Q&A for How to Train a Greyhound

This mythology comes from watching racing greyhounds with their powerful rear ends. Those muscle bound butts make it difficult to sit. However, a pet greyhound with a normal physique is perfectly capable of sitting, just like any dog...although it may take an ex-racer a while to acquire the habit.

Yes they can, but not very well. This is down to their lean physique and low percentage body fat. Since fat aides buoyancy, a lean body sinks more easily, hence making it more difficult for greyhounds to swim strongly or any great distance.

They can but those long legs may get in a tangle, so racing greyhounds often prefer to stand or lie rather than sit. In a racing greyhound, it's those powerful rear end muscles that make it tricky to sit, but once rehomed and out of training, they are able to sit.

Greyhounds are sighthounds who love to chase things that move. At about 12 months of age, they are introduced to the track and lure that squeaks and moves quickly. Their natural instinct kicks in and the dogs give chase.

Does he have socialization with other dogs? My dog was like that too and then I started taking him to be with other dogs at a doggy daycare and dog park and it helped a lot.

Say "no" when she chews on something that isn't her toy. Say "good girl" and give her a treat when she chews on her toys. Repeat this until she no longer chews on anything besides toys.

If you got your greyhound from a rescue, most likely she came from a race track where she never played with toys or even saw them. Entice her slowly into liking toys by putting some food in a Kong toy. With some patience, your dog could end up loving toys.

You should start training them when they are puppies. You can give them treats for every good thing they do. They naturally love to run.

Try walking around your back yard first. If she jumps and nips say no and turn your back. When she sits or is still you can start walking again.

You should train them by putting treats on each stair and praise them every time they go up a step. Then do the same going back down the stairs.

You don't. If you want a dog that can be off leash, you need a different breed. For the greyhound's safety, it must stay on leash. Otherwise it will chase something and get hit by a car.

Throw in a really tasty treat first, make sure your hound has seen it and smelled it first, it should jump in right away.

Even if you are confident in the animal's recall training (when called, it returns to you), you should only take your hound off lead in a completely enclosed space. An open field might seem like an ideal place to let it run free, but because this kind of terrain is its natural hunting environment, if you let your dog off lead it might be a good long while before you see it again, as it might spot something moving that you can't see. If it does investigate, it will likely ignore any recall commands. If you want to let him run in safety, I've had good luck going to municipal sports fields (baseball, football, soccer) after hours.

Use incentives first. If she's food-motivated, then it won't be too hard. If she doesn't care about the treats, find out what she does like (for example, praise, petting, car rides). If this doesn't work, health issues, not behavioral issues, may be the cause since she's a senior dog. Take her to the vet if this persists.

Keep your greyhound on a muzzle when he's outside. They wear muzzles at the track so they're used to it and it is not mean. Make sure to get a basket-style muzzle so he can still open his mouth to breathe. Since basket-style muzzles have holes, a persistent pooch can still get into trouble. If he's still able to eat waste, buy a poop-guard muzzle or a poop-guard attachment.