ross blackford Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 :D, On a lighter note I've gone and bought another dog. My last one we had to have put to sleep 11 years ago and Mum had grown so attached to him that she said "No more dogs." Well, Mum passed away in June and I've been thinking about it ever since. I did have in mind a border collie but my good friend disagreed with that. She reckoned a greyhound would suit me better so a couple of weeks ago we went to the RSPCA pound at Rutherford and had a look at a couple of greyhounds; one a male and the other a female. Both had finished their racing careers and were looking for a new home. The male was much more confident around us so I came home and thought about it for a couple of days and then went back to meet him again and we chose each other. At the moment I'm looking at him lying full length of a 3 seater lounge sofa on his back sound asleep. He looks so funny with his back legs up against one armrest and his front legs up against the other. He's one long dog that's for sure. His track name was Aussie Jack so I jsut call him Jack. He's about 4 years old and has a great temperament. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kevan Vogler Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 (edited) Sounds great! Bravo to you for taking a shelter dog too. :thumbsup:/> I wish you and Jack many years of each others' company. Edited December 12, 2013 by Kevan Vogler Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rustywelder Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 (edited) Good on ya mate! I had a track rescue grey hound when I was younger. They are great dogs! If Jack is anything like Hunter(we kept his track name) was he should be one of the most laid back dogs you'll ever own. the only thing I would recomend is, take him every couple of weeks to a nice fenced in area and let him run. They can get a little twitchy otherwise. Here's to many good years with Jack! Edited December 12, 2013 by rustywelder Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dnl42 Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 ... At the moment I'm looking at him lying full length of a 3 seater lounge sofa on his back sound asleep. He looks so funny with his back legs up against one armrest and his front legs up against the other. He's one long dog that's for sure. ... Outstanding! Sounds like he's very comfortable already. My wife and I have discovered the joy of rescue dogs; we have two GSDs now and they're just amazing. Think about going back to get that girl. Dogs are pack animals, and do so much better when there's more than one. And do keep in mind rustywelder's suggestion on letting them run. It will be a joy to watch, and then you get a tired dog, a.k.a., a well-behaved dog. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
11bee Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 Well done! Every one of my dogs have come from shelters and every one of them have been absolutely wonderful companions. Some of my friends have greyhounds, they are great dogs, just keep him active! I hope you will be very happy with your new friend. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jinxter13 Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 Very very cool, I wish you and Jack many years of peace and happiness. I love to watch greyhounds run, and not on a track, but on a wide open acreage, just having fun chasing rabbits, and such; I know I know it's not fun for the rabbit, but he knows the place. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MacStingy Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 Sounds great! Favour us with a pic or two. Cheers Paul Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted December 13, 2013 Author Share Posted December 13, 2013 :D, I'll try to do that tomorrow Paul. I have some pics of him flat out like a lizard drinking on the lounge. I reckon he's a great big lounge lizard. There's one shot of him where the flash from my mobile phone camera is caught in his eyes making them glow green. Some of the female nurses at work have nicknamed him "Demon Dog" because of this. :lol: , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
peebeep Posted December 13, 2013 Share Posted December 13, 2013 When our kids were little our childminders had a greyhound. Laziest dog I ever met, but so well tempered I never had any qualms about her being with my kids. I think you will find your hound a very good companion. If we were thinking about getting another dog (we have cats at the moment), a retired greyhound would be top of the list. peebeep Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted December 13, 2013 Author Share Posted December 13, 2013 :D, Funny your say that about your childminders' greyhound peebeep. The girls at the shelter said he wouldn't be suitable for soemone with small children but on our way home we stopped at a petshop to try to buy him a muzzle. Here in NSW all greyhounds must be muzzled when walking in public areas and there is a certain type of legally approved muzzle for greyhounds. If I get caught walking him without the muzzle I face a big fine. Anyway it was a hot day so we got him out of the car and took him inside the shop where all the staff wanted to meet him and say "hello". A lady with her son about 7 or 8 years old and a little girls about 3 years old walked into the shop and she went straight up to him, said "hello puppy" with absolutely no fear at all and he gave her nose a little lick and she then turned to her mother and said "Mummy, he likes me." Of course I had him on a tight rein but he showed no agressiona at all and just stood there looking her in the eye. Neither was afraid and Mum was amazed. So were the rest of us. Long story short, I still don't have the muzzle and have been advised by petshop staff to go to the local greyhound racing track and that's likely the only place I'll be able to get one. Just a funny little story about another greyhound that I heard at work the other afternoon. One of the receptionists in the Emergency Department has a neighbour who owns 2 greyhounds that are still racing. He entered one of them in a four dog race for a bit of a joke and it started at 54:1. He knew it had not a snowflake's chance in hell of winning so he didn't bother to even put a dollar on it. The race started and this dog was coming a long last and he was thinking, "glad I never backed him, even though he is my dog". Next thing the unbelievable happened. The other three dogs fell over and his dog jumped over them and won the race. He went home kicking himself and when he got there his wife kicked him a bit more for not having any faith in his own dog. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted December 13, 2013 Author Share Posted December 13, 2013 Rustywelder, I know a place just beyond the shelter at Rutherford where there's lots of acres and lots of rabbits to chase. Only thing is I'd have to take him there in the evening after flyng is finished for the day. A kilometre or so beyond the shelter is the Royal Newcastle Aero Club's airfield. Maybe he could make a welcome dent in the rabbit population there. They have dug a zillion holes in the beautiful lawns so maybe I should approach the club's board and see what they think of the idea of giving him a good run say once a week. I wonder what their answer would be. They'd probably think it's not such a bad idea but then we have to think of the greenies and animal liberationists etc. There's always soemone with an axe to grind around airfields. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rustywelder Posted December 13, 2013 Share Posted December 13, 2013 Ross, that sounds like heaven to a greyhound! Just be mindful, they can be a bit thick and get pretty bad tunnel vision when locked on to some soon to be unfortunate rabbit. As for the not being good with kids warning, in my experiance they are fine so long as the kids are not jumping about and/or tormenting it. They can get a bit snappy if some little rug rat wakens it from it's well earned beauty rest. Again good on ya for taking one in from the track. I'm sure you will absolutly love every minute! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Slartibartfast Posted December 13, 2013 Share Posted December 13, 2013 My brother owned a greyhound. Really nice dog that was great with children except the one time a toddler stepped on its feet, whereupon the dog growled and boxed the kid with its muzzle. Only bad thing about the dog was hemophilia. Those ex-racing dogs are very inbred. His long thin-skinned tail kept getting cut when he would wag it against walls, then we'd find blood sprayed everywhere. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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