A LITTER of nine greyhound puppies have been reunited to celebrate their 'half birthday'.

Markants Greyhound Rescue NW, based in Tyldesley, had looked after the litter and found them homes in the summer. On Saturday, the owners and their new puppies took part in the reunion at Curley's Dining Rooms in Horwich; they had a photo shoot and a meal at the dog-friendly restaurant.

The six-month-old greyhounds named Jessie, Esme, Loki, Betty, Mabel, Bertie, Arthur, Eric and Bob were also reunited with their dad Bertie and mum Janet.

Recently homing their 290th greyhound, Markants Greyhound Rescue NW has been established for just under five years. This year they have been asked to home two litters of greyhound puppies. This is unusual as they are typically brought greyhounds who are retired from racing, at about three or four years of age. Greyhound puppies are rarely seen outside of the racing industry, so this caused great excitement.

There are always ex-racing greyhounds needing a home at the rescue. Founder Siobhan Hoppley says that they are ‘gentle souls who, contrary to popular belief, need little exercise and are quite happy to spend most of the day sleeping on the sofa’.

If you are interested in homing one of their greyhounds, more details can be found at www.markantsgreyhoundrescue.co.uk or by contacting Siobhan on 07960561988 or their re-homing co-ordinator Sue on 07794463249.