Getting a greyhound can be a very humbling thing indeed. We started out with Lottie, who we've since called the Brindle Rocket on account of her love of zooming. We loved her so much that we got Bomber, who we also call tinklebert woofledink on account of his TARDIS-like bladder and epic piddles when out walking.

One of the things no one tells you when you adopt a greyhound is how utterly smoochy they are. There are literally dozens of different gestures Greyhounds have to express their happiness.

First and foremost is the lean. This is when a hound will walk right up to you and lean their bodies against you. It is pretty humbling. What they they are saying is that they trust you so much that they'll lean into you to the point that if you move, they'll fall over.

Then there's the happy puffy cheeks and teeth chattering. When a greyhound is happy they'll puff their cheeks. If they're really happy they'll also chatter their teeth. This is of course exceptionally cute to see when it happens.

There also the more generic gestures such as the tail wag, also known in our house as the helicopter bum. Greyhounds tend to have exceptionally waggy tails. We have friends who own greyhounds who've even broken their tails from excessive wagging in confined spaces.

My all time favourite is what is known amongst greyhound owners as Nitting. This happens when a hound is really REALLY happy, and will see the hound mouthing your hand. Its is sometimes mistaken for aggression,  but is really a gentle "I love you" gesture and very cute. Bomber does this when he hears the leads being moved and figures out that a walk is in the offering.

If by now you've guessed that our hounds are a happy bunch, you'd be right on the money.

It is such a an utterly humbling and cute thing to know that you've made them so deliriously  and utterly happy, yet at the same time you can't help smiling or even laughing out loud. I guess that's the magic of life with a Greyhound.