Lee Livingood's Retired Racing Greyhounds for Dummies
Cynthia Branigan's Adopting the Racing Greyhound
Brian Kilcommon's Childproofing Your Dog
Cesar Millan's Cesar's Way

These books may be purchased at reduced prices from the VAGA volunteer who conducts your Home Visit, or you may purchase them through our website.

Go to Amazon.com by clicking on this link and VAGA will earn 9% of your purchase. Thank you for supporting VAGA!!

Once a successful Telephone Interview has taken place, we will make an appointment with you to conduct a Home Visit. We will bring at least one greyhound with us for you to enjoy as we discuss specific information about the greyhound you'd like to adopt. Great care is given to find out exactly what traits your dog will need to be compatible with your lifestyle.

As soon as your application is approved, the search for your greyhound begins. We use the information on your application, as well as the Phone Interview and Home Visit reports, to help us find your new pet. If we have local foster dogs on hand, you can make arrangements to meet them to decide if one of them may work with your family. If a foster dog does not match your profile, we begin to search the rescue kennel in Florida.

We have a long and very successful relationship with the rescue kennel and some of the racing kennels in Orlando. The rescue kennel has profiles on the dogs in their care. Each greyhound is cat tested several times. You can see some of the available retired racers by visiting the GPA-Greater Orlando webpage.

The Orlando webpage is updated weekly but please don't get your heart set a specific dog in case he is no longer available or will not make a good match for your family. Our program is successful because we allow the experts to make recommendations about what dog will work for you. You will have a voice in selecting your greyhound. We will contact you with the names of recommended dogs. It's up to you to pick the dog you want.

Our adoption events are held in several locations, and you will be advised to attend the one closest to your home. Plan to spend approximately three hours with us but rest assured that we will take as much time as needed to answer any questions you may have. We will go over everything you need to know to feel confident about taking your new greyhound home. We usually begin the lecture part of our program before the dog transport arrives with our volunteers. Once the dogs arrive and you're introduced to your new best friend, you will have opportunity to shop in our adoption store. Other than crates and food, we have everything you'll need for your greyhound and lots of goodies for you too. Please shop with us. We beat the pet store prices and our small profits help to finance our costly greyhound transports and medical expenses.

The adoption fee is $250.00 and is payable at the time of your adoption. This fee includes the required pre-adoption medical expenses such as apay or neuter, a complete dental including extractions if needed, a 4D snap test (tests for heartworms and tick diseases), all needed vaccines to bring the greyhound current, a fecal test, nails trimmed and worming meds if needed.

We give you the racing muzzle and any paperwork that accompanied the retired greyhound when leaving the track. You will also receive a new martingale collar and lead set of your color choice, a thick adoption notebook packed with wonderful information and 24/7 support from our experienced staff after adoption.

We do not hand over a dog to you and expect you to be on your own. We pledge to give you support for as long as you have your greyhound.

VAGA requires you to place an embroidered ID collar on your dog before you take him home. This collar should never be removed except to launder it. An ID collar is your greyhound's ticket home if he gets lost. It can also be a lifesaver if he is injured while lost, and requires medical attention from a county shelter. They will not treat an animal they can't identify. We insist on an ID collar because metal dog tags wear smooth over time and can't be read.

Order your greyhound's ID collar by calling 1-800-543-8247 or shop online at www.luckypet.com. Be sure to give your brochure number to the operator so VAGA will receive credit for your purchase. Use number X601100 if you can't locate your brochure.

VAGA does not sell crates or food, but we do have everything else you will need to make your greyhound comfortable and happy. Please shop our adoption store. Our deals will beat the pet store prices and our small profits make it possible for us to continue our work. You will be given a supply list at the time of your Home Visit that covers everything you'll need including an embroidered ID dog collar with a name and phone number where you can best be reached in case your dog becomes lost.

Greyhound noses have no trouble reaching your kitchen counter tops. Begin the habit of placing all food out of reach or risk it disappearing.

Keep garbage containers in a kitchen cabinet or in a strong trash can with a lid that can't be nosed open. Remember to also empty the waste baskets in bathrooms and other areas of the house.

Tape a few sheets of paper to your sliding glass doors to alert your dog that something solid is there. If that doesn't work, usually one bump on the head is all it takes for him to learn about glass.

Begin to practice keeping toilet lids down to prevent Racing Rover from using the toilet as a punch bowl. Automatic toilet bowl cleaners are toxic so please don't use them.

Your new dog may be afraid of slippery floor surfaces,especially if light makes it appear shiny. If so, it's important that he not fall and become afraid of walking on these types of surfaces. Place slip-proof throw rugs or runners in problem areas. In a week or so, start to remove the rugs one at a time until your greyhound is comfortable walking around the house.

If you plan to use a crate, place it in a central location where your greyhound can see the family while he is resting. If you crate your dog during the day while you're at work, do not crate him at night too. Greyhounds enjoy sleeping contentedly on a dog bed in your room. Greyhounds seldom wander once asleep so there is no reason to confine him to a crate.