OUR KENNELS

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View of kennel block.	Inside of kennels	Open day (Johanna in wheelchair)	Me with 2 inmates

The Kennels is situated at Claverhambury near Waltham Abbey on the fringe of Epping Forest near North East London. The dogs are often walked in the forest. It is owned by Johanna Beumer and now houses up to 48 retired greyhounds. It is an 'official' kennel in that it runs under NGRC rules with regular inspections and an official log book for all the dogs.

The retired greyhounds are mainly from Walthamstow Stadium as we are the Walthamstow Stadium Home Finding scheme, although one or two are from the Retired Greyhound Trust and sometimes we house stray non NGRC greyhounds. We also have a few dogs that are paid for and visited by their owners. In addition we have ‘holiday dogs'. These are short term stay greyhounds housed while their owners are on holiday or ill. Dog ages range from 20 months to 15 years, but most being between 2 and 5 years.
The dogs are normally rehomed in two or three months - but we have some that have been here for years for various reasons. Young bitches normally go very fast - the fastest took less than 3 hours! The owner brought her in Sunday morning (our open day) - a home checked family fell in love on the spot and took her home! The trainer/owner had tears in her eyes as she waved good-bye.
We have 5 acres divided into 9 grassed paddocks and a 100 yard training track. The kennels are a part of a purpose built system originally built for Clapton Stadium in the 1960's. The system consisted of six similar setups next to one another. This was in the days when all NGRC stadiums ran their own dogs. Now, trainers have to have an approved licence and run their kennels separately from the track. Three parts are still exclusively for greyhounds, one is run by the RSPCA, one is a boarding kennels, and the sixth is a dog cemetery.
The dogs are housed in a brick built building consisting of 27 kennels about five feet wide 8 feet high and six feet deep all facing onto a corridor with windows all along it, the doors have a grill so the dogs can take an interest in what is happening. A 28th kennel is the first aid kennel containing a heated box-cage. It also contains the hot water tank which makes the room toasty warm in the depth of winter.
Below are four photos some general views of the inside - The last shows one of our dogs giving blood to help save the lives of sick or injured dogs being treated at The Royal Veterinary College. We actually supply nearly 60% of their needs - as greyhounds are ideal candidates - In return the dogs get a wellness check and a blood test plus a TREAT!! PLEASE consider allowing your greyhound to give blood - There is always a shortage and it can save many lives!

Viewing Dogs	Looking Out	We're Comfy!	Giving BLOOD

Each kennel has a raised wooden bed that has paper strip bedding which is changed several times a week. Most kennels house two greyhounds, usually a dog and a bitch to avoid conflict! There are also two separate small brick built kennels, one for our Bull Mastiff guard dog (a fat friendly idiot to those she knows!) And the other is the isolation kennel for emergencies.
Our dogs are turned out into the paddocks first thing in the morning, one paddock per kennel in relays. This normally means that some dogs will rush around the perimeter of the paddock wire fencing challenging others to race. Consequently all paddocks have a mud track around the edge! Beds are then usually freshened or changed, water bowls changed, with any dog's medical or cosmetic needs met at the same time.
Then comes the feeding. The food is prepared , in between dog paddocking, in a large fitted bath at normal sink top height. It consists of two large sacks of dry kibble, a large amount of cooked meat, and some dry vegetable soup mix. This is all mixed with hot water and allowed to stand and swell. This is ready to feed, warm, after all dogs have been paddocked. Each dog has a 12" bowl full of food.
The dogs are then paddocked again and allowed to rest. Finally the dogs are paddocked for the final time and each has a dog coat/blanket fitted before being shut in for the night during the winter. The kennels does have heating if required, but the building is actually quite warm due to body heat for most of the year.
The dogs are generally incredibly well behaved. When feeding, the dogs are fed at their kennel. One comes out - the other stays in - voluntarily!! The one that comes out has a lead put on, which is tied to the kennel door to avoid squabbles with their next door neighbour! When being paddocked, most will put their heads through the slip collar straight away. There are a few who always want to play first though. This normally consists of the dog bouncing from one side of the bed to the other, with an enormous greyhound grin on it's face! When being kenneled they line up side by side ready for the collar to be slipped on. I was amazed when I first saw this and it explains why my lot at home do the same thing before ‘walkies'! A few of the dogs will happily walk on their own from the paddock to their kennel with no lead at all.
The entire operation is carried out normally by two people - but sometimes only one is available. Recently, with holidays and leavings I did it all myself - I can tell you that it's a lot of work!
On Sundays the dogs become very excited because it's Open Day! They are taken for many walks by volunteers or people wanting to adopt a greyhound. They have lots of extra treats and their meal consists of pasta, chicken and sausages. They have a great time and fall asleep easily!

CAT TESTING Below are a set of photos showing the work of an important member of our team. MAX. the cat!!! The top four photos show Mandy's reaction on meeting Max for the very first time- the muzzle initially is for Max's protection. After the first curious investigation Mandy is showing a great deal of promise as being able to live with a cat by not being very interested - a frequent requirement of our adopters. First, all dogs are taken to the local cattery to see if they become very agitated on their first exposure to cats. Those that do are classed as CAT UNSAFE. The rest (and there are a good number) are introduced to Max wearing a muzzle and on a lead. Max has worn a collar and lead since a young age when he was a bit of a terror! Then Max is allowed to walk around and the dog's reaction noted. Finally those dogs with little curiosity or show some fear of him are un-muzzled and exposure repeated. Those that contnue to ignore Max are classed as CAT SAFE. This only means that generally the dog should be able to live with a cat provided close supervision with a gradual introduction is made. Remember, however, that some cats won't get on with any dog and some dogs and cats just don't like each other!!
What's This!	Can I get at him?	I want him!	I'm not sure now!
I don't want to know!	Do I have to?	You're so much nicer!	Can't we go walkies!?

LARGE and small DOG TESTING Dogs do not neccessarily automatically get on with one another - so this is why we expect you to bring your dog to our kennels to check for compatibility. Below is set of photos showing how we try to test that your chosen greyhound is compatible with your existing dog. First the two dogs are introduced on neutral ground on leads with the greyhound muzzled. Their first reactions are carefully noted - if they sniff each other, tails wagging then they are left free to wander about in a paddock for a while. If all is quiet or playful the muzzle is removed. If all continues well the two (or more) dogs are taken for a walk. It applies to large and small dogs as some small dogs are surprisingly aggressive! Our "neutral" ground is a paddock because as all the greyhounds will have used it - so the greyhound does not consider that it owns the paddock - whereas your garden will be considered by your own dog as it's own territory and this can cause initial problems if a new dog suddenly 'invades' it. Normally the whole process takes about half an hour. This particular meeting did not end as a happy adoption - because there were two very infirm Springer Spaniels also at home and their owner decided that it would be unfair to them! BUT he's promised to return when the old dogs have passed on. At least now I do know that Chrissie the greyhound is fine with Bloodhounds!!
Who are YOU?	This is more interesting	Let's walk!	I'm comfortable now!

I couldn't resist also showing Ben the greyhound getting to know a tiny Chinese Crested Terrier!!

Water is Best!	Hello there!!	Didn't we do well!!??	Can we go home?

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