Question about trusting your dog to run free for exercise ...

[Giselle]

Greyt advice by all but I just wanted to add to the whole greyhound thing: most American greyhounds owners are vehemently against letting their dogs off-lead in unfenced areas. We've seen FAR too many cases of lost/hurt/killed dogs. Trust is a very deadly disease. When people say their greys have solid recalls, I invite them to let their dogs lure course, wait 5 seconds (since that it usually one's reaction time), and recall their dogs. I would eat my arm if the dog came back.

On that note, I would also like to add that many English greyhound owners routinely let their dogs off-lead. I assume it's a regional thing. And FWIW, I walk my other dog off lead. It's a matter of training, breed characteristics, and the environment itself.

[Canis-Lupess]

I'm in the UK and many greyhound owners here, mostly racing greyhound owners, don't let their dogs off lead for fear of them injuring themselves mainly but also because they are often really aggressive towards other dogs that might pass by with their owners.

My dad owns and races greyhounds although I have very little to do with it all. I don't like what happens to many of them once their racing careers are over.
I know he sometimes lets his off, mainly when he wants them to have a run and one person holds them and he walks off over the field and then he shouts them and the other person lets the dogs go. They always run straight to him and then he puts them back on lead again.
He'd only allow them to run free on a nice level flat field though or up a slope that doesn't have humps and potholes etc.... Anywhere with humps and bumps would be off limits for running around and he has to get them on lead if any other dogs come into view. He also keeps them on lead if the ground is too hard...say in the middle of summer when there has been no rain for a while and the ground is all hard and dry.

On occasion, he does take them to this really large flat beach. Race horses are trained there etc......it's a couple of miles from the sand dunes to the sea when the tide is out. He lets the dogs off there. I went with him on one occasion.

[borzoimom]

Its highly unusual for a sighthound to be aggressive towards other dogs- they will chase a small animal, but not aggression. However- I have heard many times that retired racers, having been around nothing BUT other greys, have a hard time accepting that a dog can look so different from them. Usually however- this is manifest in shyness not aggression.

[GreyhoundGirl]

Its highly unusual for a sighthound to be aggressive towards other dogs- they will chase a small animal, but not aggression. However- I have heard many times that retired racers, having been around nothing BUT other greys, have a hard time accepting that a dog can look so different from them. Usually however- this is manifest in shyness not aggression.

Ditto. Greyhounds are around other greys their whole lives, they are anything but dog aggresive.

[Alysser]

My dog is perfect offlead. She knows recall if anything, but she would NEVER leave my side outside. She doesn't chase other animals, she does have SOME interest in them if she sees them, but most of the time she doesn't. I always keep the leash on her no matter what of course. I once left her outside in the yard for 10 mins, in a stay postion. She stayed there for 9 minutes. I swear, I was watching her the entire time. She only got out of it to look in the door to see if I was coming.

This proves some dogs can be off lead, others like sighthounds, its not a good idea. I hope to get a rescue retired grey in the near future, or distant future and I already know he/she will never be offleash in an unfenced area.

Someone told me, when I e-mailed a greyhound rescue this question, that retractable leashes are not good for greys at all and if he/she started to run it would snap. Is this true?

And do they have long 30 foot nylon leashes?

[borzoimom]

The longest flexi/lead I have found, other than a check cord, is 26 feet.. Check cords can be alot longer but risk having legs tied up..

[applesmom]

Anything beyond 25 feet doesn't really give enough control in sticky situations. With a longer lead, even a 40 pound dog can pull a human down when they hit the end of the lead at a run.

We made our own check cords with 1/2 and sometimes even 1 inch cotton rope. It's not as flexible as the retractable leashes and there's much less chance of the dog becoming tangled. We've never had one of those break even when a 65 pound dog hit the end at an all out run. With the rope check cords--wearing gloves is highly recommended!

Wouldn't recommend it for the smaller breeds though!

[shais_mom]

Someone told me, when I e-mailed a greyhound rescue this question, that retractable leashes are not good for greys at all and if he/she started to run it would snap. Is this true?

And do they have long 30 foot nylon leashes?

pretty much - I used a flexi on my greyhound but it was only 15 feet. I often said if I had one longer I would have to anchor myself b/c she'd knock me off my feet (no easy feat) since they top out at about 30 feet. That is why greys are not supposed to be tied out - they can top out their speed and break their necks. I did tie mine out on a tie out (15 feet) and she clotheslined herself once and from then on never tried it again - but what she DID do was run around and around and around - and unscrew the tie out from the ground! She did that once and started on her merry way but got caught by a tree stump! And there she stayed until I rescued her!

[CathyBogart]

Jasper (19 lbs) knocked me down at the end of a 16 foot flexi once. Just be careful!