Planet Greyhound

If you have had thoughts lately about pet adoption and possibly bringing a Greyhound into your family, then this post might help you to understand the breed a little more and help you decide if they would be the pet for you. The question often asked is “Do Greyhounds make good  pets?” Hopefully you will find the answer to this question in our look at this marvelous animal. Greyhounds have many great qualities as a pet, they are very easygoing, intelligent, sensitive to other dogs and to humans, very loyal to their owners, brave and have an incredible lust and devotion to life in general. This dog learns quickly and has a lot of respect for its owner and other members of the household – being very loving towards children and not over-forceful with them.

Greyhounds are “sight hounds” and are able to see something as small as a squirrel from up to a half mile away. They are also, without question, the fastest dogs on earth, reaching top speeds of over 45 miles per hour in under four seconds.  Don’t let this impressive fact fool you though, Greyhounds are generally considered by their owners to be gentle, 45 mile per hour couch potatoes. They thoroughly enjoy being “slackers” and are never high strung or hyper, and they rarely allow any other animals to get their goat. Cool as the other side of the pillow, these sprinters are happy with as little as a 20 minute walk each day as the proper amount of exercise. You can also read through some of the previous posts made here and come to a decision if this wonderful breed is the one you want to share your life with. To me, it’s a no brainer…they are very calm & collected, they are the super models of the dog world and get lots of attention wherever they go, they do not smell like other dogs, do not eat a lot for their size and rarely ever bark.

Greyhounds are bred for speed, health, intelligence, and sociability. This combination makes them excellent house pets. They are, as mentioned above, clean and odor free, indoor dogs that don’t eat a lot nor require extensive exercise. They are very quiet dogs and will spend much of their time sleeping.  They are very content to follow you around wherever you go and love to go for car rides.

Greyhounds live to be about 12-15 years old, barring any accidents or illness. Racing Greyhounds are bred for health and speed and as such are not predisposed to genetic disorders like blindness, deafness, hip dysplasia, etc.

While not all greyhounds suffer from separation anxiety, a greyhound has been raised in a busy kennel and racing environment that requires extensive handling and they crave human company. Some greyhounds may get nervous and afraid if left alone. A greyhound must learn by experience that you will return, and that being alone in the house is safe. Not every dog suffers when left alone for short periods of time, and your dog may never have any problems, but it does show up with some greyhounds and you should be aware of it so if it does arise you will be prepared.

If you have an interest in adopting  a greyhound as a pet, you’ll find that there are a great many devoted fans of the breed who have done an amazing amount of work to save, nurture, and re-acclimate these stunning dogs for the retired life in your home. They are not big chewers, and they will most likely doze peacefully on the sofa while you go about your day away, greeting you drowsily when you return. Your male will be tall, at about 28 to 30 inches at the withers, and usually weigh 70 to 85 pounds. Females, a bit smaller, will measure around 26 to 28 inches and are usually in the 55 to 70 pound range. These size ranges can vary somewhat as there are some instances of  “large females and small males” that will occasionally fall outside their normal size range.

In my personal experience, looking into the eyes of a Greyhound is like looking into an “old soul”, there is just something special there that is hard to explain. You need to experience it for yourself!