A guide · Shoot the Dog, Volume Four
Adopting a greyhound: seven families on life after the track
If you are thinking about adopting a greyhound, you have probably read the adoption group's notes. They are useful. But it can help just as much to hear from families a few years in, describing the dog asleep on their couch.
Shoot the Dog, Volume Four has seven greyhound pages (eight dogs, since Summer and Kye share one). Here is what their families wrote.
Johnny: retired, and happy about it
Johnny is "a sweet, gentle giant" who will stick his head out for a pat "to any willing hand available". His page describes the change most adopters hope for:
Since retiring from his racing career, Johnny prefers a life of relaxation and snoozing on the couch.
He loves his daily walks, "leaving no tree un-sniffed", although "he does become tired quite easily and needs a long sleep afterwards." Best of all, Johnny "is so happy his mum adopted him and gave him a comfy bed".
Amy: sleeping, sleeping and sleeping
Amy is "a real 'people-dog'", and her page has the most honest description of a greyhound's day we have read: "Her days are spent sleeping, sleeping and… sleeping! But once walk time rolls around, she will let you know."
Give her a good ear scratch and she will be "chattering and groaning in pure delight". One warning from her family: "Don't leave the car door open though, she will want to go for a ride, and not even her favourite treat (cheese!) will get her out of there!"
Cindy and Morty: out and about
Cindy, "a cheeky three-year-old rescue Grey", loves "collecting pats at the local cafe where everyone knows her name."
Morty's parents adopted him "at a Greyhound Adoption Program (GAP) adoption day in October 2017". He "loves going to doggy daycare, cafes, car shows, and even loves the vet", and is "kind and tolerant with puppies, and gives space to those who need it."
Summer and Kye: teaching the foster hounds
Summer and Kye, in the photo above, are "rescue Greyhounds who are now well and truly settled into pet life." They go camping most weekends, and they welcome the foster hounds who stay with their family "through Greyhound Rescue Victoria, teaching them the pleasures of the good/spoilt life."
Summer "does zoomies on the couch, and spends half her time roaching (sleeping upside down)." If you adopt a greyhound, you will probably see roaching too.
Penny: a new vocation
Penny "has left behind the days of running around the track". These days, "She donates her blood to other dogs in need and visits the mental health ward at the local hospital, bringing a smile and patient ear to those in need." (If that sounds familiar, Roo the Ridgeback mix is a blood donor too.)
Hank: who adopted whom
Hank is "a bit of Class Clown" with "a winning smile". His page ends with a line many greyhound families would recognise:
His Fur Mum believes that the day Hank came into her life, it was he that adopted her and she can not remember what life was like before.
What these seven pages suggest
Reading them together, a few things come up again and again:
- Expect a lot of sleep. Johnny, Amy and Summer all spend much of their day resting, and their families clearly love them for it. - Walks still matter. Johnny, Amy, Summer and Kye all have walks on their pages, and Amy will make sure you do not forget. - They can be very social. Cafes, daycare, car shows and hospital visits all appear on these pages. - Other dogs can help. Summer and Kye show new foster hounds the ropes, and Johnny lets his little dog cousins boss him around.
Every family photographed for Shoot the Dog paid a $100 participation fee, and all of it went directly to an animal rescue group. Where the $100 went names the five rescues.