O.K. - for those wanting a greyhound..

[pegc]

I've had my foster greyhound for 3 weeks now. He is totally uninterested in my rats mostly. If they are being very noisy, he goes to look at them. When they are out on my shoulder, he pays no mind.

BUT, if a squirrel (or anything else) moves quickly outside - watch out.

So my conclusion is that having a greyhound with ratties is perfectly safe, as long as the rats aren't running around in front of it.
These sweet and beautiful dogs are in desparate need of rescue, so anyone wanting one - please adopt one! Or two - since greyhounds love the company of others of their kind.  P.S. - for those of you who are single - try walking these dogs - they are quite the attention getters!

[JulesDoug]

 ;DWOW!! I have whippets and everyone told me no way with ratties...I am pleased to say my ratties sleep on my young whippet Winnie without any problem I think they know they are part of the tribe and dont even think about having them for dinner.  A couple of days ago I went to bed and forgot to shut the cage  
The dogs were fine no damage done...conclusion racing/coursing dogs will be fine with ratties as long as they know whose boss!!

[Grace Jr]

Yay!!!  I have always wanted Greys, and fell absolutely in love with them when I saw my friends little brindle girl.  Well, little for a grey anyway...  lol

There is a rescue organization a few hours from here, and thats where I plan to get them from.  And, of course I'll have to have two, since you can't have just a single dog!

And I've even already got a Greyhound bumper sticker on my car, ain't I good?    "Make a fast friend - Adopt a Greyhound!"

[pegc]

Yay, Grace! So many of these beautiful dogs in desparate situations.

Two is a good idea since they have been in the company of other greys all their lives and have never been alone.

Just do research (if you havent' already) to understand their unique problems - e.g. stairs, wooden or vinyl floors - and mostly, that they can NEVER be off leash unless in an enclosed area. Oh, also - they cannot eat off the floor - their bowls must be raised.
Let us know when you decide!

[Evergreen Rattery]

  A little warning. . .I have two rescue greyhounds and one of them had shown little interest in my rats, but one day he was sitting on my bed and I had my rat out and she was running up my arm when he suddenly lunged at her!  She wouldn't have made it if I hadn't snapped her away in the nick of time.  He was fine after that, however.  I think it depends on the personality of the dog; each one is different, of course.  However, don't let this discourage you from getting greyhounds, they're wonderful and beautiful dogs.  Just remember to be careful with your rats around them.  You never know.

[Grace Jr]

Peg, no need to fear, the dog-a-holic is here!  lol  Even though I probably won't be able to get them for a few more years, I've already done tons of reasearch on them.  I've got a couple books, and of course the for dummies book on them, now I just need to remember to get the two by Cynthia Branigan!  

And don't worry Evergreen, all ratties are safe here!    Even with Joey (cat), who is 7 years old and a big lazy bum who lets the rats walk all over him, I still don't allow contact unless they are closely supervised.  At first I'll probably use a muzzle on the grey/s until I see how they do.  But, I'm going to have the perfect babies, so they'll be great.  

[pegc]

Evergreen proves my point!  These dogs are safe as long as the rats (or cats, etc) are not running.

They are simply impelled to chase anything that moves - leaves, paper bags, or wee ratties! This behaviour is genetic, so caution must be used at all times.

On the other hand, I dog-sat a Lab awhile ago, and stupidly left the rat cage door open. I raced upstairs, heart pounding, when I realized it.

One of the ratties was a little damp and scared. The Lab had licked her and nothing more. What a sweetie!

[Ruckers Ratties]

I have a greyhound/ border collie mix. He has the body of a greyhound and the markings of a border collie. He is SUPER HYPER. Been comtemplating finding him a new home though, he's kinda tough to have around the kids.  He was a rescue we got last year. We love him to death but want to make sure we do whats best for him.

[JulesDoug]

I have found that seeking advive from a doggy behaviourist is a good thing to do before rehoming needs to be thought about as I am sure this would be awful..its probably the collie in him that needs to be worked lol!! The greyhound bit is usually pretty dopey ...I had a collie mix and it was hard with the kids but behaviour training worked a treat
Not preaching just a thought!!

[pegc]

Just testing pics here - the last time I tried it didn't work.  

[Ruckers Ratties]

Your right actually it is the border collie part. He has a strong herding instinct and tends to herd the children in the back yard by nipping.  He also digs and tears up our fence. I got our puppy as a replacement because I was planning on re-homing him, but the puppy has actually been good for him, he spends more time with the puppy then tearing up the fence now, and he is starting to mellow out more when in the house. He is almost a year old, and we did put him through Obedience class, but he gets so darn excited he can't control himself. My husband has talked me into keeping him, but once in awhile I do still find myself thinking maybe we should still find him anouther home. It most likely won't happen, with my big heart I know I would miss him too much