Trying to adopt a rescued greyhound

[Duncan]

So, the fam & I drove to a greyhound rescue yesterday to check out some retired racers. We got familiar with two who are OK with cats, and socialized them with our dog. One of them seemed nice enough, but didn't really warm up to us. The other one seemed really happy to interact with us, and he gently licked my daughter's face and 'nitted' (nibbled) on our dog - that's a good thing. We should know by later this week if we can have him. He's being fixed on Friday (I believe), so it'll be a while before he's here.

The guy ran 85 races, which is kind of cool. Of course on the drive home, Bebe's kids said "Let's make it 86." Nice. I jogged with him at the rescue, and he was nice enough not to laugh at me . Anyway, in a few weeks, this guy might be introduced to a life of chaos: tummy rubs, jelly beans, not eating the cats, walks, whole slow-cooked chicken legs & thighs, chew toys & Halloween costumes. Of course, we'll have to go slowly, as he might not even understand stairs & windows, yet.

[toys2cool]

awesome, they're really sweet..my aunt had one who raced here at the Flagler dog track

[Hector]

The greyhound race business can be really cruel and shady, once the dogs don't turn in a profit, they are discarded like an old deck of cards, that's why so many are abandoned, it's so infuriating and sad.

Glad you are planning on adopting one.

[wayne foundation 07]

What a great thing you want to do!

[thunderbolt]

Bravo, Punkin aproves!!

[Duncan]

Thanks, all. This could be an interesting experience. I read on one chat board that some of these former racers don't know to drink from a water bowl. You have to leave plastic or metal buckets of water around for them, b/c that's what they're used to at the track. I hope we're bright enough to adapt to his needs.

[Duncan]

...and, he's here. We picked him up from the rescue yesterday. He was castrated on Thur, so he's obviously still a bit tender down there, but otherwise he's doing OK. He's drinking and eating fine - actually, he's ravenously hungry - and gets along well with our other dog. As we'd been warned, he doesn't understand windows yet and is terrified of stairs...doesn't like tiled (slippery) floors,etc., but he'd been exposed to children in the past which is good. He's a very chill dog. If only he were 100% housebroken, he'd be another perfect dog (like our other one). C'mon peer pressure...

[Bill]

That's great to hear. He'll figure stuff out by watching the other dog.
I'm headed out in a few to go check out a boxer near Orlando, wish me luck.

[Duncan]

That's great to hear. He'll figure stuff out by watching the other dog.
I'm headed out in a few to go check out a boxer near Orlando, wish me luck.

Cool. Our other dog is probably 1/2 boxer, and he's a lot of fun.

[Bizarro Amy]

Congrats on the new arrival. I'm always glad to hear about dogs being rescued and given a good home. I've met a few former racers before and they seem like great dogs. Post his pic soon!

That's great to hear. He'll figure stuff out by watching the other dog.
I'm headed out in a few to go check out a boxer near Orlando, wish me luck.

Good luck!