Dog on a train

Sounds like all your planning paid off !! Glad AL worked out for you . The world is now officially Greg's oyster

Well done, good dog!
I am hoping the appointment was positive and helpful too.

I would love to know more about rehoming a guide dog. Is this your first? How did you start? Clearly you would recommend it, but are there other hidden pitfalls and what sort of person would be best suited to taking one into their home please? ?

Oh I see where this is going Maw

Thanks for the update. Its good to read that your planning worked. Hope the appointment itself also went well.
MawBroon, I have friends who foster guide dog puppies until they're ready for more formal training. Thre friends who worked for guide dogs for fifteen years, are now independent dog trainers, We have a huge black lab who failed to qualify as a guide dog in our group and another friend recently adopted a retired guide dog, another big gentle lab. What a good idea of yours .

www.guidedogs.org.uk/supportus/rehoming-a-guide-dog#.WUeEJ2jys2w

Does this help Maw?

Thanks for the update Juney64 amazing to hear how he slipped back into working mode and makes you realise how much he deserves his retirement. Pleased the day went well and hope there is a successful outcome for all of you.

NanaandGrampy - indeed lol. Hopefully his aforementioned card will arrive any day now ?

Thanks all for your good wishes re the appointment. I have unexplained CKD and I was asked to see a specialist. It all went well I think.

Mawbroon - this our first time re-homing a guide dog. It wasn't something we specifically set out to do. We were looking to re-home an older dog and Guide Dogs came up in Google search so I filled in the application. I should say though that I didn't just fill in the form. I gave far more information than the form had room for, on a separate sheet. Apparently that was what made our application stand out as they receive many requests for re-homing.

The main criteria is shown in the link that Gagagran posted. A home visit will take place in order to get to know you (ours took two hours). Showing that you have previous dog experience goes a long way (photos help). It became very clear during interview that the more time you can spend with the dog, the more likely you are to be accepted. We are retired and Greg is always with us. That's what prompted this post in the first place. Having said that, he does sleep downstairs quite happily at night. It's perhaps worth mentioning that we live in a smallish, two bedroom semi so they're not looking for doggy mansions ha ha.

The pitfalls are few and far between. However, indicating willingness to insure your dog is a big plus. It isn't cheap to insure an older dog. Greg's insurance is £50 a month (my car insurance doesn't cost that). Greg himself cost £100 then there's vet bills. Up until they retire guide dogs are totally funded by the organisation. That includes food and all vet bills. I believe it costs £50,000 by the time a guide dog reaches retirement. That stops at retirement and the re-homer becomes responsible for everything.

Greg's play skills are quite limited. Obviously, during training, they'rek taught to have no distractions. This includes our two cats - Greg didn't flinch when he saw them. However, this includes something as simple as a ball. He actively avoids them and has a slightly guilty look if I try to tempt him to play with one. He has 'cuddle toys' and that's fine but he avoids 'moving' toys at all times. I'm trying to persuade him otherwise. The up side is that we live in Bournemouth and he's on the beach almost daily. He loves the water and enjoys playing with other dogs.

He goes to a local groomer every six weeks and they love when he comes in. If you'd seen the palaver not long after we got him with my OH at one end and me at the other, trying to lift 34 kg of dog into the bath, you'd know why he goes to the groomer!

If I've missed anything or if you'd like to know more, feel free to pm. I've never had one of them on GN so that would be quite a novelty ?.

as a side note, we never bathe our dogs. We use a dry shampoo. I can't remember what it is called but can look at home later for anyone who is interested. You have to rub it in well - we have double coated dogs - then towel it off. No lifting in to bath, no wet doggy smell,and nice smelling dogs afterwards also no bad backs. As they both qualified for Crufts it must work.

Oh I am tempted.....but still have a huge soft spot for retired racing greyhounds...... oh dear ??

A friend recently adopted a sigh hound who was found roaming, neglected and alone. He went to a foster home for assessment. He is gentle with their grandchildren quiet around the house but his breeding will out on the chase front. They love hime

Once you have had sighthounds they do spoil you for other " normal dogs" They don't fetch (why would you want to do that?) they rarely bark (intruders? No just friends I haven't met before) and know their place (sofa usually) but you do feel a certain affinity with other hound owners. I hope this illustration of "Greynoculars" explains what I mean.
However Greg is such a handsome boy and sounds so impeccably behaved....

And to think of all the times I swore that I would never again have a pet too big for me to lift into the car!

I totally get your 'Greynocular' (what a great word) dilemma. They are beautiful dogs. I've never owned one but was quite smitten with one I saw in a shelter during our 'elderly dog hunt'.

The application for Greg grew legs just as we were about to make a decision. If Greg hadn't come along when he did, we'd definitely have opted for the greyhound we saw. There seems to be quite a number available for adoption.

Oh dear - what to do. Over to you Mawbroon.

PS - I bought a collapsible ramp to allow Greg easy access to the car. No lifting required. ?

Visit the vet to make sure dog is fine before going for a trip.

Maw, would a rescue whippet be something to consider? Small, sight hound, fabulous gentle dogs ?

Like a mini greyhound?

Yes indeed. My neighbour has two, beautiful in temperament as well as pleasing on the eye. They're unbeatable when a group of us meet up and the dogs play chase.

My terrier is in love with whippets!

ww my young dog is middle size and barks at bigger dogs who run at him. The whippets are the exception, he loves playing chase with them. Maybe, as my first Manager told me, every home needs a whippet or two.

That's exactly what Dunc likes doing. He never catches them of course. Dunc actually is generally a bit of a stick in the mud and just ignores dogs asking him to play. But whippets!!!

https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/201706/medium-562981-fullsizerender.jpg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/201706/medium-145862-img-0221.jpg

So tempting, but so are racing greyhounds and there are so many needing a home.
Whatever I do I have to wait until I come back from visiting DD in Sweden and also for them to come back with DGS and granddog, because if and when I get another dog, he/she must be tested and reliable with Basil and with little ones. (Subject to common sense!)

I took my three year old to the dogs home to road test a suitable dog. the child survived, the dog came home and lived happily with us for thirteen years. This is, on reflection, the kind of anecdote that confirms in the minds of some that dog lovers are indeed, quite bonkers.

You're right about the racing greyhounds - so many of them looking for adoption. One of the reasons I considered a retired greyhound was because of this article...

www.therockfollies.co.uk/Out%20of%20the%20race.htm