Settling your greyhound into a new home

Your foster greyhound is home, now what? 

Some greyhounds just plop on the sofa and are right at home but other greyhounds are too overwhelmed. That is okay.

Just keep it really simple. Your greyhound has no idea why he/she is in your home, how long he/she is staying and if you are a safe person or not. 

Your home smells, sounds and looks different to the kennel that he/she is used to and the best thing to do for your greyhound is to place the bed in a quiet spot and let him/her rest and decompress. 

If you have other dogs in the home you may want to use a baby gate to keep your dog away from the new arrival who is not used to getting disturbed when sleeping. Greyhounds are usually sleeping alone in kennels with no distractions.

He/she will appreciate the quiet time and observe you from a distance. If he/she gets up to be close to you, that is also okay and you can adjust the position of the bed to suit his/her needs. 

Let your foster greyhound initiate contact. Some greyhounds seek company but not necessarily being touched all the time. Always remember that consent to be petted can be given and taken away at any time. It is a good idea to pet your greyhound while counting to three before removing your hand. If he/she has had enough, he/she will walk away. If not, keep going for another three seconds.

In the first few days, we would like you to lay some foundations. 

This means creating a bond, a routine and a sense of safety for your foster dog.

✅ Create a routine which provides predictability which is really important for dogs to feel safe.

✅Low key activities such as scattering some food in your backyard for your greyhound to find or rolling up some food in an old towel are great ‘icebreakers’. 

✅Practice loose lead walking inside your home before going on your first walk. Here is a great video to learn how to do it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fUVXntWPOM 

✅Learn about dog body language to spot when your dog is happy, nervous, etc. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=siy0eog48ys 

✅Watch how to ‘charge’ the clicker from your foster kit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V80JVAibXLQ 

✅Create a bond through some games, i.e. positive reinforcement based training with food to teach key skills. Here is a list of useful cues and how to teach them: https://positively.com/dog-behavior/basic-cues/

X Please no walks in the first few days. If you don’t have a backyard, have short toilet breaks outside. 

X Please don’t have friends and family over for visits 

X Please avoid meeting dogs, especially those you are unfamiliar with.

X Please avoid leaving your foster greyhound home alone until he/she is familiar with the routine and has done some foundation training to be home alone safely

Please remember that the first few weeks lay an important foundation for leaving your dog home alone for the first time, socialising with other dogs, meeting new people, etc.

Go slow and start small. Moving into your home is huge for your greyhound and slow and steady wins the race. Sorry for the terrible pun!