MaryJane

I'm so sorry for your loss.

I'm glad that you were able to share a peaceful moment with her in the twilight.

I don't let the vet draw from the jugular - greyhounds leg veins are usually fine for draws.

I use it occasionally for my dogs to keep them regular but, I don't think it's going to help much if it is used alone. I use it for maintenance to prevent problems. It is expensive, I split one packet between three dogs and I give it every few days.

What about OSU.

It's hard to see anything on the first picture but, the second picture looks like a corn.

Have you used the kit before? It looks like it covers quite a bit ...

A quick fix would be to get a piece of plywood and have the store cut it lengthwise so you have (two) 2 x 8 foot pieces. Get some bricks and place them underneath the plywood on each of the steps - the bricks will brace up the plywood. You can get some outdoor carpet and tack it to the plywood. You also want to get a metal bracket/hinge to hold the plywood to the top of the porch. If the 8 foot section is not long enough, you can get some hinges and hinge the two pieces together to give you 16 feet. With a hinge, one way will allow you to close the two pieces together and the other way will keep it open. You could also use a straight bracket for the connection. You might need to make the plywood wider than two feet - it will depend on how wide your current stairs are - if they are 30 inches wide for example, you probably just want to have the plywood cover all the stairs ... If you do use plywood, make sure to cover it completely with carpet, the wood can get slippery when there are frost conditions. I'm sorry your boy is not feeling better yet, hopefully it will just take a little more time and he'll be OK.

I don't have a copy of the results but he said all was within normal range even the T4 which was 1 (on the low end of normal) but that was enough for a more in depth thyroid panel. The results from that thyroid panel showed that "free T4s (circulating) were low and the TSH was elevated." Don't know the exact values of those but he said the elevated TSH is enough to diagnose hypothyroidism. The vet also said that untreated hypothyroidism can suppress the immune system and lead to infections. That may be why Max has the urinary infection but we'll do the x-ray next week to rule out kidney stones. Next time get copies of all the results. Most cases in an UTI, the bacteria will usually show up in the urinalysis when they look at it under a microscope - they won't be able to tell what type but, they can usually see the bacteria.

Can you actually list the urine and blood results?

What were the results of the urinalysis and the blood work?

He's one beautiful boy and it sounds like he's got a great home .... good luck, you both sound very committed.

If she has low platelets and there is a chance that she might need to have teeth removed - I suggest talking to the vet about Amicar, it's used to help control bleeding in greyhounds.

As suggested, try a dremel rather than a cutter. Do only 1 nail or 1 foot at a time.

Rabies is usually every three years after the first one and it is required by law. But, there are other good reasons for your dog to have it - if they get bitten by a rabid animal I'm not sure how the vet/Animal control/police would handle it - the vet might need to report it. AND more importantly, what would happen if your dog bit someone - since the dog is not vaccinated that could mean that the authorities could euthanize the dog to see if it has rabies - otherwise the person that got bitten would have to go and have shots. You might be able to get a stay of execution but you would be dealing with small town politics which does not bode well for getting your point heard. Too many ifs .... better to just vaccinate the rabies especially if they are out in public.

If it is very dark then I would be concerned about bleeding. You might want to take a stool sample in to the vet and they should be able to check for blood.

If you are going to do the Amicar, make sure that you get it before the procedure - not all drugstores stock it and it could take 2 to 3 days to get it.

I gave Amicar for a few days after the Lucy's extraction.

While you could theoretically train any dog to be a "service dog" certain breeds are likely to be better. Sight-hounds, which greyhounds are, tend to be dogs set up to work alone or in a pack with other dogs in getting prey - hunters would set them loose and they would go and catch the prey and then come back with it -- so they are pretty independent. Contrast that with German Shepherds or the other breeds in the working group that stay with the human partner - for example - finding buried people or tracking mines. I've trained various types of dogs and greyhounds have been the "least interested" in training and it seems to take them a long time to "get it". My doberman was the best - he was focused on me and he wanted to learn. Not that greyhounds can't do it - it just might take longer and the results might be "spotty". Check out the book "Soldier Dogs", I thought it was a good read. There was a chapter or two on how they pick the dogs for military service.

I was also thinking dehydration but, maybe she has a bad case of motion sickness without the vomiting. There could also be some inner ear (vestibular) issues that might cause loss of balance and if that occurred, they usually don't want to stand at all or they will have the knuckling that you are describing.

I'm so sorry for your loss. Your tribute was touching.

Does the breath have an ammonia smell? That usually indicates that waste products are building up the blood because the kidneys cannot excrete them.

A wonderful tribute. My condolences on your loss.

Are you saying "Sammy, NO" or just "NO"? While there are likely to be some dissenters because the name is being used, when you have more than one dog - you have to be able to identify which dog is being disciplined. My new dog is still catching on but, my other two are pretty aware of "who is getting disciplined".

Since you have an extra week to see if this can get fixed - your suggestion about driving to a park and see how he does there sounds like a reasonable step. I would NOT let your husband take the dogs for walks - it could be your dog is picking up "bad vibes" from him and it is making him very sensitive and jumpy (probably making both of them sensitive and jumpy ). If it turns out that the dog is better walking with you in parks, then see if you can meet up with some other greyhound owners and walk with them. If the dog and you are doing OK, then bring your husband along and see if the dynamics change. If they do, chances are your husband & the dog are not compatible and you won't be able to keep both.