Abuse Hotline

If you find a dead, abandoned, or abused greyhound, or have knowledge about an abusive situation, call us immediately at

1-800-G-HOUNDS
(1-800-446-8637)

providing as much information as you can regarding the whereabouts, condition, and identity of the abused greyhound.

or email us at: info@greyhounds.org

How to ID a Racing Greyhound

Racing greyhounds are identified by tattoos on the inside of both ears. The right ear tattoo is a two or three digit number followed by a letter, which describes the greyhound's date of birth and litter order. The left ear tattoo is a five digit number describing the greyhound's registration number, which is maintained by the National Greyhound Association. Note, however, that dogs imported from Ireland will have all letters.

RIGHT EAR TATTOO The first one to two digits encodes the month of birth. In this example, it is the eleventh month, or November. The last digit encodes the year of birth within the past decade. In this example, '4' indicates that the birth year was 1994. Finally, the letter encodes litter order. In this example, 'B' indicates that this greyhound was the second oldest of the litter.

LEFT EAR TATTOO The five digits encode the registration number of this greyhound. Dogs imported from Ireland will have all letters instead.