Same thing with our boy Gent, he's always asleep with his eyes open. Usually it's when he's dreaming too and you can tell because his ears are twitching or his legs are moving (must be chasing squirrels in his dreams!). No harm was done and I'm glad that you took to the internet to do a bit of research about the freaky way some of them sleep with their eyes open. Paddy is still your best friend, Lewis, you just startled him a bit and he told you off for it. He's probably like you and me, he loves his bed and his sleep and doesn't want people disturbing him when he's zzzz'ing away! Take care and have a lovely day in this sunshine. Hopefully see you tomorrow at the open day at the kennels if you can make it. Mand x

When we went to a workshop run by Jim he pointed out that if a dog is half asleep hands or fingers coming towards a dog can appear to look a bit like teeth and a dog can snap as it thinks it might think it neds to defend itself.Small childrens fingers can be more of a problem.Not suggesting this about Pad but sometimes a dog might not realise that the hand coming towards it is friendly depending on its previous experiences especially if it is half asleep. Not sure if this makes sense I guess what does make sense is to let the dog come to you.
Glad Lewis is OK and I am sure you will have lots of fun times together.Having a dog is so wonderfully life changing.

Hi Paddy's mum. Sorry to hear about your incident but am pleased that no harm was done. One of our girls does a lot of sleeping with her eyes open which seems to happen just as she is about to dream. I think you are very wise to go back to your basic rules of no touching when he's in bed. Wishing you all the very best with Paddy - I'm sure you will have lots of good times with him - these are just the best dogs ever (even if they do look spooky sleeping with their eyes open) xxxx

Hi Paddy's family, sorry to hear about your incident last night. glad Lewis is ok and Paddy is still his best friend. I must admit I had forgotten about Greyhounds' being able to sleep with their eyes open...you are right we do get complacent. Hope your relationship with Paddy continues to go from strength to strength. xxx

Last night I had nipped to the loo and whilst there I heard a bit of a snap and came out to a shocked son. When I'd asked what had happened Lewis said Pad had been awake in bed and he'd gone to stroke him. Pad had snapped at him. Since this was so out of character I said he must have been asleep. 'but his eyes were open' Lew said.
Today I went onto the internet and researched Greyhound sleep habits. I quote ' Greyhounds can sleep with their eyes open,thereby making it almost impossible to tell if they are visually aware of your approach'. This explains totally what happened. No one was hurt and Paddy remains the best dog who Lewis loves dearly however I totally agree with Katy-KCIS in that over a period of weeks you get sooo relaxed around these gentle and loving dogs that you sometimes bend/break the rules you were told at the beginning as you don't believe they apply to your dog. We had stroked Pad whilst he was in bed after the first few weeks when we really shouldn't have but we thought it would be ok.
Despite Paddy being gorgeous we will re-adopt our initial rules of not touching him whilst he is in bed whether or not we think he is asleep as those are the rules that greyhounds live by and are used to. It has given both Lew and I a wake up call and prevented us from being too complacent so maybe that's a good thing, it may also explain what happened perhaps with Katy-KCIS's little girl?
Thought I'd post this just to remind everyone that however lovely our dogs are we still need to respect their basic rules.
x

So very pleased to hear Paddy is doing so well.

My wishes also still go to Katy KCIS and her family xxxx

Well done Lewis and well done Paddy!

Paddy is doing well and seems to like being part of our family. He is lovely to come home to after being at work and school as he literally gallops down the hall to see us and frequently ends up putting his paws on my shoulders!

My son was quite anxious before we had him and found it difficult sleeping in his own room. Paddy has taken to sleeping in Lewis's room as his favourite place and my son now sleeps in his own room with no problem. Paddy has definitely changed our lives for the better. Both of us.

Katy-KCIS thank you for your kind words and we are sorry about what happened. We will look after Pad and wish you and your family all the best.
x

Glad that Paddy has got a loving home again so quickly. He deserves it and we miss him.

Thanks for your last comment 'Tiggerslave' - found that most amusing on our third night at Birmingham Childrens hospital. No one is beating themselves up over what happened more than we are. Paddy wasn't asleep or eating...and he didn't do it maliciously. We don't know what happened... he was so gentle and kind. So gentle and kind that I guess we got complacent. However, flipant, self-righteous, glib comments do not help.

We wish Paddy's new family well, he's the best and they sound lovely.

paddy is one of loveliest dogs in the world if you are looking for a dog i strongly recommend you go to the greyhound trust for a loving dog!
from lewis :)

Paddy has settled in very quickly with us and seems to be pretty happy which is a relief! He is gentle and affectionate and LOVES his bed!! He has eaten really well, behaved on the lead when Lewis took him for a walk and we have managed to brush his teeth too (not madly keen on it but he will stand and let you do it). He has adopted Lewis's bedroom as his favourite sleeping place as he can chill there without being too disturbed. When he feels like company he seeks us out and loves having a good stroke and cuddle. Lewis says he loves him to bits and never wants him to go back :)
Tomorrow we are at school and work so will see how he goes being left properly for the first time. He REALLY LIKES pate and cheese!!!

paddy is settling into our home very quickly.he has done his first big wee outside!lots of treats for that! keep you up to date! :)

So please Paddy won't have to wait too long to be in his new home xxxx

So pleased that Paddy is reserved again already!! Really enjoyed my walk with you today. What a gentleman you were with my Katy. She loved it too. If you hadnt been reserved I would have been spending the evening trying to persuade my husband to have a second. As for crates for kids I think its a fantastic idea!! P. S. I do have 2 children both have needed training aswell as the dog.

Paddy gets my cuddle today, he looks soooooo cute. Love the boys!! xxxx

Fully agree with you Deb, I'm trying so hard to persuade mine but just not workin at the mo!! Will have to try harder, any idea's gratefully recieved!!!

what is wrong with men I have tried very hard to persuade my husband that Paddy would be a great addition to our family!
I feel so sorry for everyone and so glad the little girl is OK.

My children are 6 + 5 and i have always taught them since we brought our wonderful greys home especially Cara who rolled in something foul this morning and even after a wash for the both of us the smell is still in my nasel hairs thank you cara boo xxx Anyway my girls know that when the dogs are eating or resting that they are to leave them alone. It is a daily thing even now to remind them when all they want to do is give them lots of love and kisses. What i also do is get the girls actively involed in looking after the greys by getting to help with walking them, putting down their food for them to eat, helping to bath them or simply just giving them a treat whilst i am in the room. Mind you the crate sounds great for the kids though jenni i might just try it! lol Paddy i do hope you find a special home soon xxxxx

I am still considering the crate option for Moo although I couldn't inflict her on anyone else by rehoming! Only joking Moo!

so gutted and can only agree with Tiggersslave, any dog whatever the size should never ever be unsupervised around a young child, thank goodness the child is ok on this occasion but Paddy has paid the price by being returned....gutting :-(

Oh paddy poppet i am so sad for you! there is a new home out there for you i know it! xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

And a reminder to everyone never ever to leave children unsupervised around any dogs - it's always the dog that is blamed and suffers. I'd suggest that anyone with children and dogs get one of the large greyhound-size crates .. I think small children will fit into those and have plenty of room and you can push sweeties through the bars if they complain. Obviously as the child grows you may need to consider either a larger crate or re-homing... the child :) J x

Hello paddy xx

I just wanted to say here, while I don't know any of the details of the incident with Paddy, training my three year old daughter when it comes to Cookie has been the hardest job of all. We had some growling and sleep aggression in the first few weeks and I was at my wits end, with Moo (my three year old) and the dog.
The problem seems to be that young children want to play with a puppy and the reality is a very shocked greyhound who doesn't know quite what to do with these loud, fast moving and often clumsy little people.
Some things which really helped us were:
- Giving the dog a quiet spot that's hers and teaching the kids to respect that (and when she was on her bed)
- Making sure the kids called the dog's name before touching her if she was asleep
- Giving them treats to give to her - including yoghurt pots to lick out which were very popular!
- Walking the dog loads so she didn't get too hyper
- A DAP collar for Cookie - it emits pheromones which calm them down and de stress them.
It was (and still is occasionally) a hard job to stop Moo locking Cookie in a head lock of lurve or trying to see if a 2p will fit in her ear, and is why at the moment I won't have another grey. But if you can train the dog and the kids it is so rewarding.
Love to Paddy and his family - it is an incredibly tough decision to make.

Oh Paddy, Paddy so so sad, though I'm sure you'll find a home very soon. Not safe to visit the kennels now then, thought I could with Joan N Tina leavin but now your back well..........

Yes, sadly my precious fella has been returned. Whilst unattended, the 3 year old daughter in the family had an incident with Paddy. The daughter is ok thankfully but sadly Paddy is now back at the kennels.

Why is Paddy back?? Oh dear!! Ruth's favourite baby. xxxxx

hope paddy likes his new family, and enjoying your retirment!

So glad this gentle giant is happy and brought so much joy to you all.He sounds like a real mummy's boy!

Chris here, Kate's husband (Paddy's dad!). Just want to say how much Paddy has enriched our lives. He is so placid and gentle and I can't believe how he's settled in so quickly. He appears to be enjoying his retirement immensely and during a stressful day at work I really look forward to my evening walks with the Paddymaester. He adores Kate and follows her around constantly - I suppose I ought to be jealous that Kate's got another man in her life (who's very handsome and Irish) but I'll let her off because it's Paddy and he's a legend!

And I meant ... don't let him off the lead ...and many apologies if he wasn't and you hadn't LOL J xx

This is so true! I have a puppy lurcher -tiny 10kgs - looks bit like a grey.....many of the greyhounds accept her as 'one of them' albeit mini size, many of them stare, tremble (either fear, or excitement of this 'Big bunny lure'), lick their lips and want to lunge! Spesh as she is very vocal and squeaks a lot!! Not their fault, they cant help instinct, their previous job, and luckily the pup doesn't notice/respond. sounds like Paddy is in the calm laid back category, lovely.x

Um don't want to panic but was he off lead? If so he would be a phenomenal hound to be so obedient so quickly... and you'd be very welcome to take the training class for me LOL Usually we find they're a bit 'shut down' when they first go into homes (but also can be calm not shut down) ... it usually takes them a while to get used to their new world so please be careful when other breeds are about as greys have not usually seen other breeds and can be scared of them or think they're bunnies ... :( Julie x

Took paddy over the park this morning, and he got surrounded by lots of little dogs and one big one and he looked at me with terrified eyes so I ran over and nearly kicked some doggy butt!! he got extra cuddles for being such a calm good boy!! we love you Paddy!! x

It will be great to see Paddy on the walk and I know from training this morning a few other people are looking forward to meeting you all as well especially Katies mum who nearly persuaded Katies daddy to go and look at Paddy in kennels.

Another great day with Paddy, he came for a walk to the school today and was completly uninterested in anyone! haha thats great because nothing seems to faze him!! Deb will you look out for me on sunday at the dog walk, Id love to have a bit more of a chat with you as you were so helpful when we first met Paddy!! see you all sunday with Paddy!! ps he bit the nose of a red teddybear and steals Isabelle's slipper!! this just adds to his charm! xx

I went on the walk with you at the kennels the day you met Paddy and hope to see you at the Sutton walk next week if you can make.Just think you came down to the kennels looking for a girl and ended up with the wonderful Paddy I bet your little girls are thrilled with him.so pleased he has enriched your lives already he is a lucky boy.

As a family we havent ever won anything but when it comes to Paddy I really feel like we've hit the jackpot!!!! Everyone loves him and he's slotted into our lives like it was meant to be! A big Thank you to Ruth and Rob for all their hard work not only with Paddy but all the greys, without your love and commitment he'd probably never have turned into such a lovely loving dog! our promise to you is that we will carry on all the love and commitment for his whole life time! Hope to see you on dog-walks and I know Paddy will too xxxx

My beautiful Paddy - I miss you very much - you have been an angel at our house and a pleasure to have and look after whilst you recovered from your op. Your new family are very lucky to have you and I hope to see you soon xxxxx Much much love xxxx

that was quick be happy and maybe we will see you and your sisters on one of the walks.

Paddy is beautiful and we cant wait to bring him home!! xx

Brilliant Paddy xxxxx enjoy your new home and sisters xxxxx

this little boy is a super star, i was met by him wagging his tail this morning and he is the most loving gentle boy ever, he will be fab in his new home as he clearly loves the attention his new human family gave him, good luck Paddy you so deserve a lovely home xxxx

I met the family that have reserved Paddy today.If all works out well he is going to have two lovely little sisters(human variety) who are going to love him to pieces.He is such a laid back chilled grey who is going to be a dream in a home.

I had a lovely face wash and cuddle off Paddy last night, he is beautiful such a gentle boy xx

Such a clever boy xxxxx Hopefully this will make him more easily homeable.....thats if you can give him up xxxxxx

A-MAZING!!!!! This fella is so good it is not true! Sleeps all night, toilets outside, no accidents inside, eats his dinner, doesn't try stealing food from the others and then goes straight back to his bed. His tummy is still quite swollen and very bruised following his operation but he is bright and wagging his tail.

wow, he looks and sounds wonderful xxxx

What a lovely looking boy...I hope he feels better soon. xx

Paddy had to go back to the vets this afternoon as his is extremely swollen following his castrate. What a good excuse to keep him at ours for another night for some extra TLC! xx

I picked Paddy up last night from the vets following his castrate. He has also had a few teeth out. He is the most gentle, chilled out boy - he will make a perfect and wonderful pet for someone.... hopefully very soon. He wasn't even bothered by the fireworks last night!