Whippet/lurcher rescue

[theowlwhowasafraidofthedark]

Hi. Our family have decided that we really want to get our first ever dog this autumn. After looking after a friends whippet for a week we decided that this type of dog is for us! I've looked at a few websites and am worried about getting a rescue dog as

(a) we are dog novices and have no idea what we doing!
(b) my youngest dc is 3 which means we're not eligible for a lot of them. I'm also nervous about introducing a big dog to my youngest dc.

I was therefore wondering if puppies are ever available through these rescues and if so whether they're prepared to consider younger families. If anyone has any knowledge that would be great. Thanks

have you checked to see if there is a local whippet/lurcher specific rescue near you?

bigger dogs especially of the thinner variety might even be less nerve wrecking for a 3 year old - puppies jump up and also mouth a lot in the early weeks.

have you considered a rescue greyhound - they are often 'retired' young and have such calm temperaments and some have awesome colouring.

My dog is a rescue lurcher and she's lovely. She is my first rescue dog and glad we did it. I do think you are right to be careful as ddog was 7 months when we got her and very bouncy and did lots of quite hard play biting.
Other than looking for a puppy another choice would be an older dog that is very child friendly.

Yes, puppies are available for rehoming through the rescues (in fact my foster lurcher puppy is sitting on me now), and some rescues don't disallow children, especially those who foster their dogs rather than them being in kennels as you see how they are in real life. EGLR is one of those.

With a 3 year old, they would be asking about how you plan to keep the dog and child safe from each other, and a puppy will be hard work with a 3 year old - puppies chew things, wee/poo on the floor, need a lot of training, and require walks whether toddler likes it or not. Another year, and things would be a lot easier tbh - a 4 year old understands more instructions on how to behave

Thanks rizlett. Greyhounds looks massive to me! I've heard they make great pets though. I forgot to mention that I'm also worried about getting a more mature dog as I've heard it's much harder to teach them good recall. Is this your experience?

CMOT, my 3 yr old will be out the house 9-1.30 every day and is a good walker. We still have stair gates in our house which would keep the child away from the dog but perhaps not the dog from the child. Our house is large enough that everyone can have their own space although I can see that enforcing that might be difficult.

there are lots of training tricks to teach any dog good recall op but it sounds like you are more interested in a puppy and there are plenty of threads on here to learn everything you need to know.

exciting times ahead!

Ive taught a ten year old lurcher recall so dont lose hope on that front.

How did your son behave with the whippet? Id go by his behaviour and match to that to be honest. I have two dds, one will NOT leave the dog alone and given half a chance will half lay on him unless i intervene and she is 6, but she is the kind of child who cant not touch.

Thanks rizlett. I would love to get a rescue. I just feel a bit inexperienced. I would definitely be prepared to put in the effort with an older dog (which I assume is necessary with a puppy anyway?).

Search Fall in love with a rescue, they are on Facebook and often have whippet and lurcher puppies, the dogs are well socialised with other dogs and animals and children too. There's also lurcher link, sighthound stopgap, just whippet and Jr whippet rescue. Whippet make fabulous family dogs.

Search Fall in love with a rescue, they are on Facebook and often have whippet and lurcher puppies, the dogs are well socialised with other dogs and animals and children too. There's also lurcher link, sighthound stopgap, just whippet and Jr whippet rescue. Whippet make fabulous family dogs.

I don't know where you are georgraphically but here are some:

www.facebook.com/lurchersos/
www.facebook.com/Evesham-Greyhound-and-Lurcher-Rescue-85687936406/
www.facebook.com/groups/LURCHWHIP/ This is a group which "advertises" dogs in various rescues around the country. You could also post on there, asking which rescues are nearest to you.

If it's your first dog, I'd say a young adult, rather than a puppy, will be a hell of a lot easier for you. Especially one who's been in a foster home with children. If you felt your 3 year old got on well with the whippet, then be sure to let the rescue know. You can also say you'd be quite happy to put up stairgates etc to make sure there was separation/supervision between child and dog.

Smaller rescues, in general, are more flexible about rehoming to families with younger children, especially if you can show you've had even a little experience, which you have with the friend's whippet. Good luck!

Greyhounds vary in size. My foster boy was huge but I know a female that isn't much bigger than a large Whippet.

normal to feel inexperienced tohwwaotd

there are pro's and con's to pups and older dogs so whatever you decide will be fine..... just choose whichever will bring you most joy.

Lots of great advice already. We've recently taken on a greyhound and wouldn't change him for the world. We'd originally started out looking at lurchers but we were looking for something quite laidback and all the lurchers we saw were quite high energy. Our boy seems the perfect mix, although he's pretty big for a greyhound and can be quite boisterous so wouldn't be so great with a LO. He'd only stopped racing at the start of the year, so life as part of a family has been a bit of a culture shock but he's taken it all in his stride and seems to be a quick learner.

The best advice I can offer is to go in with an open mind and just judge each dog you meet as an individual as they'll all have their own little quirks and nuances, especially lurchers as they're essentially cross breeds so their temperament will largely depend on what they've been bred with. Sighthounds make the most awesome pets though so I'm sure you'll find the right one for your family.

Thanks for all the great advice. My final question is that because we are going on a big family sailing trip over the summer I can't start the search until later in the year. Is it worth getting in contact, with eglr for example beforehand to get a home check done or should I leave it til september?
Sooooo exciting!

It'd be worth getting in touch before your sailing trip op - that way you will be ready if the 'right' dog comes up and also they will already have an idea of what temperament traits in a dog will be right for your family. Good luck with it all.