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Home and News
Welcome to the Greyhound Rescue Shropshire and Borders website. We hope that you find it informative and easy to navigate. If you have any comments or questions we would love to hear from you. Just use the contact button above.
We set ourselves up in the summer of 2006 as a rescue group not just for greyhounds but for lurchers as well. We aim to rehome as many of these dogs as possible and to raise awareness of the plight of ex-racing greyhounds in particular. It is generally accepted that some 9000 greyhounds each year either "retire" from the track or are not considered good enough to make the grade. Many responsible trainers place these dogs with groups such as ours so that they can be rehomed but many more are not so lucky and are either abandoned or killed.
Greyhounds do make excellent pets. They are a gentle and undemanding breed, deeply in love with home comforts and surprisingly idle. A couple of 20 minute walks are all they require and they will sleep quite happily for the rest of the day. The temperament of a lurcher varies, of course, depending upon the greyhound cross but we make every effort to establish the nature of all of our dogs so that potential owners know exactly what they are getting and that the home and dog are matched for suitability. To date we have successfully homed 220 dogs - just take a look at the Happy Homings page to see what you might be missing!
As our name suggests, we operate over an extensive rural area which includes large parts of Shropshire, Wrexham County Borough, Montgomeryshire and Denbighshire. Our towns include Oswestry and Shrewsbury.
Our kennels are situated in Condover, just outside Shrewsbury. This is a commercial boarding kennels, but Sue Tipton, the energetic owner, is devoted to the welfare of the greyhounds and spends many hours not just caring for and rehabilitating them but homing and fundraising.
We have a trusty band of willing helpers who turn out to meet & greets, shows and other fund raising events but we are always in need of extra pairs of hands so if you can spare some time to help us out, then please do get in touch.
It's not all work! We're a sociable bunch and usually manage a laugh or two when we're setting up the stands, and we have regular social events centered around beer and food! Please take a look at our Events page to see where we will be next! We would love to meet you and your hounds.
If you might be interested in fostering, please take a look at the Fostering page and contact Sue at the kennels on 01743 872395 to discuss things further. Food for the dogs and any medical bills etc. will be covered.
Please also take a look at the Events page where we will maintain a list of future happenings and report on past events. Owners are invited to let us know about how the dogs they have homed are getting along and these stories will be put on The Happy Endings page which will hopefully encourage new readers to take the plunge and investigate the possibility of giving a greyhound or lurcher the chance of a happy home!
If you would like to know more about greyhounds in general and the work of the RGT follow the link to their website www.retiredgreyhounds.co.uk
NEWS FOR 2009
Our two latest ventures at Condover are now complete.
The first is our new centre for elderly greyhounds, a home where those dogs who have terminal illnesses or who are simply very old may enjoy their days in quiet and comfort. The underfloor heating is in, there are plenty of settees and their little paddock has just been turfed! We will be able to home five or six dogs there at any one time and we will keep you up to date with developments. We have decided to name the unit "Racers' Retreat".
Our second development is right next door and is designed to raise funds. This is "Paw Prints", a little shop where people can browse hundreds of Malcolm's books at their leisure. There's also a small selection of bric a brac - anything, in fact, that will sell! Do come along and take a look - and buy!
We are planning an official launch for these new activities on Sunday 26th April. It will take the form of an open day probably to include a barbeque. Please keep an eye on the diary for further detaiils. All are welcome to the party!
CONGRATULATIONS!
Congratulations to Beth and Beanie who have met all the requirements and passed the tests for Beanie to become a registered Pets as Therapy Dog.
Beanie joins nearly 4000 active PAT visiting dogs and cats in the UK who provide love and companionship to people from all walks of life in hospitals, schools, prisons and hospices.
It is an amazing achievement for Beanie as a greyhound who found the adjustment from life as a racer to life as a pet particularly difficult, taking over a year to fully settle at home and around other dogs.
Beanie will hopefully be attending a primary school in Wrexham as a reading buddy and also working alongside children with special needs.
Well done to both of you! We look forward to hearing about your visits.
Blood Donors
Congratulations are due to Batty, Foxy, Mustang and Spartacus who have all become blood donors at Pearl Vets in Shrewsbury. We are told that they all behaved impeccably and rose to the challenge without any complaints. Well done to all these brave boys!
The vets have told us that greyhounds are desirable as blood donors as they have significantly more red blood cells than other dogs breeds. In addition they are renowned for being calm, laid back and taking everything in their stride.
Canine blood is needed for all sorts of reasons including transfusions after accidents or for dogs with anaemia. It takes just half an hour to forty minutes to take the blood needed but the dog will then need to stay in the vets for a couple of hours overall as they will have a tiny bit of sedative to keep them relaxed.
If you would like your greyhound to give blood, please contact your local vet. A blood donor must never have been pregnant, be aged between two and eight years old and weigh over twenty five kilos.