Greyhound Anyone?

[CaptJB]

Is there anyone out there crusiing with a greyhound onboard?

[biker6977]

Just how do you fit a bus on board? You must have one hell of a boat :-)

[CaptJB]

Your killing me!!!

[a64pilot]

Aren't they real high strung, love to run kind of dog? When I had my english pointer and lived in Germany I needed to take him out every other day or so just to let him run, it wouldn't have been good for him to stay cooped up

[skipmac]

Never owned a greyhound but had friends with a pair. Not sure if they were typical of the breed but hers were pretty high energy and I would think not well suited to a boat.

[crazyoldboatguy]

Actually, greyhounds, while fast runners, can be quite the couch potatoes. I would make sure they have good flotation on while on board. They are fleet of foot on dry land but with that low body fat content and poor swimming skills, they may make for good fish food if they go overboard.

Now, as far as doggie do do goes........

[CaptJB]

My grey is a total couch potato! It is a big myth that they are high strung. Actuall they are excellent condo pets. Mine spent the first 3 years of her life running for a living and is now content to eat, sleep and share her love. She is a perfect traveler in my private plane. I was wonder how she would do on a boat. Roger the comment on safety harness. She jumped in the pool once and with her muscle mass iit was all she could do to keep her head above water.

[Sondor]

As a couple of others said above, Greyhounds have got to be the laziest dogs ever when not running.

I used to enjoy going to the Greyhound track when we had one here (state-run video-poker killed the dog-track) and was always amazed at how mild-mannered they were. They would often walk dogs who weren't running that day amongst the crowd and the little kids would be pulling their tails, ears, and poking etc... and the dogs just took it without a second thought.

Greyhounds enjoy a good daily run, but when not running (99.9% of the time), they might as well be furniture.

BTW, I've never seen a happier dog than a Greyhound when racing around a track. Very impressive when the pack runs by and several seconds later you hear the "thud-thud-thud, thud thud" of dirt-clods falling back to earth....

Flagler and Hollywood Florida are still, I believe, two of the nations top dog-tracks. I'd assume they take the heat pretty well? Good point on them not being much of a swimmer though.

I think they'd make a good (albeit not ideal) boat-dog!

[Fiveslide]

They could be great fun on the beach with a fast remote control car and a stuffed rabbit.

Sent from my SCH-S738C using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[Matt Johnson]

Ours hated the boat! She would love the car ride towards the marina, but once she figured out where she was, she would start shaking uncontrollably (so we stopped taking her). She just couldn't get her balance and didn't like the motion... too long of legs. Your results may vary, but overall they are too timid of a breed and to tall for a good boat dog.

Matt

[sailcruiser]

I had greyhounds for many years. They are great pets. I never tried to take one on a boat. They are leggy and like gazelles on skis when they lose traction.

I think I'd try some sort of grippy sock or boot.

The other aspect to consider is personality. I'm sure you are aware greyhounds vary in personality like most breeds. A spooky grey would probably have a meltdown with the floor moving. I think the only way to find out is to take the pup to the boat with it tied up or moored and see how he/she does. I had several that would have flipped out and empty their bowels on the spot. A couple others would have their tongues flapping in the wind.

Flotation is definitely a must. They swim like a brick but love wading.

My two cents from 15 years of quite a few greyhounds.


SC

[CaptJB]

Thanks for the feedback. Guess i need to get her on a boat and check out her reaction. As stated previously, she handles riding in a small plane just fine, so i don't think the motion is going to be an issue. I will be looking in the 37-43ft range for our boat and i plan to start with a few nights aboard at te marinia follwed by short day sails to see how she adjust. I'll keep everyone posted on the results.

[JPA Cate]

No small boat is as stable as even a very small aircraft, one airborne.

Ann