Hamish’s Final Race Home

Before Hamish, the star of the show, came into the picture, let’s do a little background check on his paw-rents!

Lara grew up with two boxers, Dottie and Chester: two very sweet, but mental, Boxers. Andy on the other hand was a self-proclaimed cat person (despite a pretty bad cat hair allergy…) before Hamish came along. Emphasis here is on was.

Lara really missed the special bond between a dog and their family: the unconditional love, those funny little moments, how emotional their expressions are. Andy didn’t actively want a dog but witnessed Lara’s trips to the kennels to meet and walk her furry friends. Lara always knew that she wanted to offer a rescue dog their forever home and she was keen on rescuing an older pooch. The two knew that if they were to get a dog, a low-key and calmer dog would be more suitable for their lifestyle. They also wanted to avoid the puppy phase which, as a lot of us know, is adorable, rewarding, and an immense amount of work all at the same time!

Once they were in a place to start thinking about getting a dog in a more proactive way, the two started researching what breeds would be suitable for their lifestyle. As the two worked full-time and lived in a flat, they believed finding a suitable breed might be tricky, but time and time again Greyhounds kept coming up as “good apartment dogs”. They thought that it was slightly odd at first, given their size and association with zoomies, but the more they read, the more ideal a Greyhound sounded. Typically, they tend to be chilled out and content with napping much of the day away, especially after their zoomies session. This was exactly the lifestyle Lara and Andy had envisioned being envy of for the next decade or two.

“I’ve always preferred bigger dogs, and think that Greyhounds are just adorably weird looking, with their long spindly legs and bicycle-seat shaped heads.”

At first, Lara and Andy went to some of the bigger shelters in London to inquire about adopting, however, they were immediately rejected due to both working full-time. This is when they started to look into greyhound-specific shelters. They found that these shelters were more willing to sit down and talk to them and hear their circumstances rather than giving an immediate ‘no’.

Lara and Andy discovered Wimbledon Greyhound Welfare (WGW) by looking for their closest greyhound shelter. WGW specialise in rehoming ex-racing Greyhounds and have up to 60 dogs in their care at one time!  Lara and Andy found their website to be extremely helpful as it had all the information on what to expect during and after the rehoming process, and the kennel manager Carol seemed positive that they could find a good fit.

After a few visits and walks with different Greyhounds to see if the pair would be a good match for, the breed, they decided to go ahead with the adoption, and, after a virtual home check, they started the search to find their perfect dog. Lara and Andy already knew that an older dog was preferential and due to living in central London, they also needed a dog who was confident in busy environments. Because WGW is a smaller rescue centre, all staff know each of their sheltered dogs really well, and they matched Lara and Andy with Hamish.

The first walk together was slightly strange. While not phased by traffic and loud noises, Hamish is quite a shy dog, especially around new people. For most of the walk he kept his distance while giving the pair some seriously strong side-eye (he is still an absolute expert at the side-eye). Hamish’s gentle nature and funny mannerisms are what lead to it being love at first snoot for the couple. They later tried to take Hamish on a longer walk – Hamish was having none of that and dragged them back to the kennel! Change isn’t just stressful for hoomans.

The next stage was a home trial. Lara and Andy knew this was an invaluable experience, as adopting a dog is such a huge commitment.

“We really wanted to be sure we were doing right by both us and the dog.”

Lara and Andy found that WGW was extremely supportive during this process and put no pressure on them to adopt if they didn’t feel it would be right. Needless to say Hamish never returned to the kennels and his adoption was finalised on the 2^nd of January 2023!

Lara and Andy feel they have been very lucky that Hamish’s adoption was so straightforward. They find that one of the worst challenges they have faced is not knowing what Hamish went through before being taken into the shelter.

Despite the initially smooth start, the three had a slightly rocky first year together: Hamish became very unwell and needed a five day stay at the vet. Then the poor pooch got attacked by another dog and needed surgery to be stitched back together. Neither of these were their or Hamish’s fault. Through some one-on-one time with a behaviourist, his confidence is growing one positive dog interaction a time!

Lara and Andy found that Hamish mostly adhered to the “3/3/3” rule that many people quote when adopting a dog: 3 days for a dog to decompress in their new environment, 3 weeks to learn the new routine, and 3 months to feel at home.

“Hamish largely followed this, though even now, almost 18 months down the line, he’s still learning how to be a dog, and parts of his personality are still coming out. It’s also not necessarily a linear process and it’s going to be a learning curve for you and the dog – and that’s OK! Also – there is a lot of support out there! Your rescue should have post-adoption support, and there are loads of Facebook groups / Instagram accounts around that can be good for sharing experiences, getting advice, showing off funny photos etc.”

Lara and Andy have found living in London with Hamish to be incredible; there is a huge amount of dog-friendly locations including restaurants, cafes, pubs and even cinemas, and easy access to so many parks and green spaces. Dog-friendly public transport is also an amazing way to traverse the city. While many anxious dogs find public transport to be overwhelming due to the huge amounts of smells, noises and people around, Hamish almost seems to enjoy it. He knows he is en route to somewhere exciting. He sometimes even tries to drag Lara into Camden Town station when they walk past!

Getting to this point wasn’t immediate though. They slowly and patiently built up Hamish’s confidence on the train, taking short routes on quieter lines such as the Overground and Thameslink. These lines also have frequent stops that would make it easy to hop off the train if Hamish started getting overwhelmed. Hamish’s confidence on public transport has allowed the three to go on many adventures!

Today, Hamish is still a shy boy to people he doesn’t know, but now shows his bright and goofy personality to those he trusts, loving affection, even giving sassy air-snaps and the “paw of more” when he wants more belly rubs, or little grunts when the ear rubs are good enough!

Funnily and to Lara and Andy’s surprise, Hamish is a total kleptomaniac, stealing anything soft and fluffy to take to his bed to sleep on, including hats, scarves, cushions, and once a soft toy from Pets at Home, that they had to buy as Hamish would not drop it, even carrying it in his mouth all the way home. Hamish also loves a good sleep and vivid dream: one time he had such a great time he barked himself awake!

Hamish’s new daily schedule now means waking up early for his morning walk (unless it’s raining, then he will drag his owners home ASAP). When at work, his owners leave the radio on to keep him some company, and then at lunchtime, their dog walker takes Hamish for a walk and lots of snuggles.

“We’re then treated to limb-flailing excitement when we get home, zoomies if we’re lucky, and we’ll take him out for a good hour-long walk in the evening.”

On weekends, Lara and Andy take Hamish for a long walk around Regents Park or somewhere new which usually tires him out for the rest of the day. Sunday mornings Hamish gets treated to his favourite food at their local cafe – a croissant!

“I stopped off at a pop-up cafe on our walk one morning last summer and got myself a pain au raisin. I’ll never forget the look of betrayal on Hamish’s face as he watched me eat it, unable to give him any because of the raisins! So, of course, the next time we went to the cafe I had to get something we could share. It was 100% love at first bite – he even stuck his head in the bag to hoover up the last pastry flakes like a horse eating from a bucket.”

“I look like a right loon sharing my breakfast with the dog, but it’s one of the best bits of my week.”

Hamish has now enjoyed many treats from Talula Eats after being introduced at the Big Woof last year in Coal Drops Yard Kings Cross (happening on the 14^th and 15^th of September this year! Organised by the amazing Four Legged Foodies), where he devoured a Peony Pupcake and a Barkino’s Pizza slice.

“When we realised they did an entire doggy three course menu at Catalina’s it was a no-brainer that we had to visit!”

Are you thinking about adopting a dog? Why not consider an ex-racing greyhound. Over 10,000 dogs are deemed “surplus” (8,000 retired, 2,000 deemed inadequate for racing) and need loving homes, just like Hamish. If you want to find out more about the adoption process, check out Wimbledon Greyhound Welfar. Outside of London? Many Greyhound charities across the country are looking for foster and forever homes for their greyhounds.

If you would like to learn more about the issues surrounding greyhound racing, have a read here.