her home, I prefer the term adopted meaning acquired by my free choice to make my own, I chose to adopt dogs that needed a home rather than have a kennel life , I chose to have sighthounds after much research and accepted the risks that come with dogs with a chase instinct and manage it appropriately , it was nothing to do with the cost , I didnt take the cheaper option , after all its not free to adopt a dog either. There are homeless dogs from all breeds for many different reasons and its a personal choice if you decide to take one of these on or start brand new , people always say aww when they realise they are so called rescue dogs but for me its my gain to have them in my life rather than doing something that is seen as a good act.
Interesting question on this thread and one that has bothered me for a while.My blue gh,Nancy is an adoptee.She came from a very nice and caring breeder/trainer who homes all of his dogs when their careers are over(he's a small scale hobby breeder so can afford to do this) Pooh Bear is a rescue dog,he'd been through hell and all he had to look forward to was a slow painful death if he hadn't come here. Most of my dogs are true 'rescues' but I feel a fraud calling Nancy by that title.She's never known a day's misery in her life.She wasn't brought from a miserable situation and needed no rehabilitation.Of course she's happier being a house dog than a kennel inmate but she was always a spoilt brat and always will be!
thats because its the same thing. i was a rescue rehomer several years. as for the rest of my post, that was about the rest of your post
Surely a 'rescue dog' is one that has been rescued?Whether the animal welfare group rescued it from the proverbial burning building or you did it yourself it is a dog that has come from a bad life to a good one,or it had no prospect of a good life continuing without a 'rescuer' getting involved (as with the death row dogs at a pound) It's a matter of verbal laziness calling all rehomed dogs 'rescues' - as I do myself when I can't be bothered explaining the diff between Nancy and Pooh Bear.
I always feel a bit uncomfortable when asked if my greyhounds are rescues as i know the person usually means did we adopt them rather than rescued from a bad situation, but as we collected them directly from their trainer/breeder and know how much she cares for her dogs it does feel like a bit of an insult to her and find myself saying "yes they retired and we rehomed them"
Interesting discussion. I personally interchange between titles. Technically I 'rehomed' Axel from the charity we got him from...but they 'rescued' him from certain death at the pound. I mostly say rescue I guess because he was. He didn't have a nice rehoming experience, that day after his last race he was shipped off and sold elsewhere, then a few months later ended up in the pound...so he would have died if not rescued...
Never thought about this before, my gsd was rescued from being pts by a kindly vet after being turfed out of the puppy farm. She was rehomed by us after her first good owner had to give her up through work commitments. I suppose I always point out what a good job he and his family did with her. Its amusing the people that comment on what a lovely dog she is, then recoil in horror when they find out shes a rescue. Perhaps waiting for the quarter wolf to spring out and mangle them
What do you mean quarter wolf, its a dog, and i find it hard to beleive people recoil in horror just because its a rescue. A lot of people on here have rescue dogs and i would of thought the only time people recoil in horror if they thought they were going to get bitten.
I have rescue dogs, and i can honestly say, i have never seen any body recoil in horror or make the assumption its vicious just because its a rescue. I just think the poster was saying that for an effect.
Fair enough , I have 2 adopted dogs too , and have had mixed reactions , as I suppose people think they are up for adoption because they have issues , some do some dont and most of us who adopt them work through the issues and manage them, one thing for sure there are always plenty available in kennels whatever we call them !
I haven't had any recoiling because the dogs are rescues as far as I know but it's hard to say as 99% are recoiling anyway at the size,breed or overwhelming numbers. I do hear time and time again though "Oh I'd never have a rescue dog,you just don't know what issues it has" AAARGH!!! No wonder the kennels are kept full,the vet needles are running hot and there's a 6 month waiting list for dogs to get into the no kill shelters.
My post wasn't really said for effect, its based on what ive experienced since we've had her. Often followed with "really?? shes a rescue", "you are brave", "id never take on a GSD rescue" "i have kids" (and??) , "what did she do to end up in rescue" etc. Presumably, the wrong reputation of the GSD (as i believe it to be) still reigns supreme with many people . I hope my delightful dog is heading things in the right way. In future i might adopt shes been rehomed. Ive also had the polar opposite with many people commenting on how good she is, and how they love the breed, specifically coming over to chat because of her and have since checked out her rescue site. The quarter wolf comment (admittedly tongue in cheek) was in reference to a debate on GSD genetics currently ongoing elsewhere on the site, where apparantly wolf blood is known to be in the starting dog of the GSD breed, according to documentation from the 1920's.
