Converting a dog
FOR many years I was an anachronism on the canals being a dog-less boater! That has now changed, largely by chance; that's often the way on the Cut I find, writes Ralph Freeman.
A conversation with a long standing boating friend brought up the topic of boating dogs and she suggested now I'm a proper pensioner(!), I ought to have one. A few days later she text me to say that she had spoken to another boating friend who could arrange for me to adopt a petite, female, ex-racing greyhound that was due to retire in the near future. The only snag was she was black, but was I interested? Well 'yes' was my reply. So it began.
A Greyhound?
Like most folk, I knew very little about greyhound racing and as such I had not really thought about a retired racer as a pet i.e. boating dog. Looking around the Net I found that the general opinion is ex-racers make excellent pets and contrary to what most people think they are very calm, intelligent, laid back, affectionate animals, and couch potatoes to boot. Sounds good? I thought so.
Some say you really need a secure back garden for a greyhound but I have found having a hound on a boat is not a problem. After all I have a very large (long, thin) back garden called the towpath, The only implication is if she needs to 'go' I have to put her on a lead and go with her, but should you just let a dog roam the towpath unsupervised anyway? 'Think Bike!' as the signs say!
Done sympathetically
I took my time getting her used to the engine running and the boat (i.e her kennel) moving from time to time by doing short trips. Provided this is done sympathetically, I have not found it to be an issue. She now takes moving in her stride and indeed loves exploring a 'new' stretch of towpath. However, If you expect to take on a retired racer one day and go boating the next might I suggest you are expecting too much?
Imagine, Star Trek style, you have been beamed down to another planet, would you not be a little apprehensive and disorientated too? Time and patience is the key here I reckon. That's why I adopted her in February so I would have time to acclimatise her before the boating season kicked off. The reward is I now have a loyal, funny friend that can do nought to 40mph in three seconds and a 100 yards in around six! Watching a greyhound run is like watching a buzzard fly. They are both superb at what they do.
Black dog syndrome
I'm writing this piece to try and help the likes of Hall Green Retired Greyhound Trust. They and their contemporaries in the Birmingham/Lichfield/Wolverhampton area are suffering a surplus of black hounds in their re-homing kennels. For some reason these 'Black Beauties' are overlooked when people adopt a retired racer. I am hoping some of you kind-hearted boating types could help out and consider adopting one of these lovely creatures? If so have a look on the Net at the HGRGT site and take it from there. (Please).
Footnote:
The Retired Greyhound Trust is run by knowledgeable enthusiasts who are very focussed on the task in hand. It has been my experience that they (and the racing kennels at Shenstone near Lichfield), are a pleasure to talk to and do business with. CaRT please note.