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It’s a hot Saturday morning in July, and a clutch of noodly, derpy dogs—and their people—is walking three abreast on a paved trail in North Portland’s Columbia Park & Annex. Other pedestrians gawk openly at the spectacle; a woman with a small dog scoops her pooch into her arms, making way for this leggy pack.
“Is this some kind of greyhound parade?” someone asks. The answer is yes, in a manner of speaking. This is the Portland Greyhound Walking Club.
The club’s current leader, Lisa M.V. Anderson, doesn’t quite know when the club began or who started it. But when she discovered the group, she knew she wanted to attend regularly. She had just moved to Portland—this was circa 2015—and had quickly thereafter adopted her first greyhound, Llama.
It didn’t take long before Anderson had “voluntarily inherited” the position of organizer, moving the community from its original website to a more casual and accessible Facebook group. She’s been leading the walks since 2019 now, these days accompanied by a vivacious young greyhound named Pancake. (Llama has since crossed over the rainbow bridge.)
The Greyhound Walking Club is, well, just what it sounds like: a bunch of greyhound owners getting together to walk their dogs. The one-hour, midmorning walks are held twice monthly—once on a Saturday and once on a Sunday—and a different park is featured each month.
Along with Columbia Park, walks are scheduled at Laurelhurst, George Rogers, and Tualatin Community parks, Jamison Square, and even Fort Vancouver. The pop-up park dynamic offers a regular change of scenery and also gives greyhound owners from all over the Portland area the opportunity to try it out—though some loyal club members will happily drive across town for the event.
As far as membership, the requirements are simple: just show up with your greyhound. There are no fees or required duties. And while there are certainly regulars you can expect to see on most walks, many members—my dog Aspen and I included—pop in occasionally, sometimes going months between visits.
So what draws greyhound owners, in particular, to a breed-specific club like this?
“Greyhounds tend to actually really like other greyhounds,” Anderson explains. Raised on greyhound farms for the express purpose of breeding racers, most greys don’t see other types of dogs—or really much of anything in the world—until after they’re retired. It can be a bit of a shock. Retired racers regularly have to be taught things that come naturally to other dogs, like climbing stairs or hopping up on the couch next to their people.
But when they’re in a group of greyhounds—called a leash, I learned, though many owners might think a flop of greyhounds would be a more accurate collective noun—they visibly relax and open up. And the effects can last long after the walk is over: The events “help people who just got their greyhound acclimate their dog to sights and sounds because they’re comfortable around other greyhounds,” Anderson says.
I found myself nodding along when Anderson said this, because it’s true to my personal experience. When I adopted her, Aspen would sink her tail between her legs and slam on the brakes when we encountered other people out in the world—especially people with dogs. Nowadays, after almost a dozen of these walks under her belt, she actively seeks out pets of strangers.
That’s why the Greyhound Walking Club has been an ongoing event for almost a decade now, and one that many members, both two- and four-legged, are excited to attend year round in Portland, rain or shine.
“I think it’s really great for the greyhounds, and people really notice that about their dog,” Anderson says. “And then we”—the greyhound people—”all get to pet a bunch of dogs.” Win-win.
GO: The Greyhound Walking Club’s next greyhound walk is at Laurelhurst Park, Southeast César E. Chávez Boulevard and Stark Street, facebook.com/portlandgreyhounds. 11 am Sunday, March 16.