Sambuca

Welcome!! I also have a boy named Bu (obviously spelled differently, mine is short for Sambuca). Yours is very handsome.

Welcome!!

I'm so sorry.

I was also going to suggest going slow and petting under his chin and never over his head. When we pet over the head it can be intimidating and block his vision.

I'm so sorry. She looks like she was full of personality.

I am so sorry. She was beautiful.

It gives her character. Bu loves her just the way she is. We're glad it's nothing serious though.

My boy has a sensitive belly and some of the prescription foods still gave him diarrhea. Maybe try some different foods. Also, it may be worth getting a dog walker or even a neighbor come while you are at work until you get things under control. It may be a bit a costly, but at least you won't be cleaning pools of pee every day.

Bu hates the beep of the toaster and when it dings he bolts upstairs. Also if I use the microwave too much he'll run upstairs when it beeps.

I'm a dog walker so Bu gets most vaccines on a regular basis. I have heard of kennel cough going around the dog park, so it's not only for dogs that are boarded.

We all have brain farts. It doesn't sound like it should be a problem though. Good luck.

I agree this pup needs to get into foster. Until then, have every person who walks past his kennel slip a treat in without any eye contact. He'll hopefully start thinking of people as treat machines and start to look forward to people coming by.

Welcome!! I got my boy oct 6 2008. The weekend of oct 17 2008, I had to go out of town. My adoption group knew about it and we decided that as long as I found a pet sitter to stay at my house that weekend then it was OK to adopt. A vet tech at my vet's office who does sleep over pet sitting was able to do it. I was very nervous because my boy was about an inch away from being a spook and we had already made some progress. Not only was there no setback, he made some progress while I was gone. I actually also went to India over that Thanksgiving and he stayed part of the time with my friend that lived down the hall from me (apt living) and the other part with my parents. He already knew my friends and parents well and was comfortable in both places. He developed major crate anxiety at my parents, but still loved staying with them. Thinking back, he had already started to show signs of crate anxiety before I left, so it's not because I left. This was a crazy set up for us, but it worked. Once you get your pup, you will know what the best option is for him. I think you are going to be great parents. Good luck.

Last night (tuesday) at around midnight I had Bu in my condo's fenced in tennis court running around. He wiped out big time on some ice. I didn't see it (he was behind me), but I heard it. He got up quickly and limped over to me. I said let's go inside and he ran, yes ran, to the gate and back. I saw a couple scrapes but it was dark so it didn't seem like much and with him running to go home I didn't think it was a big deal. When we came inside he ran upstairs and jumped on my bed. That's when I saw all the blood stains. His left elbow was skinned in 2 spots, the smaller being about the size of a nickel. His back feet were also bleeding a bit. I realized I didn't have any med wrap so we got in the car and go to the 24 hour pharmacy. When we got home I cleaned and wrapped his elbow and cleaned his back feet and put socks on them. I also saw some minor scrapes and cuts on his front feet which I cleaned. His back left thigh was totally scraped up on the outside (roadburn) and was bruised up on the inside of the thigh. I cleaned up his thigh and he was acting pretty normal so we went to bed. This morning, Bu was mopey and acting pretty sore so we went to the vet, who was impressed with the amount of damage. I knew he didn't need stitches and nothing was broken, but I hated seeing him in pain. The vet said to clean the elbow out twice a day with hydrogen peroxide and gave us metacam for the next 3 days. He's still feeling pretty bad after the metacam today. Do you have any advice to help make him more comfortable?

I can't tell you unless I see it. I'm a dog walker/pet sitter and my hound (Bu) goes to work with me. I never correct him if he growls at another dog, unless it's a resource thing. He is very appropriate and gives small warnings to annoying dogs and if that doesn't work his warnings escalate, until he gets to the loud, scary sounding warning. Again, he's very appropriate, even his scary sounding warning is all talk. He is a very patient dog, but he has his limits, which are higher than mine. If some of the dogs acted towards me the way they acted towards them, I'd probably bite them in earnest, where he just startles them. Not all hounds are going to be as good as Bu, but you have to watch your hound and learn how he deals with things. When I first got Bu, I stopped the situation when he gave the smallest warning, but as I got to know him, I gave him more leeway and realized he was better at stopping annoying puppies than i am. I've had clients see Bu do the scary sounding warnings to their dogs while they were watching and they are always impressed how Bu tells the dog to back off, then goes and lies down like nothing happened. Just a tip though, try not to tense up because the dogs can sense that and can make them nervous. It is easier said than done. Not that I condone all of what Ceasar Milan does, but he has some good points about your energy and confidence rubbing off on your dog. Good luck.

I'm a pet sitter in the Hartford, CT area. I can sometimes board dogs, but mainly sleep at clients houses when they go out of town. Contact me for availability and prices. Karen

I would keep a very close eye on it and see how it's doing in the morning. If it doesn't look any better or if it starts to bother bring her to the vet. If it starts to look a lot worse or really starts bothering her I'd bring her to the e-vet. Good luck. I'll be thinking about her.

Bu's surgery went well. I dropped him off at 9:30, my vet called me at 10:45 and said the surgery well and I picked him up at 2. He's totally alert and is now snoozing in his new boxers. Thanks for all the good thoughts.

As a greyhound owner, I think the muzzles are fine. As a dog walker, I understand where yours is coming from, if she doesn't know anything about these muzzles. I'm glad you have a dog walker who tells you when she is concerned about something. Explain to her how greyhounds are raised with the muzzles and show her how the dogs can function with them on and she should be willing to listen.

I hope it's a fast growing cancer as well, for your sake. I'm glad things are looking up overall for the time being. Can I ask a couple random questions? My Dad has a sarcoma and we are looking into everything we can find, as he's not doing great. Do you know what type Pearl has? If not, when you find out can you let me know? What are the treatment options? What kind of chemo? I'm sorry for the hijack. Now, don't forget to eat. You aren't going to be able to help them as much as they need if you get sick, so stay healthy.

In October at Bu's yearly physical, I noticed what looked like a small cut with a scab on the back of his thigh. I didn't think much of it as it was only the size of the head of a pin and I figured he'd just scraped himself. A month later we went back to the vet for more shots and I had the vet look at the cut because it was still there. He said come back in a couple months if it's still there. Well, come the end of December, I make an appointment because the cut was still there. The vet injected cortizone behind the cut to see if it was an inflammation/sore type thing and see if this would help it heal. For the first week it started to look a bit better, but over the last week or so it has started to look exactly like it did before the shot. So we went back to the vet today and he suggested surgical removal, which I agree with. He took blood today to make sure Bu is up to surgery and barring any issues there, he is going back Tuesday morning to go under deep sedation and have it removed. Thankfully, I also get to bring him home later that day. So if you could send us good thoughts, we would appreciate it. I'm going to be a nervous wreck.

If you are home, have him drag a leash around and step on the leash if he tries to jump. Do not let him drag a leash if you are not home. Use this mainly when company is coming and don't know how to react. I have seen a jumping dog almost take out a woman holding a newborn. Thankfully, the mom saw the dog running and deflected it. If she hadn't, she could have dropped and severely injured a 2 week old.

If you have access to the new place before you move, take him over regularly to start getting used to it. Also, bring 1 of his old beds over as soon as possible so that he has something to comfort him and his own spot. I would try to find a friend the day of the move to watch him, because it would be so much easier for everyone. If you can't drop him off somewhere, either set up his crate somewhere totally out of the way or babygate him in a bathroom or other room with his bed and toys and make sure you keep that room off limits to movers. Good luck.

I would love to get Bu involved in lure coursing. Does anyone know of coursing in CT?