Post by Milothemonster on Aug 14, 2014 4:18:08 GMT -5
Flynn is six months old and I already know that we should be careful about not over exercising him. I know that too much too soon can damage the growth plates in his legs etc.
I have heard of the general theory of five min walks per months, so according to that Flynn should only have thirty mins of walk a day... which doesnt seem quite enough unless it means thirty mins twice a day, as my dogs get two walks a day etc
Now I had Milo from a four month old pup and we did as we are doing now with Flynn gradually increasing the walk time to an hour twice a day.
Obviously when Flynn has matured then he will be going on much longer walks.
But is two, seperate hour walks on lead a day too much for a greyhound youngster?
But I have kept Flynn on lead as , well we are working on recall, but also I had heard it was wise to do this with greyhound pups for a while as due to their lightening fast speed, being let off too early could also damage their growing joints etc.
But how soon is too early?
We went to the RGT show the other day and I was told conflicting things by different experienced greyhound owners and two of them had hand reared litters of greys.
One lady told me that I should not let Flynn off lead till he was over 12 months old. She said it has to be when his growth plates have stopped growing. She went on to tell me that a litter of six that she raised all went to good homes and four where kept on lead till after 12 months and did well but two were let off earlier and both had damage to their joints.
One other man told me to let Flynn off when he is 9 months old but only for a five min run on a beach!!
Now I have some worries about all of the above.
For one, how do we know his growth plates will be mature by 12 months of age.
Milo is a lurcher but with a lot of greyhound in him. I distinctly remember that at 12 months he wasnt the size he is now. I remember asking my vet if he thought Milo had finished growing and he said yes. But this proved not true, as Milo went on to grow several more inches and ended up the height he is now at 18 months... so he took a lot longer to be mature and reach his adult height.
So how can we know the exact rate of growth etc. Milo's plates looked as if they were complete at 12 months but he went on to have another growth spurt etc
Then letting them first off on a beach, this concerns me too.
All of Herbie's muscles injuries happened on a beach. Herbie's hydro/physio vet told me that sand isnt always the best surface to run on. Hard sand should be ok, but most beaches are made up of both hard and soft sand even when wet, it would be almost impossible to avoid some risk.
But then again, running on grass, well you could imagine all kinds of dangers there, catching feet in holes etc
I do so want to make sure Flynn will be as safe as possible.
But with Milo we certainly let him off lead ealier than nine months, but as said he is a lurcher.
I have seen how fast Flynn gets up to speed in the garden already and one of the ladies at the RGT told me to only let him play in the garden and not off lead on walks as his fast running could damage him, but he is racing around the garden already.
Should I be expected to curtail his play too?
I guess I come across as an over anxious Mum again.
But any advice/tips appreciated folks!
I have heard of the general theory of five min walks per months, so according to that Flynn should only have thirty mins of walk a day... which doesnt seem quite enough unless it means thirty mins twice a day, as my dogs get two walks a day etc
Now I had Milo from a four month old pup and we did as we are doing now with Flynn gradually increasing the walk time to an hour twice a day.
Obviously when Flynn has matured then he will be going on much longer walks.
But is two, seperate hour walks on lead a day too much for a greyhound youngster?
But I have kept Flynn on lead as , well we are working on recall, but also I had heard it was wise to do this with greyhound pups for a while as due to their lightening fast speed, being let off too early could also damage their growing joints etc.
But how soon is too early?
We went to the RGT show the other day and I was told conflicting things by different experienced greyhound owners and two of them had hand reared litters of greys.
One lady told me that I should not let Flynn off lead till he was over 12 months old. She said it has to be when his growth plates have stopped growing. She went on to tell me that a litter of six that she raised all went to good homes and four where kept on lead till after 12 months and did well but two were let off earlier and both had damage to their joints.
One other man told me to let Flynn off when he is 9 months old but only for a five min run on a beach!!
Now I have some worries about all of the above.
For one, how do we know his growth plates will be mature by 12 months of age.
Milo is a lurcher but with a lot of greyhound in him. I distinctly remember that at 12 months he wasnt the size he is now. I remember asking my vet if he thought Milo had finished growing and he said yes. But this proved not true, as Milo went on to grow several more inches and ended up the height he is now at 18 months... so he took a lot longer to be mature and reach his adult height.
So how can we know the exact rate of growth etc. Milo's plates looked as if they were complete at 12 months but he went on to have another growth spurt etc
Then letting them first off on a beach, this concerns me too.
All of Herbie's muscles injuries happened on a beach. Herbie's hydro/physio vet told me that sand isnt always the best surface to run on. Hard sand should be ok, but most beaches are made up of both hard and soft sand even when wet, it would be almost impossible to avoid some risk.
But then again, running on grass, well you could imagine all kinds of dangers there, catching feet in holes etc
I do so want to make sure Flynn will be as safe as possible.
But with Milo we certainly let him off lead ealier than nine months, but as said he is a lurcher.
I have seen how fast Flynn gets up to speed in the garden already and one of the ladies at the RGT told me to only let him play in the garden and not off lead on walks as his fast running could damage him, but he is racing around the garden already.
Should I be expected to curtail his play too?
I guess I come across as an over anxious Mum again.
But any advice/tips appreciated folks!
