Greyhounds and horses

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Popos

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We are looking to adopt a retired greyhound. He's only a year and never raced as wouldn't chase the lure! We've met him and he seems perfect. Got to take our small fluffy dog to meet him first though to ensure he doesn't decide that she's worth chasing!

We have 4 horses at home. Any experience of keeping a greyhound with horses, or grateful for any advice generally around rehoming one.
 
I had two greys, sadly lost one in May, have also fostered a couple and had a few visiting. Haven't had any experience of the dogs taking any notice of the horses though my gelding has tried several times to bite or kick but not with real malice though he can be a bit spiteful to my other horses, my current greyhound gives him a wide berth.
 
We had a retired greyhound, he was 4 when we got him and a truly wonderful dog. He had raced and had a very strong chasing instinct when it came to cats but strangely not small dogs, in fact his best friend was a little terrier. He was fine with the horses although they were petrified of him when he wore his coat, they just couldn't figure that one out!
He was on the whole an easy dog, very laid back and hugely lazy! At the same time I had to be careful about where I let him off the lead as he was known to leg it and cover a lot of ground before realising he'd left us behind! He only did it rarely though because it was too much effort. He felt the cold and had a selection of coats to handle this, he liked his home comforts too! He was a very tall dog and this did mean that thieving off the work surfaces and tables was a doddle to him, he felt no shame doing it either!
He died 3 years ago now and we still miss him, he was a very special dog and I'd love to get another greyhound one day. Snap up the chance to get one they are lovely!
 
Mine is wary of the horses but I don't often take her to the yard as she feels the cold terribly.

I take her eventing which she enjoys as it's very social. She also comes foot following the hunt with me but needs a good warm coat on for those days!!
 
Thank you for the responses. The horses are pretty much in our back garden so he would have to get used to them pretty quick. The paddocks are enclosed and would make a good off lead running space for a grey. Do you ever let yours off outside of an enclosed area? This one is still a pup really and never been raced as wouldn't comply during training
 
It depends on the dog not their breed. Your need to keep the dog on the lead till you have some idea what he will be like around the horses. If you need to you could possibly fence the dog out of the horse fields?
 
We have had Greys and horses for years. They get on very well. Where & how you let your dog off the lead will be down to the individual dog. On the whole, they are lazy dogs who feel the cold & hog the sofa. I have more trouble with the terriers mixing it with the horses than the Greys who really can't be bothered. They don't chase big animals (except deer) Good luck
 
twiggy2 is correct. It depends on the dog, not the breed. And the horses. For example,my greyhound is nervous of horses. Will give them a wide berth, even when they are in their stables. My friends greyhound, on the other hand, was let off into an enclosed paddock with horses. He ended up kicked and in doggy ER with broken ribs and punctured lung. He did not race either as did not show interest in the lure.
 
Greyhounds are lovely dogs, sure you won't regret re-homing one. As others have said they're normally pretty lazy and easy to have around as they sleep so much.
Ours is a big lad and has a very strong chase instinct, so we've never felt safe letting him off lead in a non-enclosed area. If he saw a cat he'd be gone. However, many people I know let theirs off all the time with no trouble. It's about assessing your own dog when you get to know them.
As for horses, he's scared of anything bigger than him and has never gone near them.
 
Great, thank you!

I've just been and seen him again and introduced my dog that looks much like a rabbit (fluffy and currently scruffy Lhasa!) and he wasn't bothered by her at all! Took them for a walk together and they were fine. It's looking good!
 
I've currently got 4 greyhounds -which seems to be my average number - I've never had a problem with them chasing horses or being a nuisance to them in any way, and that's over the past 15 years I've had rescue greys.

All of mine go off lead daily in a non enclosed area - I've had a few instances of fun & games where they have chased deer/foxes/badgers etc but nothing serious. They cannot be let loose in a busier/more popular area however as they all loathe cats & my big greyhound boy is not always safe with small dogs.
 
Hi we have had 3 rescue greyhounds and all have been fine round the horses, we did have one that wasn't good with cats, but all were fine with small dogs. I had 2 of them that used to come out riding with me, however one of them was a bit slow (ex racer that was last in all her races) and you had to wait for her if you went out of a slow trot but very well behaved! Also used to come to all the shows with us in the horsebox, very easy to have around. For the age of dog you are looking at, I wouldn't think you would have too much trouble training with the horses as long as you are careful to start with. All 3 were very easy to house train too, even the one who had lived in kennels until she was 4. Good luck.
 
Hi, we had 3 at the same time at one point - all sadly left us now. All 3 went off the lead a lot. Two were fine with the horses, though I never took them riding with me or had them with me when schooling (as I do with other dogs) as they were a bit unreliable with rabbits, squirrels etc. You did need to be on the ground and fairly nearby or their recall could fail. Also greyhounds can't sit and mine were all pretty fussy about what they laid down on, so they were much happier in the car on a blanket. The third was interested in larger animals (deer etc) so I never let her off the lead around ponies, she was fine with larger horses. She also wore a muzzle on occasion, e.g. walking in woods with deer, though I tried to avoid it as other dog owners would then assume she was dangerous to other dogs - which she absolutely wasn't. All 3 were fine with even tiny dogs. The third was also the most accident-prone dog I ever owned, she really liked our local vets as she found all sorts of novel ways to get to see them. She's the only dog I have ever insured for vets fees. They are very easy dogs to keep in many ways, a decent run every day and they are happy to spend the rest sleeping.
 
Popos said:
Thank you. Any tips on housetraining would be appreciated! My girl is 11 now, it's been a long time since I did it.
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It was a while ago, but I don't think I actually house-trained any of ours, even the one that came straight from kennels. I did keep them restricted to a small area of the house initially, and they had a dog flap so they could go out for a wee whenever they wanted. I don't remember any accidents. Our first one came from a private home so was already house-trained, he was quite bossy and a worrier so I suspect he sorted the other two out!

I do remember the intial training of the nutty one (e.g. lay down, stay etc) and having a bit of trouble with her, you had to keep everything very low key. Too much praise, or too strict a tone of voice on the "no", and she would be so over-excited or upset she would completely forget what she was doing and it would take 10 mins to get her thinking again.
 
We've fostered and adopted a few that have come straight from kennels, the hardest was our first and I think that was more our fault than his though he did have a problem as unless he actually needed a wee he wouldn't do what most dogs do and have a wee when they go out so it was always a bit of pot luck that he wasn't bursting for a wee 10 minutes of us going out.

We found it was best to take them round the house then limit the areas they could get to. Generally two accidents, though some of them we were able to stop before anything happened but a gruff no and take them outside, likewise lots of praise when they were weeing outside.

Do you plan on using a crate?
 
Popos said:
Thank you. Any tips on housetraining would be appreciated! My girl is 11 now, it's been a long time since I did it.
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I don't recall actually house training my last rescue - he was the most institutionalised greyhound I've had so far, he had been in training for 5 1/2 years and had lived in a kennel all his life. I treated him as I would a puppy - put him out every time he woke up/was fed - I didn't have any problems with him at all 😊
 
I have housetrained 3 ex racers by taking them outside, on lead, every hour for the first day, hour and a half on day two and two hours day three. They have been crated overnight until I am happy they are settled on a night. Only one accident from the bitch and all three housetrained by day four.
 
I'm so sad, we were all set to rehome him but just got a call from the kennels to say that he died last night in his sleep. They think perhaps he had a heart attack, an autopsy will be carried out. I absolutely devastated. He was perfect
 
Popos said:
I'm so sad, we were all set to rehome him but just got a call from the kennels to say that he died last night in his sleep. They think perhaps he had a heart attack, an autopsy will be carried out. I absolutely devastated. He was perfect
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That is so sad but please remember there are thousands of greyhounds needing a home and more than one will be perfect.
 
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