Some greyhounds will live very contentedly in a house with cats and other small animals and some will not. It really depends on the individual greyhound and how much time the owner is prepared to spend training them. Some greyhounds, like many other dog breeds, will chase cats, the difference being that a greyhound is more likely to catch one. We assess each greyhound to ensure only ones we consider cat trainable are placed with cats. However, your hound is cat trainable – not cat trained! That part is up to you and will not happen overnight. Some hounds adjust quicker than others, so it can be a long process.

Greyhounds are usually very good with children. A greyhound will normally walk away from any unwanted attention. However children should be taught to respect any dog’s space and it is a good idea to make your greyhound’s bed into a no go area for young children. We temperament test each greyhound to find which dogs particularly enjoy the company of children.

Generally greyhounds thrive on the companionship of other dogs as they are used to living with many other greyhounds in the kennel environment. This means they have a strong sense of pack order and will work out who is pack leader in your home environment. Problems usually only occur when you have two dogs of the same sex and who are of similar status in the pack. This can easily be avoided by choosing a dog and a bitch. However if you are keen on having two dogs of the same sex then we can usually match a greyhound who will fit in with your pack.

Some of our greyhounds spend around 4 weeks in a foster home, during which time they are taught about the domestic environment. This includes housetraining therefore most dogs will be fully housetrained before being rehomed. However major changes in their routine can result in a few toileting accidents, these soon diminish as long as the owner remains calm and understanding.

Greyhounds are one of the oldest dog breeds and therefore suffer relatively few ailments. They can be susceptible to tooth decay when older, but this can be minimised by feeding plenty of bones and teeth cleaning treats earlier in life. Occasionally they may have suffered an injury when racing which could lead to arthritis when older; you will be advised of any injuries we are aware of.

Your greyhound will have been used to life in kennels, where they will have been woken by noise. They can sleep very deeply (sometimes with their eyes appearing to be open) and if you wake them by touch, it can startle them. This can cause them to snap or growl. How can you avoid this? Make sure that you wake them by noise – clapping or calling their name before you get to their bed. 

This is why you should NEVER allow children to jump or fall on or push your hound when they are resting.

We suggest you take your dog to obedience classes, that way you will be taught how to control your dog off the leash in appropriate areas. Greyhounds enjoy sprinting and are out of voice range very quickly, therefore you must be constantly aware of any dangers. We recommend that greyhounds are never let off leash anywhere near traffic as they have little road sense. Bear in mind that most greyhounds enjoy a good chase and while this is great fun amongst other greyhounds it can be very intimidating to smaller dogs so please exercise discretion when letting your greyhound off lead and choose somewhere where they are unlikely to encounter smaller dogs at play. We also recommend they are muzzled when off leash in public.

Yes! Greyhounds are affectionate, intelligent and sociable. Thousands of years of breeding have resulted in what the greyhound is today – fast and good tempered!