Greyhounds - What are they like to live with? Questions

Thanks to whoever (Mini?) fixed my typo in the thread title!

Lovely photos too Spot

I have two greys and as individuals they couldn't be more different to each other.

My boy is a nervous, gentle, lazy typical greyhound but has been incredibly hard work over the past year we have had him and will take a lot more hard work as he is still very fearful. For the first 4 months we had him he was terrified of going outside, terrified of all non-pointy dogs and we were only able to walk him at mid-night and 6am to avoid noises and other dogs.

It was tiring and very stressful and really as much as I love Ely he wasn't an appropriate dog to be re-homed to a first time dog owning couple in central London! However he came to us straight from kennels (rescue) where he didn't exhibit any of this behaviour (much as he doesn't in the house) and was a bouncy, happy, affectionate dog. He's much better now but really the only thing that helped him was patience and when we adopted our second greyhound 8 months ago.

Here he is in the park now:







But he still has bad days when he can't go for a walk and he just stands outside and shakes so he has to go home. He 's a work in progress.

Gypsy my girl, is a real live wire. She is only 3 and came to us with an old track injury (broken leg) so we have to manage her energy levels without straining her leg (she still limps and has an altered gait) but she is in no pain and it doesn't slow her down at all. She is very high energy and requires at least 2 hours of walks a day plus training, she's vocal and quite aloof with strangers - it took her months to warm up to our dog sitter (not walker as Ely isn't happy leaving the house without one of us with him) who she saw everyday for 2 hours. She is also clever and worked out how to open our lever door handles very quickly.
She's good with all other dogs and takes almost everything in her stride.





Neither of my dogs are what you would expect from a typical greyhound so it's worth bearing in mind when you are looking for a dog. Rescues that use foster homes are worth their weight in gold and will be able to give you a much more complete idea of the dogs needs and personality.

Not to be a downer as almost everyone I know with a greyhound has had a much more laid back and easier experience - obviously I just know how to pick them.

CK312 - They are both beautiful but i love Gypsy, have a real weakness for the blue dogs

Here are my two, this is Bella who is a lurcher;





And this is Kym my grey:

I have watched this thread with great interest as i will hold my hands up and admit im not a grey fan (sorry) but i am getting there

I have 2 questions though, Why do you not see many grey pups? and whats the difference between a lurcher n a grey?(apart from the size) x

There are grey pups about but a lot of them are bred for racing and do not make the grade...I'll let you imagine what may happen to them:-(
A lurcher is a cross between a sighthound and another dog, or 2 sighthounds of different breed. A lurcher is a type of dog rather than a breed. A lot you see are a greyhound crossed with something else. I have 3 lurchers and a greyhound. The lurchers are all different. Danny is a cross between a bull breed and a greyhound, Jenny is a whippet/greyhound cross and Poppy is a staffie/whippet cross. They are all lurchers though.
Also, you can get large or small greyhounds and large or small lurchers. My grey Guinness is very large yet my friend has a grey who is small.
Greyhound pups are quite naughty dogs!! very mischievous but they do settle into lovely, placid dogs. If ever you want a greyhound...get a rescue...there are so many in need of homes and really they are misunderstood. They don't need lots of exercise and don't eat huge amounts!!

Greyhoundk...Bella looks very greyhoundy in that photo...I'd never believe she was a lurcher! She is divine!!

Thank you Zoe, i think its more in her build the lurchery thing, shes a lot finer boned than Kym, she obviously has collie in her i think and also i think a bit of saluki (she has the saluki feet that turn in ) not sure really to be honest ! i got her from Dogs Trust, she came as a stray from Ireland so no idea of her background although she is a good squirrel catcher so who know maybe she was used for hunting which is most likely i think coming from Ireland :?

Kym came from the RGT, she only did about 25 races and was retired through injury i think

I'm glad you're liking them a little more
Zoe answered the questions brilliantly, so I can't really add to that, but it is sad how few Greyhound pups you see around. I've seen a few through the charity who saved Axel, but not many at all. Mostly lurchers coming through now...

Now now, you should know thats a longdog gotta say one day I'd love a Greyhound, either a black, or a red, as I think a big male red Grey called Clifford would be great, and thats on my want list, however whether I'd actually ever end up getting a red is a different matter altogether lol, I mean knowing my luck I'd end up with a totally different colour but love it all the same.

Thanks for that guys,

It'd be nice to see a grey pup just to see what they look like really x

Your wish is my command

This is Axel with a (roughly) 12 week old Greyhound puppy girl.

Greyhounds can't race till 15months old so their potential is probably only judged near to that point, unless they have injury etc that would put a stop to racing career they'd probably be run on for training. My 2 boys schooled but didn't race and i adopted them at 22months. I imagine they had a had a great time running about most of the day playing with their littermates as youngsters in the paddocks from what i've seen visiting the kennel.

Here's some youngsters i met last weekend, not sure of there age.


Not one of my photo's but shows how different they look as young pups.

I met my first greyhound on a stall at discover dogs and was smitten with there laidback, affectionate nature so was pleased to discover they were lazy and fairly low maintenance so suited me down to the ground, it was 7yrs before i was able to consider adopting though.

We adopted a pair of siblings, Hector & Throp nearly 4 yrs ago, as first time dog owners. Sadly we lost Hector in January and currently considering a new friend for Throp. I totally love the breed and can't really imagine not having one in my life now, very easy to have round the house as they sleep so much (although can be little thieves). They all have their own characters & individual quirks, my boys were like chalk & cheese but both quite playful which was a nice balance for us.

Throp & Hector

Bella didnt race either but was trialled , she was up for adoption when she was 2 so was still a baby !

Do you get to meet Greyhounds often? Those youngsters and puppies are gorgeous!

We've 2 RGT groups locally one runs a monthly walk & other also has walk/events occasionally so we do get to meet other adopters & their greys quite frequently. I was visiting my boys old trainer and the pups were adorable, not sure i'd want to take one home though

Are your pics from the Perry bar show at the riding club?

Ooops!! You're absolutely right!!

Well its not like I go on about them enough ;-)