Product Description

“The next best thing to having an experienced Greyhound owner living with you.”
—Joan Belle Isle, President, Greyhound Project

“Anyone who reads this book and follows its guidance will have a happier, healthier dog and be a happier, more relaxed dog owner.”
—Hal and Karen Hawley, Greyhound Friends Northwest

The Greyhound has been celebrated in song and legend for thousands of years. Nowadays, Greyhounds are bred almost exclusively for racing. In the bad old days, prior to the 1980s, dogs that didn’t make the grade at the track, and those past their primes, were destroyed. According to official estimates, 60,000 of these noble, mild–mannered dogs were destroyed each year! Fortunately, a number of organizations now exist devoted to rescuing these unwanted dogs and placing them in good homes.

Thinking about adopting a retired racing Greyhound? Or maybe you’re already sharing your life with one of these charming animals. Either way, this friendly guide tells you everything you need to know to:

• Understand the Greyhound personality
• Find a retired racing Greyhound to adopt
• Choose the right ex–racer for you and your family
• Educate yourself and your retired racer
• Give your new pal the diet and exercise it needs
• Keep your dog healthy and happy for years to come

With plenty of good humor and straight–talk, Lee Livingood drawing on her forty–years of experience training adult rescue dogs to cover all the pros and cons of being a retired racing Greyhound owner, and she fills you in on:

• The amazing 8000–year history of the Greyhound
• Deciding whether an ex–racer is the right do for you and your family
• Physical and behavioral characteristics
• How to get a retired racer used to living in a home and be a companion
• Dealing with common behavioral and health problems
• Feeding, grooming, and exercising a Greyhound
• Fun things to do with your hound

Bursting with expert advice on all aspects of living with an ex–racer, Retired Racing Greyhounds For Dummies is must reading for anyone considering adoption or who’s already taken the leap.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #16503 in Books
• Published on: 2000-09-13
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

From the Back Cover
"A no–nonsense guide to the joys and pitfalls of adopting the retired racing Greyhound." Bruce Skinner, Editor in Chief, A Breed Apart Praise for Retired Racing Greyhounds For Dummies^® "The next best thing to having an experienced Greyhound owner living with you." —Joan Belle Isle, President, Greyhound Project "Anyone who reads this book and follows its guidance will have a happier, healthier dog and be a happier, more relaxed dog owner." —Hal and Karen Hawley, Greyhound Friends Northwest

Find out about your retired racing Greyhound's special needs

Get the lowdown on keeping your dog healthy and content Are you thinking about adopting a retired racing Greyhound, or are you already sharing your life with one? This fun and friendly book is bursting with expert advice on all aspects of owning an ex–racer: understanding the Greyhound personality, taking care of your new friend, teaching good manners, and much more.

Discover how to: Find a retired racing Greyhound to adopt Choose the right ex–racer for you Manage your new friend Educate yourself and your retired racer Maintain good health, proper exercise, and diet

Get smart! www.dummies.com Attention pet owners! Get free Dummies Daily^™ e–mail newsletters Sign up today for tips on dogs, cats, or birds Keep your pet healthy and happy — the Dummies Way^™

About the Author
Lee Livingood has been training adult rescue dogs for nearly 40 years. She lives with two adopted ex–racers, volunteers for her local Greyhound adoption group, and writes for Greyhound and other dog publications.

Customer Reviews

A helpful resource, good for dipping into
I have found this a very useful guide to owning a retired greyhound. Being new to greyhounds I needed something that was going to equip me with the basics and a little bit more detail where necessary, and it certainly did that. I am still dipping into it from time to time e.g. the other day I had to remove a tick and I instantly turned to this book to help me!

In places the American-isms can be a little annoying but if you are prepared to forgive these there is a lot of information on offer. The author is clearly someone who loves greyhounds, which comes across well in the book and is much nicer than reading a cerebral, factual book which doesn't convey a delight in these beautiful animals. For example I like her affectionate term "needlenoses".

I found some of the advice a bit contradictory to other sources I have read e.g. she says not to raise the food bowls off the ground as it may be more likely to contribute to bloat than just having them on the floor. Also she doesn't recommend worming unless the dog has been tested and proven to have worms. I have been told by vets that all dogs should be routinely wormed. Also there are some tick-borne diseases discussed which I don't think are relevant to dog owners in the UK.

Despite these things I really value this book and still refer to it on a regular basis.

I Heart Greyhounds
Owning rescued greyhounds for a while now, I suppose I am qualified to look at this book. I can't fault it. Like all dummies guides, it is not. It is well written, informative and extremly useful. The only fault I can lay at its doorstep is the over American bias. All useful contacts are over that side of the pond. There are many useful charities over this side that do sterling work for these wonderful and sometimes much abused animals. That aside a very helpful addition to the library. If you are thinking of getting a rescue greyhound it is a must purchase. You can then teach your dog to get upstairs. Rescue greyhounds don't know what stairs are for. As the author says there are many areas of training that are peculiar to these special dogs that you do need to be aware of. Include other long dogs, and Lurcher's in this statement.

An excellent book to read before you adopt!
I found this book really useful and informative about owning and training a greyhound. Having never owned a dog before I decided I would rescue a greyhound and have to admit I never thought it would be complicated! This book really helped me to settle my new girl in and deal with the day to day issues she had. It helped me to introduce her to the 2 cats, stairs, washing machines etc. all the things that you don't realise they have never encountered before. This book was recommended to me by a greyhound owner and I would recommend to anyone thinking of adopting one of these amazing dogs.