Robin1017

Not to hijack, but look up plantar fasciitis. I would bet money that's what you have. I have it too and it isn't fun.

I don't know about dogs, but human cataracts can be caused by head trauma.

I agree. Robin does that when he's hot. (or when he "imagines" he's hot, even though it's not! he's so dramatic). I call it his "lazy pant" because it's like he doesn't want to go to the effort of lifting his head to pant full out, so he just does it that weird way, so his mouth doesn't have to move. Sometimes he'll even do it after hours in the air conditioning. He says it's hot, when it's really not. He's doing it in my air-conditioned room right now as I type. Hopefully, that's all it is.

So I've had trouble this past year with my finances and have looked for ways to cut corners. One area I tried was in purchasing Robin's supplements for his arthritis. He was on the full range of supplements (glucosamine, msm, chondroitin, and vitamin c) from the Greyhound Gang from June of last year until about November, and it worked wonders. I had my goofy, zoomie-doing Robin back. I hadn't realized how his arthritis, which is mild, was impacting him until I saw the difference once the supplements took effect. But then in November I ran out of them and I was broke, so when I went to the grocery store and saw generic glucosamine for humans on sale for buy one get one free, I decided to try it, and he has been on it since. Lately, though, I'm wondering if it is as effective. They say generics are the same, but I'm wondering.... He is often sore after long walks, not just after zoomies anymore. And when he is sore, he has trouble settling down and sleeping because he can't get comfortable, and sometimes he balks at jumping in the car (which is NOT like him). What is strange is there's no discernible limp--just an overall stiffness and soreness. I decided today that I think it's his hips. He had a really bad night last night, which was strange because he hadn't done zoomies or anything. Today we were out in the yard and he tried to go away from me. I put my hands on his hips to stop him, and he screamed and snapped at the air near me. I got the message loud and clear--he's hurting. So maybe it's his hips? He is due for the vet, and I was thinking maybe it's time for medicine. But then I remembered the cheap-o supplements I've been using. Maybe that's part of the problem?? So has anyone seen a difference in effectiveness with generic supplements? And for those with hounds that have arthritis in the hips, what does that look like? Is there a limp? Or stiffness? How can you tell if hips are hurting? Not that I won't go to the vet, of course, but any info is welcome! Cathy

Robin does this after he licks pee. He SAVORS it. It's pretty sick.

Oh no! I'm so sorry.

OMG! Now I know what it was that happened to me a few years ago when I was on high pred for a while! It was awful. Doctors never told me what it was, and no one has ever suggested increasing my potassium. This is SUPER HELPFUL info for me since I just started another round of pred yesterday. Bananas, it is! Thanks, hijack over.

Robin stuck his face in a HUGE bee's nest last year. We counted at least 12 bees that came into the porch with/on him that we killed, and he got stung many times, most noticeably on his ears. I pulled a couple of stingers out of his ears. He was panting for a while afterwards--I think the bee stings really hurt! It was clearly painful. We iced his ears and gave him some benadryl, and he settled down after a bit. Hope your pup feels better!

I hope someone who knows more answers you soon, because my memory is vague, and I wouldn't want you to rely completely on my advice (definitely not). But when I was asking about this at some point, I believe I was told that you need to be careful with pepto because it is bismuth salicylate, which is related to aspirin and can have the same risks. But I think giving a dose was okay, because I gave some to Robin. But it didn't make a difference, if I recall correctly. I think pepcid is supposed to be safer.

Wonderful news!!! But I was so scared when I saw the other thread had been locked....I didn't notice this one at first. Don't do that to me!!! Happy day! :yay

My Robin is 9 now, and when he was 8 1/2, I started noticing more stiffness, and he developed a limp in his right wrist. The vet said it was arthritis, even though he was only 8, and recommended supplements. Supplements have worked wonders for him. I hadn't even realized how stiff and uncomfortable he had been after a nap or laying down for a while until it was gone. Now, he doesn't do the groaning stiffness nearly as often, and if he does, I know it's a sign that his arthritis is flaring up. He even does zoomies and everything like he used to. What I'm trying to say is that I hadn't realized the pattern of symptoms until they weren't there anymore. And I don't know a lot about this stuff--this is my first dog of my own, and our dog growing up had cancer and died at 7. So I have very little experience with dogs getting older. HOWEVER, I immediately thought of arthritis when I read your title, let alone your post. So I'm surprised that your vet "wasn't concerned" and "didn't think it was related to aging or pain", when my vet thought of arthritis instantly even in an 8-year-old dog. Robin was too young to be doing the "old dog groan" too, but at least my vet recognized that. If the vet didn't at least mention the possibility of arthritis, then my instincts go with yours in saying that you should maybe look for another vet. JMHO, of course.

I was wondering the same thing. I read about this a while ago on GT, knew his "spot" was probably nothing to be concerned about, and didn't think anything more about it. I mentioned it to my vet last time I was there, but I couldn't remember what it was. I think I told him I read about it being "some gland thing", and he was curious about what I was referring to. I thought he would know! Rereading this post confirms that wondering--I'm surprised he didn't know right away what I was referring to. GT'ers did!

Robin has this, but his spot is much bigger. It's probably about an inch wide, but it is about 3 inches long! He's had it for at least a year, I think, though I'm not positive when it appeared. Has anyone ever seen it that big? The bald skin is grey and scaley, but otherwise it just looks like a bald spot.

Well, he seems to be doing okay today. A little wary of all stairs, but that is to be expected. He's been sleeping on the couch all day, pampered and soaking up the attention. I will keep an eye out for the limp, but I don't think it's there anymore. Thanks for the well-wishes!

Robin and I (and the birds and the gerbil ) are staying at my mom's new house in CT this week for the holidays. There are two steps leading down into the living room, and it is a wood floor, so it can be slippery at times. Robin is usually okay with it, but this morning he slipped while following me up into the kitchen. I didn't see it, because he was behind me, but suddenly I heard screaming from behind me and when I looked back, all four legs were spread (think Bambi on the ice) and his front legs were in the kitchen and his back legs were at the bottom of the stairs, in the living room. He was screaming and trying to get his legs under him. When I tried to help him, his legs slipped under him and he fell backwards down the stairs. I got scared, because I started wondering if he had broken something. We were in the middle of the woods in a blizzard, and it would have been quite a trick to get him to the vet at that point. Thankfully, that wasn't the case. I got him to stand up, and he was shaking, obviously terrified. He was favoring one of his back legs, too. But I just sat there for a few minutes, hugging him and talking to him while he shook. When he finally calmed down, he was walking fairly normally on the leg and seemed okay. I think the leg is still a little sore at times, and he has some bruising on his chest and stomach from the stair, but otherwise, he's fine. Thank goodness. That was a very scary moment, and I won't soon forget the screaming. I'm trying to accompany him up and down those stairs for now, to make sure he doesn't have trouble. Plus, he's probably sore and stiff. As a footnote, he is apparently feeling well enough to tear up a book that I left on the couch and will now have to replace. I think he was getting back at us for something.... ETA: Darn. I didn't mean to post this in H & M. I was going for EEG. It ALMOST fits...

Robin is the same. He has yucky-colored teeth (almost brownish-green), but they're actually pretty healthy and stay clean pretty easily. He hasn't needed a dental in a long time...

I'm sorry to hear about Rock Star. I'm glad you decided to go to Dewey with him. :f_white

No! I'm so sorry. Run free Larry...

Oh no! More prayers coming for larry... feel better, sweetie.

Robin was just over 2, and it didn't take long to all but disappear. It was gross at first, though. It was the only thing that touched the floor when he sphinxed. (Sorry for that image. I just couldn't resist.)

I made the mistake of switching Robin's food for two meals when I was visiting family and ran out of his food. ONLY two meals. He was sick for three days and had bloody diarrhea. So your canned food switch could very easily be the culprit. Although the vet gave us some flagyl (antibiotics) to speed up recovery, I asked him if it would have cleared up on its own, and he said that it would have. Hope he feels better soon!

Thank you, everyone, for your suggestions. I talked to my mom tonight and told her all of your suggestions. She laughed out loud at the thought of him in toddler slipper socks, but is going to keep an eye out for them. She's also making a vet appt for him, hopefully for next week, so hopefully we can get him some relief. She can help him up the stairs, but down is harder. She just moved to Lebanon, CT, and needs a new vet. I looked on the pinned vet list and found this: Lebanon Veterinary Hospital, LLC 920 Trumbull Highway Lebanon, CT 06249 860 642 7936 Steven R. Zickmann, DVM Provides services for REGAP, CT Does anyone reading this post have any experience with this vet that could give an opinion? She needs someone who'll be thorough, and who will talk her through it, but who is conscious of running up any unnecessary costs, if you know what I mean... I'm going to give her this name anyway, but just in case someone is reading.... Thanks!

My mom's dog, Domino, just turned 11 in June. He is a collie-golden retriever mix. She has noticed that he has some hind end weakness and possibly a bit of arthritis. She just moved to a new house this past week that has hardwood floors and some steep stairs. (Her old house had carpeting.) So now the problems are worse, and since she asked me for advice, I am asking you all, as you are the experts on this sort of thing with older, large dogs. Apparently, he has been slipping on the new floors, and unlike her younger dog, when Domino slips, he falls down. He also is having trouble making it up the 4 steps to the porch--they are a bit steep. She is renting, so we can't do anything too crazy, like build a ramp, but I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions for ideas to make things easier. He is the first dog we've had that has lived to be in "old age", so we are uninitiated. Given my experience on here and with Robin's arthritis, I am having her start him on joint supplements, and probably some fish oil as well. I will also be suggesting LOTS of runner rugs from place to place. I wish he could go upstairs to the bedroom, but I think they are too steep and uncarpeted, so he may just have to stay downstairs. I was thinking of some kind of harness or something so she could help give him support? Like a Bottom's Up? I was reading another thread about that... Anything else I can suggest? Are there "gripper" booties to help him stop slipping? Thanks!

My mom has a petsitter who had to send her greyhound Boomer to the bridge today. He had developed diabetes, among other things, and his health had declined. I never got to meet him, but we were going to have a playdate when he felt better. Though she is not a member of GT, I know she would appreciate your thoughts and prayers. RIP Boomer. You were loved.

Okay. Final, I hope, update. Went to the vet after a couple more bouts of explosive liquid. Turns out, as I was starting to suspect, I caused this myself. Idiot. When I was out of town I ran out of his food the night before we left, and I gave him my mom's dog's food for dinner and then breakfast. That did it. I know you're not supposed to change their food quickly, but he's eaten this food before and I figured it would be okay. Nope. Apparently he had never had enough to matter before, but it did matter this time. The doctor called it "bacterial colitis" and sent us home with some flagyl. Totally avoidable. But also, totally harmless in terms of long-term, so I'm okay with that, I guess. And I won't forget this lesson anytime soon! On the plus side, Robin now has all-clean beds and blankets. He has been sleeping almost non-stop since he started feeling well enough to settle down to sleep earlier today. How's this for a much happier hound? Thanks for the advice and support. It's been a while since we've gone through this kind of episode, and DBF is out of town, so it was all on me. We will be sleeping well tonight! Cathy