sarabz

Expect some extra poo tomorrow? Stinker dog. I thought I could read her signals pretty well, and turns out both myself and DH fed her tonight, about 3 hours apart. She's one happy pup, that's for sure. Anything I need to worry about?

It took me a minute to understand this thread!! :

We were giving Bella pumpkin for a while - and then discovered that once we ran out of salmon oil, we didn't need to give her pumpkin! (Seems obvious now). So, she's on Earthborn Holistic Adult Vantage with a spoonful of yogurt ('cause we just don't enjoy the smell of greyhound farts) and has consistantly good poops. I know a lot of people don't give their dogs any grains, but Bella also gets kongs with oatmeal, peanut butter, kibble, bananas and a couple of cookies and is doing great. She loves the oatmeal, seems to agree with her, it fills up her kong cheaply (10 lbs of oatmeal at costco for $6!)so why not. I did get some feedback here on the board that giving greys supplements masks symptoms of problems and agree with that to some extent. However, if you've ruled out worms & other problems, tried different foods, etc and your pup is just not solid, well, why not use a little something to help. If only for your convenience

We went through something similar with Bella. Once she discovered toys, it was as though she made the connection that anything she could reach and pick up was also hers. She would bring everything into her crate - slippers, books, even tried the dustbuster once. I dog-proofed better for a couple of weeks and she stopped. We've now had her 6 months and she hasn't destroyed anything in at least 4 - well, other than accidentally, that is, but not by chewing. Hang in there!!

Ooh! So glad you asked this! I've been noticing Bella starting to do the same thing - not to the point of licking an area raw, but if I interrupt her, she'll kind of roll her eyes up at me, tongue still hanging out with sort of a "what, mom?" look? Gotta get a picture of that one day!

LOL - I've noticed that with me! Freaked me out a little the first time!

Ok, now that I've calmed down and heard back from DH... Apparently nothing in the vitamins worried the person he spoke to at poison control except the iron. The most she would have had would have been about 70 mg, but she did throw up and isn't showing distress. Looks like she's going to be ok. At least I did one smart think- printed all Bella-related emergency numbers on a printable magnet (available at office supply stores) and stuck it on the fridge.

I'm traveling and dh just called me with the news that Bella got into a bottle of b-complex vitamins (b12, b6, etc). He's calling ASPCA poison and E-vet. I'm really scared and beating myself up that she was able to get to the vitamins. I'm sure with the wealth of experience someone else's grey has been through this.... And been fine, right? Right? Thanks GT

Sorry to say, my 5 year old girl does this, too

Bella has all of a sudden (today) started shaking her head a lot and favoring her left ear. I had a Cocker Spaniel so I'm well attuned to ear problems. However, there's no redness, no swelling, no odor, no discharge. I cleaned as recommended, and just hate to see our girl in discomfort Thanks GTers.... UPDATE - I took Bella to the vet today, and of course this afternoon she wasn't shaking her head at all. She has the beginning of infection in one ear and a small scratch in the other (the one she was favoring), so we're treating the infection, and the vet thinks that perhaps she did have something get in the other ear that she dislodged herself. The vet said the clinic was seeing a lot of ear problems lately because of the incredibly humid weather. Bella's ears don't stand up, so there's never a chance for any air to get in there and circulate, so just something for us to keep an eye on and keep up with the cleaning. I did get a good lesson in ear cleaning, so that will help, I'm sure. Glad I trusted my gut and took her before it turned into anything serious. Thanks GT!

I agree- every time I open up GT it seems like there's a new hound with OS. How prevalant IS cancer in our beloved greys, and other dogs? I'm sure there is a smaller percentage than it seems, right? Right?

Thanks again - an update a few weeks later to say that Bella looks much better now. Her hipbones are just visible, a few bumps on her spine, a little more ribby. Energy level is hard to judge because of the heat, but I think she's good! I'll take her to the vet in the next few days to get a number just out of curiosity, but am happy with where she is now. I've never quite understood the 5# over racing weight thought - isn't muscle heavier than fat, and don't they lose some of that muscle in retirement? I'll have to take a couple of photos specifically to show her weight - I don't currently have any at the right angles.

Thanks for the thoughts - will keep an eye out (ear?) to see if it happens again and what the circumstances are. Later that evening we did get our first groan/moan over ear rubs and there was a definite difference. Maybe she was just working up to that

DH was patting Bella earlier (in the bedroom, I was in the living room) and he said she growled at him. I honestly forgot about it until now - all three of us are on the sofa, both patting her and she growled at him again. Really curious about this. He wasn't doing anything he doesn't normally do, nothing seems to be sore or bothering her, and he's been patting her since and she's been fine. Weird. Any thoughts?

Bella is on Earthborn Holistic and is currently getting the recommended 2 1/2 cups per day. This is split into two meals of 1 cup each, with a couple of tablespoons each of pumpkin and yogurt. She also gets a squirt of salmon oil per meal, and a melatonin tablet in the morning. She also gets a daily Kong which has the other 1/2 cup of kibble, a few charley bear treats, oatmeal and a little more pumpkin or peanut butter, frozen. She had chunked up and is now looking good so we may need to increase her kibble just a little to maintain. This kibble is slightly lower protein than the last one she was on, so I think it's working better for her. She's 68 pounds, 5 years old and probably gets close to an hour of exercise a day - mostly walking, some short runs.

Bella stretches. A LOT. Big, long, low stretches that end with each hind leg stretched out and a shake of the tail. She stretches when it's time for food. When it's time for walks. When she's telling us she wants to go for a walk. When she gets off the sofa. When she wakes up. Before she goes to sleep. She'll also stretch almost as a greeting. For example, the other night DH & Bella went out to a nearby bar to meet some friends (side note - good DH, he even remembered her blanket). When I got there, she was snoozing, but got up, stretched and stuck her head under my hand for pats. Does the stretching mean anything or does it just feel good? Just curious and figured GTers would have opinions and insight

Bella goes in her crate at night. We have some challenges with space and sleep agression if she shares the bed, so it's just better all around if she's in her crate. She'd probably happily sleep in the living room on the sofa, but we like having her in with us. She's also in her crate because if she isn't, she hops up on our bed ready to go for the day at 5:30 am. That's just a LITTLE earlier than either of us would prefer to get up, so.... She has the bedroom to herself with a baby gate during the day. It makes us more comfortable knowing that she doesn't hae the full run of the place, allows our building maintenance team in without a problem. Again, she'd sleep perfectly happily on the sofa all day, but it makes us feel better.

Another black grey here, in New York City! Welcome to GT - I'm a newbie (just into our third month) and we're addicted to our grey. Enjoy!

Bella's an only, too, but then again both DH and I were and we're pretty well-adjusted humans (Most of the time) She doesn't really care much for other dogs, really prefers people and definitely is bonded to us. We don't have room in our 650 sq ft apartment for, nor does our lease allow for, another. I suspect at some point we'll have a second but not anytime soon. She manages perfectly well (as I type this, she's snuggled up to me on the sofa).

I enjoy reading this thread because there are so many varying points of view. Is there a right answer? No, no more than there is an exact right answer on what all of our dogs should eat. If you are living happily with your dogs and they are not terrorizing you or anyone you live with, near, or anyone you encounter, then IMO your methods are working. (Yes, somewhat simplistic, but hopefully you get my point). Does Bella get on the sofa and our bed? Yep. But she also understands “off” when we need her to get down. She hasn’t taken over – she’s only taken exactly what we’ve given her. Does she growl at us occasionally? Yep. But that’s the only way she has of showing us what her boundaries are – how else is she gonna do it? For example, she growled and snapped at my foot last night when she was on our bed before DH and I went to sleep. Guess what – she was sound asleep and I accidentally put my feet on her. Startled her in what she thinks of as her space (because it is hers during the day). Solution? She gets off the bed. I don’t punish her, I just calmly say “off”, she goes to her crate and issue is resolved. Is she an aggressive dog that needs to be strongly corrected? No. This is the only time/place she occasionally snaps & growls – never when she’s on the sofa, her dog beds or anywhere else. We never reach into her crate with her there – that is definitely her space. To paraphrase FastDogsOwnMe, we each have our boundaries. It is up to both of us to respect the other – I’m not interested in completely dominating my dog, my horse or any other animal. I use my judgment to take care of them, and that includes training of basic commands such as “off” and “wait” (for doors, to cross a street, food, etc). I don’t use “wait” to dominate - I use it for my safety and hers. Don’t ever think I’m not the alpha and that if it came to a confrontation, I’m definitely in charge, but I don’t need to use harsh methods to have established that – teaching “wait” patiently has gotten the point across. Ok, off my soapbox now

I'll echo what many others have said - yes, there's a forum on health/medical, on behavior/training, on food (you can drive yourself nuts trying to find the perfect food), but there's also the "cute & funny" and all of the other areas where people talk about how great (or greyt!) their dogs are. We've had our grey for 2 months and full expected to work through some of the challenges that people have written about and we've had none. No separation anxiety (even with being an only dog and both of us working full time), no food issues, no health issues, nothing but fun and joy. Best decision we made. Definitely find a goup you're comfortable with, let them know about your lifestyle and they'll work with you to find a great fit.