GeorgeofNE

What do you mean? That she always ACTS hungry? And always begs for food? I've never had a dog that didn't! If she's at a healthy weight, then she's just being a dog. Don't give in, or you'll end up with a porker on your hands!

I give George bones from the supermarket every Saturday and Sunday. I keep them in the freezer, and I hand them to him and he has a ball. George's teeth are already destroyed from his track days--looks like he was a crate chewer--and he LOVES his bones. He has a cast iron stomach, so they cause him no gastro issues whatsoever. He really doesn't chew the bone ones he's gotten the meat off and the marrow out. I NEVER leave him with the bones unattended.

Oh, I'm so sorry.

That's a sad story--but I personally don't believe a dog's mind works that way--and I mean I don't think she's laying around reliving the trauma. Sounds like she's lonely for another dog companion.

That's great news!

My old dog used to come out of the bedroom and give me the evil eye every half hour or so when he wanted me to go to bed. I just ignored him, and eventually he gave up and slept in his bed next to my chair. What would your guy do if you put him in the bedroom and closed the door? Let HIM go to bed.

Three days is NOTHING. Get the McConnell booklet, "I'll Be Home Soon," and let your neighbors know you've adopted a Greyhound, there will be an adjustment period, you hope they will be a little tolerant, and maybe bake 'em some cookies!!! My dog howled for HOURS when I first got him--every day. My neighbors were almost universally kind about it when I told them he'd never been alone before. There was one nasty woman who accused me of cruelty to animals for "keeping a big dog in an apartment." Informing her he'd spend the past three years in a cage didn't sway her--but she was just nasty! Mind you, I was chairman of the condo board, so there was nothing anyone could do to me...you have to be more careful, but I really did find that a nice note delivered under the door of all my neighbors with my phone number and an invitation to visit was really well received. He didn't let up, so I eventually stopped crating him and he never made another sound. But it's too soon, at 3 days, for you to think about that I think. Good luck!

I'm with Judy here.

When is the last time he's seen the vet? It COULD be the ice/snow (I'm in Boston too). It COULD be a touch of arthritis. Or it COULD be something worse... If he ONLY limps outside on walks, it's probably either snow irritation or a corn. If he's limping inside, I'd probably take him to the vet. But that's just me.

I've been on prednisone myself on numerous occasions; the benefits far outweigh the risks with a short course like your vet has suggested. I've also received many cortisone shots into my joints as well as assorted tendons; there is no better relief, IMHO, for pain from inflammation. I would not hesitate to give the treatment a try if he were my dog; my old dog took prednisone for severe allergies, and the only problem he had was that it made him thirsty, which of course meant he had to pee more often. Probably kept him alive for two additional years (yes, his allergies were THAT bad).

Not my current dog, but my last dog. And my cats can puff up their tails so they look like bottle brushes!

What a little cutie! I hope they figure it out soon.

Thanks for the advice! We will be sure to bring the vet a fresh urine sample and do know not to refrigerate it. I don't want her pee anywhere near my food anyway! I'll also ask about doing a culture. X-rays were done back in September or early October when her initial limp didn't improve with the rest. They x-rayed both back legs, her hips and a portion of her back. She has a slight malformation in one of the vertebrae near the base of her spine. Based on the x-rays and a consultation with an orthopedic surgeon we're pretty sure she has LS. I know as LS advances it can cause incontinence, but given how suddenly this started I'm pretty sure that at least part of her problems are due to a UTI. I just have to say that I have had to take many, many urine samples to the vet from two different dogs. I have NEVER been told not to refrigerate it, nor has any of it ever had crystals. In fact I've been told that I SHOULD refrigerate it when I collect it, until I bring it in. Also, my George has LS. Typically it causes fecal incontinence, not urinary. I had him to a fancy schmancy specialist with degrees out the wazoo, and that's what she told me.

There really shouldn't be a lot of medical history in a dog that young who really BARELY raced. Typically, kennels do their own vaccines, worming, minor wound and injury care.

Dogs of all breeds are flown, routinely, all over the world. However, ANY animal can suffer an accidental death--but Greyhounds are no more prone to that than any other dog. Your best bet is to research airlines, etc. on the internet (Google is your friend).

I had a heck of a time with George, but that was mostly because the only stairs at my first condo we lived in together were black metal stairs in an enclosed stairwell. Once we moved here, and the stairs were normal stairs with carpet, he followed the movers right up as if he'd done it a million times! If he can do it, any hound can do it!

My dog hated his crate. He hated being baby gated into a room. The only thing that stopped his problem (which was actually howling like a deranged wolf) was to let him loose. He has never done so much as chewed up a stuffed animal since.

Rescue Remedy is flower essences and brandy. Did absolutely nothing for George. I can't even imagine how much tea you'd have to get the dog to drink for it to do anything at all--and then you'd probably have a dog who had to pee! The D.A.P. diffusers seemed to have a mild calming effect on George, but the most effective thing I did was EXERCISE the heck out of him. Don't confuse "herbal" or "natural" with harmless. While most OTC anxiety remedies seem to, at worse, to nothing, I tired Valerian Root extract on George at someone's suggestion, and his liver enzymes went through the roof. It's no more shameful to use medication on your dog than it is to take it yourself, so if he has severe anxiety, you may have to go that way.

My Kramer had a nerve sheath tumor of some sort. I didn't pursue an exact diagnosis after the pathologist confirmed it was malignant. He was 12 or 13 years old at the time, and the prognosis was poor--in addition, it was painful. We enjoyed one more summer together, and then one morning he told me he'd had enough, and I let him go. You can see how large it is; they would have had to remove a huge section of his side. The pain he would have endured, only to have it most likely grow back--I couldn't put him through that. Hopefully your dog's isn't this big and you have better news.

She could have, like George, a touch of lunbar stenosis. If so, you'll need to 1) get the weight off, and 2) curtain the "going like crazy" at the dog park, and substitute regular, gentle exercises, i.e. walking. It is very important as dogs age that they not be allowed to get too soft, as their muscles really do provide support for their bones, and that they not be allowed to get overweight. I am not suggesting your dog is fat; but you yourself called her "chunky." It should not be considered a normal part of aging for a dog to get weak. And 11 isn't all that old!

Exactly. It's a complete myth that Greyhounds can't (or won't) sit. George is the most stubborn dog I've ever met, and even he learned how to sit, on command, in just a few days. I train him exactly the way I've trained every other dog we've ever had. Quirky or not, they're still dogs.

Snacks? Wow. I'm not letting George read this! If I fed him every time he wanted a snack...he'd be fat as a pony and I'd be broke! Is it possible that he's not getting his usual exercise with the winter weather? Is he not staying out as long at last potty? Unless he REALLY can't hold it from bedtime until 1 PM (doubtful, unless he's ill) I'd be inclined to tell him to go lie down and go back to sleep, not give everything his heart desires.

No need to stress over the WHY (as long as you've checked toenail length). Dogs do weird stuff. My old dog was afraid of the ironing board (never an issue) but not cars (he was thrown from a moving car as a puppy). Go figure. Something that seemed totally innocuous to your and/or your husband probably scared him. He'll likely get over it. Will he enter the kitchen to follow a trail of kibble on the floor or something?

I'm so sorry Pat. I remember you telling me about Tally, when you were so kind and sent me endless emails back and forth teaching me about Greyhounds. It's never easy to lose a dear friend. Susan

I lived in a condo where the alarm went off a LOT. First, let me nag you a second, please don't ignore it! One of the times it went off, we really had a fire, and someone died. The firemen had fits because most people hadn't bothered to leave the building! Nag over. Second, my dog learned to HATE that alarm, and consequently hate storms (it went off every time we had thunder, as well as for other reasons). But it never made him pee. I don't think this is actually alarm related since it goes off when you're home too,and she doesn't pee then. I don't happen to think dogs are the sort of animals who lay around thinking, "Well, last week, when they were at work, the alarm went off, so maybe tonight when they go out to dinner the alarm will go off again!" Sure, it's possible. But before you drive yourself nuts trying to figure it out, I happen to feel the first step when a housebroken dog starts having accidents is to take a pee sample to the vet! Trust me; it's a LOT easier to deal with a mild UTI than to change a behavioral peeing issue! Good luck. Oh, I used to live in Rolling Hills, CA. Lovely place, Southern California!