Any greyhound handicapper can tell you that each greyhound is weighed before each race. Their weight is even posted and you can watch them weigh themselves through a window, so you know it’s done without the fun stuff.

Obviously anyone looking at this would think weight is a big deal. It’s something that can have a big effect on the way you handicap the races, right? One of those factors that can predict if a greyhound is ready to win.

Well, if that’s what you think, you might want to think again. Many studies have been done and they all show that weight has very little effect on a greyhound’s performance, even if the dog loses weight. A weight loser is a greyhound who, probably because he is eager to race, loses weight before each race. They have WL after their name on the show and are usually in the earlier races.

An indicator that breed is not a factor in dog racing is the fact that fewer truly heavy dogs dominate the field. If weight were a real factor heavier dogs would be much more prominent on the show and especially the classic breeds.

While there IS about 80 pounds in the higher grades, many more dogs are smaller. In fact, some of the best greyhounds have been little ones. Some reasons for this could be that smaller greyhounds are more capable of cornering themselves and can slip through a crowded pack better than larger dogs.

Whether a dog is at his usual weight or a little more or less doesn’t seem to be a factor either, records show. Of course, if a dog has lost more than 2 pounds, he is not allowed to run, because this could be a sign that he is sick. By the way, this is the real reason greyhounds are weighed before each race.

While the weight is always displayed for each greyhound and while most punters think it is something to pay attention to, most good handicappers don’t take it into consideration. They know that there are other factors that have much more impact on winning on the racetrack.