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Bathing and Grooming

Bathtime is Fun?!
[Image: Lucky gets a bath]

The greyhounds are now taken to the home of a volunteer, where bathing and grooming takes place. This is the first bath for many of these dogs. As a result they generally are quite filthy. We search the dogs very carefully for ticks or fleas and remove any we find.

This may be the first bath these dogs have ever had. We use warm water and often find that the dogs enjoy the feeling. The water should be slightly warm to human touch. Water that is too warm, can cause a greyhound to faint.



Now I Can Hear

[Image: Lucky's ear-cleaning]

After the bath we clean their ears. We go through a number of cotton swabs trying to clean the sand and dirt out of each ear. Earwash is squirted into each ear to help work the dirt out of inner area of the ear. The dogs' ears will need to be cleaned several more times in the following days as the dirt starts to work its way out. Lucky didn't think this was really necessary, but he tolerated it well.

Despite the warm bath, it's a pretty stressful day for the dogs, beginning with a long ride from the track or farm. If you'd been driven for hours, stuck with needles, had things put in your nose and down your throat, and had a cat take a swat at you, you might be pretty testy by this time too! Most tolerate the process with that famous greyhound stoicism, but a few complain quite loudly. Lucky, pictured at left, was a pretty cooperative guy.


Hey, Not the Nails!
[Image: Lucky's nail-trimming]

Then we trim their nails. The soft surfaces on which they walk at the track (sand, dirt and grass) don't do much to wear down their toenails. Unlike the little girl after him, Lucky didn't mind the nail trimming. Maybe he heard that Joyce is an excellent nail trimmer. Lucky, like all the other greyhounds at this point, is wearing a muzzle as a precaution. Greyhounds can nip each other when they get excited and we don't want to risk any cuts.



The Well-Groomed Dog

[Image: Lucky is groomed]

Finally, we groom the greyhounds' coats with a dog glove. This glove works very well with short-haired dogs like greyhounds.

If the hounds come directly from the track, their coats usually are not in good shape. The coats will need several months to become soft and glossy. Dogs that came from colder climates, like Colorado, often have thicker fur.

Dogs who have spent some time at the farm, like Lucky, usually have pretty nice (and full) coats. Lucky was at the farm for about two months.


Selection by a Foster Family

[Image: Lucky]

Once the bathing/grooming process is finished, volunteer foster families arrive to select the dog they will foster. Actually, the foster families often come early to help bathe the dogs and get a head start on picking the right one.

Dogs that passed our cat testing are placed in foster homes with cats. At times they bring their other dogs with them to help find a compatible foster dog for their family.

With few exceptions the dogs bond very quickly with the people and animals in their new home, and rapidly learn to love life in retirement.

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