He’s greyhound lean. And medium height. His waist is disturbingly tiny. Has a huge barrel and a ribby chest so when he lays down he looks bigger. I did two tests on two ditch dogs, that I have acquired over the years that did not look bully at all and they were all at least 50% pitbull and then weird things like Australian Shepherd and chow and husky and super mutt. Which means I guess that we assume dogs are a combination of two things but they’re really a combination of maybe a pitbull and a super mutt that has a smorgasbord of
dogs in it. I guess what I have to do is look at the dog in front of me. I’ll be honest I do not love bully breeds they keep finding me they need management, but he doesn’t seem like the ones I’ve managed in the past he is very docile and very submissive just gotta take those balls off before he thinks he’s Zeus.!
I also thought boxer from the stripes and the goofy. His face isn’t boxer. But it sounds like his personality might be! That’s not a bad thing at all!
Agree you are absolutely doing the right thing! He may not like the crate and he may bark but it is temporary.
He has food, water, shelter and love and he would definitely be suffering if you guys hadn’t taken him in.
He is adorable.
The recuse I volunteered for followed the rules of three
Three days to start to decompress
Three weeks to start to learn the routine/ start to feel at home
Three months for a dog to truly feel at home
You and your friend are doing great and I agree that the dog does not look stressed in his create .
Thank you all! For your advice and kind words. Day #2 of the crate was another success. He’s off on a quiet walk for exercise. Fingers crossed every day will be a touch better.
He really wants to be a good boy. He just has very little manners when it comes to exuberance. I am
sure he was never properly trained or socialized. The good news is he seems to have zero aggression or dominance issues. Just a big overgrown puppy.
Question. I’m not used to a dog without good recall and leash manners. What is the best course of action for a young energetic dog while leashed? The flat collar works but he seems very adept at pulling against it and is so slender he can easily reverse momentum and attempt to slip it. Harness?
A no-pull harness would be really helpful! There are a bunch of different kinds. We use the Petsafe 3 in 1 no-pull harness on three of ours and it’s great. It helps teach them not to pull without you doing much of anything. We just snap it in the front and when they pull it deflects their weight, so they learn not to pull. I can walk two of our large boys with one hand. Dogs CANNOT get out of this harness if it is adjusted properly. Walking our 60lb 9 month old puppy can be a bit like a giant fish on a line but he has never gotten the harness off!
Our Clyde is half Boxer and has a lot of white in front with brindling on the rest (plus four high whites, lol). We call him our fake pittie, because we figured he was one, but DNA test says 50% Boxer and the rest is a GSD-mix.
Thank you!!! Your dogs sound precious. I will order one of those now.
Lots of people disagree but I use a prong collar on both my dogs. I was very lucky that with BOTH dogs all it took was a single initial correction (not severe - not painful, rather just unexpected) and they immediately respected that the collar means “we’re working, pay attention.” They both get SO excited when I pick up the leash with the prong collar because it means they are going out on an adventure (out for a walk, out to the farm, out to work on training…).
I have two sets of leashes and two sets of collars for my 2 dogs. The prong collars are used for 90% of our outings but I will use the flat collars for just taking them from my vehicle into the boarding/daycare facility where they immediately are let free. Both dogs are microchipped and are “naked” collar free when they are not on leash. When they are in the vehicle the leashes and collars are off so there’s no risk of them getting tangled up.
I have seen people use them in very mean and inappropriate ways with their dogs which I am sure is part of where they get a bad reputation. I find them a LOT more kind than a choke chain. My dogs have beautiful manners when out and about and I barely have to pay any attention at all to managing them when we are out for a walk - even with other dogs on the path lunging and barking at us. My dogs know they are responsible for managing their emotions in those circumstances and pretty much ignore distractions and prance along on a loose leash.
If the no-pull harness does not work for you, consider a prong collar but definitely ensure you have help/know what you are doing before using it.
ETA: And YES you are doing the right thing!! Thank you for opening your kind hearts and putting this pup into a much better life situation!
There’s also the Barbara Woodhouse method, say “Walkies” in a high pitched voice and start walking, and dog will follow nicely. I’m sure it works with a lot more effort, but hearing her say Walkies in that high pitched voice was so cute.
Kidding about “Walkies”, but you and your farrier have done such a good thing for this dog, and I know he’ll be a really good boy after his brain surgery, and after he accepts this is his forever home.
I use a harness for both my terriers. Harnesses are much kinder to a dog’s neck (and I have, with a previous dog, used a prong collar, so I’m not ideologically opposed to them).
But the best way to deal with constant pulling is to teach him both “heel” and “by me”; “heel” is in the absolutely correct heeling position, while “by me” usually means loose leash within a two to three foot radius. The dog doesn’t have to walk all the time in this way, but needs to know how to “assume the position.”
That said, training with dogs (as with horses) is a journey and an overgrown puppy won’t learn all his manners at once!
He’s very cute!
Thank you all for the ideas. I am not opposed to prong collars at all. My Mom has a 110 pound shepherd and she’s 80 years old. Her dog has always walked in a prong collar. And been a perfect gentleman. I’ll probably start with the no pull harness and go from there.
Good news is this afternoon I rubbed his belly and handled his feet while he rolled on his back. Then I quickly snipped 4 of his toenails, praised him and called it a win for the day. Didn’t want to push. He was so good and calm. Tomorrow I’ll try more.
Again thank you for all your thoughts and good wishes.
A lucky dog, AND looking like a nice dog too. Excellent find on your part. Congratulations on the acquisition of your new dog. The dog you didn’t know you needed!!! Sometimes it happens that way.
Don’t forget when you use a flat buckle collar, make sure it stays in the right spot. If its low on the neck that encourages pulling, sitting higher behind the ears is correct. And it takes time to adjust to a collar and being a good boy.
I am sure he is food motivated and will learn to be a good boy quickly.
Thanks for the tip!
First, thank you for being such a kind person. The world needs more people like you. 
Second, I am biased as a greyhound person, but he looks like part greyhound to me! The brindle, the skinny waist, the deep chest. Even his face is greyhound-like - just mixed with something with a wider head.
He does have the craziest deep chest! And an itty bitty wasp waist. If there is some GH in there I’d be very pleased. I know they can be such awesome dogs.
I’ve heard Greyhounds referred to as 35 m.p.h. couch potatoes. The one I knew well was very sweet.
We’ve had six greyhounds and they have all been super sweet! Numbers 4-6 are working hard behind me as I type this.
(Working hard in greyhound language = snoozing on dog beds keeping me company 
)
