Retired Racing Greyhounds For Dummies [Paperback]

Lee Livingood (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 27, 2000

“The next best thing to having an experienced Greyhound owner living with you.”
—Joan Belle Isle, President, Greyhound Project

“Anyone who reads this book and follows its guidance will have a happier, healthier dog and be a happier, more relaxed dog owner.”
—Hal and Karen Hawley, Greyhound Friends Northwest

The Greyhound has been celebrated in song and legend for thousands of years. Nowadays, Greyhounds are bred almost exclusively for racing. In the bad old days, prior to the 1980s, dogs that didn’t make the grade at the track, and those past their primes, were destroyed. According to official estimates, 60,000 of these noble, mild-mannered dogs were destroyed each year! Fortunately, a number of organizations now exist devoted to rescuing these unwanted dogs and placing them in good homes.

Thinking about adopting a retired racing Greyhound? Or maybe you’re already sharing your life with one of these charming animals. Either way, this friendly guide tells you everything you need to know to:

• Understand the Greyhound personality
• Find a retired racing Greyhound to adopt
• Choose the right ex-racer for you and your family
• Educate yourself and your retired racer
• Give your new pal the diet and exercise it needs
• Keep your dog healthy and happy for years to come

With plenty of good humor and straight-talk, Lee Livingood drawing on her forty-years of experience training adult rescue dogs to cover all the pros and cons of being a retired racing Greyhound owner, and she fills you in on:

• The amazing 8000-year history of the Greyhound
• Deciding whether an ex-racer is the right do for you and your family
• Physical and behavioral characteristics
• How to get a retired racer used to living in a home and be a companion
• Dealing with common behavioral and health problems
• Feeding, grooming, and exercising a Greyhound
• Fun things to do with your hound

Bursting with expert advice on all aspects of living with an ex-racer, Retired Racing Greyhounds For Dummies is must reading for anyone considering adoption or who’s already taken the leap.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

"A no-nonsense guide to the joys and pitfalls of adopting the retired racing Greyhound." Bruce Skinner, Editor in Chief, A Breed Apart Praise for Retired Racing Greyhounds For Dummies^® "The next best thing to having an experienced Greyhound owner living with you." —Joan Belle Isle, President, Greyhound Project "Anyone who reads this book and follows its guidance will have a happier, healthier dog and be a happier, more relaxed dog owner." —Hal and Karen Hawley, Greyhound Friends Northwest

Find out about your retired racing Greyhound's special needs

Get the lowdown on keeping your dog healthy and content Are you thinking about adopting a retired racing Greyhound, or are you already sharing your life with one? This fun and friendly book is bursting with expert advice on all aspects of owning an ex-racer: understanding the Greyhound personality, taking care of your new friend, teaching good manners, and much more.

Discover how to: Find a retired racing Greyhound to adopt Choose the right ex-racer for you Manage your new friend Educate yourself and your retired racer Maintain good health, proper exercise, and diet

Get smart! www.dummies.com Attention pet owners! Get free Dummies Daily^™ e-mail newsletters Sign up today for tips on dogs, cats, or birds Keep your pet healthy and happy — the Dummies Way^™

About the Author

Lee Livingood has been training adult rescue dogs for nearly 40 years. She lives with two adopted ex-racers, volunteers for her local Greyhound adoption group, and writes for Greyhound and other dog publications.

Product Details

• Paperback: 296 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies; 1 edition (September 27, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764552767
• ISBN-13: 978-0764552762
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 0.6 x 9.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (100 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #16,737 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #18 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Pets & Animal Care > Dogs > Breeds

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 45 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Retired Racing Greyhounds for Dummies September 18, 2000

By Debbie Santoski

Format:Paperback

This is the best greyhound book for owners/prospective adopters I've seen, and I've collected them all. Beautiful photos, easy-to-read information. Vast topics not seen elsewhere, and help for specific problems like separation anxiety. Great advice for families with young children. Add this to your greyhound library - a must!

33 of 35 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Not the best book on the subject May 16, 2006

By Jace E. Mouse

Format:Paperback

I appreciate the time the author took to write the book, but I was disappointed with it. It's worth adding to your library, but Cynthia Branigan's "Adopting the Racing Greyhound" is a much better book - easier to read and organized better.

The content is strangely organized; it repeats and is sometimes contradictory. Maybe it was over-edited by the publisher or has been re-branded from books on other breeds.

Here's an example of a key inconsistency:
The book uses the word "click" extensively when talking about training - about 200 times on pages 89-120.
Page 90: "From now on, when I say *click*, I mean make this sound. When I say *treat*, I mean reward your dog."
Page 99: "When I use the word click, that means that you should use your verbal or mechanical reward marker, such as making a sound with a clicker, and then reward your dog. Never click without treating afterward."

For a Dummies book, I wish they'd have dumbed-it-down a bit more. Here is one quote from the book that illustrates my point: "When I say 'treat,' that's short-hand for reward. It doesn't have to be food. Remember a reward is anything a dog will work for." Remember that I'm a dog dummy. What else would you suggest besides food? I don't think it's petting, because you remind us not to make it something you'll do at times when the dog isn't showing a behavior we want to reward. I don't think it's a favorite toy, because the dog has to stop the training session to play with the toy. Honestly, I'm confused.

This book has some good advice that I didn't get elsewhere:
- To minimize anxiety, don't give the dog too much attention shortly before leaving or immediately after returning. (I believe the book suggests within 30 minutes.)
- To occupy your pup while you're out of the house, give him a kong with peanut butter that's been in the freezer (takes longer to get to it).
- Get your greyhound used to touching slowly. Before clipping the nails, practice just touching them. To prepare him for kids, lightly bump and pinch him.
- Make trips to walk your dog separate from trips to relieve himself - go to a different place, etc. Otherwise, he may wait to relieve himself in order to prolong the walk.
- If your dog gets away from you, run the opposite direction. The theory is that it's a game to him. Chasing makes him run faster, but running away makes you an attractive goal.
- To keep a dog from rushing the door, train him to stay sitting when it's opened. Have him sit. As you reach for the doorknob, stop if he breaks the sit, and start over.

This book disagrees with Brannigan's on a few points.
Crates: Branningan considers them a den and source of comfort. This book says "crates should be tools not prisons."
Radio: Brannigan suggests that a radio may ease your dog's separation anxiety. This book calls them a "waste of your time."

Things I wish these books would have told me:
- I would like a suggested training regimen. Teach sit, then release, then away, them off, then ......
- I'd like the books to discuss the dynamics of a multi-person household - do the two need to use the same commands, etc.?

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Not just for dummies April 20, 2001

By "poppins61"

Format:Paperback

Like most greyhound adopters, I had to read "THE BOOK": Cynthia Branigan's book on greyhound adoption as part of the screening/adoption process. This book is almost as essential for newbies to the greyhound world. Despite Lee Livingood's credentials in the greyhound adoption community, I didn't expect much from this book because it was, after all, for "dummies." I was happily surprised to find that it is a wonderful complement to Branigan. I bought two copies; one to keep at home right next to "THE BOOK" and one to give to the local humane society's library.

Anyone who wishes to learn more about these special dogs, or who wants to be owned by one, should have this book.