greysmom

How's the little man doing today???

I've got two that do this - If we actually leave the house and drive away in the car they're totally fine. They just lay down and go to sleep (I assume) with not a peep out of them. If I need to do yard work or something outside, Dude and Toni go nutso! Barking, whining, howling and finally starting a group roo. You should try leaving him *exactly* like if you were going to work. Do the whole routine cause he'll know if you don't and it won't work. Otherwise, you might try putting him in an x-pen outside with you when you're mowing, or another area like a porch or deck where he can be safe yet still feel like he's outside with Dad. As far as the apartment goes, there may be some backsliding in his SA when you move until he gets used to the new place and new routine. You should begin his alone training right away after you move. But I would say there shouldn't be too much howling otherwise since you won't be mowing the lawn! He's such a cutie! Love the new pics!

Patience and consistency. If you don't want him on the bed then he needs to get off everytime you catch him. Either lure him off with a treat or snap his leash on - don't grab him by the collar as that could cause him to snap at you. I've taught all our dogs the command "off" and use it with all four from time to time. This could take quite a while to get the point across so you will need to eb in this for the long term. He's likely never seen a toy before in his life and so won't know what to do with it. Give him some time to settle in and get used to things. He may become a toy dog and he may not - there's all kinds! He's a really good looking greyhound! Congrats!!

Hope Jake gets to feeling better soon! Sending good thoughts!

I agree with the others - doesn't sound like a seizure to me. However, I don't have ny suggestions about what it could be - stroke perhaps?? Sending lots of good thoughts and Power Ranger Hi Beemz to Sterling!

I'm glad he's home. Now for some extra special sick boy treatment! Lots of cookies and ice cream!

How's Connor doing today?????? Lots of good wishes coming his way!

Oh dear! Poor guy! Hope he's out sleeping tonight and feeling better tomorrow.

All of ours are loose at night, but we do shut the bedroom door so they can't roam. They are also all loose whenever we are gone. We've not had many problems at all. Toni does have a tendency to get into the bathroom trash and chew the kitchen hand towels, but we just shut the bathroom door and pick up the towels - no problems.

Congrats! She's coming along just fine I think!

We tried both a commercial one and a home-made one - neither worked very well for multiple dogs. There's just too much matter for the digester per day. Plus, it's pretty stinky, even when it does work. Siting it is critical, especially if you have neighbors! As a further comment, I was talking with one of our local sewer worker's during some work in front of our house, and his big no-no with them is that the material and chemicals can easily seep into ground water/water table and make its way to streams and rivers.

Hoping Conner is home and doing fine by now. My boy Copper was cryptorchid (sp?) too. He did fine after, though it's much more like a girl's spay.

My two girls LOVE LOVE LOVE the water!! We have two wading pools - a small 8" deep one and a larger one that's probably a foot deep or so. Both my girls will wade in and play, paw around, spin, and lay down with just their head out of the water. Toni will do this whenever we have the pools out, rain or shine. Then she likes to go lay in the dirt! Cash likes to blow bubbles and seems into splashing more than Toni. I caught Cash standing in the drinking water bucket last year on a day I was cleaning the pools out. The two boys like to drink water. (They also don't care for the rain too much!)

Sounds like you have a bit of a sleep aggressive hound there. It's not a big deal, and certainly nothing to get all shook up about. It was mostly sound and noise and her startling YOU. If she had *wanted* to bite you, she would have. Mostly, remember that this is a reflex action, not a choice that she's making. She doesn't hate you, and the stinkeye is probably because she got kicked off the bed. Also, she may get better with time - some do and some don't, I've had both kinds - you'll have to wait and see. Lots of people live quite well with with sleep aggressive dogs. She shouldn't sleep on the bed with you - unless you are willing to live with the snarl of death (SOD) every time she gets disturbed. Have her sleep on her own bed at night. If she is used to sleeping on your bed it may take some time and patience to retrain her. During the day, make sure she has a bed that is near you but out of the general flow of traffic. If you have guests - especially children - they should all be instructed to never touch the dog when she's on her bed. Period. You and your BF need to get in the habit of making sure she is awake before you come into range. Call her name, throw a light toy on her, use a clicker sound, anything that will wake her from a distance. And make sure she *IS* awake! Many greys have the ability to sleep with their eyes open, and look like they are awake when they aren't. Be sure. You just have to train yourself to be careful every time you wake her. It's not hard and pretty soon you'll be doing it without thinking.

I have one for Dude to use when walking because he could pull a Mack truck from here to Alaska with just a martingale. I wouldn't think it would be particularly useful in a training class situation. The halter works by using leverage to stop them pulling - actually the release of the leaverage from the halter is the "reward" for not pulling - so in this case it would be counter=productive and not produce the result you want. As long as you're not jerking the leash really hard you won't hurt her by pulling on her collar. Greys have really strong neck muscles for the most part. But I do agree it's more that you need to learn her signals a little better so you can intervene before she gets too excited. Classes are mostly about teaching the *owner* what to do, and not the dog!

No real advice, but I wanted to add my experience. Our Toni came to us 1 1/2 years ago as a 4 year old. She is our 5th greyhound so we're not complete newbies, but we've never been in contact with a dog that is *SO* verbal. Toni talks, whines, barks, growls, yodels, woofs, hoots, and just about every sound it's possible for a dog to make. She will also, mostly when she's laying on her bed, snarl and growl like Cujo if you disturb her for most any reason. She usually doesn't react to just a sound in the room, though she definitely can if the other dogs or us come near her bed. This is the most scariest sound I've ever heard! It literally sounds like she's going to charge you and take off a hand or go for your throat. She used to lunge too but that's gotten quite a bit better. It was very hard to not react to her threats in a fearful manner - jumping back, squeaking in fright, yelling - all those only reinforced the behavior. She's a bit of a bully and likes throwing her weight around, both to the other greys in the house and to us, and this was a big game for her. What has helped was a calm response to her threats. If she's guarding her bed (or anywhere where she is laying) and snarls/growls, we make her move. If she's pushing the others around in the yard, she gets leashed up. If she's resource guarding, she loses whatever it is she wants. If she's playing and gets too excited, she gets a time out away from everyone else. We don't scold her beyond a firm "No!" We've taught her "off" and "leave it" so we don't have to risk life and limb to move her or take something from her, and we use the leash whenever necessary. When she does what we ask, with a minimum of grumbling, she gets rewarded. As she is a total food hound, this works well with her - she wants the treat so she's learned what's acceptable and what isn't. We also used a modified Nothing In Life Is Free with her, just to reinforce who exactly is in charge (not her, obviously). She has to do something positive, obey a command or stop the bad behavior, before she gets anything she wants. She does still growl and snarl, but it's much less threatening than previously - more a courtesy sound than anything else now - BUT - We have to do this EVERY time it happens. If she gets away with it one time, we have to take a step back and start again. She's smart and she's stubborn as a mule, so we have to be *consistent* and more stubborn! Good luck with your guy! Keep us posted.

Don't let her play bite anymore with anyone - not you, not another dog, not a visitor. She needs to understand that play biting is not a good thing. Muzzle her in the yard. I have one who bites when she gets excited and she wears her muzzle when there's going to be play activity. If that means muzzleing all the dogs, then you should do so. Even a small skin tear can become really serious really fast. If she starts going after another dog (eve muzzled) give her a squirt. Don't yell or say a verbal cue. When she stops the biting behavior, call her to you and treat. Another method to try is to divert her attention from biting the other dog by giving her a toy or ball when she's excited. If she knows any obedience commands you can use those as well. When you come in the door and she's excited, you can also use the squirt gun, but it's often as effective to simply turn your back on her until she calms down. If she starts up again when you turn around, repeat the turn-away-and-ignore procedure until she stays calm whenever you come home. The toy-diversion method and command method can be used in this situation too, and also when visiting people come over. Block off the entrance when visitors come over. If you know them well, have them do the same turning-away procedure. If they are service people or just there for a minute you should isolate her away from them.

No dog parks for Gus! That many uncontrolled dogs in a hyper-excited situation is an accident waiting to happen. Regarding muzzleing, you will be advised to not muzzle your hound when there is the possibility he could be attacked, for fear he won't be able to defend himself. In those situations *you* need to be your (un-muzzled) dog's protector. Be vigilant about what's going on around you when you walk and either avoid off-leash dogs or put yourself between your dog and the other dog. An obedience class could be useful in your situation. Make sure you research the teacher and that it's only a "positive reinforcement" class. Talk to the trainer and explain what you need so they can help you. You may not get much real training done - he'll be distracted, no doubt - but he will be exposed to other breeds and sizes of dogs. Some trainers offer socialization classes for this purpose, so check around and ask your adoption group if they know of any grey-savvy trainers in your area. If you have friends with other dog breeds enlist their help for some one on one exposure. Long walks with the new dog will help. Make sure you reward him for good behavior - when he's walking nicely, when he ignores the other dog, when he's relaxed and happy in the other dog's presence. You want him to associate the other dog, and being nice with the other dog, with a yummy treat!

It's a very hard decision for you to make. Just know that it's the right one. Caroline will be in a home where she can thrive and be all the houndie she can be, and your cats will be home and happy and safe. Hopefully your group can find you a great greyhound that is OK with cats - a grey returned or bounced, or fostered with cats would be an ideal one for you. Sometimes, greyhounds react differently to a cat they're living with as opposed to a cat-testing situation. I've had five cat-tolerant greys with our three (previously four) cats and absolutely no problems at all. Good luck the second time around and please keep us posted!

What everybody else said!! Seriously, after owning terriers, greyhounds will be a breeze! They're (mostly) more like very fast, long-legged cats than dogs. And there are as many different personality types as you can think of. Find an adoption group you feel comfortable with and be VERY HONEST about your home life, the personalities of your current dogs, your schedule - that way they'll be able to recommend a grey that will have a good chance of fitting into your home with barely a ripple. Good Luck!

Heavens! I can only envy you that Zero has only snapped **THREE** times in the last 6 months!!!! Toni usually does that much before we get out of bed in the morning, and that's just one of my four greyhounds! It's not serious, though I never take her teeth for granted. It's just the way she plays - teeth first. She has excellent bite-inhibition and has never even given me a bruise when playing around. None of the incidents you describe seem inappropriate to me: #1 incident - you already know he has sleep startling, so don't do that again! #2 incident - CAT! Cats can irritate greys just by breathing, and some love nothing more than to antagonize any dog they come in contact with. If Zero had wanted to eviscerate the kitty he would have. The correction was not meant to hurt the cat and it didn't. It probably sounded worse that it actually was. #3 incident - nothing is more irritating to an adult dog than an out-of-control puppy. This corrections to the puppy's behavior was completely appropriate in my opinion. Puppies need to learn not to jump on their elders and Zero didn't do anything wrong. The other owner needs to learn to not let his puppy jump on Zero. If the other owner won't restrain his pup then keep Zero out of reach. He should be able to count on you to keep him safe from obnoxious behavior. And where are some new pictures of your handsome guy??? Hmmmmmmm???????

This does not sound like a case where you can change her behavior to the point where both animals would ever be safe together. Unless you (and every member of your household) are *seriously* committed to keeping your cats and dog completely separated for the rest of their lives, you need to consider rehoming Caroline. If you got her from a group they should have been able to tell you whether she was able to live with cats or not, and they should take her back since this adoption is not working for the household. If you adopted her directly from a track or a breeder/trainer, or picked her up from a shelter, you should seriously think about getting in touch with a local adoption group and explaining your situation. Most groups should be able to help you rehome Caroline in a place with no cats. If you would still like to have a greyhound in your home, there are plenty available who would love to live with you AND your cats. This is a very hard decision, and you shouldn't think of it as a failure of either you or your dog. Sometimes things just don't work out. It's better to fix this before an animal in your home gets seriously hurt.

Licking is nothing! I'd be happy with licking. Three of mine will actually eat it like it was candy. They have specific spots in the yard that seem particularly tasty - I have no idea why *those* spots and not others. It's mostly in the Spring though, so as soon as the mud dries out, the dirt-eating does too.

Ok - Sorry - Had to go to an appointment - Here's a longer answer: Yes, adding a companion can help many greyhounds with SA. Some need a greyhound friend while others are fine with other types of companions. As was mentioned above, Greyhounds are raised with other greyhounds all their lives, and are never really alone the whole time from puppyhood until they are adopted. It sounds like Dutch is doing much better with another greyhound so I would start there. I'm normally not a big proponent of having your current grey involved in the adoption process, but in this case, it seems appropriate. In your original post you mention you've tried a lot of things to help Dutch. Let me sk some questions to clarify: Was the behavioralist you tried a certified Veterinary Behavioralist or a training behavioralist?? Many people who are "behavioralists" can only address training issues. A certified VB can address all the origins of behavioral problems - physical, mental, and behavioral. They are also licensed to prescribe drugs and should be congnizant of new treatments available. How many different medications did you try with him?? Often - just as with people - different drugs are more effective with different individuals. There are several classes of drugs available to treat anxiety problems, and several options in each class. They all work on different parts of the brain and in different ways. If you only tried one or two, you might not have exhausted your possibilities in this area. Some need 1-2 months to be truly effective, while others have a more immediate effect. Dosages can also be quite variable dog to dog. Here is a link to a thread I started here about my spook Cash. She does not have SA but you can read my research about the different anti-anxiety drugs, and some of the responses, including links to different resources. Cash's drug problem Good luck and keep us posted!

The short answer is "yes" it can definitely be that easy for some hounds. The long answer is - longer! Kudos to you for trying so hard with your guy! There will be an answer for you.