Adopting a greyhound in Liverpool: rescues, costs and health

The count under the short answer is live: every greyhound listed with us within about 25 miles of Liverpool, each linked to its rescue on our Liverpool greyhound page. When we checked on 21 October 2026, greyhounds were the breed listed most often around the city, with Makants, Manchester & Cheshire Dogs' Home, Home Run Hounds North West, Warrington Animal Welfare and North Clwyd Animal Rescue all listing them, and many more already reserved.

A volunteer-run registered charity that rehomes former racing greyhounds and says it covers Cheshire, Merseyside and the wider North West. Its kennels are at Rixton, a short drive from Junction 21 of the M6, and visits are by appointment only. Nothing starts until you send the interest form on its adoption page; the charity then gets back to you. It describes its dogs as "45-mile-an-hour couch potatoes", happy with a couple of short walks a day.

Homes that already have a dog or young children, and only those, can use Foster to Adopt: a trial at home, with no duty to keep the greyhound afterwards. See its dogs on our Home Run Hounds North West page.

Since 2013, Makants has rehomed over 770 greyhounds from its farm kennels at Tyldesley, without outside funding. Its dogs, mainly ex-racers from around the country, leave assessed, neutered, vaccinated and chipped. Plan a few visits: you must book ahead, and it encourages you to meet a hound with a volunteer and walk dogs more than once.

After a home visit from its coordinator, the dog comes to you for two weeks before anything is final. Read its requirements before you apply: a fence of at least 5 feet all round with a lockable gate, no shared communal gardens, resident dogs neutered, and no more than 4 hours alone without a dog walker. Its current dogs are on our Makants page.

Racing. About 8,000 greyhounds retire each year, the Greyhound Trust says, and it finds homes for around half; its breed profile puts the usual retirement age at three to five. The national charity homes them through its branches, with each dog neutered, vaccinated and microchipped and four weeks' free insurance; search its site for a branch.

The rescues near Liverpool that publish a fee ask from £175, and the vet work is done. Makants adds four weeks' free Petplan cover, and the Dogs' Home's £200 includes neutering, a first vaccination and a microchip.

Buy a puppy and those bills move to you. UK law has the breeder chip it by 8 weeks, so the chip is part of the price, but PDSA puts a large dog's set-up costs, vaccinations and neutering among them, at £560, then at least £116 a month. That comes after the £400 to £3,000 Blue Cross quotes for the puppy.

Teeth come first. In a Royal Veterinary College VetCompass study of 5,419 greyhounds seen by UK vets in 2016, dental disease affected 39.0 per cent, far more than any other problem; overgrown nails affected 11.1 per cent and osteoarthritis 4.6 per cent. The paper links some of this to their racing years. Ask about:

• Teeth and old injuries. What dental work has the rescue's vet done, and does the dog have any track injury or stiffness?
• Other conditions. PDSA lists bloat (a twisted stomach and an emergency), gum disease, progressive retinal atrophy (gradual sight loss), bone cancer and von Willebrand's disease, a bleeding disorder, and warns that overheating and rigid paralysis can sometimes follow exercise.
• Nerves. Greyhound neuropathy, a nerve disease, has a DNA test that The Royal Kennel Club wants breeders to use.

Greyhounds need less exercise than people expect: about an hour a day, says PDSA, and the Greyhound Trust says two twenty-minute walks keep many happy. They do need a secure space. Makants' 5-foot fence rule and its bar on shared communal gardens rule out most flats, so measure your garden or yard before you apply.

Cats are the other question. Makants says its ex-racers come straight from racing and wouldn't suit a home with cats, while the Greyhound Trust says some greyhounds can be trained to live with them. Mention any cat, rabbit or small pet on your application. On cold walks along the coast, a thin-coated greyhound will want a coat: PDSA says greyhounds need a warm one in winter.

Rescue greyhounds are adopted, not sold: you apply, the rescue matches a dog to your home, and you pay its fee or homing donation. Every greyhound on our Liverpool greyhound page comes that way, and most are retired racers.

If you want a puppy, The Royal Kennel Club lists litters on its "Find a puppy" service, and Dogs Trust's breed guides suggest a pre-purchase consultation with a vet to hear about likely conditions and rough costs. If an advert looks like a scam, tell Report Fraud, the service that replaced Action Fraud.