Just Ask Pasha • Can I let my greyhound off leash

My friend had a greyhound that he let off leash. Can I train my greyhound to be off leash?

No. No. NO. Once again, when you sign your adoption contract, you will agree to always keep your greyhound on a leash or in a securely fenced area. This is purely for the safety of your greyhound.

Your greyhound is a sighthound, he can see a mosquito on a leaf a half mile away. OK, that is a bit of exaggeration. He does, however have a very keen distance vision, genetically he has been wired to detect motion. He can see something in the distance and begin running at speeds of up to 40 miles per hour and be gone before you even realize he saw something. 

As he is running towards his prey, he has absolutely no idea where he is going, where he has been or what dangers surround him. He isn't aware of the cars on the road that he is dashing across, and he is no match for a vehicle.

He may not even see something, but is spooked by an unfamiliar sound or even another human and start running.

There are a few different stories about "Trust, the Deadly Disease." Neither story ends with a happy ending.

"...He spies the neighbor dog across the street, and suddenly forgets everything he ever knew about not slipping outdoors, jumping out windows or coming when called due to traffic. Perhaps it was only a paper fluttering in the breeze, or even just the sheer joy of running--Stopped in an instant. Stilled forever. Every morning my dog Shah, bounced around off lead exploring. Every morning for seven years he came back when he was called. He was perfectly obedient, perfectly trustworthy. He died fourteen hours after being hit by a car."

"...We got to the campground near dark. We were way off any busy roads so right before we turned in I let the dogs loose to sniff around. It never occurred to me that they would wander off. Shelly was 13 and beautiful and I doubt I will ever see her again just because I was so complacent and not thinking. Every minute I'm wondering if she is suffering, already dead, or picked up by somebody."

And so I ask you, "Why would you risk losing your best friend when you simply could keep him on a leash or in a securely fenced area?"

Leona is modeling a "greyhound safe" martingale collar.