Check list and advice for newcomers!
If you are bringing an Italian Greyhound into your home for the first time you may find this
First Time Italian Greyhound Checklist very useful
NOTE:
Italian Greyhounds are NOT suited to living outdoors in kennels, not least because they quickly feel the cold and would hate the loneliness. They have been bred as companion dogs for hundreds of years and therefore want/need to always be close together with their human owners and a part of their lives.
They are a breed which likes and needs to be pampered, but here are the bare essentials which your Italian Greyhound will need in your home:
First Time Italian Greyhound Checklist:
Its own water bowl always kept clean and filled with fresh water
Its own feeding bowl *
Appropriate access to a secure outside space to toilet
Its own warm bed
Several warm, soft blankets
Several warm coats for all weathers
An assortment of toys and chew things
A soft wide sighthound collar with ID tag
Toothbrush and special canine toothpaste, that taste goood seen through dog's eyes! (Never use human toothpaste)
Nail clippers for dogs
*Note: Many Italian Greyhound owners use raised feeding bowls. As you can see from the photo above, the long legged Italian Greyhound has to stoop down quite some way to reach a bowl on the floor, and with some Italian Greyhounds this awkward feeding position can lead them to gulping down air with their food, which can cause tummy problems. Raised bowls are commonly available from pet stores – aim for one which is approximately 8” off the ground.
These are just the basics but of course the opportunities to pamper your Italian Greyhound are endless … throws on your sofa so your Italian Greyhound can cuddle up in its favourite spot. (They love to burrow underneath.)
A dog bed in most rooms in your home because it’s easier than having to lug one around when your Italian Greyhound decides to follow you from room to room.
A box/container/shelf to keep the toys where your Italian can choose and grab his/her current favourite, not counting the many impromptu toys such as socks and underwear that your Italian Greyhound just decided to drag through the house!
It is also well worth investing in "baby gates'" over certain doors to prevent puppies accessing stairs unsupervised or areas which might be unsafe i.e a hall when an open front door could tempt it to run outside!
It’s not enough to provide your Italian Greyhound with creature comforts and cuddles though. You must also make the time to interact with your Italian Greyhound e.g. by playing with him/her at several times a day for at least 15 minutes each time.
Italian Greyhounds can be very ‘naughty’ so you should also think about how "dog safe" your home is, or rather:
How Italian Greyhound safe it is!
Furniture in your home can be an Italian Greyhound’s idea of the perfect playground – the bookshelf the perfect place to practice a bit of mountain climbing, the back of your sofa the perfect place to practice carpet diving, kitchen worktops the perfect hunting ground… so be aware and think about how you can ensure your Italian Greyhound can be stay safe in your home. Keep puppies from jumping up on anything the first few months.
Always remember – Italian Greyhounds can jump amazingly high and then they think they can just fly down again –
with many an accident to follow. Therefore, if your find your Italian Greyhound somewhere high up, then lovingly and calmly approach and lift her/him down again to save an accident happening. Many a dog has broken its leg when the owner impulsively shouted in anger and the dog leapt down in a panic.
Use your common sense and you will go a long way to preventing nasty accidents e.g. don’t let puppies leap off furniture onto hard, polished floors, don’t let your Italian Greyhounds run in rutted or pot-holed fields but instead let them run in safe areas so they can build bone and muscle strength.
