GREYHOUND EXPERTS? Is there really such a Person? 

 Even greyhound owners and trainers of of 50 years’ experience will confess they don’t know it all, and I will put myself into the same bracket, nobody knows it all, and to be even a relative font of information would take at least 30 years interaction with the breed. A greyhound is there to make a fool of you, and that is what they do. Obviously they share some traits because they are a greyhound, but without a shadow of a doubt they will confuse you, irritate you and often have you pulling your hair out but they all have one thing in common, they will always love you, and of course every true greyhound owner will not only love them back, but completely adore their hounds to the ends of the Earth.
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Yes of course! You can exchange information on your dog which can be helpful, but on the other hand it may be the completely wrong advice for that particular dog. Just because your hound reacts to something doesn’t mean all hounds will react the same way. Taking a greyhound, if it is your first hound it is paramount you learn as much as you can from books and advice, but the reality is you will only learn about your hound by having him/her with you, and it takes years.
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The greyhound is an enigma, because I’m sure they don’t even know themselves. When I first started with greyhounds, I too had to learn the ins and outs of the breed, but it soon became evident I would never live long enough to be a truly competent expert because even now they do things I’m not really expecting, and even eat things, like salad for instance which allegedly goes against the norm.
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When Pat Bannister was in charge of Wimbledon kennels I took on one of her hounds. Lucy (Ascots Girl/Princess) who used to love blackberry’s, and in season I used to pick them on our walks with half for her, and half for me. I never had another hound who liked them, neither before or after. I had another greyhound girl who would take apples out of the fruit bowl and completely devour them, she loved them, but I’ve never had another hound who liked them too.
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I often see on forums what you can and cannot give your hounds, which once used to be part of their diet that was until all these warnings hit the Internet and people believed them as fact. Garlic for instance, was used by greyhound trainers to keep (allegedly) worms away and help clear them out, and I used it myself on my racing greyhounds, and I never had a problem with any of my hounds. Things that are considered taboo, I still give to my dogs mainly because they were having them long before these “alerts” were adamant you shouldn’t give them to dogs.
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I never post what I actually give my hounds, because there is always someone who says you shouldn’t be doing that or doing this, normally someone who doesn’t even know which end a dog defecates. If I was to write on a forum just what I actually give my hounds I would be castigated by the “fonts” but of course they truly appreciate their fayre without ever falling foul of anything which could in anyway be remotely put down to the type of treats my hounds are given. For instance, my hounds used to love soft ice-cream in a cornet, and still do, but there is a warning on ice-cream too circulating on the internet.
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As I said earlier all greyhounds are different, so obviously there have been canines which have been affected by some foodstuffs, but it is a broad spectrum to include all canines as at risk. Some people have allergies to a lot of foods, but others eat them with no problem, while others suffer, it is I’m afraid just the way of the world, but we still go on eating them. However, about 15 years ago I was in hospital for 12 days after eating Spaghetti Bolognese, I have never eaten it since. LOL
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To conclude, people will still have a rudimentary knowledge of any particular greyhound, normally theirs which will increase as time goes by, but to know it all? No way, but I often wished I did so I wouldn’t make so many silly mistakes.
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Last week, a friend asked me to look after her girl greyhound overnight as she wanted to go out. All was going well, until she had a growl at my 13 ½ Ciara, to which I pulled her up very quickly, something she hadn’t been used too. All I can say was she gave me such a look I’ve never seen before in any of my 50 years with the breed. She looked at me in total disdain along with a look that seemed to say; “Don’t ever talk to me like that again Sunny Jim” I just wished I had my camera at hand.

No! Nobody will ever get to the bottom of the noble greyhound