Greyhound, Whippet or Lurcher owner? Here's another pointy hounds cushion!

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Pointy hounds include-
Greyhounds (Grunds)
Whippets (Whippys)
Lurchers
Italian Greyhounds (Iggys)
Salukis
Afghans
If you are a new pointy hound owner, an old and experienced owner or looking into getting one of these fabulous creatures, come and have a seat (that's not taken up with a hound :o ).

Share stories, advice and shopping tips!
AK Creations
Dog O Nine Tails
Doggy Bags Bakery
Kitsch Collars
Meggie Moo
Milgi Coats
Silver Peacock

Come The Day
Come the day I take that final bend,
Can I count on you to be my friend?
To see I’m treated just and fair,
It means so much to know you care.

For, what the future holds in store,
Now that I can race no more,
Should be addressed for every hound,
Who parts the punter from his pound.

Tell them I don’t ask for much,
A kindly word, a gentle touch,
Somewhere warm to lay my head,
A meal each day to keep me fed,
Not just life- but quality,
This is how it ought to be.

Do not see me swept away,
I long to live another day,
With peace of mind, tranquillity,
And those who care surrounding me,
So tell them all- you have that choice,
I beg of you to be my voice.

By Denise Dubarbier.

Pip's a scruff, but has a very fine wispy coat over an extremely thin layer. He feels the cold terribly, hates the rain and has been wearing a Milgi fleece coat at night for over a month now, even though it's not been what you could really call cold.

I'm no help with names - I ended up giving into the kids' choice with Pip.

Ooh is she all/mainly black Love? Black hounds suit any colour :) black hounds have so much more opportunity for colours and patterns than, say, brindles or fawns etc.

I think this would look stunning on a black dog.

Our cats are all named after famous physicists, and the dogs are poetic kings, so my name choices are eclectic . CMOTdog came with a name that sounded good as a shortening, so we just extended it for formal purposes (and yelling), but CMOTPuppy was named after a chocolate bar, so we changed it completely. He didn't seem to mind.

That is lovely! Northern lights. Loved seeing them when I lived in Scotland.

I'm thinking a soft collar she can wear all the time with her tag on, so what width would you go for? I want her to be really comfy, how do you stop the metal tag digging into them?

I think I will use a harness for walking her, she is very good on the lead at the moment so hopefully that will protect her neck and give me good control if she does try and bolt.

I asked my kids for ideas, DS (4) said we should call her DD's name. Helpful.

For a house collar the 32mm flat collar will work

I bought these tags for puppy, and they were excellent value compared to PAH etc, and really good quality

Ok, so a tag is on it's way now too!

I've ordered a 42' crate....she'll fit in that won't she?!?

I am going to hit Pets at Home soon for a toy binge....

While she's still a puppy I reckon your best bet would be to hit charity shops for cuddly toys. Are you in contact with her fosterers? Can you ask them what toys she likes?

My whippy's favourite toys are plastic bottles, all shapes and sizes, fairy liquid bottles have the best bounce though and a ball on a string.
I'm looking at getting a perfect fit harness but only want to buy once, does anyone know if they have generous adjustment?

Good idea, I'll check with the fosterer too. We have lots of soft toys the kids don't use and I was going to take those to the charity shop but haven't since we decided to get a dog. Hoping she'll have a good time with those.

I want some strong toys I know she will be safe with when I'm not watching her.

Luxorama, do I need to watch for them splitting onto sharp bits or do their teeth tend not to break them?

We had lovely staffies growing up but they destroyed all toys within seconds!

Sorry, Luxaroma.

I pull the lid bits off but apart from that they seem indestructible. Pup also enjoys ripping plastic plant pots to pieces - but they do break. If you are raw feeding a frozen chicken wing will keep them occupied for a good hour and sooth the teeth and gums too! An indoor stick is also very therapeutic - my pup loves to chew on sticks, we did buy doggie toys, he just seems to prefer the cheap stuff!

Kongs are invaluable too, you need Kongs in your dogs life! Fill them with yummy treats, freeze (depending on what it's stuffed with), that'll keep houndy occupied for ages! :)

She's gorgeous btw!

I need to give the Kongs a go again. Dpup just can't be arsed getting the food out, he doesn't seem to like the texture enough to even want to chew them. They're bound to be a great activity for a wet day.

Brilliant. Now have half a pet shop in my house (and a radiator cat bed to bribe the felines).

Shopping for pets is fun!

What can I freeze in a kong for a 6 month puppy? Her dry food I suppose stuck with something?

I don't want to upset her stomach while she is all stressed with the huge changes so keeping her on the burgess puppy food the rescue have her on. I'd like to move to raw one she is settled as it seems so good for most dogs.

Can I give her a raw chicken wing as a treat even when she is on kibble stuff? And just reduce the amount I feed that day? Or would that upset her stomach?

Can you freeze the raw meat or does it splinter the bones like cooking does?

We have a toy from PAH which you insert a plastic bottle with a replaceable squeaker in into. Much loved in our house as you get the squeak, noise of the bottle, but no sharp edges.

Kongs are only for bouncing here - they prefer their bones, rawhide or hooves (which I know some people don't like, but ours don't seem to break bits off and they are non smelly and 50p so they can have lots of them)

Luxaroma the good thing about perfect fit harnesses is that you only need to replace the piece they grow out of. So for example, Pip has been in a small back piece since he was a pup, but has gone up one chest-piece size and two girths. I think he needs another new girth now again, as I noticed it was getting a bit snug at the weekend. They're totally customisable size wise and if you're unsure you can give them a call or email them and they'll recommend a size. They'll also let you exchange and return sizes at no extra cost while you're trying to get the fit right.

Lovethesea, soak a bit of her kibble in either low salt stock or just boiled water and fill the kong with that - you can then freeze it as well if you want to. Bear in mind you may need to introduce her to it with just some easy to dislodge bits of kibble to begin with, so she gets the idea that it's supposed to actually dispense the food.

Freezing the raw meat is fine, but with pups it's best not to mixed feed. The reason being that kibble moves more slowly through the digestive tract than raw and if the raw gets stuck behind it bacteria can build up. I know plently of adult dogs that are mixed fed, but they are less susceptible to pathogens and having had a pup with campylobacter myself, I am particularly careful with this.

Pip's favourites are cuddly toys and plastic bottles either with or without furry covers. Best ones for not getting sharp edges are the super cheap water bottles from supermarkets. He also loves to destroy the cardboard inners from clingfilm and foil etc and his antlers have been a worthwhile investment, as he has a go on them most days and they've still lasted months. When he was younger I bought the easier, split antlers for him from here .

If you look at my profile pictures you can see how much fun can be had with a cardboard box!

Thanks moose that's really useful.

Lovethesea have you asked around locally about training classes? Must admit I wasn't linked into the big doggie community before we got Dpup, they are a useful friendly bunch and I've had a great recommendation for a trainer after our last puppy class screw up. I'm doing 1-2-1 focusing on recall and doggie manners and have linked up with a few pointy owners for walks.

I'm just constantly amazed by how friendly our doggie community are - at the pub, in the high street and at the park - it really takes dog ownership to a new level. I've met so many new people, young and old, it's added another dimension to our lives.

And I can't decide on a collar - the choice is overwhelming! And is royal purple and snow leopard or Dalmatian spots too much for the fleece coat?

Ooh all this shopping talk is tempting me. I've been quite restrained on the hound purchasing front lately. I am thinking of investing in a seasonal martingale or two soon....

Lovethesea she looks adorable!

Not sure on dog names, shydog was so thrown by coming out of kennels and into a house that I took pity and let her keep her rescue name.

Luxaroma I find it takes me twice as long to get anywhere if I have my GH with me, we get stopped by soo many people for a chat and a stroke/sniff. Majority of dog owners are nice sorts and I agree it enriches your life having that friendly interaction with people.

I don't remember anyone being so keen to stop and chat when I walked my mum's bouncy, pully, fussy, barky spaniel. She was a sweetheart of a dog but a bit too much at times!

I need to sort my lot out with new martingales soon.

The three older ones have all got matching ones in the same fabric but with different background colours. Unfortunately it only comes in those three colours so now DWhippet3 is old enough to buy him his first proper collar (he's currently in hand me downs from DWhippets 1 & 2) I obviously have to buy them all a new one so they continue to match

I can't decide whether to go for completely different fabrics for each of them or something more matching/complimentary.

Yourhand I am also wondering if she might find it easier to keep her name....

I don't dislike it at all, there are just lots of kids called Megan locally so I thought she might suit something more unusual.

Maybe she should stay Meg with Meglet for formal occasions

What about keeping the M sound but changing to Maggie, Mabel or Mimi, for example?

Meg is a great name!

Meglet, Meggy, Megwin.....

Lots of options!

I'm having to hold off on the collar buying until I can measure her properly, likewise with the coats.

Oh the restraint!!