Lisa Shearin, National Bestselling Author

Greyhound Adoption

For those of you who have been fans for a while, you know that my husband Derek and I adopt retired racing greyhounds. We love greyhounds, and can’t imagine our lives without them.

Florida recently passed Amendment 13, which will end greyhound racing in Florida by 2020. Even before this, the downturn in the economy had forced racetracks in Florida and elsewhere to cut back races, and some tracks are closing altogether. That was how we got our sweet boy Andy; the track he was at in Melbourne, Florida, was closing and the racers were being put up for adoption. If you are looking to bring a dog into your life, please consider a greyhound. Contrary to popular belief, they don’t require a lot of exercise. They’re trained as sprinters, not runners. In fact, greyhounds are called “45-mph Couch Potatoes.” There’s nothing they love more than a good snuggle.

Adopt a Greyhound.org is a great site for pretty much any question you could possibly have, and for anything you could want to know about adopting retired racing greyhounds. Plus they have a page where you can find a greyhound adoption group anywhere in the world. Wherever you are, there’s probably a greyhound adoption group nearby.

If you’re interested in greyhound adoption, contact a group near you. Most have Meet & Greets where you can meet and pet the hounds (just be prepared to fall in love). And when you’ve decided that you home just isn’t complete without the pitter-patter of retired racer paws, contact one of your local greyhound kennels to arrange a visit.

I love this list of “Top 10 reasons to adopt a greyhound.”

There are many books if you’re interested in finding out more: Adopting the Retired Racing Greyhound by Cynthia Branigan is considered THE must-read for prospective adopters. And I don’t know what I’d have done without my copy of Retired Racing Greyhounds for Dummies.

And of course, my greyhound adoption page wouldn’t be complete without photos of the hounds with whom we share the house. Ricky, Dodger, Gracie, and Andy have sadly passed on, but they’re still our fur babies. Odin, Loki, Cameron, and Dory are our “Hounds in Residence.”  (You can click on the photos to see them better.)

Derek, our Jack Russell Terrier, Lucy, and our first greyhound “Ricky” (Racing name: “Pilot in the Sky”)

“Dodger” (Racing name: “Lotsa Dodge”)

“Gracie” (Racing name: “ICU Smooth Cat”)

Andy (Racing name: “Nimble Andy”)

Odin (Racing name: “Where’s Destroy”)

Cameron (Racing name: “Mac’s Dr. Cameron”) helping me write.

Loki (Racing name: “Kells Attaboy”)

Dory (Racing name: “JD’s Belligerent”) snuggling with big brother Odin.