Adopt a Greyhound

InformationSo you want to adopt a greyhound?

Have you seen the Galleries? Are you interested in adopting a greyhound that needs a home?
If so, you can contact us on the above number and arrange an appointment.

Alternatively you can contact us by email on our contact greyhound lifeline page.

Please ensure you leave your name and a “land line” telephone number so that we can call you back!

PLEASE READ our adoption criteria first as Greyhound Lifeline operate VERY stringent checks for all potential homers.

Adoption Criteria and homing procedure for Greyhounds

Greyhound Lifeline always carry out checks before accepting your offer to home a greyhound –
Please expect the following to be discussed:

  • Please Note Your working hours (if applicable) and how long a greyhound would be left without human company.
  • Garden suitability. You will be asked if you have a garden and about your fence and gate height. For the safety and security of your prospective greyhound pet, we will need fences and gates to be at least 6 feet/2 metres in height.
  • Please Note The ages of your children (if applicable), and previous dog owning experience (if any).
  • Please Note Your ability to pay for routine care requirements, neutering costs and unexpected vet bills.
  • Please Note What sort of greyhound would suit your family best. For example would a playful, fun loving dog suit you or perhaps a calm and more relaxed one is more to your taste.
  • Please Note Where you live and the type of home you have. This question relates to the travel distances involved to meet your possible greyhound pet, if stair climbing will be a requirement for the greyhound and to ascertain if you are a tenant or a home owner/buyer.
  • Please Note If you are a tenant we will require confirmation from your letting company that a greyhound will be welcome to live in the property with you.
  • Please Note We will ask you about any other pets you may have.
  • Please Note We will ask you to confirm that you are at least 21 years of age.

READ THIS: Please note that a home check must be satisfactorily completed before greyhound adoption can proceed. This is to give you the chance to really find out if a greyhound is a suitable pet for you and it provides us with the means to ensure the safety and security of any future greyhound you may adopt.

All our greyhounds are neutered and have had dentals prior to their adoption. They are homed vaccinated and are routinely treated for parasites whilst they are in our care.

We request a donation of £150 to adopt a greyhound. A £50 non-refundable holding deposit is required to reserved a greyhound. (The £50 paid will be deducted from the remaining donation due on adoption day.)

All greyhounds homed are provided with a leather greyhound collar, lead set and a muzzle. Coats, food and accessories are available at extra cost.

NEW CHANGES SINCE COVID-19:

Pre-meeting the greyhounds:

We will ask you to fill out a pre-homing questionnaire, which can be found on our website.  Once we have received it, we will contact you to discuss suitable greyhounds that we have for you, or adding your name to one of our waiting lists if you are for example looking to adopt a greyhound that could live with a cat.

Meeting the greyhounds:

In order to reserve or adopt a greyhound we will ask you to come and meet us, either at an agreed location or in our enclosed outdoor area.  You will be able to meet the selected greyhounds and we can discuss each one with you.  We will be asking you to use the hand sanitzer provided and we ask that you bring your own mask to wear.

Please note – since COVID we are ONLY doing viewings and homings outside, please bring appropriate clothing suitable for the conditions of the English weather!  

You will be able to ask as many questions as you have about greyhounds in general and we will try to give you as much detail on our dogs as we can.   We have taken the decision to keep our numbers low as this has been very beneficial for us and our homing success, over the last few years.  Due to COVID-19 and the increase in people wanting to adopt, we are also leaving some kennel spaces open in case we need to take in any emergencies or ones that need to come in from home environments.

Please Note: These factors may limited your choice of greyhound at your viewing but safety of all our volunteers, greyhounds and the public must come first, during these difficult times.  We will find a suitable greyhound for you as quickly as we can but you may have to wait a little longer than usual.

During your visit you will be able to take the greyhound for a walk, have some quiet time with them and give them a groom too, on a warm day, if you wish!

We do however welcome visitors who want to familiarise themselves with the greyhound breed generally before making a commitment to adopt a greyhound.

There is a lot to think about before you adopt a greyhound and this is important for you, your family and the greyhound as it is a huge commitment.

Some families like to make the decision quickly, then move forward to reserve the greyhound.  We encourage all families to take some time, to ensure they are ready to adopt, especially for first time greyhound owners.  We will offer to hold the greyhound for 24 hours so you can take time, before you commit to adopting.

We cannot complete a home check until a greyhound has been reserved, at times this rule will be over turned to exceptional circumstances.

NOTE: All viewings are by prior appointment only.

Your home check:

Your home check is our way of finding out if your home offer is suitable. One of our volunteers will ring you to arrange a virtual home check.  They will discuss all aspect of potential greyhound adoption with you. The home visit is your chance to talk to a greyhound owner about greyhounds generally in a relaxed and un-rushed manner.

We are asking for photos of your garden to be sent through to the managers separately so we can advise you on any potential risks or escape routes out for the greyhound.

Due to the current climate, we are unable to complete an actual home visit so you can see what a greyhound would look like in your home, however we are still carrying out all necessary checks to ensure we can best match greyhound to a family, some of the methods we are using: virtual homecheck, pictures of your garden, google earth, contacting your vets if you already have/had another dog, meeting people in open spaces if help is needed (where possible, depending on location and current climate of country) and follow up phone calls.

Once a successful home visit has occurred you are in a position to adopt a suitable greyhound.

Post-adoption contact:

We will give you a few days to settle your greyhound in, give them time to adjust to their new surroundings before we make contact.  If you have any questions or concerns before this please contact us by either email, phone call, text message etc.  We are here to help you, at whatever stage of your adoption.  Make contact with us, however small the question or concern is, we will be able to put your mind at rest and solve the issue so it doesn’t become bigger than necessary or puts added stress on you and your greyhound.

If you would like to keep us updated on your new pet’s progress we would love to hear about it. Telephone calls, emails, letters and photographs are always valued.

Periodically we may contact you to check on the well-being and progress of your adopted greyhound. This may be in the form of a telephone or email enquiry or a request to arrange a routine follow up (virtual) home visit, where required.

Our greyhounds’ long-term welfare and happiness is of prime importance to us and as such the greyhound’s well-being after adoption is as important to us as the dog’s welfare whilst he/she is in our care.

Got a Question about Adopting a Greyhound?

Check out our FAQ about Greyhounds, leave a comment/question if we have not covered any concerns you may have.

Greyhound Lifeline
(Page updated 09/11/20)

Greyhounds make excellent pets »