GeorgeofNE

Yes you do! To the extent you "know" me! Truthfully, the old adage "let sleeping dogs lie" applies to ALL dogs. The difference is that you typically adopt a Greyhound as an adult, and if you get a retired racer, he or she has spent time in a kennel, where there is NO possible way to get close to them without waking them up because all the dogs in the kennel wake up when humans arrive. Any dog who is suprised out of sleep can snap or bite. It's not that big a problem though. It's easy enough to make sure your dog is awake before you pet it!

George CAN sleep where he wants. I can't leave a room without him escorting me, so yes, he sleeps in the bedroom!

"Severe pain" just doesn't come on from arthritis. It's a gradual process, and if he has arthritis, and what dog that age doesn't, he's been in pain for a long time--apparently untreated pain. Pain so bad he cannot stand up could be ANYTHING. Your vet cannot force you to put your dog to sleep if you're not ready to do that, but your dog should have been seen annually by your vet, and I would expect he would have noticed arthritis by now.

He's never going to learn how to act around people if he's never allowed to BE around people. And please stop rewarding him for his whining in the crate by giving him EXACTLY what he wants--your undivided attention. Lot of mixed signals going on here! You need some volunteers to come over and get jumped on a few times. Have the leash on him. When he goes in for the jump, pull backwards and say "Off!" (or something similar) and do NOT pay any attention to him until he behaves nicely.

Its all good fun until you get hurt. I used to have a mixed breed--Pit Bull and Something--when he was a puppy, we used to wrestle around on the floor. One day he got too excited and treated me the way he would have another puppy, and bit me in the lip. I was so angry I literally saw red--but I knew it was my fault. You can't encourage a behavior one minute and then prohibit it the next. I think it's a bad idea to play any game that involves dog teeth on human flesh, just like someone above said. You don't have to make a big deal out of NOT doing it, but I would certainly not encourage it, cause your "badge of honor" might end up being a canine tooth in your face--which might not seem so fabulous a few years down the road.

There are all kinds of light up collars and tags--but I am just baffled at how you didn't even notice she wasn't with you? Thank goodness it all worked out fine!

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Get a script and order online, or buy a few bags at a time. Read your initial post. You found something that keeps your girl healthy, fit, and doesn't give her pudding poo. Don't mess around with success!

I remember when I first came to GT, I couldn't understand why there were all these cute pictures of a Jack Russell. So I "got to know" Jilly Bean, and I have been very fond of her for years. I am so sorry for your loss. Run free Jilly Bean. You will be missed.

Well, my pills are bitter too, but I take them because I know I need them! Don't let her make the choice since it's rather clear she IS in pain and she needs them! The bitterness lasts seconds; the pain relief, hours! Give her the pills, and some scritches from me! 16 is pretty incredible.

If all those "natural" and "green" things actually WORKED I suppose everyone would use them. They don't.

I can't think of any sugery I'd subject a 13 year old Greyhound to myself... I hope he's feeling ok!

No idea what it even is. I'd call the 800 number on the jar and ask for a scooper, or return it and get one that has a scoop. Did you really did for the scoop? Sometimes they end up at the bottom of th jar.

Sadly, the shots CANNOT actual "work." For some dogs, they do relieve some of the symptoms. But all you have to do is ask a neurologist (and I have) about the effectiveness of injecting steroids NEXT TO the spine for stenosis. All they can do is relief the inflammation around the spine. But if the problems a particular dog are having are from the compression of the nerves inside the spine (which is what LS is), the shots do nothing. And the vets I asked about it believe that the potential for long term negative side effects outweigh the the value of any potential temporary relief. The specialist I went to was familiar with the shots but called the theory "bad science." Fortunately, George is doing well on the protocol I was given or I would probably be upset that no one would let us try it! And if I have to, I was told there is an old guy vet in the area that MIGHT be willing to do them.

oh, that's what I was wondering, since she has no other symptoms. My other girl didn't have issues, but she was a lot different in many ways. I respectfully disagree. We've had a lot of dogs in my family and none of them, as long as they were healthy, had issues with urinating as they got older. Given everything you said about her always being iffy on housebreaking, having had access to a dog door which she no longer has, living with another dog who is not reliably housebroken--this sounds more behavioral to me--but if she were mine I'd go with a course of antibiotics anyway and see if that helps. If she does have a UTI, she might not have any of the symptoms you mentioned. It could also be a number of other health issues which might come on at her age--but age in and of itself is not an reason. It's just coincidental that as dogs age, they start to have things wrong with them.

Sounds like a POSSIBLE back problem. Maybe he tweaked something? Particulary if you know he was acting like a nut just prior. Try not to worry just yet! He probably needs some rest and NSAIDs and then he'll be right as rain!

George is now 10, but he was diagnosed a few years ago. Vets around here will not inject steroids. We use gabapentin and Rimadyl, and tramadol if needed. Regular gentle exercise, keep his weight down, his muscle tone up.

I had to switch cause there is just no Deramaxx out there. My vet made me do a 10 day 'wash out' when we switched, which was brutal for me (my dog pees in the house if he doesn't get his NSAID), but George did OK. He is doing great on Rimadyl. I would love to try this less expensive alternative, meloxicam, but do not fancy going through another wash out! Also, my vet gave us too small a dose of Rimadyl, 100 mg. According to the formula, he can take 125 mg., so that's what I'm giving him.

Those DNA tests are a joke, (they did a test on three kits--tested the same dog with three different kits and got back three totally different sets of dogs!) and I see no sign of Great Pyrenees or Greyhound, but your dog is very nice looking! Could be some sort of fox hound in there, but none of the things you describe are unique to Greyhounds, including what they call "rooing." Lots of dogs do that. Double dew claws are not all that common, but certainly having them doesn't necessarily mean the dog has GP in it. It's not big or furry enough IMHO.

I don't think that's fair. We know how delicate Greyhound skin is. My own dog split his skin open in three places just tripping on some stairs.

I'm sorry. I'm not seeing a problem here. Your animals are communicating with each other. Your dog is making it clear she does not welcome the cat's advances. It's up to you to let the cat know what the dog means since clearly she doesn't understand. I find a well timed squirt with the water bottle when my cat is annoying George works wonders. Your dog has every right to tell the cat to buzz off. If she intended to hurt the cat, she would have.

I'd suggest between 11 and 5:30, you just suck it up and ignore her. A healthy dog does NOT need to be let out all night long. She's playing you, and it's working. She might need to adjust from waking up very early--life starts early at the kennels, so I would accept getting up early and taking her out. Don't feed her then, unless that's your regular wake up time. Gradually extend the sleep period. It will be a rough few nights, no doubt. But "go lie down" is something you need her to learn.

Take her to the vet. That is NOT normal for a 3 year old.

What is that and where would I find it? You need to read the labels! But I can tell you that Solid Gold's Mmillenium formula (spelling is weird...) is beef based and was the first food my dog did well on when he was newly adopted.

Please get in touch with OSU. I'm sure someone will jump in with contact information--they're the canine cancer experts. I can't imagine subjecting a dog to an invasive procedure like that unless it would CURE the disease--but even with osteo, amputation is just buying time. Fortunately Greyhounds are uniquelyl built to do beautifully on three legs.