PrairieProf

I am so sorry for the loss of your beautiful girl.

Yes, I read the book and found it very interesting as well.

Welcome! I'd say you're definitely pre-approved for the cult!

Maybe I'll take her to the beach when I'm on the east coast in July, though I couldn't let her off leash. She always goes almost out-of-control nuts leaping and twirling whenever she gets into sand, it's very funny! There was a woman heavily involved in ASFA there whom I'd met at a dog show with her Borzois last year, and after our run (for which she operated the lure machine) she was stroking Beth's coat and looking at her and commented unprovoked, "You take really good care of her," which made me very proud.

I'm glad for the all in all positive news ... all good thoughts to you and Sutra!

Thanks everyone! I am planning to post the pics in a new thread when I get them (Heather, when I saw the shots on his camera what I very specifically thought was, "Wow, she looks just like Kennelmom's dogs!" ). I'm happy to report that Beth does not seem tired or sore today -- she actually wanted to walk faster than I did this morning, as I seem rather stiff after spending all yesterday in the cold and wind. Well, it was only one 650-yard run so I guess that really wasn't very strenuous. I did find a little scab on the outside of her front leg this morning that I'm guessing was from hitting the line at some point, but fortunately it was a very small and superficial abrasion.

Beth absolutely rocked her first lure-coursing experience today! Total focus, speed, and agility from start to finish -- brought tears to my eyes. Had it been a competitive run she would have scored high, I'm pretty sure. Everyone was congratulating me and telling me how great she did, how good her form was, that I have a natural lure-courser and should get ready to spend a bunch of weekends at ASFA events . What was a little nerve-wracking was at the end of the run, she was very unexcited by the plastic bag lures and decided to trot off across the open field to explore and track, and catching her was a little interesting -- fortunately she decided to run back along the fenceline towards people and someone was able to grab her. She was also by far the most sociable dog at the trial (and the only greyhound there, which felt odd -- I joked that she was really a Whippet but we'd put Miracle-Gro in her water dish!), and she made a lot of friends/fans -- I think 75% of the people attending petted her, many multiple times. I really liked the sighthound folks and felt very welcomed by them. And the professional photographer there showed me the amazing shots he got of her running -- I can't wait to purchase them.

Petco online has good crates and always offers free shipping on orders over $50 I believe.

What a handsome boy! He looks very happy, too. I love how both of your dogs have spotty tummies. Give your cat time ... it took mine a few months to fully adapt, now they're fine together. One thing that I think helped us was feeding the dog and cat in sight of each other (separated by a baby gate) -- helped lure the cat into more visibility.

I am very sorry for the loss of your sweet girl. I hope you find peace in knowing you did the right and only thing you could do as a loving "parent." :f_white

Mine have that too. How did you attach yours to the rope? I used a twist-tie. But it's on there pretty solidly.

So I got my fox tail and tried it on the lure pole this afternoon . . . whoa, mama!!! Beth went nuts chasing it. The energy is almost too intense, really -- she runs so fast in such a small radius and then overshoots when I stop moving it and tries to pivot and leap back -- I think she could hurt herself pretty easily playing with it, more than just running. And then she grabbed the tail through her muzzle and tried to run with it, so I was worried about the string tangling on her legs. I don't think I'll use it too often, but it's great to know I've got a way to incite her to some intense exercise quickly.

How utterly heartbreaking -- I am terribly, terribly sorry. Also terrified, as I've been planning to take Beth lure coursing for the first time next weekend, and this makes me wonder if I should reconsider....

Hmm, Beth knows "leave it" perfectly well but it has no effect on her when she finds poop at the dog park (preferably frozen, so the problem is in abeyance for the warm weather). She just grabs it and runs away from me! She's never gotten sick from it though so far. I just think some dogs really, really like poop. Goose poop and deer poop are even more exciting than dog poop. I don't think any of the contributing factors listed apply to her (except that she'd probably like to eat more than I feed her) -- good quality food, lots of stimulation, and she's absolutely got no compulsive tendencies.

Milan talks about doing that with high-energy, working-breed dogs. The job of a sighthound is to run and chase things (or other dogs) -- that's what fulfills them and tires them out in an appropriate way. Never were they designed to carry weight.

Thanks, I knew it wasn't that hard a process. Maybe I'll do that now so I'll be ready to go should an event come up in the future.

I think I have to leave for a few weeks in NY by then, but I'd be interested in seeing the premium list ... are there any later in the season there? Do you have to get your grey AKC listed to attend? I'm going to an ASFA event in Ames.

Thanks! Yes, I can imagine that fur would be rather more alluring (though those tails on the site make me feel pretty sad) ... I remember taking Beth to an event where a bunch of kids had real fur tail-like things from some booth and she was veeery interested! I'm glad her lack of interest in chasing a plastic bag doesn't mean she's going to wash out at coursing. Does playing with a squawker at all lessen its effectiveness if you ever need to use one in an emergency -- do they habituate to it and become less excited by it? Fortunately Beth is pretty willing to run on her own. I feel like I've seen her run as hard solo as with other dogs, and probably for more extended times. And she almost always chooses to run patterns with lots of sharp turns. She did quite a lengthy run at the park this morning after her Doberman friends left (and got mud all up her hoohoo in a way I've never seen before! ).

Welcome! I remember when I lurked here occasionally to learn about greyhounds too ... seems a long time and many houndie cuddles ago.

What do you put at the end of the lure pole that gets them so crazy? I bought one (well a lunge whip for horse training, suggested on GT) and have tried both a stuffie and a white plastic bag. So far neither has gotten Beth's attention for more than a second or two. Last night she was like "stop swinging that thing in my face" and then took off and did her usual zoomies on her own. (She couldn't care less about balls either.) And exactly how do you move the lure for best results? I have a bad knee and really can't run with it.

I'm planning to take Beth to a lure coursing event to do a practice run on May 8! I met the president of the state coursing association this weekend and she was very encouraging. I'm excited and nervous! Beth loves to zig and zag and weave while running, so I think she might have some aptitude. I'm concerned about the conditioning aspect though Beth is within a pound or so of her racing weight and reasonably fit (frequent runs and daily brisk walks), but it will be just one 650 yard run that we do so I think that's probably OK. She just turned four and has two littermates who are still racing. I'm glad to know about the book, will get it if we decide it's something we're going to continue with -- I've been reading this thread and lots of online info.

Welcome to GT! I live in Iowa now but I grew up in NYC. It's great to hear Bella is doing so well!

I met a Scottish Deerhound named Badger at the dog show held in my city yesterday, and thought "why does that name sound so familiar??"

It's in particular the issues of long-distance car travel and especially dog care when I'm away that stand as the largest impediments to me thinking seriously of another. (And how much I like to do with my one -- I think I'd tend to do fewer activities with two, especially with being only one person).

Tracy, no experience personally, but I remember this thread: http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php/topic/233615-chloe-and-her-head-tremors/ and this: http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php?showtopic=198850&st=0&p=3323380&hl=%20tremor%20%20chloe%20%20thyroid&fromsearch=1entry3323380