Any Greyhound Owners Here?

[Christine]

I'm considering adopting a greyhound dog. My previous dog (shelter rescue, hound mix) passed away this summer at age 18 and I said I was never getting another dog again. Of course, now that time has gone by, I'm feeling very lonely without the companionship of a dog.

But some of my issues with getting another dog are still there. The main one is that both my husband and I commute and work all day out of the home and, in my old-age wisdom, I don't think it's fair to have a dog alone for all that time. But, I've been reading up on greyhounds and I am learning that, despite their need for a short burst of energy once a day, they are pretty lazy overall and love laying around in beds or on couches. That sounds pretty perfect for me.

I've been doing a lot of research on line at various adoption sites and, while sometimes the cons of the dog are listed, the sites are very pro-Greyhound and I just want to make sure I hear all sides, especially from owners.

So just wondering if anyone here has one/had one and what your thoughts are on the needs of the dog.

I am in the market for a dog that might be 2-4 years old and has been fostered for a significant time (hence the greyhounds that are rescued all seem to fit that criteria). My local shelters for other rescues seem to be full of problem dogs with real issues so I don't think I'm brave enough to go that route again.

 

[10MoreMinutes]

My family had one when I was a child, and she was so lazy! We adopted her when she was about 2-3 years old and had her until she died of cancer at age 12. She had a designated "chair" in the living room (it was a big overstuffed thing that no one sat on but her) and she was perfectly content to lay in it just about all day. She was also super sweet and patient with little kids. We had a fenced-in backyard, so her exercise generally consisted of flying around and around the inside of the fence for a few minutes a few times a day before she did her business. The only downsides I can think of are:

(1) if she was left alone in the backyard, she inevitably found a way out, and then we'd have to chase her around the neighborhood (and they're FAST, so we resorted to bribery-we'd bring the box of treats with us and that would lure her back in).

(2) She hated the leash, but when we moved to a house without a fenced-in yard, she learned to tolerate it pretty quickly because it was the only way we could give her exercise.

And (3) she would GO AFTER small, furry things, so we couldn't have cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, etc. (don't know if it's because she was a race-dog before we got her or if that's a breed-specific thing).

As for any outstanding needs...ours didn't have any (I confirmed this with my parents, bc I was 7 when we first adopted ours). Even bathing her and clipping her nails was easy.

 

[BrinkofSunshine]

My mom recently tried to adopt a greyhound- unfortunately after a little over a week she returned the dog to rescue as it was too much for her to personally handle (and my mom has done months of research).

What I guess she wasn’t fully prepared for was how unacclimated the dog was to living in a home. They are kept at the track 24/7 around so many other dogs and people that the dog didn’t know how to be alone. My mom took a week off of work to help the dog adjust to the home, but when my mom went back to work the dog chewed up the front door frame and did some other minor damage. As my mom didn’t know if she had the time/energy/solution to help with the separation anxiety she decided to return her to the rescue. If they’ve been fostered for a long time you may avoid this issue. It can just take weeks to months to a year for a greyhound to really become comfortable as a pet.

But they are extremely sweet and yes, once they are fully pets they often sleep most of the day (40 mph couch potatoes, they’re often called), and they are such gentle and beautiful dogs. I plan on getting one myself when I feel I’m ready for a dog in the next year or two as dog racing was just outlawed here in FL and many ex-racers will need homes.

 

[JaxDad]

I have had a greyhound for about 3 1/2 years. I adopted him when he was two. He has been a great pet. I was worried about separation anxiety at first, and my neighbors did hear some "sad and sweet" howling, but he apparently would settle pretty quickly. The neighbors haven't mentioned any howling since the first few weeks after I first got him. Mine is alone most of the day, but he has the kitchen, laundry room, and backyard available to him. I'm pretty sure he mostly sleeps in his crate or his sunny spot in the yard. He's never done anything destructive. He doesn't even bark! He is good on the leash, but he can't just hang out with us in an unfenced area. He will bolt if given the chance. Shedding is relatively minor, and he is very obedient. FWIW, the males do seem more chill than the females.

 

[m3owbox]

I have two Spanish Greyhounds (Galgo Epsanol). I would consider looking into them as well since there are so many that need homes, though its rarer in the US to have them imported over, but some adoption agencies do do it. They are the same in temperament. We have had our male for 2.5 years now and our female for 1.5. We were living in Spain when we adopted them and now we live in California. Surprisingly they did great with the move. They used to have a yard and now we live in an apartment and they seem to not care one bit. As long as they get their walks and a good playtime in at the park. Our male gets separation anxiety, it used to be pretty bad and he would scratch at the door when we left. We tried crating him, and while he would go in there fine when we left he destroyed the crate. He still gets some anxiety when my husband and I leave together at the same time. But nothing like he did before. Now he is satisfied if we give him a kong full of treats. Our female is very attached to us, but couldn't give a single care if we leave the house because she seems to understand that we will be back soon. They sleep all day and want to play at night, but after a good run in the park they are tired again. They cuddle like no ones business and don't even try to make the couch off limits, you will loose. Let me know if you have any more questions!

 

[Jennasis]

We've had 3 over the last 19 years. Currently have 1. Hands down best dogs ever.


We owned our first when we were living in an apartment with no fenced yard. They make GREAt apartment/city dogs because frankly they are LAZY. We had to take her for potty walks but otherwise she was content to sleep and lounge all day. Our current grey above is home all day by herself while DH and I work. She isn't destructive and doesn't have separation anxiety but you should work with a GOOD greyhound adoption group to match a dog with your personality and lifestyle. Our grey isn't small animal aggressive (though she does bark at our barn cats on the other side of our yard fence...but I think it's because our old blue tick taught her to do it LOL). They also don't bark much or shed much. 30 mph couch potatoes!

They DO need to be acclimated to life in a house as greys off the track are like little aliens that do NOT know about things like STAIRS, MIRRORS, TV's, LINEOLEUM FLOORS, WINDOWS and have to be taught what these things are. All of our greys took a LONG time to learn how to walk up and down the stairs in the house (carpeting is a must at first so they have some grip). Our first grey used to try to go behind our tv to figure out where the "people" in it were and when we first brought her home she cut herself on a window trying to go through it. They have thin skin and it tears easily. But our greys have always gotten along great with other dogs and animals. You CANNOT let them off leash...EVER (unless in a secure fenced in yard/lot).

Our grey does have a tendency to collect things...stuffed animals, shoes (especially my shoes) and put them on her bed in the living room. She never chews...just collects.

Wonderfully goofy and snuggly. Every dog has a different personality. Some are loners, some are aloof, some are snuggly/kissy, some are playful. Your greyhound group will work with you to match you with the right one.

 

[BlueStarryHat]

My nephew and his wife adopted a greyhound from Greyhound Angels. He was rescued from a track in Daytona. The first few nights, he wouldn't come out of his crate to sleep and slept in the crate-they were told that this might happen since at the track they are kept in cages. After a week or so, he became acclimated and used to them. Stanley is his name and he is a real couch potato, I watched him for ten days while they took a trip and he spent most of his time sleeping on the sofa. When he was a awake, he was a joy. Such a good boy and so sweet.

The only drawback (if that's the right word) is that he needed to be walked 3-4 times a day, and he needed special food. Other than that, he's a gentle giant-good with kids as well as adults.

Stanley sleeping on the sofa. You can really see his scars from his racing days:

And at his birthday party this year:

 

[yoopermom]

A lot of responders have mentioned greyhound specific things, but what I would say is this, I have no problem with working couples owning a dog, but you need to realistically think if you are the kind of people who will come home immediately from work, and spend the rest of the evening at home, so that your dog has companionship. If you frequently go to the gym, out for dinner or entertainment, are involved in a bunch of after hours activities, well, I don't think that's fair to any dog. Think of it this way, if you're gone ten hours to work, and sleep eight hours, that's only a maximum of six hours that your dog is getting stimulation and company.

Personally, I think that the fact that greyhounds are crate trained is very helpful for the transition to becoming a family pet. All of our dogs have always been crate trained, and it's a god send for helping them feel secure.

Plan on going to dog obedience classes, or even working with a trainer one on one. As others have said, everything will be new, even the obvious like stairs and flooring.

I love greyhounds, and have a stealth plan in place to adopt one next, once our elderly dog is no longer with us.

Terri

 

[Christine]

Thanks everyone--these have been GREAT responses and so helpful.

I've been looking at a few agencies on line and I can see that some of them foster for quite some time before they adopt out, so I'd lean toward them. A couple of them are showing up at events January 5th where you can go meet them and some of their dogs.

I am an experienced dog owner. I've had dogs for the last 35 years, sometimes 3 at a time, so I know all about the requirement for obedience training. And I've *NEVER* been an "off leash" owner. Just never would do it myself.

To Terri (yoopermom), while we do work all day, we are home bodies. We rarely vacation (one reason was my elderly dog) and I don't do anything in the evenings or weekends except errands. I'd definitely request that I have a dog that seemed to be okay alone and I'd be very open with the adoption agency about my schedule.

I'm still not 100% deciding on getting a dog at all, but if I do, this breed does seem like it would be one of the better fits for me. The only downside I see is that if I did want to travel with the dog, it is likely too big to be an easy traveler like the little Boston Terriers or poodles are.

 

[yoopermom]

I would not discount them as being good travelers (except for not being small enough to fit under your airplane seat, ha). Any dog can be taught to travel well, and with them being crate trained, that's huge. I've always had a crate in the back of my Subaru for whichever of our hounds are going somewhere, and they hop right in. If we're staying somewhere overnight, the crate goes in with us, and the dog feels at "home" for the night.

The only non-hound we've ever owned was a Boston, and he was an interesting dog, but the breed has health issues that need to be taken into account. He was a "big little" dog, though, and held his own with the big hounds. They are a small breed, but not a toy breed, big in stance and attitude .

Terri

 

[Jennasis]

Some greys travel well and some don't...like all dogs. Our first grey was like a Transformer. She'd fold those long legs up in the back seat of the car and was roughly the size of a large house cat LOL. She managed the drive from NY to NC many times. Our current grey sprawls all over the place and doesn't particularly care for traveling great distances in the car though she LOVEs to get in the actual car. When we go away we board our grey at a local boarding kennel. She loves it and since she is acclimated to kennel life from her days racing, she does very well.

 

[Christine]

Thanks all, all good stuff to know.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

I bought one just last week. Awesome.

 

[wvjules]

I'll dog sit for ya.

 

[tzolkin]

The only drawback (if that's the right word) is that he needed to be walked 3-4 times a day

Could you elaborate what you mean? Don’t all dogs need to be walked 3-4 times per day? Greyhounds tend to have a lower excercise need than other breeds.

And I've *NEVER* been an "off leash" owner. Just never would do it myself.

To Terri (yoopermom), while we do work all day, we are home bodies. We rarely vacation (one reason was my elderly dog) and I don't do anything in the evenings or weekends except errands. I'd definitely request that I have a dog that seemed to be okay alone and I'd be very open with the adoption agency about my schedule.

Re the leash: it’s good you are aware of this. Every greyhound adoption group I know of will require you to sign a contract stating that you will not ever let the dog off-leash except in a securely fenced area.

As others have mentioned, separation anxiety is likely to be your biggest issue with this breed. I think you could definitely make it work with the right dog, but I think it may be a challenge for you to find a dog that is okay with being alone. You may have to be open to fostering-to-adopt or doing some sort of trial adoption if your group is willing to work with you to find a dog that’s the right fit for your family.

It’s likely that any greyhound you bring into your home has NEVER been alone before. Even if you get one that has been fostered, it’s likely being fostered in a home with other greyhounds. So, while the dog may appear to have no separation anxiety when those humans go to work, it may have issues in your home when you leave and it’s completely alone for the first time in its life. A common solution to this problem is to get a second greyhound, but I’m not sure if that’s something you’d be willing to consider.

I don’t believe that your work schedule is really an issue. These dogs are pretty lazy and will sleep basically the entire day whether you’re home or not, so it’s actually a better breed for you than some with high energy requirements. You’ll just need to search for a “loner” hound or get two.

 

[Jennasis]

Incidentally, the need for greyhound adopters is HUGE now. Florida just voted to end greyhound racing in the state (over the next 3 years) so there will be a whole lot of dogs looking for homes.

 

[Christine]

Could you elaborate what you mean? Don’t all dogs need to be walked 3-4 times per day? Greyhounds tend to have a lower excercise need than other breeds.



Re the leash: it’s good you are aware of this. Every greyhound adoption group I know of will require you to sign a contract stating that you will not ever let the dog off-leash except in a securely fenced area.

As others have mentioned, separation anxiety is likely to be your biggest issue with this breed. I think you could definitely make it work with the right dog, but I think it may be a challenge for you to find a dog that is okay with being alone. You may have to be open to fostering-to-adopt or doing some sort of trial adoption if your group is willing to work with you to find a dog that’s the right fit for your family.

It’s likely that any greyhound you bring into your home has NEVER been alone before. Even if you get one that has been fostered, it’s likely being fostered in a home with other greyhounds. So, while the dog may appear to have no separation anxiety when those humans go to work, it may have issues in your home when you leave and it’s completely alone for the first time in its life. A common solution to this problem is to get a second greyhound, but I’m not sure if that’s something you’d be willing to consider.

I don’t believe that your work schedule is really an issue. These dogs are pretty lazy and will sleep basically the entire day whether you’re home or not, so it’s actually a better breed for you than some with high energy requirements. You’ll just need to search for a “loner” hound or get two.

Thanks for the insight. Yeah, not sure I'm up for two dogs (although I had 3 dogs at one time but I was a much younger person then!!).

Several years ago when I was at Petsmart picking up dog food, they had a greyhound rescue group there and one of the foster moms was there. I specifically asked about being at work all day. The one dog she happened to be fostering was good with it. The foster mom lived in an apartment and worked most of the day and it was working out. Hopefully there will be one that might be a good match; however, I am going to be very clear about me not being able to do anything with a dog that has any separation issues. I really lucked out with my last shelter dog, which I went into that blindly. She was a very quiet, serious hound and had no issues being at home all day. Never was destructive, really well behaved for the most part. That was the first dog I ever owned like that so I know she wasn't the norm. The three dogs I had before her all had pretty significant issues when we were out of the house.

 

[Jennasis]

Of the three Greyhounds we had, none of them had separation anxiety issues at all. Of course I have known plenty of dogs of all breeds that have separation anxiety.

 

[BlueStarryHat]

Could you elaborate what you mean? Don’t all dogs need to be walked 3-4 times per day? Greyhounds tend to have a lower excercise need than other breeds.

Maybe it was only my nephew and his wife's schedule, Now that I'm thinking about it. They spoil him rotten, and he deserves it.

I just want to add regarding the leash-In Stanley's case, they once took him to a dog park on a beach surrounded by a fence, and when they removed his leash he took off at a *very* high rate of speed around the park. They were able to get to him and get him back on his leash. They said greyhounds can get a case of the "zoomies" if not on a leash when outside.

 

[crazelion]

With that Greyhound does not know meaning of be on time. My favorite saying we will get there sometime today. LOL