The easiest way to explain this is racing Greyhounds are "livestock", they will be put to death if the owner of the racer wishes it to be. When they are racing, the are working dogs that better make money. They are not treated as pets. If the greyhound is lucky enough to be sent to an adoption group, it will have a great life after racing. Yes, there are a lot of horror stories out there, (pits discovered of shot greyhounds, as the owners didn't want to pay a vet), but there are a lot of good stories too. Lucy and I make it to a lot of meet and greets even if it's just to "spread the word" and let Lucy hang out with some fellow greyhounds. Lucy was bred in TX, raced in TX, and FL. In fact a year ago she was still chasing the rabbit. I've had her 10 months, and boy what a trip. It is true that they know nothing about living in a home, a lot of adoption groups will foster the dogs before adoption if they can. Lucy was Fostered for almost a month, but I still had to teach her how to climb stairs, teach her about windows, and I'm still teaching her about sliding doors to name a few. When I first got her, her coat was horrible. Most of her hair on her belly and hind quarters was missing. This was due to the excessive amount of time locked in a cage. Her stomach was SO sensitive, I only feed her Nutra Max, and Milk Bones. Anything else is asking for trouble. Most racing greyhounds are fed "meat not to be consumed by humans", in other words in Lucy's first three years, she also had a horrible diet. That's the life of a racing greyhound for the most part. There are exceptions to the rule, but most stories are not nice to type. When a track closes, that's a LOT of dogs to place. I pray most get adopted, however it's the ones that won't be that need the prayers. It amazes me that even though she was a racer, and did not have a greatest start in life, this AMAZING dog, who has lived in FL & TX in racetrack kennels, to being fostered in MI, to permantently living in Canada, is so sweet, gentle and loving. This was her first fall, and her first snow. (Canadian winter to boot), not bad for a newly 4 year old eh?