GeorgeofNE

It's totally normal, and that's why Greyhounds are muzzled in the turnout pens--so they don't hurt each other accidentally. Their thin skin can't handle what they're rough play can dish out!

I don't know where you read that, but for one, "heel" does not include the person walking in front of the dog--hence the name "heel." The dog walks at your side with his shoulder right about where your legs are. They should stop when you stop (some insist the dog sit, but some don't), walk when you walk, turn when you turn. This is very HANDY, but certainly not critical. I rarely see dogs heeling when I walk with mine, and I don't insist George heel, but I DO insist he stay on my left side.

Yeah, the only thing I agreed with at all in the "I read in a Greyhound book..." was the genetic part.

Many people, including me, believe spook dogs are BORN, not made. Nervous dogs exist in every breed. Your spooky boy probably would have been that way no matter HOW he was handled. While his disposition might have been why he didn't race, it's highly unlikely his disposition has anything to do with how he was treated. And all the track dogs are "socialized" in the exact same manner.

Sounds like more speculation than anything. If this was true, I would imagine there would be a HUGE incidence of lung problems in racers, both dog and horse. "Sand like particles" doesn't mean sand.

Doesn't matter how "high quality" the food is if the dog won't eat it. You'll have to explain "and he smells strange." His breath? His skin? Have you bathed him?

My mother has been taking too much Soloxine (yes, people take the same supplement) and she was shaking, confused, couldn't sleep, and lost 10 pounds.

I think he looks fantastic. Beautiful dog in good condition. I would stop stressing. My dog lost weight when he retired. Now, after four years, he weighs exactly what he weighed when racing--and he's 9 years old. I don't know what the side effects of the medication you have him on are, but is it possible that's what is causing the soft stool? I'd stop ALL additives for a while myself, and only give him his food and his medication. I don't think there is anything wrong with MilkBones myself.

I was going to say the same thing. If you didn't take her to a board certified orthopedic vet, you need to. That's also a lot of Rimadyl, frankly, for soreness after x-rays. My dog takes half that. And it's an NSAID. There is no need to "taper down."

Always, always, always check out a medical issue FIRST. Believe me, it's a lot easier to fix if she has a mild UTI! I hope when you said "I walk her twice a day" you didn't mean you only take her OUT twice a day? I'm assuming two long walks, and then other potty breaks?

Sounds like totally normal dog behavior to me. Dogs sort things out themselves. Your dog got the ball, he does not care to give it up. It's really not a big deal. Although at the dog park I used to go to, we did not do group games like that, because almost inevitably a fight ends up breaking out 'cause there is often ONE dog that goes too far. We had a "core" group of dogs who were all friends, and we each brought our own dog's ball. We'd sort of stand in a line and yell, "ready, set, go" and everyone would toss their ball and the dogs would race out and get them. Oh, none of these were Greyhounds. Just an assortment of dogs.

Any fenced in field will do. Just go early. And obviously--clean up (although when we were children, people didn't freak out if you stepped in dog poop the way they do today--you scraped it off your shoe and carried on) after your dog. I feel like I live in a very dog intolerant area, but honestly? At 6 AM, who is going to know if I'm using their "no dogs allowed" field? And what's the worst thing that's going to happen? You'll be asked to leave, and you'll go!

You may have a "breed snob" like I do. I've had George for four years, and he is still extremely weird around non Greyhounds. My parents had English Setters, and the only way to visit them was to get George to deal with their dogs--what we did was that we introduced them in the yard (not the house) and they were loose, and George was on leash and muzzled. The English Setters were just fine with George (mellow dogs all around) and he was just a bit growly. So I let him loose, but kept the muzzle on. After a while, we went in the house. George seemed to understand that he was on THEIR turf. I took the muzzle off after about an hour. He snapped at one of the dogs when it walked to close to him, so the muzzle went back on. After a few more hours, I could see he was relaxed, so I took it off. He was fine with them from then on, and every time we went back. He still doesn't like other breeds--but he sort of "got" that those dogs were family and he had to behave.

I second a check for worms. It's pollen season, so it is certainly not beyond the realm of possibility he is allergic to something. My last dog had terrible allergies that started up around now and went through October. Have you tried giving him some Benadryl? If the itching STOPS then he's probably allergic to something. Which could also be flea bites! My vet said some dogs are horribly allergic to fleas so just ONE flea can cause them misery.

Arthritis would not present itself like that, typically--sudden pain bad enough to make the dog shriek. Muscle spasm, pinched nerve, something along that line could. I would not go to the eVet, but I would take him in during normal vet hours.

Kibble and warm water. And unless your dog is underweight, it's a myth that ALL new adoptees need to gain weight. My dog weighs the exact amount as he did when he raced and I've had him four years. He looked great when I got him, and he looks great now! I feed him about half of what everyone else seems to feed, so he must have a slow metabolism or something! No reason NOT to use wet food, unless you don't want to buy it. Our family dogs when I was a kid always had kibble, warm water, and some canned food. I don't use it only because George will eat ANYTHING and I am challenged for space as a condo dweller.

Oh, I'm so sorry. I would think if you get to the stage where the bone is so fragile that it's going to break, it's time to consider that the end has arrived--but that's just my own personal opinion. Best wishes.

No, but most Greyhounds only need a bath about once a year. I'm not sure why I'd even think about bathing him after ward? Obviously a Borzoi is hairy and a Greyhound is not, but I grew up with English Setters and we didn't bath them after the treatment either.

Yes, I lost a cat in a very similar fashion, and the ONLY comfort for me was the vet telling me there was NOTHING I could have done--I couldn't have gotten him to the vet to help him, I couldn't have done anything for him. I elected not to have a necropsy done, but she suspects it was something like a clot or something. I know how you feel. I was just--stunned. I just stood there, holding him, thinking, "How can he be dead? He was playing with his purple mouse, and now he's dead." I took him to the vet anyway--I didn't know what else to do. I found out later from the breeder that one of his uncles had died in a similar fashion-- I'm so sorry for your loss. Truly.

When I take George for a walk (for exercise, before work) he walks where I walk, when I walk, at the pace I want to walk. I think most any dog would turn a 20 minute "walk" into a 40 minute sniffathon given the chance. Make sure your dog's martingale fits properly, and when YOU want to proceed, just do it. A brief tug and release and a "let's go" or "heel" and march on. Any dog training book should cover the heel command, and while I do not insist my dog heel while we walk, I do not let him just poke along and sniff all morning. We're out there to get some exercise and to empty his bladder. Once I reach the end of our walk, I take him to the park for his "sniffabouts." That's when the leash goes slack and I let him go and sniff what he wants, but when we're walkin', we're walkin'!

Your poll is missing an important choice, which would be "Yes, he did, but he got over it." I think most do, with the proper conditioning and just TIME.

I'm going to just mention George's solution-- Long, long story is that he peed in the house for the first year--not every day, no particular pattern, so he started wearing a belly band, and we dealt with it. We got the problem TOTALLY stopped for 2 years. I mistakenly thought it was a very long course of Baytril that "cured him." Last summer, he started up again, and this time the antibiotics didn't stop it. When he needed a refill on his Deramaxx, it FINALLY hit me; he stopped peeing when he went on Deramaxx, 50 mg. once a day. He STARTED peeing in the house again when his does was lowered by his new, well intended vet to 35 mg. per day. The day we put him back on 50 mg was the last accident he's had. It's been about 7 or 8 months now. It makes no sense. We tested for everything over and over. We did the ultrasound. Found NOTHING. But you can't argue with the result! My unscientific theory is that whatever causes him pain causes him to pee and the 35 mg wasn't quite enough to deal with it, but the 50 mg is.

They're tick collars. I doubt the same sort of things that repel crawling bugs would work on flying bugs.

Oh Sherrie, what a sweet picture. I'm so sorry.

Oh Pat. I don't recall even hearing about Bell Walker LIMPING? Such a heartbreaking day for you. Sometimes I think we try so hard to "fix" a dog who would really just as soon go peacefully with their heads in our lap, as your girls got to. I know you will miss them forever, but hope the happy memories ease the pain.