Below are a few pics taken at the “Show Me Center” in the Greyhound Pets of America “Meet & Greet” area. This event was in conjunction with the “Home & Garden Show” held in Cape Girardeau, Mo. the weekend of March 16 – 18
As usual, the dogs were a big hit and several people picked up applications and brochures.
Ok, on to the photos!!
Wow, what a wonderful turnout we had today for our monthly Meet & Greet at the Petco store in Carbondale, Il.
There were 20 hounds in attendance and they were all being their usual gorgeous selves and showing everyone why they make such outstanding additions to a household. It was an absolutely beautiful day and the dogs were busy greeting people both in and out of the store. It’s such a treat to see the little kids pet and play with these gentle souls. We also got to see “Taco” and her human Keith, she is such a sweetheart and Keith relayed to us how adopting her was the absolute right thing to do and is the perfect dog for him.
I could go on and on, but I’ll let you off easy and just post some pics for you!
Greyhounds are a breed of canine that happen to be slim, tall, very muscular and elegant-looking which have short hair and are available in colors of fawn, brindle, black, white, red, or grey and many combinations of those colors. With the ongoing help of rescue groups and dedicated volunteers, they are turning out to be unique and wonderful household pets. There are lots of amazing characteristics about greyhounds that make them appealing to pet owners.
Beneficial temperament
Greyhounds are very polite, gentle, sweet and loving dogs. They are really not recognized to possess any aggression concerns, which make them beneficial around any individual in your household including, other family pets, young children as well as the elderly. Owners really should socialize these dogs to prevent any timidity and fearfulness in to the future. With suitable training and proper care, greyhounds will turn out to be the dream household dog.
Do not require much physical exercise
Considering that greyhounds are bred for running, some people assume that they need several hours of physical exercise to discharge their energy. However, greyhounds only need to be walked a few times per week, like most other dogs. Permitting them to run around inside a fenced yard will probably be plenty of exercise for them. Just do not forget that greyhounds have to be on the leash when not in a fenced area because they can be prone to chasing smaller creatures. Indoors, greyhounds are often known as couch potatoes and therefore are not as hyperactive as you would possibly think.
Adaptable to any indoor setting
An incredible thing about greyhounds is the fact that they are able to adapt to any setting. You’ll be able to place these dogs in a major home or even a little apartment and they will do very well. These dogs are very sensitive to pressure, so it is important to keep their setting free of stress, which includes heated arguments or fights. As long as they are in a peaceful and loving environment, these dogs will thrive in almost any indoor setting. An added bonus is the fact that greyhounds usually do not bark often, so they are ideal to have around even if you have close-by neighbors.
Easy to groom
Grooming for canines can turn out to be a demanding job for home owners. Luckily, greyhounds, as a result of their short hair, tend not to have to have day-to-day grooming. These canines have one coat of hair, which means that they do not shed much and have little to no “doggy odor”. This can minimize the volume of work that house owners need to place in to their dogs. A bath every 6 to 12 months is sufficient to keep your greyhound clean and smelling fresh. (Try that with most other breeds and I guarantee your house will smell like an outhouse)
All round, greyhound puppies can make ideal companions for you personally and any fellow member of your respective household. These canines are incredible pets who have wonderful personalities to match their elegant looks. If these very good characteristics fit everything you want in a canine, then the greyhound would be the perfect addition to your home!
The greyhound has a larger heart and set of lungs than any other dog. This allows it to circulate more blood and oxygen through its system when running. The stride is often referred to as a double suspension gallop when running “full out”. This is because the dog’s paws hit the ground twice for every cycle of steps it takes. The spine is very flexible, allowing the dog to lurch and jump quite high too.
About 25,000 race dogs are retired every year. The dogs can live (on average) 12 to 14 years (one ex racer lived to 20) and are one of the most long-lived big dogs around. Their racing careers span approximately two to four years of before they are retired, so you can see there are many years of companionship left in this wonderful breed.
The dog is very aerodynamic due to the thin fur coat it has. It is a short haired dog with a very thin skin that can be easily ruptured. This is the reason the dog is often muzzled in races, and not due to any aggression as most people think. The dogs are actually one of the most non-aggressive breeds around and most prefer to avoid any confrontations.
The dog’s thin skin means that it is highly susceptible to environmental poisons and medications. They can be toxic to the dog, even when the medication is a dog flea medication. The paws also can absorb lawn chemicals, which can kill it, so it should be kept off of any grass that has been treated.
The dog is more like a cat than a ferocious guard dog. Despite its size, it will sleep upside down on your couch (roaching) and likes to be close to its owners at all times. It can suffer from separation anxiety, particularly if it is a former race dog. They are not used to being without people or other greyhounds around. Some will also collect small items to keep for itself and these can include your children’s toys, the remote control, or any food left out on the counter. The dog is so quiet and graceful, you may not even notice when it takes off with these things.
A retired greyhound can make an ideal house dog. The bark has been (for the most part) bred out of the dog, so it is usually very quiet. It loves to hang around the couch and be a part of a family. It easily adapts to its new life of leisure and needs no more than a couple of good walks a day and a nice place to run, full out, at least every couple of weeks or so…especially if they are still young.
Saturday 2/25/12 was our monthly rescued greyhound get together, also called a “Meet & Greet” at the Cape Girardeau, Mo. Petco location.
We use these Meet & Greets to familiarize people with what rescued greyhounds are like by making our own rescued and adopted dogs available for people to get acquainted with. The people, especially the kids, love it…and so do the greyhounds. The dogs are absolutely thrilled to see their “greyt” friends (other greyhounds) when they arrive and are also delighted and want to meet everyone else who comes in the door. They just cannot get enough of meeting new people!
We had a good turn out with 6 GPA members and 9 greys in attendance. There seemed to be a lot of serious interest in our program and many people picked up information in order to do their homework on what we’re all about and what these wonderful dogs have to offer. Our next M & G will be at the Carbondale, Il. Petco from 1:00 to 4:00 pm on March 10th.
Below are some photos from the 2/25/12 event…enjoy!
The day is drawing nearer that we will have to turn our foster greyhound girl Sunset over the the young man who will be giving her a forever home. This will be bittersweet as she has adapted well to our family and is a darling girl, and it’s impossible not to form an attachment to these wonderful “babies”. The whole idea though in taking on this task, was to prepare her for her forever home and also for her to have some time to recover from her medical procedures. We will miss her very much, but we are so happy she will be going to someone who wants her and will no doubt fall in love with her as we have.
Halloween is upon us and that usually means the weather is getting cooler (at least in this neck of the woods…Southern Illinois) and cooler weather means it’s time to start breaking out the greyhound coats and other gear to help our greyhounds stay warm and dry.
You may be saying, “I have had lots of dogs and I never put coats and things like that on them and they did just fine”.
That may be true, but greyhounds are not “regular dogs”, they have less fat to insulate them from temperature extremes and they also have very thin, light fur compared to other dogs, even other canines with short fur. As stated above, they have virtually no fat to insulate them, no undercoat in their fur, so give them a break and get them a coat for the upcoming winter months.
The breed, however, can vary in their sensitivity to temperature changes and coats made to fit your hound will ensure your dog is able to cope.
A good warm, waterproof winter coat is an absolute must have. To deny such a sensitive dog this basic item is cruel and granted your dog may not freeze to death when outside for short periods, but it will nevertheless be very uncomfortable without the appropriate attire.
Don’t be the one that’s seen out running around dragging your poor shivering greyhound(s) around in the dead of winter with no protection from the cold.
It appears to this observer that PetFest 2011 was a big success. We, from GPA, had a great (greyt!) turnout of our greyhounds and other rescue/adoption organizations were also there with their dogs. Everything from pit bulls, labs, border collies, boxers, the ever popular “loveable mutt” and many more of practically every type, size and description.
There were so many wonderful, beautiful animals there looking for homes and I’m not just speaking of greyhounds, I’m speaking of all kinds of beautiful animals that desperately, through no fault of their own, need forever homes and the main culprit in this scenario is indiscriminate breeding.
Except for very select circumstances, there is no reason why anyone should ever buy a dog, there are just too many already available, from just weaned puppies to senior citizens. Buying dogs just perpetuates the already perverse world of puppy mills and back yard breeders and makes an already bad problem, worse.
Okay, with that rant out of my system, lets get back to a more positive note, and that is a “thumbs up” to all of the wonderful people who are devoted to helping stop this absurdity, from the people at Busch Pet Products & Care who organized PetFest 2011, all of our awesome volunteers at GPA (Cape) and everyone else from all of the other pet rescue organizations, product and service vendors and all of the people who came out in support of this cause.
That’s it… Go look at some pics of this event in the links above!!
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If you click on the “Greyhound Pics” link in the menu above, you will be able to see some recent photos, including the Rustle Hill Winery “GPA Meet & Greet” on 10/15/11
That’s all I wanted to say for now……enjoy!!
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