3 Lessons My Rescue Greyhound Has Taught Me

January of 2020. Two months earlier at 23, I had moved out of my parent’s house and started renting my first apartment with my partner. He and I are both animal lovers; we had three reptiles between the two of us. So getting a dog seemed to be the natural progression of things. We both spent days and days looking for adoptable dogs in our area. Many of them were pitbull mixes (pitties have the cutest faces!). But then we checked our apartment’s new pet policy. No “aggressive breeds” allowed, pitties and even German Shepherds included. Our hearts broke. While I had grown up with small dogs most of my life, my partner had his heart set on getting a larger dog. “What about a greyhound?” He asked. He had grown up with three of them and had nothing but good things to say about them. Like many people, I didn’t even know greyhounds were a thing. I mean, I knew of them, the greyhound bus and all that. But I didn’t know anyone who had ever owned one. I hadn’t even met one in person. I looked more into the breed, fell in love with everything about them, and put in an application with our region’s greyhound rescue.

We brought Ginger home a month later in late February, right before the pandemic hit and we went into lockdown. Now almost a year later, I have learned so much about greyhounds as a breed, and myself as a person. Here are just a few of the things my noodle horse has taught me.

1. The importance of a good nap

If you know anything about greyhounds, you know that there is a reason they’re called the 45 mph couch potato. Ginger naps anywhere from 4 to 8 hours a day, at least. One of my favorite things about greyhounds is the hilarious position greyhound enthusiasts call “the Roach”. This is when greyhounds roll over onto their backs, usually while laying in some uncomfortable-looking position, and splay their long, spindly legs out. In Ginger’s case, “roaching” is often accompanied with snorting, grunting, and a bit of drooling. Seeing a greyhound roach is seeing a creature in pure relaxation and contentment. Sometimes when I’m rushing around the house doing chores, I see Ginger roaching and think “Yeah, a nap sounds like a good idea right now.” For someone as anxious and restless as me, seeing Ginger so utterly relaxed serves as a reminder for me to slow down. And give my noodle horse some belly rubs, of course.

2. There’s always time for goofing around

Greyhounds are some of the goofiest dogs out there. At first, I thought that Ginger was a weirdo. Most greyhound owners boast about how calm and lazy their grey is. And that is true- greyhounds are usually very calm. However, there are some greyhounds who are just nuts. Ginger is one of those.

Watching her play with her (too) many toys is the most hilarious sight I’ve ever seen. One minute, she’s snoozing in her bed. The next minute, she’s sitting up, alert, and scanning her toy pile before she literally pounces. She’ll run towards her chosen target and pretend to grab it, then jump back, then pounce on it again and maybe slap it around with her paws. Ears perked up, eyes bright and wide, and tail wagging. It’s a sight that never ceases to make me smile.

3. Every dog is an individual

Once you do some research into the breed, you pretty much think you’ve got the breed characteristics down to a science. “Greyhounds aren’t very affectionate”, “They don’t really like people outside of their household” are just a few of the things I’d read about the breed. So imagine my surprise when we end up with a greyhound who loves cuddling right out of the rescue and who prefers people over dogs (unless the dogs are other greyhounds). Ginger LOVES people. There are few things besides food that get Ginger more excited than seeing, hearing, or smelling new people. The few people we’ve met who have owned greyhounds in the past are very surprised when Ginger gets excited to see them- lots of teeth chattering, tail wagging, snorting, and jumping. Sometimes walking her is a struggle if there are people around. She gets so excited and wiggly and bouncy that it can be difficult to handle her. It’s helped me learn that every dog is an individual, even within a less common breed like the greyhound.

This past year has been quite an adventure for my household. Not only have we dealt with the pandemic, but we’ve brought a new furry family member into our home. She’s weird, she’s funny, and she’s one of the most loving dogs I’ve ever met.