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Posts Tagged ‘greyhound training’

The Greyhound breed is known for having the makings of a home pet: affectionate at one point, a couch potato and a heavy sleeper on the next. Most greys are quite satisfied with fetch or chase, and retired racers are known to act laidback and relaxed, which are all in contrast to their early years of daily racing. In accordance with greyhound dog training, new grey owners need to know right there at the rescue if their dog may need a muzzle, whether off-lead or on-lead and some may never experience off-lead because the urge to bolt is just too powerful. Owners may also need to check how the dog’s behavior may be influenced by its racing history, its level of prey drive, etc. Some dogs are fortunately cat trained, which mean these have low-prey drives and can do without a muzzle. A lot of owners have been able to train their dogs to recall via food bribes. These plans usually start with allowing the dog to have games and freedom of movement in enclosed areas such as basketball courts or tennis courts. Some six months later, dogs can go off-lead but under controlled conditions, which means making sure to have no access to main roads, choosing quiet country paths with no animal distraction, and so on. Be wary also of any notions of the dog as fully managed in the hands of a young child; in fact, these dogs have surprising bursts of strength. All it takes is the distraction of an attractive looking furry in order to send the dog to some rather irresistible pulling. A slightly built child is therefore not the best walker for a grey. Ultimately in greyhound dog training, greys cannot be classified that easily; each dog that catches your attention will need to be examined more closely. If you want your dog to come from a rescue, be clear and honest with your ideas. For example, be clear that you are capable of training the dog to be offlead sans a muzzle. A rescue with quality service and concern for the welfare of its wards will likewise be honest. With such a source of your future pet, be ready to wait for a while for the right dog.

1. If ever there is a large-dog breed that will misbehave, among the last to get suspected of mischief would be the sensitive and sweet-tempered greyhound. But no dog is perfect, and so if a greyhound does indeed get into trouble, for sure the dog did so due to extended confinement, lack of physical and mental exercise, boredom, and loneliness.

2. Lets begin with what greyhound training tells us. Chewing is a normal dog instinct that needs to be provided an outlet. At first, you will need to encourage and coax your dog to warm up to its toys. But until it can be trusted not to chew household articles, you will need to have your dog in the crate, if it is not eating, being played to, or eliminating.

3. NEVER give the dog rawhide or small toys that may fragment and choke it.

4. Many dogs like large toys that make squeaky noises. Ensure that the squeaker is embedded in the toy, and is not the stopper-type that may pop out unexpectedly.

5. Knowing which toy your dog likes is easy, since your dog will make its excitement obvious. Buy a bunch of the right ones and place them all over the house.

6. But what greyhound training toys are good for greys anyway? Nylabones or kongs loaded with peanut butter on the inside, or sterilized white bones that won’t break and splinter into shards are good.

Catching a dog in the act of chewing an off-limits article need to lead to a prompt, surprising (but not traumatizing) and firm No. Then gently ask your dog to pick up one of its toys. When your dog takes hold of the chew toy, thank and praise the dog.

7. Among the collars that only harm instead of help the dog are choke collars, or collars with metal prongs, or worse, electric shock collar.

8. Dog coats will help your dog a lot in keeping warm against cold weather. Get some special toothbrushes for teeth cleaning too.

9. The following are some stuff likely to round out the basics your hound needs: food and water bowls, and a food storage bin; wire crate; Dog Pillows or any firm large pillow; Mild shampoo and toothpaste (C.E.T.) can be bought at your vet; flea protection and-or flea and tick prevention;traveling mat for the dog to lay on; and stain, odor and spot removers.

The following article is about do’s and don’ts in the field of greyhound care and greyhound dog training. But a good thing to keep in mind is that not all those adopting will need this article; in fact, some do not have experience the usual issues at all! On the contrary, some are simply blown away by the breed’s simplicity, laidback temper, and quiet disposition.

But before anything else, potential grey owners need to confront the obvious that rehomed greys did not grow up in the so-called normal home setting, but instead consider a crate home during their active racing years. Indeed, practically all racers literally need to be introduced to home living, i.e. dealing with mirrors, stairs, and household noise.

But is there any way to know if a dog is feeling particularly stressed? Just some of the signals that a dog will send to say it is not relaxed is a dripping nose, diarrhea, sweaty paws, whining, panting and restlessness. But owners must not get bogged down by these details; keep working on gaining the dog’s trust, and in three to five days the dog’s stable personality will show, and it will trust you. The following ideas are the essentials in greyhound training.

1. Keep the lines of communication open with the Greyhound

If owners want to get better in taking care of their dog, they will need to understand how racers think and respond.

For example, a few trips to the dog’s rescue group will reveal that Greys tend to be skittish and wary of very new things in their environment, and to makes matters more complicated, rehomed greys are pressured to learn new things while living with their adopters. What owners can do is to present new experiences from positive and enriching angles.

When other dogs get frustrated, they turn noisy and restless; not so the Grey. It will turn rigid, watching. At this point when the dog refuses to absorb anything, an owner does well in backing off and giving the dog breathing space.

Greys have very sharp instincts, and may startle easily. A scared grey may bolt, and its adrenaline rush may make it do the worst, such as wiggling out of a collar and running into the next city for all its worth. The wisest thing when going out on walks is to get a properly fitted grey collar, plus a good leash.

2. Greyhounds will always be students.

The greyhound brain simply learns and absorbs something from each and every event in its day, whether it be a designated moment for training or not. All of the dog’s waking hours are chances to teach it to grow.

3. Owners must put up a winning relationship.

Training is of course, far beyond obedience and manners. At its core and heart, training is establishing a good relationship and keeping the lines of communication open.

Note that Greys learn a lot from a human’s actions and moods. If there’s a way to wear out the dog in the bad sense, it would be through harshness and through making the dog think you’re unhappy with it. A grey in statue mode is unhappy and is fed up with how things are.

And a last greyhound training note regarding canine sensitivity: especially malicious and unsavory events may leave a deep scar, so keep control over situations that may scare the dog.