[How big is your male hound?]

We dog sat for a boy that was nearly that big just off the track. He was built like a tank, could knock me over just leaning on me, and is the sweetest, goofiest, love ball I've ever met. Unusual yes, but not unheard of, and I really have a soft spot for the big boys.

[Boarding for the first time]

3 hours ago, Toffeesdad said:

Thanks for all the helpful advice.  I’m just cautious as Toffey doesn’t adjust as easily as our previous pup (a rescue with a wide gene pool 🤡). We’re considering the vet because he’s familiar with the staff there as they do all his grooming as well.  You’ve given some questions to ask when we discuss boarding and a test run of overnight or while we’re at work one day is a great idea.

I strongly prefer in home boarding with a greyhound parent, which is what we do for long trips, and we have a dog sitter who drops in for the occasional overnight. But if you're going to do actual boarding, I agree about an overnight first, and I would also ask about and ask to see fire suppression systems, particularly if they're not staffed 24/7. I boarded my first dog for a while at his vet, and even though he knew them, and was pretty laid back and bomb proof, and it was a good veterinary practice, he got much better care and was happier "boarding" with a GT family.

[Sudden death questions]

Thank you all, and I'm sorry for everyone else who's lost a dog this way. His checkup was scheduled for next week, but I'm trying to tell myself I doubt that getting it done earlier would have helped, he'd last been seen only a few months ago.

Thank you for adding his name to the bridge kids list, I'll post something about him there when I'm ready.

[Best method to secure kibble from a dog who thinks she is starving?]

This works with Henry, my constantly starving food thief: https://www.petsmart.com/dog/bowls-and-feeders/storage-and-scoops/top-paw-pet-food-storage-and-dispenser-5176776.html?utm_id=500|pg138585|437846352441&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI2ryqqcan5wIVibWzCh0bNgdcEAQYASABEgJr3vD_BwE&lsft=utm_source%3Agoogle%2Cutm_term%3A5176776%2Cutm_medium%3APLA%2Cutm_content%3AGSC - Medium - Hardgoods - Dog - Weak SS - LIA Only | Bowls &utm_medium=PLA&utm_source=google

[Sudden death questions]

Monday morning, we lost Leo. He woke up, staggered across the room, fell down, and then we lost him a few minutes later. The only leading symptoms were about two minutes of coughing for the previous two nights. Our vet thinks it was almost certainly a cardiac event.

I'm not sure what I'm asking--does this seem plausible? Suggestions for coping? I've lost dogs under very difficult circumstances before, but I've always been able to make the decision to euthanize, even if I had to make it quickly. I feel like he didn't really get a proper goodbye, because we were caught up trying to call an evet, although we were both there at the end. It didn't help that I spent dinner Monday and the day today with a job candidate who was trying to bond over our being dog people.

Henry got a full check-up with bloodwork right after it happened, to be on the safe side, and he's getting a chest xray at his dental on Tuesday. He's being a good boy, he doesn't usually get in bed with me, hasn't in years, but he let DH put him up last night since Leo always fell asleep with me.

[Surgery to cut a tendon from a toe with a corn.]

Regardless of what you decide, I'd encourage joining the facebook group. People may have solutions you haven't tried or vets to recommend, whatever route you choose. We're fighting the corn fight at our home, so my sympathies and I know it's hard to see them in pain.

[Tavarish 19JUN05 - 16AUG19]

Godspeed Tavarish, you are so very loved by so very many.

[Do You Speak To Your Dog?]

My dogs would probably like me to shut up sometimes  Embarrassingly, I was holding a friend's baby the other day and realized I was baby talking him the way I do Henry. "Oh, what a sweet little facey facey..." I don't think they realized.

ETA: Also, "make better life choices" can be heard frequently at our house.

[Warning Regarding Toxic Algae In Ponds and Lakes]

SC too, and apparently it can be dangerous for people.

[Dental cleaning advice wanted]

I don't have experience with hookworms, hopefully someone else will weigh in, but I have done annual sedation cleanings on all four of my greyhounds over the 17 years I've had them in my life, with absolutely no problems at all. It's usually it's only one or two teeth, or the back couple that need cleaning, but by doing it proactively I've had maybe one extraction over all that time. I do all the bloodwork just to be sure it's safe every time. That said, being nervous is normal, the first five years with my first dog, I sat in the waiting room, just in case.

[How to deal with hardwood stairs]

Thank you, Home Depot treads installed and the problem seems to be solved!

[Charlie's neurotic behaviour getting worse]

Prozac has helped Leo a lot, he's still on the high side of anxious and I think will always be a neurotic dog, but the pacing, peeing in the house, constantly stressed, fear aggression with other dogs stopped. If a thyroid panel doesn't show anything, you might give it a shot.

[Renaming Your Grey?]

The only dog I didn't rename had been in a "home" for 5 years post-adoption, that seemed too confusing on top of the horrible treatment he'd received by his adopters and then the change from living outside to foster home to us. Those just off the race-track I've renamed without any trouble. I never knew their kennel names anyway and it didn't seem to confuse them at all.

[How to deal with hardwood stairs]

What have people done with hardwood stairs that are becoming a slipping hazard? Leo won't slow down, he scrambles up at the speed of light, and he's had a couple of injuries as a result of falling. Any suggestions, ideally ones that won't wreck resale value?

[Xylitol Is Deadly For Pets]

Please check even familiar products, Henry got xylitol poisoning and would have died if we hadn't taken him to the evet because the pudding I had been buying for a while switched artificial sweetners. I know some companies were putting it in peanut butter so far.

[Tore Nail Entirely Off -- Vet Visit Needed?]

I would take her in in the am, but not rush in to the evet if she seems basically okay. Leo had a break and beneath where we could see there was another break that had to be cleaned up under sedation (he was fine by the way).

[Hound in car with AC running]

I wouldn't, unless I was on a cross-country move alone or something, just to paranoid. I like the cell-phone idea, if you absolutely need to.

[I need a quick answer]

Sorry I didn't see this in time, but yes, lidocaine is fine, good choice. I have had difficulty getting a deep webbing cut to heal (even with extensive stitching), but it eventually "healed" with a permanent split in the webbing and the dog retained full function and no pain, so even if it doesn't heal up in a pretty way, try not to worry. And yes, keep a really careful lookout for sores in between the toes.

[Swollen knuckle joint with slight limp]

X-ray shows mostly soft tissue swelling with some bone "growth"--it had a technical term I'm forgetting--suggesting arthritis, we're going to try Meloxicam and re-xray in a month, just to be on the safe side that we're not missing anything.

[Swollen knuckle joint with slight limp]

It doesn't seem like a dislocation (we deal with those with Leo a lot), but fingers are crossed it's that presenting differently than I'm used to or a sprain. There's no warmth or redness to indicate an infection and it's not getting worse so I decided to wait until Tuesday when he can see his normal vet, I'll ask for an x-ray.

[Swollen knuckle joint with slight limp]

Anyone experienced this? Henry's pretty stoic so I'm not sure how long it's been bothering him, but we've been bad parents and focused more on Leo's issues so it's probably been two weeks. I'm going to call the vet in the morning, but any thoughts about this and osteo?

[Untreatable Heart Worm--Experiences?]

Thank you, someone local wanted him (we were 3 hours away), so I hope he will spend his days being spoiled. I only heard about him because my friend fosters for the local animal shelter where he was, it's sad how often they get dogs who haven't been receiving heart worm pills, for this little guy it was too late.

[Possible Lymphoma.]

Prednisone, in my experience, will give you more happy, comfortable days, but may or may not extend life. We did see a rapid and complete reduction in lymph node swelling right after starting prednisone, when they came back, that's when we knew to start preparing ourselves for the end. Murphy was starving on it, we went to four meals a day, kibble supplemented with cooked meat. I don't know how common this is, but his iron levels dropped a lot, we chose to fix it with cooked chicken livers, but if we'd been willing to take him back to to the vet for bloodwork, supplements would have been an option if you can't deal with the liver.

[Untreatable Heart Worm--Experiences?]

We're thinking of "fostering" a beagle who's heart worm is too advanced to treat, we'd be his hospice care/bucket list providers. Any experiences with this and what to expect? The internet seems to think it wouldn't put Henry and Leo at risk (plus they're on heart worm prevention), but is that right?

[Possible Lymphoma.]

I'm so sorry. We went through this with Murphy and opted out of chemo for various reasons, feel free to message me if you want to talk or let me know if you have questions.