cleptogrey

i teach sit from a down position. i lure the pup into a sit and lure them back down w/ a morsel of food. i call it puppy push-ups. it works, eventually you can eliminate the down and do w/ jen in neversaynever does luring the dog back from a standing position. use language/words- down, sit, down, watch or look when you introduce the treat. once annie learned to sit she became the fastest sit in the east- does she hold it?

i worked w/ a patient groomer. felix was muzzled, he lifted him up on the grooming table and i held him - neck up and above the front elbow. the groomer chucked and spoke to felix in a gently tone, that didn't stop felix from pissing on him. after many visits- 2xs a month i decided to start working on his nails myself. muzzle and dh feeding him small special treats helped. doing 2 paws at a time and working on them every week really helped. using a dremel helped, and having felix lie down on his bed and just doing it and telling him to knock it off after a couple of years of all of the methods mentioned above ultimately worked. now, he will stand or lie down- throw his head off the bed and be submissive- but it took years to teach him that he was not going to die-from nail trimming. it's all a matter of you preserving, they will get over it. have one special garbage treat that you only use after nail trimming. trust me he was a howling bucking bronco! now, people come to my house to get their greyhound's nails trimed! have you thought of benadryl? btw- watch out for flailing heads w/ muzzles on- they really hurt. trust me this took a long time- over a period of 2 years and lots of $$ getting his nails cuts 2xs a month, but it was worth it. rome wasn't built in a day, be very very patient.

mine do all the time, but they both flank my sides while i cook and pray for fallout! but the only thing that ever falls is the chopping knife(i'm a spaz).

what's the dosage of the quarter pole? very little info on their web site.

just a quick note, i know many of you are going to dewey to shop. but for those who aren't tis the time to think about christmas presents. it takes a minim of 4-5 weeks to complete, frame and glaze a commission. if any of you are thinking of ordering a special painting of your special dog (heart dog or a friend's heart dog)...IT'S TIME!!

i dealt with it, my late welsh terrier had it. we tried sedatives- a very stoned welsh terrier stumbling around and peeing in his bed every time he nested. he was disoriented for a while, but when his nights were mixed up and he could no longer feel safe anywhere(we watched him panic one too many times even during the day) we decided that it was time. it's not great watching a totally disoriented dog get more confused....yet he still went gung-ho after the soccer ball, and he was also blind and deaf. it's not a pleasant decision.

put the salve on heavy & see if you can pack it in and up the nail bed, a little at a time and baby sock it) if there is something up there it should draw it out. it looks much better, it takes time. have fun trimming the nail back, they stay sensitive for a long time....so felix tells me.

another off the beaten track thing that i have used- as prescribed by my vet- jock itch/fungus spray or cream. if it doesn't clear up and you haven't gone to the vet- it should be drying up due to the epsom's salts and powder- then it might just be fungus....OTC cream or spray. it works within a week. btw, i never booted or socked the affected paw, if they lick the junk, they seem to survive- at least mine have!

good to hear- just watch out for fungus. it get hot and sweaty in the theta-paw. keeping it dry- the powder should really help. looking for your updates.

i've never had luck w/ the baggie- always leaked. the treat/feed method sounds very familiar. dry the foot and powder- see what happens before starting w/ messy itchmahol(i never get the spelling right).

felix is ALWAYS doing something to his nail bed- that's the area that your dog's inflammation is located. he has gone from fungus to straw imbedded in the bed.....ouch! i usually try soaking it in epsom's salts first to see if that helps....and usually it doesn't. but i always give it a shot- soak 4xs(real PITA) a day for a couple of days. then dry and powder w/ a medicated powder- we use Ammends but gold bond is just as good. if it's not looking any better in 2 max 3 days- mmm....then the vet. when he had a piece of straw embedded we used old fashioned itchamohl ointment(yes, amazon has it). it's a drawing salve and it really brings out the debris. it was a royal pain since i had to inject(w/o the needle, just the syringe) into felix's puncture. but in 5 days it looked great. you might want to go straight for the itchmahol and put a sock on the paw. it's pretty messy. the couple of beds that have been reinsured running and pounding dirt into them look like the pics above, but they don't bother him. just looks like yucky cuticles. btw- we never did any antibiotics with any of the injuries.

you don't know if he can tolerate yams- they were included in his diet w/ way too many other variables. they are a great treat- easy to dehydrate in the nesco dehydrators. that's why i suggested elimination diet- then you really know what single items he may have. it looks like you can also give him carrots- they are in his current food- buy the oversize cooking carrots- they love them. "While I do realize that oats were present in one of the diets, I wasn't convinced he has an oat or grain allergy. He was eating pretty grainy-wheaty food before he arrived with me and he did fine on it... " which food was that? i looked and compared both foods he broke out on- and they both had FISH- lots of varieties. mmmm.....

i would eliminate EVERYTHING and start with plain old overcooked white rice. you can throw in a doggie vitamin if you are really concerned about nutrition. then after a couple of weeks of white rice, see what's cooking w/ his skin. if it seems to be clearing up then ONE source of protein- ground turkey, or beef and go down the list- it's what you can buy in the supermarket. 2 week trials w/ each protein source, of course if there is a reaction then eliminate that quickly. you should be able to see if there is an adverse reaction to a protein. have you put him on a regime of benadryl to stop the allergic reaction? the histamine levels are high and need to be reduced, benadryl should nip it in the butt. but this may be going on too long for simple benadryl, your vet will know if a shot of steroids is needed to calm things down. (that's what is done w/ humans- i know, i'm an allergy queen). from tolerating rice you can then start introducing slowly- wheat- pasta, yams- sweet potato. so, basically your dog is getting a carb and a protein and a vitamin. they can exist on this- i know since not only have i had 2 dogs who had medical problems(kidney and parvo survivor) who did well for 6 years on limited carb intake. also a friend's old saluki who had major breathing problems that happened to be allergies- went on rice and a protein- off of commercial food and lived another 2 years to the ripe old age of 18!! an electric rice cooker will be your best friend! have you thought about contact allergy in the house? that's a PITA, hopefully reducing carb source and protein source will do the trick.

it's difficult watching a dog age. has your vet examined him recently? if not, it's a good idea, manipulation of legs, checking spine and neck your vet should be able to really access his deterioration and help w/ the meds. bed wise? something elevated and - a Kundra type bed that's around 6" from the floor and a good thick bed of any kind. some dogs love the orthopedic foam(cheap at target or online- twin size will do) but you can add some to an existing bed rather than spending the money and throw in a waterproof crib pad as well- scratches to your old boy. my welsh terrier had LS, his gait changed, but he was a smaller dog and we managed to keep the comfort level up w/ old fashioned aspirins and his crazy jumping style changed along w/ his gait. you can't hold those terriers back.

batmom is ALWAYS right on target. but may i add that you should call your adoption rep for local support and maybe a home visit. if you have never owned a dog a home visit to help dog proof the house/apt. is essential. also, a dog walker might be a good idea. your pup is now with out a kennel full of other dogs and the kennel help it knows. loneliness is not fun for anyone or any dog.

i stopped giving annie her favorite- marrow bones- since she is such a voracious chewer- she wore down her front teeth! greyhounds do have the softest teeth i've even seen- my other dogs never did that! yes, they were raw, 6"long from the butcher. make sure they are long so they don't get stuck around the dog's snout. i remove some of the marrow since it's so rich and freeze them in-between chewing sessions.

if you are a first time dog owner may i suggest this: http://www.amazon.com/The-Ultimate-Puppy-Toolkit-well-adjusted/dp/0973159103/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1411000109&sr=8-2&keywords=the+complete+puppy+guide+by+premier even though your dog is NOT a puppy, this guide is well written, hits basic topics and is very very positive. i received it as a present when felix came home at 7 weeks- and he was my 7th dog! i loved it, basic, to the point and i have passed it on to numerous dog owners, both new and experienced. they all liked it. remember your dog is trained to a mission, all the little every day things are mentioned here.

no uti? blood sugar ok? test for diabetes incipidus, can be stress related or an adrenal gland that send the message to the kidneys is off. vasopressin tannate worked for my male who had the same problem. (2 dosages and he was back to normal). we monitored his water intake, very difficult to really catch all the urine/out put since running and panting affects the #s and the habit of letting them out to pee in the middle of the night just didn't register. it took us a while to figure it out. the handbook- the care of the racing and retired greyhound has all the stats/# for DI. http://www.amazon.com/Racing-Retired-Greyhound-Linda-Blythe/dp/0964145634.(omg has the price gone up, you might find it cheaper somewhere else, but it's an excellent book to have and share w/ your vet). http://ngagreyhounds.com/page/supplies found it for less....

to everyone.....

glad things have settled down. here's my contribution to the topic- yup, annie has encountered stray cats in my yard...http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php/topic/306321-cat-in-yard/?hl=%2Brabies+%2Bbooster

just started felix on get up and go, will let you know in a month or so. do contact claudia at the greyhound gang. she's pretty knowledgable and after you start the entire regime of supplements it's possible to reduce to glucosamine & msm i believe. (need to look at our conversations). that will save a bundle.

when you mentioned cramping and gas and loose stools the first thing i thought of is a parasite. dogs are never too old to pick up stuff- their nose is still to the ground when they are sniffing away. some seniors do become fussy, some eat the same thing with the same gusto until the very end. i would have her stools checked then go from there.

i use biotene it has sorbitol- not good for dogs?

your lucky she's limiting her intake. she's getting the extra calories in training, so if she's not loosing weight i personally wouldn't worry. if her ribs and hip bones start really protruding, that's another story. back bones/spine usually show if the dog has a slight roach(curve), that's pretty normal. i usually cut down on kibble when i'm training- 3-3.5 cups daily vs. 4 for the male, 2 cups for the female.

welcome to GT and yes you are absolutely normal watching and worrying about your dog. that's what we seem to do here on GT - post our worries/concerns and receive reassurance from others. a couple of quick questions how old in your dog? how long off the track? weather conditions? amount of time running? all of the above plays into their physical response to running. i have watched my own 7.5 year old male age- we got him at 7 weeks. and there have been some major changes in running that directly correlate to age. cooling down w/ a hose- first under the belly and chest then arm pits works well. i personally find this faster than the kiddy pool, not all dogs go for the pool.(and around here it has to be changed daily because of the birds and other critters who use it). but you will be amazed at how tolerant they are to hosing down. some dogs cool down really fast, others take quite a while, it's like people. it's difficult for me since my male now just can't do the running he did as a puppy and still wants to and we really enjoy kicking the soccer balls and lobbing tennis balls for our male. he collapses, so i just monitor how much and now keep his soccer games down to 3-5 min. vs. the 15-20 min. play periods were used to have. and the 15 min. is nothing compared to another breed. they are sprinters and really only go for the short runs. but when it comes to hikes and walking, if the weather is good- it's 4-5 miles with out a problem.