DocsDoctor

Sounds a good idea. Doc and I enjoyed this, he certainly wasn't the star of the class but it did lots for both our confidence vis-a-vis other dogs and was also excellent for bonding as you say. Make sure it's positive, rewards-based training. Indeed I'd suggest asking if you could go and sit in on a class before you join - good trainers are normally happy with this and it means to get to see their style/ training environment before signing up. Otherwise, 2 things to check on are whether you should take your own treats and what the floor surface is. Our hall was linoleum which wasn't slippery but I used to take along a blanket for Doc to lie on for 'down' etc!

Mounting isn't always sexual behaviour, it can also just indicate excitement or bossiness and quite a few dogs and bitches alike will attempt it in play. So I don't think this is anything to do with sex or her recent spaying, but rather her saying to him 'Hey let's play but I'M in charge!' It is bad manners though, in doggy as well as human etiquette, so I'd put a stop to it especially if he's uncomfortable with it. Ditto with other kinds of play that you think are getting too rough. I'm sure she will end up in charge, the bitch usually is, but there's no need for her to bully him. I think a 'play nice' command would help here - I'd clap my hands to interrupt them, say 'uh uh, play nice!' and separate them for a while to calm down if need be. That said I don't have experience of running a multidog household, so hopefully someone who has will be along to give further advice. One thing I do know is that play can look and sound alarmingly ferocious, lots of growling etc, when the dogs are still just having a really good time. For the inexperienced owner it can be difficult to judge when things are in danger of going bad - you need to learn to read their body language. My dog Doc for instance has a deep 'play growl' but if it rises in tone then I know he is feeling genuinely threatened!

Before shelling out for a special CD I'd try just leaving on your radio! Find a station with quiet music/ human voices. Here in the UK the usual recommendation is the rather vile FM Classic, which has shortish bits of popular classical music introduced by honey-voiced DJs. I usually stick to BBC Radio 4 (the BBC's blend of news, documentaries and dramas so mostly quiet talk) as that's what the radio's tuned to for the mornings anyway. Alternately try one of your own CDs on repeat, if you have something suitably soothing - Mozart? New Agey/ pan pipes/ whale music stuff?

This is not uncommon behaviour in greyhounds - mine chooses the topiarised yew bush in the garden, which is hard so presumably feels rather like being rubbed down with a rough towel! Some enjoy it so much that they send themselves off into a little trance - more information here.

I don't think they all want to do it, by any means. The only time Doc tried he was out in the garden with me, and saw me start digging the borders - I spotted him having a go, apparently in imitation! Since then, I have made sure he is shut indoors before I do any digging. With dogs who do want to dig on a regular basis, one solution is to give them an area of earth or a sandpit of their own and encourage them to confine the activity to that. Bury toys/ bones/ treats yourself to make it more enticing. From the photos many of the greyhounds on Greytalk who like to dig just want to scrape out a hole to lie in and enjoy the sunshine. This is surely akin to the nesting behaviour that many (including Doc) like to do with their beds indoors, scrabbling at them with their paws until they have got them 'just right'. I wonder in this case if giving them an outdoors bed to lie on would pre-empt the digging? On the other hand if it was hot, and they were trying to lie in the earth to keep cool, a paddling pool filled with water could be a better solution. Again, from photos lots of greyhounds on here apparently enjoy lying in those!

Doc is eight, I have had him for four years. He has all his teeth and has never needed a dental. I do brush his teeth for him every day, somewhat to his chagrin, but I think there's an element of luck. As with humans, some dogs just have stronger teeth than others, and diet past and present must also play a part.

Doc boards every so often with the greyhound rescue I adopted him from - they offer holiday kennelling. It's a familiar place and he slots back into the routines without any problems, it's great for me too as I know he is in expert hands. It's good advice to book your dog in for just an overnight stay the first time - I did it when I had a wedding to go to. I think it helped give Doc confidence that I would always be coming back for him. When I go to pick him up he is always extremely excited to see me and to come home - when we arrive he will run around checking out his beds, toys, etc. After that the only real difference that I notice is an increase in sniffing and marking behaviour for the next few days, on our walks around the neighbourhood. He's a keen marker anyway but after his holidays at 'Camp Greyhound' he goes into overdrive - I guess he's checking out what all the other local dogs have been up to and announcing that he's back!

Doc was like this when I adopted him, too, hoping to make friends with everyone we met. I suppose when he was in kennels all the people he saw did want to say hello, so he just had to learn that not everyone he met now would be the same. It was especially embarrassing if he tried to jump up at them! In the house it proved relatively easy to change this by asking visitors to cross their arms and turn their backs, ignoring him until he calmed down. Now instead of trying to jump up he goes and fetches his favourite teddy bear to show them. So far as strangers in the street were concerned, what worked for me was to keep walking at a steady pace and tell him firmly 'uh uh, no pester' if required. I didn't use treats, but if I had I would have given them after we had passed. Instead I would tell him what a good, polite boy he had been. He soon understood that not everybody was to be greeted and has actually become very good at reading oncoming strangers' body language and smiling back at them if they give indications of wanting to say hello! We did some general obedience classes to accustom him to other breeds of dog and generally learn good urban manners and yes certainly this topic was covered. You could also set up friends to encounter in the street, though if Aaron already knows them it won't be quite the same as meeting strangers! Persevere and if Aaron's half as eager to please as Doc I'm sure you'll soon have a dog you can take wherever you please, which will be fun for both of you and also a great advertisement for retired greyhounds... Doc is now a Pets As Therapy dog and over the last weekend showed great decorum while travelling on the train, tube and bus, meeting local children at an open day at our fire station, and helping with a greyhound meet and greet in Harrods Pet Kingdom!

Your vet does sound unhelpful! Can you tell him you'd like a second opinion, or even consider moving to another? Get him a full physical healthcheck by all means but some of this could be mental I would have thought, i.e. down to the onset of senility. If so the good news is that there are definitely medications to help - here in the UK something called Vivitonin is often prescribed.

Run free, Blue!

Doc had the gurgly stomach + no appetite + normal stools thing a couple of times back in January, the first time I assumed it was something he ate but the second time I realised something more was going on and worked out that he must have picked up worms. You mention your dog is 'on' Panacur so presumably he has/had worms too. I don't have any experience of Panacur, I use Drontal which is just given as a one-off dose. It kills the worms and then they are passed dead over the next 1-3 days. I think the gurgling may have continued in Doc's case during this period, I can't quite remember, certainly it cleared up once the worms were gone. HTH

It does sound as if he'd welcome more exercise. Now he's two he's no longer exactly a silly puppy but definitely a young dog in the prime of his health and strength... So more walks would be good, and do you have anywhere you could could play outside games that would get him running? Doc, now a mature eight years old, still loves silly games. Some ideas that work for us: hide and seek (me hiding behind the trees in the park), greyhound catch (requires 2 people, each with treats, taking it in turn to call him over), throwing a fluffy toy for him to chase and 'course' like a hare. I've also seen mention on this forum of lure poles, which are like fishing rods with a fluffy toy dangling from the end. Even with more exercise he will probably still have daily 'mad moments', I think those are a greyhound thing, but hopefully they will be less manic. I find with Doc they are easy to predict as they tend to be at the same times of day (always after breakfast, often after dinner) or set off by me or a visitor coming in. And even when he first arrived, as a big energetic four year old, I was actually impressed by how quickly he learnt to run riot round my small house WITHOUT bumping into stuff. If you don't move furniture round they soon work out the best routes round it!

I found attending some general obedience classes with a good trainer very helpful for introducing Doc to all those strange new other breeds of dog in a controlled environment - and for learning more about doggy body language myself. If you've only had her a month I personally would wait a month or so longer before starting classes, but why not starting looking for suitable ones now? A good trainer would let you come along and sit in on a class as an observer, so you can see whether it's the kind of environment that would suit you and your dog.

Welcome from another UK GTer! I have a stripey Irish boy too... your Kelly's very handsome, and I'm glad he's feeling better!

If this wasn't set off by an incident with another dog, I'd take him to the vet for a health check. The usual advice with a change in aggression patterns would be to look for a physical cause. Pain from a cricked muscle, for instance, or deteriorating eyesight, could make him iffy with strange dogs approaching, even if he is OK with his own household.

Others have given already good advice on how to desensitise your dog to the train horns, should the need arise. I just wanted to add that I wouldn't worry too much about having to leave windows open, at least so long as there's no danger of the dog being able to jump out of them - a risk with any breed, not just sight hounds! What I'd suggest is that you talk through all these concerns with the greyhound group you pick, as that'll actually help them pick the dog that is the best fit for your home. They should also come out to do a home check - the person who did mine lived locally and had lots of helpful suggestions for 'dog-proofing' the house and also information about the best local vets, walk, etc. Oh, and I was also going to say that Doc also quite often travels on trains with me, as I don't have a car! The first time we did this we picked a quiet time of day, took lots of treats, and just travelled one stop to a park for a nice walk before coming home again. He was a little apprehensive about the movement of the train to begin with but has now become a very seasoned traveller who also tackles buses, trams, ferries and the London Underground without any qualms!

Hi, I live next door-but-one to one of the main railway lines into London! The trains run on an embankment and over a viaduct across our road. The road's a busy one too, though inside the house is nice and quiet thanks to efficient glazing. You can see trains from my back garden, but Doc has never taken the least bit of interest in them. (The squirrels and the foxes who live along the embankment are a different matter though, so we have a six-foot fence around the garden!) I'd thought when I adopted him that he might find walking on the pavement under the viaduct a bit alarming at first, because of the rumbly train-noises, but actually he never turned a hair. That said he is, and always has been, a big happy confident dog. A more nervous individual might have reacted differently - I've certainly heard of greyhounds being spooked by train noises, but also of them being successfully desensitised with reward-based training. The other possible concern I suppose might be that a greyhound would see a train as something to chase. I rather doubt it, though - I've certainly read of dogs who are desperate to chase cars and trucks and buses, but they usually seem to be herding breeds like collies. No way could these be taken for a living target though, which is what seems to kick off a sighthound's prey drive. There are some inanimate things that set Doc's off - radio-controlled toy cars, carrier bags blowing in the gutter - but again because of their size and random movements he clearly thinks they are alive! Edited for grammar and to add that again, if a greyhound did want to chase trains this could again be addressed through training.

Doc has a repertoire of at least three different growls, including a happy growl - 'play growl' - quite deep, used during exciting games with his teddy bear, etc 'happy growl' - breathier than the play growl, associated with being caressed, especially throat rubs and tummy tickles 'scary growl' - to warn off rude dogs, etc - higher in pitch than the play growl Like you I was nearly startled out of my wits the first time he did the happy growl - it took me a little time to work out from the rest of his body language that he was just trying to tell me how relaxed and happy he felt!

Brands aren't the same here in the UK, but I'd suggest switching to a non-bio detergent (one without enzymes). Also, ditch any fabric conditioner you may use. I add a glug of white vinegar to the final rinse instead. I promise you, it DOESN'T leave the washing smelling like fish and chips! Just of nice clean fabric...it is much better for the washing machine too, stops it getting gunked up.

Body language, as others have said. Err on the side of caution until you get to know your dog. I can tell you after four years that Doc has three kinds of growl that I know of: - 'play growl' - for games with me or other dogs - quite deep - 'happy growl' - when being caressed - breathier than the play growl - 'scary growl' - to warn off other dogs - higher tone than the play growl

What a relief for you!

High prey Greyhounds are deemed unadoptable? So do they live their whole lives at the kennel instead of being adopted out? That's just sad. LindsaySF, these were the 'long-stayers' I was talking about: The Sanctuary. Not all are chasers, some have medical issues, others are anxious dogs who have tried home life but actually prefer kennel routine - if you click on the individual photos, you will see from the writeups how much thought goes into each case and hopefully, how well each hound is loved and looked after! And rest assured that many do eventually get to 'go home' - usually with a member of staff/ long-term volunteer who has can offer the right kind of experienced care. Parsniptoast, I'm glad my advice was useful. We do meet some nasty dog-aggressive dogs round here when we are out and about too (usually bull breeds with chav owners - unfortunately, some dog-fighting goes on locally, even though that is of course illegal...). Where possible I'll just cross the road/ go behind parked cars to avoid an encounter, but when it's not I've always found standing aside and tucking Doc away with his bum to the snarly dog's face works well, even on a narrow pavement!

I think the muzzles are a bit of a red herring, actually. More to the point, were all or any of these three dogs on leads? In the UK, it's not 'etiquette' to let your off-lead dog pester one that is on lead. And if it came to a court of law, the one that was on-lead would be deemed to be 'under control' while the off-lead one wouldn't. So if your 2 were onlead and the Westie wasn't, then certainly the other owner was well out of order. If vice versa, then you were in the wrong. No matter if your two were muzzled, they could still do it a fair amount of damage by chasing, bruising, etc. If all three were on leads, then I'd say that both of you were at fault. Since you both knew your dogs were likely to kick off at the sight of the other, then 'good etiquette' would be for one or other of you to step off the path and let the other dog pass - preferably turning your dogs away, so as to defuse any face-to-face encounters. Even better etiquette though, especially if this is someone you see regularly, would be to try and get the three dogs on better terms. Go off for a walk round the park together, dogs on leads, parallel walking, so they get to see that this is a dog that also walks, sniffs, poos, and not an electric hare... this is what some of my kind local dog owners did to help me socialise Doc with other breeds, I found some good mixed-breed obedience classes helpful, too. Back to the muzzles. Yes, I started off walking Doc in a muzzle, that was what the RGT advised and it was helpful as he got used to the outside world and I got to work out what set off his prey drive. I always saw it as something which we would be able to graduate from, and was pleased when we did (after 2-3 weeks) if only it was so tiresome watching everyone shrink away from the 'vicious' dog/ 'cruel' owner. It was poor PR for greyhound adoption too, as Kennelmom says. Obviously the US/UK cultures are different, two things which may be relevant here are that we seem to have fewer loose aggressive dogs in the UK, but our pavements are narrower with more cats etc out and about... only last week I spotted a squirrel just inches from Doc's jaws, sitting in a shrub behind a neighbour's front wall... I must say that even these days I was relieved that he hadn't seen it too! I would hope that most retired greyhound adopters here in the UK would view muzzles as a training tool that can be dispensed with after a while, except maybe for those very few dogs that always remain ultra-keen (though in that case probably unsuitable for adoption, I know some like this who live long-term at my adoption group). In our litigation-conscious age people do seem to be getting more and more pro-muzzle though, I was disappointed to see that the greyhound advice sheet from Battersea Dogs Home, no less, suggests they remain muzzled on walks always: breed advice edited for grammar/sense

My central heating is set at 18.5 C (=65.3 F), which Doc seems very comfortable with. It goes off at night, and again he is normally comfortable with that, but he does have a housecoat which came out for overnight use during our recent snowy spell. I know when it's too cold for him he will start getting up in the night and shaking himself. Feeling their ears is also a good way of checking - cold ears=cooling dog!