10 Helpful Equipment Recommendations for Your Greyhound

In this article, we’ll explore 10 common pieces of equipment to help set up your greyhound for success!

A Martingale collar is a collar that tightens in response to the dog pulling.

At Greyhounds as Pets, we don't recommend these collars for training purposes, but the reason why we do recommend their use is that greyhounds have quite a small head in comparison to their neck, so the Martingale collar helps to prevent the collar from slipping off the Greyhound's head when they pull back.

Every dog that's adopted from Greyhounds as Pets comes with its own Martingale collar and replacements can be purchased if required.

It’s best to only use the Martingale collars for walking and then use a regular flat collar with the dog's details on it for around the house. Sometimes Martingale collars can snag on household objects or fixtures, so it’s best to only use them when your dog is supervised.

It's always a good idea to use a harness while walking, especially for those dogs who can be strong on the lead.

A body harness can help to disperse the pressure of walking on a lead to the dog's body, as opposed to the neck, which can be quite sensitive to pulling and pressure.

Harnesses can be an alternative to a Martingale collar, however, it's always important to make sure that harness is fitted well and it's not restricting the dog's movement in any way.

We advise using a standard leash, usually of a material that will not cause friction to the owner when walking the dog.

We always suggest that the proper leash-holding techniques are used when walking your dog.

When you adopt a greyhound from us, if you have any confusion over the best way to hold the dog's lead, please ask staff and they'll happily demonstrate that for you. We don't recommend retractable leads as they can be a hazard to both dog, owner and other dogs. They can potentially injure a dog if they're brought up short suddenly, and they can represent a tripping hazard to other people as well should the dog suddenly take off.

The length of the leash is up to the owner's discretion. We would only advise that it's possible that there can be some slack in the lead without completely surrendering control of the dog. So it will entirely depend on how comfortable the owner is. Some people can use two-meter leads or above with expert handling, but for most people, it'll be two meters or under.

In 2022 in NSW we've had a huge amount of rain, so it's quite good to have some sort of water-resistant coat for your greyhound, especially because they can be quite sensitive to cool temperatures and wet weather.

An important recommendation is to again, have one that is properly fitted without excess material.

There are rare times when a noisy or flappy coat can be a confusing experience for the greyhound. A correctly fitted waterproof coat is likely to avoid any sort of negative association with the coat itself.

At Greyhounds as Pets, we sell lovely fleecy winter coats that can be purchased at time of adoption or posted to you.

With that said, there are plenty of other coats online for those people who prefer funky or customisable designs or styles that offer more body coverage (like pyjamas).

Material can matter, just as with the waterproof coat. It's best to avoid things that are overly noisy or restrictive, because we want the dog to be comfortable.

Greyhounds will also happily accept cuddling in your living room with the fireplace on to stay warm!

Baby gates are a great tool for subdividing areas in your home if you need to create a space for your dog to chill out in, or you need to create a division where kids can't access the dog or two dogs can't access each other at times.

These are available from various retailers and are great for homes with young children or multidog homes. For people living in smaller homes, they can consider using crates instead.

Many racing greyhounds have grown up in a kennel environment, and are not used to being disturbed when they are at rest.

A crate provides them with their own safe space where they can retreat to where they will not be disturbed when they sleep. So for most greyhounds, that's an easy transition.

It's always important to fit your crate with comfortable bedding and make sure that only positive things happen in the dog's crate so they don't form a negative association with the crate itself.

Things like shutting the dog in their crate as a timeout or punishment aren't recommended as that can cause dogs to have an aversion to that space.

Many greyhounds will be used to having a trampoline-style bed while living in kennels. These beds are quite sturdy so are a good choice of bed for your backyard or deck.

Most adopters prefer having soft dog beds or mattresses indoors which are included in our purchasable adoption starter packs.

Ramps are a good idea to invest in if your house has areas where the dog would have to jump up and down regularly or to assist in getting in and out of the car.

These should be especially considered if you've got a senior dog that might be sensitive to the shock of jumping on and off surfaces.

Additionally, there are some dogs as well that, for various reasons, even though they're young and perfectly healthy, they just aren't comfortable getting into a large car. So ramps can be of use in those cases.

The types of toy that your dog would prefer can really vary with the individual dog.

Many will not have that much experience with toys at first, or might be a little hesitant to play when they're first settling into a home, but usually, within a few months, you'll see them engage with different toys.

In terms of preference, when you're adopting a greyhound, if the dog has expressed a particular preference for balls or squeaky toys or rope toys etc we will let you know. Typically, toys to chew are options that most greyhounds will enjoy once they've settled into their home.

We hope that you can leverage these pieces of equipment to help your greyhound live a happy, healthy, and quality life with its best welfare in mind.