Greyhound Adoption in Melbourne and Victoria
Greyhound Safety Net is an incorporated association, registered as a charity, dedicated to Greyhound adoption.
We help greyhounds who are no longer needed for whatever reason, whether they have finished their racing careers, finished their breeding years, or were never fast enough to make it to the racing track.
We invite you to look through our website for information about us, our dogs available for adoption, and how you might help a Greyhound move from kennel to couch.
We help greyhounds who are no longer needed for whatever reason, whether they have finished their racing careers, finished their breeding years, or were never fast enough to make it to the racing track.
We invite you to look through our website for information about us, our dogs available for adoption, and how you might help a Greyhound move from kennel to couch.
Please use the search box below to find related words on our website.
These wonderful Greyhounds are looking for their "forever" home. Full details of the individual dogs can be found on our "Looking for Homes" page.
We have also added a section called "Retirees for Retirees", where dogs we consider suitable for older persons wanting someone special to share their lives with are listed.
We have also added a section called "Retirees for Retirees", where dogs we consider suitable for older persons wanting someone special to share their lives with are listed.
Four Corners Program on live baiting
In response to the Four Corners program ‘Making a Killing’ aired Monday 16/2/2015 Greyhound Safety Net (GSN) is appalled at the evidence of cruelty and looks forward to the outcome of independent and thorough investigations by the police and RSPCA. The greyhound racing authorities also need to conduct a comprehensive and critical evaluation of the extent of ‘blooding’ across the entire industry, and properly deal with those involved with live baiting.
The practise of ‘blooding’ is both cruel and unnecessary. Greyhounds are sighthounds which by nature will chase any moving object - they are bred to chase, and not to kill. They are a breed that wishes to please, and if pushed to savage live animals, many will do what their trainer is obviously urging them to do. However dogs of all breeds are, just that, dogs, and it is in the nature of many dogs (and cats) to chase and kill small prey. What is so disgusting about the practice of ‘blooding’ is that the dog is not fulfilling its normal instincts to chase but is set by the trainer on to a tethered live creature.
GSN does not knowingly deal with trainers that ‘blood’ their dogs and all our dogs pass a strict temperament test prior to being taken into our rehoming program. Many of our dogs have been rejected by the racing industry because they will not chase. Even where a dog has been exposed to ‘blooding’, once desexed and away from racing, in the home environment, most greyhounds will be placid, lazy and loving pets.
The number of greyhounds put down in the greyhound industry is unacceptably high, with Animals Australia estimating 18,000 unwanted greyhounds are killed in Australia annually. Unfortunately the actions of these criminals have unfairly damaged the reputation of greyhounds and many more greyhounds will die as a result, as people wonder whether the footage they saw on Four Corners represented the natural greyhound.
GSN, along with the Dog Rescue Association of Victoria, will be closely following outcomes of the various state investigations that have been announced.
* GSN has successfully rescued and rehomed over 600 dogs in Victoria since 2006.
The practise of ‘blooding’ is both cruel and unnecessary. Greyhounds are sighthounds which by nature will chase any moving object - they are bred to chase, and not to kill. They are a breed that wishes to please, and if pushed to savage live animals, many will do what their trainer is obviously urging them to do. However dogs of all breeds are, just that, dogs, and it is in the nature of many dogs (and cats) to chase and kill small prey. What is so disgusting about the practice of ‘blooding’ is that the dog is not fulfilling its normal instincts to chase but is set by the trainer on to a tethered live creature.
GSN does not knowingly deal with trainers that ‘blood’ their dogs and all our dogs pass a strict temperament test prior to being taken into our rehoming program. Many of our dogs have been rejected by the racing industry because they will not chase. Even where a dog has been exposed to ‘blooding’, once desexed and away from racing, in the home environment, most greyhounds will be placid, lazy and loving pets.
The number of greyhounds put down in the greyhound industry is unacceptably high, with Animals Australia estimating 18,000 unwanted greyhounds are killed in Australia annually. Unfortunately the actions of these criminals have unfairly damaged the reputation of greyhounds and many more greyhounds will die as a result, as people wonder whether the footage they saw on Four Corners represented the natural greyhound.
GSN, along with the Dog Rescue Association of Victoria, will be closely following outcomes of the various state investigations that have been announced.
* GSN has successfully rescued and rehomed over 600 dogs in Victoria since 2006.
Black is the new "Must Have"
At long last, black is back in vogue. Fashionistas are raving about black as being the only colour to be seen with, citing black fits into any decor, looks great with any fashion and best of all a few black dog hairs are hardly noticeable.
All this is rather ironic for BLACK DOG POWER, the official group of Greyhounds fighting against discrimination against, and prejudice of, black dogs. Spokesdog Black Betty says that a fashion trend has done more for black dog rights than the group has been able to achieve. She quotes that, to date, while 50% of all Greyhounds are black, sadly they don’t make up 50% of those adopted. “For too long people have turned away from black dogs as being too plain or not pretty” says Black Betty. BLACK DOG POWER, whose motto is “I’m Black and I’m Proud” points out that no other coat colour is as shiny or as glossy as black.
Lucy, who had to wait several years before her chance at adoption, said despair amongst black dogs at kennels was rife. She describes her long wait as almost unbearable after seeing all the “prettier” dogs find homes. She points out that finding a home if you’re black is hard enough but if you have other disadvantages like age, health problems or even being male can make it almost impossible.
Lucky for them, this is changing, as black is now once again popular. Finally, everyone is starting to realise “BLACK IS BEAUTIFUL”.
Note: It is widely recognised amongst animal shelters world-wide that black dogs are the hardest animals to re-home. This tragic reality even has a name - Black Dog Syndrome. There is no logical reason for this, although theories include that black is harder to photograph, superstition that black dogs (and cats) brought bad luck in centuries past, that dogs in movies playing ‘villains’ are usually black, and that black dogs are more intimidating than other dogs. In reality, a dog’s colour has no affect on the dog’s temperament and personality, so when considering adopting a dog, please don’t discard the black greyhound on its colour, look beyond this and see the real dog inside the black coat.
This year Greyhound Safety Net has set itself a target - to find homes for 50 black greyhounds - that is 50% of the number of all dogs re-homed in the last year.
All this is rather ironic for BLACK DOG POWER, the official group of Greyhounds fighting against discrimination against, and prejudice of, black dogs. Spokesdog Black Betty says that a fashion trend has done more for black dog rights than the group has been able to achieve. She quotes that, to date, while 50% of all Greyhounds are black, sadly they don’t make up 50% of those adopted. “For too long people have turned away from black dogs as being too plain or not pretty” says Black Betty. BLACK DOG POWER, whose motto is “I’m Black and I’m Proud” points out that no other coat colour is as shiny or as glossy as black.
Lucy, who had to wait several years before her chance at adoption, said despair amongst black dogs at kennels was rife. She describes her long wait as almost unbearable after seeing all the “prettier” dogs find homes. She points out that finding a home if you’re black is hard enough but if you have other disadvantages like age, health problems or even being male can make it almost impossible.
Lucky for them, this is changing, as black is now once again popular. Finally, everyone is starting to realise “BLACK IS BEAUTIFUL”.
Note: It is widely recognised amongst animal shelters world-wide that black dogs are the hardest animals to re-home. This tragic reality even has a name - Black Dog Syndrome. There is no logical reason for this, although theories include that black is harder to photograph, superstition that black dogs (and cats) brought bad luck in centuries past, that dogs in movies playing ‘villains’ are usually black, and that black dogs are more intimidating than other dogs. In reality, a dog’s colour has no affect on the dog’s temperament and personality, so when considering adopting a dog, please don’t discard the black greyhound on its colour, look beyond this and see the real dog inside the black coat.
This year Greyhound Safety Net has set itself a target - to find homes for 50 black greyhounds - that is 50% of the number of all dogs re-homed in the last year.
Foster carers needed urgently
We are in urgent need of foster carers to help out with our older rescued greyhounds while they patiently wait for their forever homes. Could you please contact Julie on 0431 747 130 or by email if you can find a place in your home and your heart to help out one of these beautiful 'oldies'.
