JJNg

My take on it is this... The risk of complications during anesthesia is very low, but when it happens, it is often life-threatening. Performing 2 anesthetic episodes doubles your risk. The risk of infection from combining a dental cleaning with another surgery is also very low, but the vast majority of infections are not life-threatening, especially when you're talking about a superficial surgery like a minor mass removal. I know what I will continue recommending for my patients. There's another option if you decide to have the lump removed, and your vets refuse to do it at the same time as a dental cleaning, but then your vets may not be willing to do this either. Removing a small mass 1/2 the size of a pea is a quick and simple procedure that doesn't necessarily require general anesthesia. I often do them using sedation and a local block if that's the only procedure the dog needs.

With a lump that is that small and just recently detected, I don't think there's anything wrong with watching it for a few weeks and seeing if it grows or changes. If it's big enough to try to get a sample, I think it's a good idea to do an aspirate prior to planning surgery. Fine needle aspirates are relatively non-invasive and easily performed at a regular appointment. Some benign cysts can be identified on an aspirate, and if there are suspicious cells, sending it out to a lab for a pathologist to review the slide will often provide more useful information than if it is read in-house by the vet or tech. Some more concerning growths, like mast cell tumors, can be easily diagnosed on an aspirate too, and that will allow you to plan for a surgery to get wider margins. If an aspirate is inconclusive, or if she will be put under for another procedure, like a dental cleaning, then the growth can be removed at the same time. As others have mentioned, most vets have no problems performing other minor or routine surgeries at the same time as a dental, and most will actually encourage it. IMO, the risk of 2 general anesthesia episodes is higher than the risk of infection from a combining the procedure with a dental. Most adoption groups routinely do spays and dentals under the same anesthetic episode, and I've never seen a case where that resulted in an infection.

I agree with adding an NSAID for pain and inflammation. Soft tissue injuries heal with time and rest, and with only 1 front leg, he can't avoid using it, so it may take him longer than usual to heal. Was the vet able to localize where the pain was? Did he think the soft tissue injury was to his shoulder, or to his neck or back? Especially if neck/back, a muscle relaxer like methocarbamol (Robaxin) or gabapentin can help.

I was wondering what Karen meant by this as well. Hypothyroidism is pretty rare in greyhounds and is more often misdiagnosed. Most of the greyhounds I've seen who were on thyroid supplement really didn't need to be, and I've taken more greyhounds off thyroid meds than started on it. Here's a good article: http://www.vet.ohio-state.edu/assets/pdf/hospital/bloodBank/wellness/newsletters/2010/ghwpNewsletterWinter2010.pdf And here's a previous thread about stud tail with a couple photos: http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php/topic/302159-ikers-tail-loss-of-hair/

I agree with the advice to seek professional help, and to investigate any sources of physical discomfort with a thorough vet check. Trainers and behaviorists vary greatly in their level of experience and methods, and inappropriate training methods can make behavior worse. Be careful who you choose, and always be your dog's advocate and don't let a professional do anything that you're not comfortable with. Dogs can be very sensitive to subtle body language and posture. You're doing a good job recognizing the specific actions and scenarios that trigger her reaction. Leaning over a dog can be very intimidating if she hasn't learned to fully trust you yet. Dogs almost always show more subtle signs of stress and discomfort before they have a full blown meltdown. The shifting away from you is probably one of those signs. If you miss the more subtle signs and continue to do what was making them uncomfortable, the dog has no other way of communicating their discomfort than to escalate to the growling, snarling, or barking. She's simply trying to communicate with you. If you continue to push her by becoming more threatening when she acts this way, it could easily lead to snapping and biting. Here's a good article to help you recognize the subtle signals dogs use to show their discomfort. Respect her boundaries, and she will learn to trust you with time. http://www.greenacreskennel.com/dog-behavior-and-training/canine-calming-signals-and-stress

Sending good thoughts for Leo. Wiki sympathizes with him about toe issues. He's currently healing up from what appears to have been a nailbed infection/abscess on the one good toe on his left front foot (one amputated, the other 2 arthritic from previous dislocations).

Need a lot more info... Was an actual biopsy done, or a fine needle aspirate? What did the report say? Where on her leg is the lump (can you post a photo), is it soft or hard, and is it attached to the underlying tissue? Can you post the x-rays?

I agree with the suggestions to add gabapentin. For a greyhound with significant pain, I usually start with 300 mg every 8-12 hours. It can make a big difference, and less chance of seeing the agitation that the higher doses of tramadol can sometimes cause.

A good way to cover the elbow area is to use a strategically cut long crew sock. I learned this trick from a friend who I believe saw it on the Internet somewhere. It's easier to explain in person, but maybe this will work... Take a sock and cut along where the red lines are in this pic: And here's how it goes on. The toe of the sock forms the loop that goes over the shoulders. Let me know if you can't figure it out from the pics, and I'll try to explain better.

You don't typically want to mix NSAIDs (carprofen and aspirin), but I believe it may be ok with the very low aspirin doses used to prevent clots. You definitely want to discuss the pros and cons with your vet before starting this combination.

Hard to say without knowing the amount of protein in the urine, or what the actual clinical signs are, but stroke is probably a much more likely cause of the mobility issues than throwing a clot due to the heartworms. We see a lot of heartworm disease here, and I've never seen it cause mobility problems. Clots from heartworm disease usually go to the lungs and cause coughing and difficulty breathing. Most low positive or borderline positive dogs are asymptomatic. Also, if you're in an area with a low incidence of heartworm disease, you're a lot more likely to see false positives. There have been an increasing number of recent reports about resistant heartworms, and preventative has never been 100% effective, so it's still possible to get heartworms while on prevention. That's why a yearly HW test is important even when the dog is current on prevention. But it's much more likely in high risk areas like the southeast and Mississippi River Valley. If you have a good purchase history for heartworm preventative through your vet, most manufacturers will pay for treatment if the dog really has heartworms. The most common cause of protein loss through the urine in greyhounds is glomerulonephritis, a type of kidney disease. If proteinuria is confirmed and quantified with a urine protein:creatinine ratio, it would be a good idea to start on an ACE inhibitor like benazepril or enalapril, in addition to low dose aspirin therapy. The meds don't always completely stop the protein loss but will help reduce and and hopefully slow progression.

Heartworm disease doesn't cause paralysis or mobility problems. Do you see a lot of heartworm in your area? Even if Shanti does have heartworms, it sounds like she has more pressing problems. I'd pursue further workup for her clinical signs before jumping to heartworm treatment.

Whether the paperwork for a DHPP vaccine is issued as a 1-year or 3-year is completely up to the vet. Many vets are now going to 3-year DHPP vaccinations with that being indicated on the vaccine reminder due dates. I believe there's 1 brand of DHPP vaccine that actually has a 3-year label, but all the manufacturers will back up their product for 3 years given the newer research and AAHA guidelines.

I'm not aware of any facilities (vets, boarding kennels, daycares, groomers, etc) here that accept titers as proof of vaccination. If your vet gives a 3-year vaccine, your paperwork would show that it's due in 3 years, so they're current until that due date.

Some vets, including specialists and infectious disease experts, don't feel that titers are useful because they don't necessarily correlate with protective immunity. A high titer is *probably* protective, but it's not a guarantee. To determine whether a certain titer level is protective, challenge studies would need to be done to expose vaccinated individuals with various titers to see which antibody levels truly prevent disease. Low or zero titers also don't mean an individual is not protected. Even if there are no detectable antibodies, memory cells and cell-mediated immunity can adequately protect that individual from disease. There are convincing challenge studies that show DHPP vaccination is protective for at least 3 years, and may even be lifelong. That's what the current AAHA guidelines for a 3-year interval are based on. Risks of vaccines are actually very low, and there's no evidence to show they cause the majority of the problems people blame on vaccines these days. So without definitive proof that protection is consistently lifelong for all dogs, many vets follow the AAHA recommendation to vaccinate every 3 years. For clients who are very concerned about vaccine side effects, I recommend completing the puppy series, then boostering a year later. I'm ok with not vaccinating for DHPP again after that as long as the client understands the potential risks. Rabies vaccination needs to follow state regulations. For the majority of other healthy patients, I recommend 3-year DHPP boosters. I stop giving DHPP after 12-13 years old. Other non-core vaccines like Bordetella, Lepto, Lyme, etc are tailored to the individual patient's lifestyle and potential for exposure. If a client insists on running titers, I would do it, but I would advise them that they are unreliable, not correlated with protection, and IMO, not worth spending the money. If vets are as money hungry as so many people seem to think and the media portrays, why would we try to talk people out of running a $100-200 test to give a $15-25 vaccine instead, or not vaccinate at all?

I'd also suggest not slipping out without him seeing you. Keep it low key, but let him know you are leaving so he's not surprised and panics when he suddenly realizes he's alone.

Looks like Nildan Atkay is in Charleston, which is almost 3 hours from the OP's location. I did a quick search on the CCPDT website and found this trainer in Fort Mill, SC. Don't know them personally, but their website looks pretty promising and might be one to consider. http://www.olddogs-newdogs.com/ There are also a number of CPDT certified trainers in the Charlotte area. You can search via this site: http://www.ccpdt.org/

Cortisone shots for arthritis in dogs are systemic. I agree with tbhounds that it's contraindicated while she's been on Rimadyl. Adding gabapentin can help a lot. I would only use steroids for arthritis as a last resort, and ideally the dog should be off the NSAID for at least 4-5 days before trying it.

Lots of great advice here already. One additional thought... Especially since it seems like his barking escalated with attempts at alone training, I'm almost wondering if it's possible that at least part of the issue is that you've inadvertently trained him to bark when you leave to get you to come back. Have there been times when you've returned to him while he was barking, because you didn't want it to continue and further annoy your neighbors? If this is the case, I honestly don't know how to approach it unless you have very tolerant neighbors, or can ask them to be very patient for a few weeks. The way I've addressed attention-seeking barking is to ignore the dog until the barking stops, even if it's just a 2-3 second break in the barking. Timing is very important, and you need to give the dog attention and praise, or let him out of the crate, during that quiet interval. If you give attention while the dog is still barking (or has started up again), you've rewarded the barking. It does take time and patience, as well as consistency and proper timing. If the dog is getting the idea, the pauses in barking should start lasting longer and you can gradually extend the period of quiet time before you reward the dog. As others have mentioned, if you're working on alone training, your absences should be so brief in the beginning that he doesn't have a chance to start barking.

Great update! Regarding your questions, it's hard to say without seeing it, but it sounds like licking her lips may be a calming signal - a sign of mild discomfort/stress when she sees other dogs. Ears that are in various degrees of the up position are usually a reflection of how alert and interested she is.

Excellent update! Keep up up the good work. Charlie's improvement is the best gauge of how well you're doing.

Has she had recent bloodwork to make sure there isn't an underlying medical cause to the change in her appetite? Some dogs do just get more picky and sporadic in their eating habits as they get older, but sometimes it's the first sign of a health problem. My 15-year-old whippet mix has had less of an appetite in the morning and has been needing a little more encouragement to eat in the last 4-6 months. The start of that change in appetite coincided with an episode of back pain but has persisted even though she's no longer painful and bloodwork has been normal. I also had an IG who had always been a chow hound, scarfing down any food you put in front of him. At 12 years old, he started eating a little slower and not finishing his meals immediately, but still eating it all over a longer period of time. Bloodwork indicated kidney disease. A previous blood panel done just 7 months prior had been completely normal. Personally, I feel that changes in appetite don't usually happen just because of age itself - it's usually related to some kind of health change due to age, although it may not be anything that can or needs to be addressed.

Honestly, it doesn't have to be complicated at all. I look at each of my dogs every day, and if they're looking a little thinner (more obvious hips and ribs), I increase their feeding a little, and if I start to lose all sight of the hips/ribs, I decrease their feeding a little. I feed primarily kibble and make adjustments in 1/8 to 1/4 cup increments. Each dog's metabolism is different, and caloric needs vary based on a number of factors such as activity level, season, stress, illness, etc. So don't get too caught up in manufacturer's recommended amounts or caloric calculators. Has your dog been gaining or losing weight on the current feeding amount? I couldn't remember Winnie's history so went back to your previous posts, and I thought you'd mentioned back in November that she was 58 lbs, so it seems like she's been maintaining her weight with the current feeding?

Heartworm resistance has been documented in recent years, but I believe most of it has been in the Mississippi River Valley. I haven't seen or heard of it here in SC, and haven't heard of it in TX either. One study showed that Advantage Multi worked better for at least one particular strain of resistant HW, but I take that study with a grain of salt because it was sponsored by Bayer (the company that makes Advantage Multi). I have no idea what the product from Great Britain is.

I agree with the suggestions to run a full thyroid panel. While hypothyroidism isn't common and often overdiagnosed/misdiagnosed in greyhounds, it can cause the symptoms you're describing. I recently diagnosed a 7-yr-old greyhound with hypothyroidism who was showing very similar signs - off balance, lethargic, not playing, poor appetite. After starting him on thyroid supplement, all of those signs resolved. You can't diagnose hypothyroidism in a greyhound just with a T4 - you need to at least run the T4, free T4, and TSH.