Adopting a greyhound in Nottingham: charities, rules and costs

Our Nottingham greyhound page shows every greyhound and greyhound cross listed with us within about 25 miles of the city, nearest first, each linked to its rescue; the count under the short answer is the same live figure. None of the rescues behind it is in the city itself, and the three greyhound charities below home only greyhounds, so expect to drive out of Nottingham whichever route you take.

Rules differ, and two of them rule out a lot of Nottingham households, so read this before you fall for a dog online:

Racing produces them. The Greyhound Trust puts the number retiring each year at about 8,000 and says it rehomes about half, and its breed page gives three to five as the usual retirement age. Crossing Cottage puts the yearly figure at between eight and nine thousand, retiring at anywhere from 2 to 6. Either way, the dogs waiting near Nottingham are mostly young adults with years ahead of them.

Crossing Cottage's £250 comes with the vet work done: a health check, neutering, full vaccinations, flea and worm treatment, and dental treatment where the dog needed it. It also sends a 15 kg bag of greyhound food home with the dog. The Greyhound Trust branches neuter, vaccinate and chip too.

With a bought puppy, most of that work is yours to pay for. The breeder must microchip it by 8 weeks, so the chip is in the price, but neutering and the rest of the vaccinations become your bills, on top of the £400 to £3,000 Blue Cross quotes. PDSA puts the first costs of a large dog at £560, then at least £116 a month whichever way it came to you.

Of 5,419 greyhounds seen by UK vets in 2016, 39.0 per cent had dental disease, more than had any other problem, in a Royal Veterinary College VetCompass study, and the paper itself records a median age at death of 11.4 years. That makes Crossing Cottage's dental checks before rehoming worth asking about. Other points to raise with any rescue:

• Bloat and other conditions. Bloat, where the stomach twists and the dog needs a vet urgently, heads PDSA's greyhound list, which also covers gum disease, gradual sight loss from progressive retinal atrophy, bone cancer and von Willebrand's disease, which stops blood clotting properly.
• Nerves. Greyhound neuropathy, a nerve disease, is on The Royal Kennel Club's list of DNA tests for breeders; ask whether a retired racer has a result, though many won't.
• Old track injuries. Ask how the dog moves, whether a vet has seen any stiffness and what the rescue has treated.

Exercise is the easy part. The Greyhound Trust says two twenty-minute walks a day keep most greyhounds happy, and Battersea suggests around two 30-minute walks, built up slowly. Battersea also recommends a well-fitted harness, starting the dog in one quiet room and keeping its days predictable at first, because racing kennels run to a strict routine. For winter walks, PDSA says a thin-coated greyhound needs a warm coat.

On muzzles, the national charities differ. The Greyhound Trust sees a muzzle as a precaution for walks until you are sure how your hound behaves with other breeds, not something to wear all day; Battersea is stricter: in its view a former racer should be muzzled whenever it is out in public. Both Crossing Cottage and the Greyhound Trust send a muzzle home with the dog, and Battersea suggests a secure dog walking field, not a public park, for running off the lead.

Nobody sells a rescue greyhound. You meet the dogs or send an application, the charity pairs you with the hound that suits your household, and the fee is paid on the day you collect. The dogs on offer are mostly retired racers, so a puppy is unlikely, but every greyhound on our Nottingham greyhound page comes through a rescue that has already met it.

Set on a puppy? Litters are advertised on The Royal Kennel Club's "Find a puppy" service, and Dogs Trust's breed guides recommend booking a pre-purchase consultation with a vet to hear what conditions and costs to expect. Report Fraud, the national service that took Action Fraud's place, is where to send details of any advert you suspect.