Shaysmom

I’ve watched him from behind and don’t see any bugs or flies, but I suppose it could be. My husband thinks it is just a nervous tic. I worry that it is a sharp pain from some physical problem, but I tend to be a worry wart when it comes to his health.

On walks, our greyhound Skip will whip his head around and look at his hind end, as if someone had suddenly bit him or poked him with a pin. He does this sometimes 8 to 10 times per walk. He also seems to be showing some intolerance to exercising, panting more than what seems normal when we do walk and slowing down until he is trailing behind us. I am concerned that he might have some problem causing pain in his hind end. Has anyone had a greyhound that did this? We have an appt. with his vet next week. Any thoughts on what might be going on would be most appreciated. He does play and run around the house and seems to have no issues while doing that. Thanks!

Thanks all, for the insights. She really does seem more at ease running than walking, and slopes seem especially challenging. We really don't have a yard for her to run in. We will just keep taking it slow for now and see how she does.

Thank you! Yes, it is Freda, and she is a dear. I appreciate the advice! Is there anything that helps with the pads staying healthy?

My new foster (I have had her three days) is just 14 months old, and missing one of her front legs (amputated due to severe injury). I don't think she is more than a month or two out of surgery. She gets around really well, although she does lose footing now and then or will take a slide while being rambunctious. She is very much a puppy and loves to play and race around the house. I am thinking that in the house, she will not overdo or go beyond her comfort level, and I know she needs to be active. But I need some advice about walks. I don't think she has much experience with them, and I worry about too much stress or strain to her leg from the repetitive pounding on sidewalks and hard surfaces. I have taken her for very short walks, and it clearly is more effort for her than playing around the house, although she loves exploring. Should I continue to take her walking? Keep it short? Is it good to build up to longer walks? This is a new experience for me and I appreciate your advice. Thanks! Here is my beautiful girl:

Thanks! That is helpful advice. Keeping it clean has really been a challenge. Seamus is an expert at removing footwear of all kinds. He can get a sock off easily but I will try a bootie.

Seamus has a nail problem that is getting worse, infected, I think. The nail is cracked with a big split (and painful), and he has been licking his foot nonstop. I took him to the vet, and he said to wrap the nail in duct tape (to protect it from more damage) which I did. He said he didn't see infection at that point. At home, Seamus continued to lick it nonstop and managed to work the duct tape off. Now it is bleeding where it goes into his toe. I did some Googling and read that nail tears and cracks are extremely painful for a dog and if the nail is damaged but firmly attached, the vet may need to remove it. Is that correct? Our vet has said nothing about that. I sent him pictures and expressed my concern about infection, and he wrote back that he will put him on antibiotics and see him in 2 weeks. Should I be doing more? It is clearly very painful and Seamus continues to lick it. Here are pictures. You can see where the entire bottom of the nail is missing and the quick is exposed. This dooesn't look like something that is going to go away on his own but am I wrong?

I once had a foster eat a small glass Christmas ball. The vet took an X-ray and sent us home with a case of high fiber canned dog food. I had to give him a can every few hours; I think it was six or eight per day. He was very excited about getting to eat canned food, but by the end, even he was saying no more! He pooped like you can't even imagine, several times a day, but it did the trick. The next X-Ray was clean of glass bits.

No one has given a name to it. The ortho doc said it is a neurological issue. He has been on Gabapentin for a few years, and also Tramadol. We discovered that the Tramadol wasn't agreeing with him--making him tired, disphoric, and constantly panting. So we switched him to an anti-inflamatory, Deramax. That did not at all agree with his digestion, even though we were giving it with Pepcid. He started vomiting and getting diarrhea so we took him off of it right away. Right now, since we are not sure what to try next, he is only on Gabapentin. That is one reason the vet recommended the Amitriptyline, although it technically isn't a pain med. Might he be able to tolerate another anti-inflamatory such as Metacam?

Thank you! I may give that a try. I have been very vigilant about keeping him from licking his foot for the last fews days, and now he seems to be licking under his tail a lot.

Hmmm...not sure if they did--is that in the legs or in the groin?

I have used Bitter Apple and that will work temporarily but eventually he will lick it again. Maybe you just have to keep reapplying it when he licks? I have put a baby sock on it, but he is very good at removing them when I am out of the room. I also have a soft indoor Therapaw that I can put on him, but he can get that off too if he works at it. He is very persistent! He had an exam by an orthopedic surgeon a month or so ago for issues of hind end weakness and some neurological deficits, and I asked the doc about the foot at that time. He said he noticed that the toe ligaments are over-stretched (broken? sprung?) on that foot but didn't feel any broken bones, swelling, or other injuries. I asked if the ligaments could be painful. and he said possibly but he wasn't emphatic about it, so I didn't pursue it further. Seamus has multiple health issues, and it is hard to know what to focus on sometimes. Perhaps x-rays would be useful? He does drag both back feet when walking sometimes, so he wears Thera-paws when outside.

Thank you! I wish I could determine why he is licking but it is a mystery. The vet suggested giving him an anxiety/pain med to try and break the compulsive licking cycle, Amitriptyline. Seamus is so sensitive to meds that I hesitate to give him anything new, but perhaps it would be worth a try.

Seamus has an ongoing issue with his back right foot. It all started when I noticed him licking it constantly. I looked closely and could see that there was discoloring between his toes, so we went off to the vet. The vet prescribed a course of antibiotics. At the end of it, there was no improvement, and he was still licking it. The vet said it was not infected and it wasn't fungal so I thought it would resolve but it hasn't. It is getting worse. The discoloration has spread--it is a rusty looking red. It is between his toes and on the nail and on the fur. His other feet do not have a redsish tinge at all. Is it because he is still licking it, or is there something else going on? It looks really sore. Allergy? I would like to have some feedback from other Grey owners before I take him back to the vet. Thanks!

Thank you! Here is a link to video of the way Seamus was walking yesterday. I took it to send to the vet. http://vid267.photobucket.com/albums/ii290/flemkdf/100_4765_zpsd030ef8c.mp4

The orthopedic office finally called back. We have an appt. tomorrow late in the day.

Yes, I am giving pain meds at 7 AM, 2 PM and 9 PM, so he has a ten hour stretch at night rather 7. I give his morning doses at the same time as breakfast. Tomorrow I will try giving his meds and then waiting an hour or two before offering breakfast. There is a referral hospital attached to a vet school about an hour away from here. I took Seamus there for treatment/surgery about 6 years ago when he tore his Achilles. We saw an orthopedic surgeon there, and I think I could email her. I hesitated to think about taking him up there because he is an anxious car traveler and not feeling so well right now. I did call around town here and confirmed there is not another orthopedic surgeon in the immediate area besides the one I have called--we have also seen him before.

I called the orthopedic vet again, leaving a voice mail message for his assistant, and she still has not called me back. In the meantime, our regular vet is out of the office until Wednesday. He will check his email and said I could contact him that way if something got worse. Seamus never ate his breakfast yesterday but he ate a meal of kibble and soft food around 3 pm. This morning, he refused breakfast again, but was interested in eating at 11 AM. He will take treats with enthusiasm and so far will take his meds wrapped in liverwurst or soft food. He is not eating a lot, but he is eating. I can check with his regular vet about NSAIDS. He said he didn't want to add anything new until Seamus had been on the regimen of three times a day on the GAB and tramadol for several days. There have been many stories like this. They are so helpful, but at the same time, they really distress me because I feel like Seamus will be suffering longer before anyone can really help us or tell us what is wrong. Our vet is competent and caring, but I feel like he has ruled out cancer and is moving on. There is only the one orthopedic vet in our town, and I am still waiting on him to get back to me. Should I take him to another general vet for a second opinion? Thank you all for your advice, experiences, and kind caring. It is helping so much.

Thank you for sharing your story. We have shifted to a three doses per day of both the tramadol and the gabapentin (50 mg and 300 mg each time). There has been no improvement in the lameness with the extra pain med. I have spoken with his regular vet, but am still waiting for a call back from the orthopedic vet--I am wondering if he is on vacation or something. Will call again tomorrow. Seamus didn't eat his breakfast this morning. I am so sorry about Logan's diagnosis. Sending positive thoughts your way and wishing you plenty of wonderful time together in the coming months--lots of spoiling and loving. Scritches to Logan.

I guess this is what I am afraid of. I called the orthopedist this morning and am waiting for him to call me back. Did your friend's greyhound have shoulder swelling?

Seamus has corns on one of his back feet, but I don't see or feel any on that front paw, and he doesn't show signs of tenderness with the pads. NeylasMom, There is an orthopedic vet that he has seen a few times through the years. I will contact him tomorrow and find out if they have HD xray equipment for new film. I was hestitant on the amitriptyline too--I think he prescribed it because Seamus does have some neurological based pain but it sounds like it can have some dicey side effects. I have some Deramaxx that I could give him but it tends to upset his stomach. Perhaps with Pepcid he will tolerate it. I will talk to vet about it. Thanks for the suggestion about spacing the other meds. Seamus has never been in the Southwest. He came to me from Florida. I pray that it is not osteo or some other cancer. It just feels like something is very wrong. Thank you!

Thanks. I will think about sending the xrays to Dr. Couto. I hope Cecil feels better soon too!

My boy Seamus is 10 years old and has been on pain meds for three years for hind end pain. He takes 300 MG gabapentin and 50 mg tramadol twice a day. About three weeks ago, he started limping on his front right leg. It was the worst when he got up off his bed, but after walking a bit, it was not as bad. It still looked like he was hurting, but he didn't limp so severely. Since he could walk it off somewhat, the vet thought he had pulled something and that we should watch it for a bit. Unfortunately, it didn't improve so we went back to the vet, who thought the pain was in the shoulder. Xrays were done, and the vet said they were clean with no signs of cancer. He went back to thinking Seamus must have pulled a muscle or strained a ligament. He recommended cold laser therapy as well as adding another medicine, amitriptyline. I haven't given him the third med yet since I wanted to see if the laser therapy made any difference. Well, he had his second laser treatment today, and things have gone from bad to worse. He was okay right after, but a few hours later, he could hardly walk and was clearly in pain, limping severely on the front right leg. I called the vet who now seems baffled and unsure what to do from here. He said he would have another look at the xrays and call again tomorrow to see if Seamus is any better. In the meantime, Seamus really hurts, in spite of being on both Gabapentin and Tramadol. There are no lumps or swollen spots that I can see or feel. He has not lost any weight, and his appetite is still good. He pants frequently both night and day. My questions are: how likely is it that there is cancer in his shoulder that can't be seen? Is there something else very painful that could be happening in his shoulder? Could he have bone cancer further down in his leg without any signs of swelling? Should they xray his leg and foot? Is there anything else that we may not have thought about? It kills me to see him in pain and feel like we aren't helping him or getting to the bottom of it. Any insight or advice would be appreciated. Here is my sweet boy:

Agreed, but the more the information gets out there as to why, the better.

I am not sure if this has been posted yet, but new information (May 16th) has come out about the chicken jerky treats that have sickened dogs. An independent lab has found them to be contaminated with insect repellent and an antiviral drug, Amantadine. You can read about it here: http://news.vin.com/vinnews.aspx?articleId=32153