The Cult of Greyhound
Were you aware that by adopting a greyhound you were inadvertently joining a ‘cult’?Tthe Miriam Webster Dictionary definition of cult includes:
- A great devotion to a person, idea, object, movement or work
- The object of such devotion
- A…group of people characterized by such devotion
Welcome to the Cult of Greyhound!
Many who adopt greyhounds seek out others with the same devotion. they accost anyone in the street they see with a greyhound. They’ll talk poop, pee and petting. they travel many miles to attend Greyhound Gatherings and Reunions around the country just to hang out with other greyhound lovers. (You don’t want to miss attending Greyhound Gathering – Kanab. Yes, shameless plug). What other dog breed could get hang with hundreds of their compatriots and behave so well? Only Greyhounds, of course.
As with any cult, greyhound adoption has it’s own specific jargon. Welcome to our world.
Gang’s booklet – Why Does My Hound Do THAT?? – (on Kindle and our web site) goes into more greyhound behavior details.
Greyhound Behavior
- Rooing – singing to the heavens/aliens/each other/fire trucks
- Chitting/Chattering – clicking of teeth when happy
- Nitting – little love nips with teeth – like eating corn
- Happy Taile – whirling tail like a helicopter propeller – usually when you walk in the door, or say ‘car’ or pick up the leash
- Cockroach/Roaching – sleep on backs with legs up in air
- Smile – pulling back lips and showing teeth
- Velcro – leaning against you
- Trance – rubbing against bushes in a serene, Zen state
- Play Bow – butt in air, front legs crouched. Ready to play!
- Couch Potato – lays on couch most of the day
- Lurcher – greyhound mix
- Staghound – greyhound mixed with another sight hound
- Blue – a gray-colored greyhound
- Parti-colored – a white greyhound with spots/splotches of another color
- Cow Dog – a black and white greyhound
- Heart Dog – a greyhound who has stolen your heart
- Bounce – a greyhound who has been returned from a home
People Terms
- Foster – taking in a greyhound temporarily until he finds his forever home
- Foster Flunky – fostering greyhounds, and keeping them instead of letting them go to another home
- Chipping – you can’t have just one – just like potato chips
Quick Facts
- Retired racers are usually between two and five years old, and will live to 12-14 years of age.
- Males are usually 26 to 30 inches high. Females are 23 to 26 inches high.
- Males are usually between 65 and 85 pounds. Females are between 50 and 65 pounds.
- Greyhounds come in many colors — brindle, black, white, fawn or a combination of these colors.
Swimming And Pools
Greyhounds have a very small percentage of body fat, so when you ask them to swim, they sink. I have seen a few greyhounds learn to like swimming, and most will valiantly dog paddle when you’ve taken them over their head, and then slowly sink or turn over on their sides in the water.
Be very careful with your greyhound and pools. They have never seen one, and won’t understand instinctively that the blue stuff is water. They’ll be dashing around your yard, and suddenly — plop — right into the water. And they will sink, and you will have to jump in to save them. So introduce them to the pool and watch them carefully the first few times you’re in the yard playing near it.
Names
Greyhounds have formal track names, and kennel names. When you get your greyhound, if he comes with a name you don’t like, you can usually give him another name without a problem. You just have to use it continually until he gets the idea.
Wounds
Greyhounds have no protection of fur or fat for injuries, so they tend to seem more accident prone. But they are not babies. They will still run and play even with an injury. So just keep an eye on them when they are running and playing hard.
Also, buy bentadyne and use it instead of peroxide to clean a small wound. Be sure to dilute it until it looks like weak tea. A triple antibiotic ointment is also used once you’ve cleaned out the wound with bentadyne. You should, of course, take your greyhound to the vet for big wounds.
Here’s my goriest wound story. My greyhound saw a cat under a bush and decided to try and pounce on it. Instead he pounced right into a stick that stuck about an inch straight into his eye. It was nighttime, and we lived an hour and a half from the vet. So I pulled out the three-inch stick (I was sure it had punctured his brain, if not the eye itself), kept my hand over his eye (thinking the eye ball would fall out if I didn’t) and started driving the hour and half to the vet. I was speeding and got pulled over by a cop. He thought my dog looked fine, as he was standing in the front seat with one eye closed. Then I showed him the bloody stick I’d pulled from my dog’s eye. Happy ending to story — eye membrane had parted to allow stick to enter with minor damage, so dog is 100% OK.
Guard Dogs
They are not guard dogs. Once in a while they will bark when someone approaches the door. But more likely they are fast asleep on something soft. They are not an aggressive breed and will not attack any person. However, most people will think twice about entering a home that has a dog the size of a greyhound, with that long of a nose and those long teeth. And if you get one that smiles at strangers, well, you’ve got your guard dog!
Pack Rats
Some greyhounds like to collect your items and take them outside or put them in their beds. They seldom damage the items, they just collect them. So if you’re missing something, check with your greyhound!
Sweating
Greyhounds sweat through their paws and nose. If your greyhound has overexerted himself while running, hosing down their feet only will help them get cool quicker.
Petting Your Greyhound
Greyhounds loved to be massaged everywhere, but particularly on their necks and butts. Additionally, they like their noses rubbed — top and bottom. After they’ve eaten, they will often try to clean off their noses by rubbing them on your furniture, blankets or you. The more you pet them, the quicker they will bond to you.
Barking & Whining
Greyhounds are not barkers. If you have a barker, then you probably have a more insecure dog and he is barking because something has frightened him. Now, whining is another story. Greyhounds communicate with you by whining. Whining to be let in, to eat, to play, to get up on the bed — you name it and they’ll talk (whine) to you about it.
Where They Put Their Noses
Beside counter tops, other dog’s behinds and anything else that smells good, when greyhounds approach people their noses are right about crotch level. So they have been known to stick their noses in people’s crotches. They’re not being bad, just friendly.
Products
The Internet has so many greyhound sites, and they all have products and information. Greyhound Gang offers Get Up & Go joint supplements like Glucosamine, Chondroitin, MSM, Vitamin C, CMO, Prozyme, Wobenzyme, Salmon Oil and more. We also have T-shirts, booklets, decals, hats and more. 100% of our Greyhound Gang products goes to rescue more hounds. Greyhound Shopping Mall is a comprehensive list of greyhound vendors, with the percentage going back to greyhounds. Greyhound Gang Links showcase vendors that have generously donated to ouron-line auction and Greyhound Gathering.
Items You Need Before You Get Your Greyhound Home
- Something very soft and nestable for them to sleep on — dog bed, big blankets, sleeping bag
- Leash — 4 or 6 feet, nylon
- Food
- Elevated dog bowls — can buy them or put the bowls on a box or buckets
- Supplement to add to their food for their coat
- Rawhide Bones for them to chew on
- Toys for them to play with
- Lots of love
Congratulations on being a smart and savvy person and adopting the best pet!