MaryJane

I would get more tests done like a urinalysis which would indicate whether protein is being excreted into the urine and whether the kidneys are able to concentrate urine. Make sure that you bring in a first catch of the day and get it mid-stream. Try and get a sterile container as urinary tract infections/irritations can also sometimes cause problems and they might be able to see whether this might be an issue in the urine sample. While the dogaware site does provide tons of information - be wary of the source ... it does not appear that a vet or doctor is sponsoring this site. I would print out some pages and bring it to your vet and see what they say ...... Usually kidney diets strive to bring the % of total protein in the diet down and bring up the quality of the protein given. Phospherous content of food should also be watched.

Boo looks like a "charmer". You might want to try going on one of Greyhound Adventure walks and meet some of the people as they may be able to point you to others that live in Cambridge and/or surrounding areas. Good Luck!

If the vomit is mostly bile, then you can try feeding smaller meals and more often -- maybe about 4 times a day or give some snacks during the day/evening. My current foster vomits in the morning if she goes to bed without her evening "snack" which is some applesauce and yogurt. One of my previous greys would also vomit bile if he did not get his breakfast at the "normal time" in the morning.

One major concern that you need to watch for with any "mainstream" obedience classes is that the instructors may tell you that you can train your greyhound so that it can go off-leash. As someone suggested in the thread, check with your adoption group and see who they recommend.

The vibration that comes from a train will be very much like the vibration that the dogs feel when the "rabbit" is sent around the track and they are waiting in their boxes. They usually hear it right before the doors fly open and they are expected to run. With this in mind, your dog may start pacing or even pulling against a leash (or maybe not react at all). Get the schedule for the train and if necessary, just be prepared to distract your dog the first few times the train goes by ...

You mentioned that you are feeding him first -- you probably want to feed him last. Also, if he gets growly when you are making the food is he getting corrected so he knows that is not acceptable?

Many adoption groups do not condone the use of "flexi-leads" for greyhounds as that seems to be how many greyhounds have gotten away from their owners. The owner drops the plastic holder and it startles the dog and it takes off. As to taking new dogs to a doggie-park, I might suggest that you wait a bit and get to know the dogs better before letting them loose with other dogs. If these are new dogs, chances are they are not used to the routine yet and may be "holding it". I've had a few fosters that have done that but, also the reverse, some had to go out every hour or so at the beginning. With new fosters I usually tie two leather leashes together which gives them a bit more room to move away if they are shy -- I do this even though I have a fenced in yard because I just never now how a new foster will react. As general rule, I take new fosters out when they get up from sleeping, after they eat, after they play and at least every four hours for the first few weeks until they settle in and I know their routines. Good luck ..

Try adding some "old-fashioned" (not the instant) oatmeal to his food.

Others on the thread have mentioned all the more common reasons for whimpering but, is it by chance happening close to the time she gets fed her evening meal? As "my" greyhounds settled in after being adopted (usually after 6 to 9 months), they would start to do all sorts of antics/commotion to make sure that I would not forget to feed them their evening meal including but not limited to chattering, barking, and whimpering.

I just heard back from the vet office and she wanted me to decrease the Tramdol to two three times a day. I was a bit insistent and asked for Metacam. They are going to call me back. UGH! I just heard back from the vet office and she wanted me to decrease the Tramdol to two three times a day. I was a bit insistent and asked for Metacam. They are going to call me back. UGH! What you described with the panting sounds like what happened to one of my greyhounds when he was coming out of a sedative for a procedure that a vet hospital did - both the hospital and I concurred that we would NEVER use that sedative again. You may want to see if your vet will do a consult with OSU - they have a vast amount of experience with greyhounds.

I would have the vet prescribe another pain medicine as it sounds like the tramadol might be causing some "adverse" reactions. I used to use Metacam as an pain med for my greyhounds and all of them seemed to tolerate it OK.

Great pictures and welcome to the forum. I'm from Westwood MA (20 minutes from Boston) and there are quite a few others on the forum from the greater Boston area. You may want to check out some greyhound walking clubs in the area - there is greyhoundadventures.org (they meet on Sundays) and there trailboundhounds.org (meets on Saturday).

I always get a urine the "old-fashioned" way. Just make sure that you get an first morning specimen and catch it mid-stream. Doing the "culture and sensitivity" confirms that the antibiotic being used is the right one.

I have dealt with food allergy issues and what has usually worked (in my case) is moving away from poultry as the protein. I feed my own dog a home made diet with beef and fosters (with allergies) usually do OK on Natural Balance Venison and Sweet potato. I agree with others that you may want to do an elimination diet - it takes a few weeks but you can get concrete answers on what food works for your dog.

From my perspective, it makes sense to redo the bloodwork and to also do a urine culture (first morning speciman) to see if there is an infection. I'm not sure what you mean about doing an abdomen for the urine - that is probably not necessary as I suspect that you are talking about doing a catheter (putting a tube into the bladder). In some cases if not done properly, it can cause an infection.

If there is protein in the urine and his kidney values are elevated, then you probably need to get your pup on a better quality protein but less of it and one lower in phosphorus (at least temporarily). It would help if you had the actual kidney test values... If there is a UTI, there could be a potential that this is a related problem to the kidney issue and one may have caused/aggravated the other and with that in mind, if it was me I would want to investigate and treat the UTI as well as moving to a better food. You may want to check out homemade kidney diets because you can control the ingredients that go into it and also adjust protein and phosphorus levels accordingly. You haven't mentioned what liver tests were elevated (values would also help).

I have had two dogs on a kidney diet and they still get meat (high quality), just not a lot of it. For my current 85lb greyhound he gets about 2 cups (more or less) of white rice with 1/2 cup veggies, and about 1/4 cup meat for his dinner. I do oatmeal with grits (about 2 cups) and 1/4 cup meat for breakfast. You do have to watch the amount of oatmeal because it has more phospherous than the grits which is one of the minerals that should be watched with kidney issues. I do supplement with calcium (not vitamin D though), fish oil, and multi-vitamins. If you plan to feed homemade for any period you need to get a formulated diet from a nutritionist. Good luck

This happened recently with one of my dogs - a cat bit/scratched him around the face and chest/leg area pretty good (of course the cat was in my dog's mouth at the time). After conversations with the vet, we did another rabies since I could not determine whether the cat had a rabies shot and continued antibiotics (from another issue) to make sure that he did not get an infection.

Can you provide the actual lab values for the kidney and liver tests?

Everything should turn out fine just as long as your vet is greyhound savvy and has a good understanding of the anesthesia issues with greyhounds. You may also notice that your greyhound is "colder" than normal when you bring him home so you might want to cover him "very lightly". Expect that he may sleep most of the night. One of my greys was 11.5 years old when he had a teeth cleaning and it turned out fine although I was so worried before the procedure that I also almost canceled the appointment.

years ago most wormers were toxic (although typically used at levels that are relatively safe according to manufacturer's testing) - that's how they get rid of the worms. Not sure if you want to give it to your dog if he/she doesn't have worms.

Did I misread or does she have "early kidney disease" -- if that is correct, then the first urine of the morning will be important to get the specific gravity and whether there is protein/glucose/blood in the concentrated urine. You could always take two - the first morning specimen for the chemical type tests and one later in the day for the bacterial culture although, the concentrated early morning specimen usually works better for "cultures". The best possible action is to take the first morning specimen and bring it in within an hour or two.

Dr. Remaillaird specializes in nutrition and has been doing it for years. The web site for Angel nutrition is http://www.mspca.org/site/PageServer?pagen...rition_homepage As I mentioned, she has formulated a few diets for my dogs (and not just the kidney). She also provides detailed information on vitamins and calcium levels that are required. In recent years she has been recommending a powdered supplement but, when asked she will reformulate the diet to include calcium carbonate (that can be picked up at the pharmacy but NOT the one that has Vitamin D) and regular over the counter vitamins as well as fish oil. As you mentioned, phosphorous intake is important in managing kidney issues but, phosphorous levels in meat are high and thus, lowering phosphorus usually requires lowering protein (along with other items). While others have suggested that you may want to wait before taking action, I respectfully might suggest the opposite and look into this immediately. The quicker that this is looked into and the cause identified as well as any necessary changes made to the diet will make a difference long term.

I might recommend trying to up his weight by feeding him some toast (or regular bread) with butter. The butter adds some fat and that along with the carbos from the bread might put a few pounds on him. My dog eats home-cooked meals and his poops can look dark on the outside - if you are concerned, the vet can check for blood. You might want to consider adding vitamins and calcium if you are home-feeding. Also, consider adding some cooked veggies.

Did the vet recommend a lower percentage protein diet? While the kidney values in the blood are higher than normal, I would probably consider it good that the protein is not yet being passed by the kidneys into the urine (I'm not a vet but was a microbiologist decades ago). But, I would probably go back and talk to the vet about getting your dog on a food that has a better quality of protein but less of it (also a food with less phosphates). You might want to consider a home-made diet where you can control the amount and type of protein much more carefully than with commercial foods. I've had two "kidney diets" formulated for two of my greyhounds and personally have been very happy with the results. I've used Dr Remaillaird at Angel Memorial Hospital in Boston to set up the diets and I believe that she does phone consults also. If you change the diet, you can do blood work after 3 months and see if it is helping. Also, you might want to consider whether there was anything your dog could have gotten into that might have elevated kidney values. The first thing that comes to mind is whether you are using any treats or foods that have ingredients form China (think back to the "protein substitute a few years ago that poisoned dogs). edited to add ... my first dog with the kidney issue had normal values a few months after being put on a kidney diet and he went on to a regular diet. My current dog has "good results" for his creatinne and spoecific gravity after being on a kidney diet a few months but he is still on a kidney diet and I plan on checking him again at the beginning of next year.