BootsyCollins

Yeeeee-gads that looks like it smarts! Poor Echo.

Anne, I'm so very sorry. Cali was a beautiful girl.

Deep breaths. This can happen to any parent, and anyone who judges you for it happening to you can just go stick it. It happened to my son a few months ago - he crawled up to a sleeping dog. It happened SO FAST, and he had a little puncture wound on his lip. No permanent injuries, though. Your son is just about old enough to learn to respect your dog's dance space. We kept our hound's crate up for a long time, even though the door was off, because it was a very clear boundary for our son. Now that it's down, he still knows not to go near that corner of the room. It sounds like you know what to do, and you know that you've become a bit too lax. That's ok. Forgive yourself. Move on. Hang in there.

This sounds a lot like a mommy's board discussion about sleep training their babies.

If I could do it all over again, I would have gone with amputation for Argos. If for no other reason than to take away that horrible pain so that the rest of his days, however short or long, would be pain free. I will be thinking many good thoughts for your big orange dog and his mama today.

Poor Betty! My hound Argos had a very similar thing happened to him, but his was actually a lot bigger and deeper. Same spot, and the same mysterious cause. He was in the ICU for a week and had to have it sewn up twice. We used sedatives on him during the first few weeks to keep him calm and keep it from opening, and we didn't allow him to use stairs for about 3 weeks. He recovered beautifully with barely even a scar. We had a very difficult time keeping him off of it. He would use his muzzle as a battering ram to jab at it, so the muzzle was out; we used a life preserver collar, a neck brace collar, and a cone collar. The only thing that worked was the cone, even though he hated it. And we put a t-shirt on him at night so we could take the collar off. The t-shirt was long enough that it kept it covered. Good luck and many many kisses for sweet Betty!

We gave Argos 50mg every 4 hours. I think we started lighter than that, but I don't remember exactly.

So.....I'm somehow "wrong" because I believe I should teach (even my high prey dogs) to behave properly and politely and in control on a leash and not lunge or try to attack and kill small animals????? I don't think they are saying that you're wrong. I think they were just trying to illustrate how different things are between the US & UK when it comes to muzzling.

I'm so, so sorry. I can't imagine the pain you must be feeling.

You can get a babygate that will stretch across a wide opening. Go to babies r us or look online. We had one that goes up to 108" across or something like that. It was about $60 at babies r us. Some dogs are just like that. My brother lives on 150+ acres and one of his 6 dogs is 11 years old and still gets into everything when left alone at home. However, a mile or even 2 miles in separate walks simply is not a lot of exercise. I would absolutey try to break up his day with a dog walker if you can at all afford it (looks like you're trying to do that stuff), or try walking him for a minimum of 45 minutes at a brisk walk every morning and then again at night. Good luck.

Lots and lots of prayers for a successful surgery, a smooth recovery, and many many "hoppy" years together.

Mothers of multiple children the word over will tell you that they have infinite capacity to love all of their children. The toddler years are challenging, for sure, when it comes to your time, and the dog may be asked to play second fiddle at times, but she'll get over it.

Great idea. My cat is too old to jump into a crib, but I will definitely remember that for the next baby / cat combo.

Amen. My rule is whoever gets the toy first gets to keep it. The only things that are off limits are Lucas's cookie monster slippers and Bootsy's bones. Bootsy wants those slippers so badly, but he knows he can't have them...until we're all gone for the day.

I'm so sorry. When our hound Argos was diagnosed, he lived another 4 weeks. We had a newborn and live in a row house with hardwood floors - amputation never would have worked, as he wouldn't have even been able to go in and out of the house. He was on tramadol & rimadyl that took away just about all of his pain at first and then slowly couldn't touch it, even when I started doubling up on the tramadol. I'm really very sorry. Please enjoy every moment you have with your boy.

Lucas was 3 months old when we adopted Bootsy, so it was a nonissue for a long time. But since movement has started, the crate has been valuable for us, as it sets very clear boundaries for a toddler. We took the door off so Bootsy can always come and go, but it was his safe place. He recently told us that he no longer likes his crate, and I took it down this weekend, but it is now so ingrained in Lucas that that corner is off limits, that it hasn't been an issue. Lucas loves giving Bootsy treats, and I think that has gone a long way toward Bootsy's acceptance of Lucas.

It will work out. Have fun making babies.

no no no! this is how YOUR grey is with your baby!! When you do have your baby, make sure you bring something of the babies home from the hospital on day one so that their scent is there before the actual arrival of the baby in the house. It's common sense and just due diligence, but many people have greys first and then a baby. Well, duh. It was a joke and an excuse to post the world's cutest picture. I didn't bring anything home from the hospital. I also didn't read any books or kid test anyone. I used common sense, and it all works. Just being on here asking for advice tells me that the OP knows exactly what she needs to do, she just needs some reassurances. If Bootsy had his way, Lucas would not be a part of our family. But he doesn't get his way, and Lucas is part of our family. He doesn't LOVE Lucas, he tolerates him. That is all that I ask.

My mom's dog ruptured her inner stitches after her spay and it was similar. Was bleeding into her abdominal cavity. My mom went the e-vet route, but I don't know if that was absolutely necessary or not. The ended up reopening the wound restitching everything, then had to sedate her for a week while she healed. She's fine now. Sending prayers that everything is ok.

OK, here ya go...the big guns...this is how greys are with kids...

Don't overthink it. Use common sense and it will work itself out. Teach your kid good doggie manners and teach your dog good kid manners. We had a grey for 3 years before our son was born. He was a very calm, quiet dog; always fine around our friends' kids. He died when our son was a month old. Then we adopted Bootsy the lunatic, and he, too is exceedingly patient with our son, who is a toddler. We are very clear with Lucas what is and what is not acceptable, regarding the dog and the cat and the books and the remote and the furniture and the ... :lol When Lucas was a newborn I asked a pediatrician friend of mine what books he recommends, i.e., What To Expect The First Year, etc. He said "throw away the books and make your own mistakes." Best advice ever. I make a lot of mistakes.

Bootsy does it. I've never worried about it. I've had a lot of dogs that do it.

Mine wears his tag collar all the time, and the tags are in a tag bag. He spends a lot of time in his crate. You can see the tag bag in this picture.

I'm so sorry. He was beautiful.

Mo, I'm hopeful that you'll hear some other options from Dr. Couto. Until then, give her lots of love (as I know you will). I am so so sorry that you're going through this.