Adopt A Greyhound Month on April, 2024: Easily frightened Greyhound?

April, 2024 is Adopt A Greyhound Month 2024. Adopt a Greyhound - Retired greyhounds need homes‎ Find adoption groups in your area.

I adopted my first greyhound when I was in the fifth grade. I convinced my parents to get a greyhound because of how many of them are killed after their racing careers end. I noticed in your post you said you adopted your Greyhound from a shelter. I live in Tennessee. You can not find Greyhounds in shelters here. There are many adoption agencies such as TAG (Tennessee Alliance for Greyhounds) that are here in Tennessee. Even if your Greyhound came from a loving home and wasn't mistreated or abused there, she was most certainly abused when she was a race dog. You will RARELY find an adult Greyhound that wasn't a race dog. Our Greyhound, Belle, was terrified of thunderstorms, bouncing balls, fly swatters, and pretty much everything else. When we first brought her home she wouldn't eat. We had to mix tuna fish in with her dog food to get her to eat. Now as time went one she got better about being scared of EVERYTHING. She was still timid and scared at times, but you can't erase the memories of the abuse she got while being a track dog. I would say that a combination of her being abused as a race dog, and coming into a new home have got her frightened. It probably put her back to square one. Like I said, it took us a while to get Belle to be able to be around people, and not freak out at everything, but with time she was a happy dog. Belle would still freak out during thunderstorms, and if someone threw a ball by her head, but that was NOTHING compared to how she was when we got her. You have to understand that Greyhounds are abused, starved, and pushed to their limit while racing. And once they are not performing well, they are usually killed... unless they are rescued by a group like TAG. Just keep rewarding her for good behavior, and make sure she gets lots of attention. That is what we did with Belle, and it worked. You might get another dog if you think that is one of the reasons she is so scared and timid. Depending on how long she was with her previous owner, it could just be your greyhound is in sensory overload. Going from racing to a new home to a shelter and then to you. So, if you just stick with the rewarding her and giving her special attention, you might see a great change. Granted it won't happen overnight. We got Belle when she was 2 1/2 years old. That means she was not a "good track dog." They are allowed to race Greyhound until they are 5 years old. So, like I said earlier, the younger they are when they come out of racing... the more they were probably abused due to the fact that they were "not good racing dogs." I hope you and your Greyhound do well, and can get over this issue. I wish you both the best of luck!

For everyone who adopted a greyhound?

I am on my third adopted greyhound and have had four fosters. This last one that I adopted is the only one that I've had that is not housebroken. She still has accidents in the house but it's only when I'm not home. I started crating her but discontinued because I thought she was fine. I have only caught her once, which I believe is the problem, but she seems to be getting better. I fostered her for two months and have only owned her for one month now. I hope it clicks in. It makes me angry when she does it but I am at a loss as to what to do when i can't catch her, short of crating her.

Now on to the white furniture. Just train her not to get on it. Only one hound out of all the ones I've owned/fostered would sneak up when I wasn't looking (when we were sleeping) but he was a bounce and had been owned before and allowed on the furniture. I don't think that will be a problem for you.

Good luck. They're the absolute best!

Greyhounds??

Whether or not a greyhound will be good with other pets doesn't have one thing to do with whether or not they were racers!! I don't know where people get their weird ideas!

I've got 3 rescued racers and have fostered quite a few as well and all of them have been great with people, big and small, as well as large dogs. There are a few who aren't good with small dogs, and there are greys who will never be cat safe.

If you have pets in your home, all you need to do is tell the group you're adopting from what you have. The rescue groups are really, really good about matching the right dog to the right home. The dogs are tested in foster homes as to their ability to get along with kids, cats and other dogs before they're adopted.

Of my 3, both males are great with absolutely anything and everything that's not aggressive, while my female, who has a higher prey instinct, is very trainable with small dogs, but will forever have to be kept away from cats.

Good luck with your search for the right greyhound for you. You won't regret bringing one into your home - they make wonderful companions.