Talk:Greyhound adoption

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[edit] Behavior of adopted greyhounds

Someone added a large block of text about behavior of adopted greys, and asked in their comment if it should be its own article. I've gone through and edited it substantially, including cutting large sections. Those sections should probably be moved (at least in content if not text) to either the general greyhound article or greyhound racing. Some of it I also removed since this article is an overview of adoption, not an adoption manual. More editing is still needed.

The removed text follows:

At the age of three months, puppies receive tattoos in their ears; the left ear is the individual litter registration number, and the right ear is a code for the month, year, and order in which the animals were tattooed. After approximately 14 months with their littermates, the most promising animals are sent to one of several special greyhound training tracks. Training progresses to meet the ability of individual animals. Upon completion, dogs are sent to racing kennels for their careers.

Racing greyhounds are among the most highly probed and monitored animals that are commonly kept. They are weighed before race time to ensure their weight is not so high that they could have been artificially "enhanced" with steroids or other drugs. Their urine is collected and tested after the race to test for illegal enhancers. They are kept in climate-controlled areas to provide the best possible performance by preventing overheating. A veterinarian is required to be present at race tracks at the time of racing. Due to the characteristics of the racing greyhound, books have been written to address specific physical care and the physiology of these animals.

...

When first bringing the greyhound home, it is a good idea to accompany the greyhound everywhere it goes- kept on a leash, if so desired. Allow the dog entry into each room into which it will be allowed, and permit it to explore with its nose. Areas that are to be kept off-limits may be kept so with the use of baby gates. Although possessing long legs, greyhounds do not like to step or jump over objects.

...

Greyhound behavior is such that the first few days may be touchy in that dogs take a while to "settle down," and settle into a daily regimen. Greyhounds frequently explore or follow their owners everywhere they go, and may be disappointed if there are areas in which they are not permitted. However, they are very good at learning what they are and are not allowed to do, and this should be reinforced without exception. Partial reinforcement will confuse animals as to what they are or are not allowed to do, and lead to additional conflict later. Thus, if the dog is not allowed on the couch, the dog should never be allowed on the couch- not "just this one time."

--Ahc 13:55, 12 July 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Incorrect Info

"At the age of three months, puppies receive tattoos in their ears; the left ear is the individual litter registration number, and the right ear is a code for the month, year, and order in which the animals were tattooed."

This isn't always correct anyway, as greyhounds in the UK only have the regestration number in their left ear.

"Although possessing long legs, greyhounds do not like to step or jump over objects."

Again- not always. My greyhound loves to jump over fences and bounds in the air whenever there's a cat about...

[edit] Significant edits Nov 2006

I've been concerned by the movement of this article toward being and adoption guide. So I took some time to do some heavy editing, removing some information that I consider correct, but I'm well aware is not NPOV. I made several small changes, but I significantly edited the section on Behavior of adopted greyhounds. Let me be clear, that much of the information I removed is good advice in my option, but some of it goes to your philosophy about caring for animals. That makes this kind of information inherently not NPOV. To review the changes you can see the diff in the article history. --Ahc 03:47, 6 November 2006 (UTC)