a_daerr

I just switched to Iams green bag after having similar problems. Even my AKC greyhound (who shouldn't have any type of digestive intolerance) had runny poops and terrible gas on the designer brands. Green bag cleared it up in a day. It was miraculous.

I'm another green bag convert. We've tried everything from Science Diet to TOTW to Diamond Naturals. My boys gobble up green bag like there's no tomorrow. And the poops went from barely ever solid to perfect within a day (no transition). I never thought I'd feed grocery store food, but this is the only thing that has worked.

My boys, Henry and Truman, occasionally have bouts of digestive issues. But for the last few days, Truman has had severe diarrhea. When I came home from lunch yesterday, he had pooped all over the house. I mean, ALL OVER- I had to spend the better part of the evening steam-cleaning the carpets. I have him on a bland diet, and I'm giving him Endurosyn once a day. His appetite and energy level is still good, but I'm worried about what is actually causing the diarrhea. He's a 10-month-old AKC puppy, so he shouldn't have digestive intolerance. I'm feeding Diamond Naturals Lamb and Rice (Large Breed Formula). I also give them about a tablespoon of yogurt each day and homemade pumpkin oatmeal doggie cookies. Both of my boys are on Heartguard and Frontline, so he probably doesn't have any of the common intestinal parasites. What could this be?

I went through a lot of potty-training woes when I adopted my greyhound puppy, Truman. He did not crate well either, so I ended up having to try a bunch of different tactics. Here were some things that worked well for me: Stick to an extremely strict schedule. For the first few months, I was taking him out every few hours, sometimes 10+ times per day. I would take him out first thing in the morning, right after he ate breakfast, after naps. I still take him out before I leave to go anywhere. Make sure you observe and ensure he actually goes. Reward the positive behavior and ONLY discipline the bad behavior when you actually see it happening. I had a bag of treats ready by the door, and when Truman did his business outside, I'd be standing right there to pop a treat in his mouth. Don't wait until he comes back in the house- treat him immediately after the correct behavior. Make bathroom time a big deal. Throw him a party, give him lots of pets and tell him what a good boy he is when he goes outside. Never yell at him or rub his nose in his mess when he has an accident- it only teaches him to go when and where you're not looking. Remove access to the places where he tends to go. Truman had his favorite spots where he liked to go, so I ended up baby-gating those areas off. I removed most of the gates when I learned I could trust him. Also, make sure you clean the area and completely saturate it with an enzyme-based cleaner like Nature's Miracle. Dogs will keep returning to the scene of the crime if it smells like their territory. I would ditch the diapers, bellybands, and any training aids that claim to be a quick solution. I tried pretty much all of those and found that they make the problem worse. Even paper training is iffy, because once a dog learns he's "allowed" to go to the bathroom in the house, it's very hard to break them of that habit. I know you're concerned about your furniture and floors, but there are probably better ways to tackle the problem. If you can, confine him to a smaller area and gradually increase the size as he improves (preferrably an area with floors that are easy to clean). Dogs rarely will go on or near their beds or food bowls, so make sure those items are nearby. If you can baby-gate him to the kitchen, that would probably be ideal. Try to ease the separation anxiety by giving him things to chew on, interactive toys, leaving the radio or TV playing, etc. Leaving items that have your scent on them (like clothing or bedding) can also be comforting. Don't make a big deal when you leave. Also, back off the attention when you come home and first walk in the door. Give him some time to settle down first. A lot of people make the situation worse by coming home and throwing a party- refrain from making high pitched noises and showering your guy with attention. You want him to think it's no big deal when you come and go- that there is nothing to be nervous about. Make sure there's nothing medically wrong. From what I've gathered in your post, your guy has never been reliably housetrained, so it's most likely a behavioral problem. However, I wouldn't rule out a UTI if he was doing well before, then drastically had a change that prompted him to start going in the house. Last but not least, be patient and give him time. It sometimes takes awhile for greyhounds to get acclimated with home life. Increase your bond by spending time together. Consider doing an obedience class if there's one available. Once your guy figures out what is expected of him, he will want to please you. Housebreaking can be a long and difficult road. There is a book out there (it's a really quick and easy read) called "How to Housebreak Your Dog in 7 Days" by Shirlee Kalstone. There are a ton of tips of tricks in there about housetraining.

Henry is so bomb-proof that he barely reacted when he injured his tail so badly, that part of it had to be amputated. On the way to the emergency vet's he was smiling and sticking his head out the window. Meanwhile, there was so much blood that the backseat of my car looked like a crime scene.

My puppy, Truman, chews anything he can get his mouth on. I've found that it's important to have a variety of toys and treats around that are appropriate for him to chew on. With that being said, Truman prefers Tupperware to a nice meaty femur bone. I don't get it. Make sure that when you catch Boomer chewing on something he isn't supposed to, you replace it with something else. If you just take the bad item away, he'll just want that item even more. You want him to understand that it's alright to chew, just do it with the right things. Good luck!

I love her dark mask! Welcome Willa!

I remember Glider from the Keystone Greyhounds website! We're from Western PA, so I occasionally check their website. He's darling. There is a book I like by Shirlee Kalstone (How to Housebreak Your Dog in 7 Days) with a lot of helpful information. It's actually more like a long pamphlet, you can read it in a few sittings. I also added my two cents about housebreaking in this thread. I had a really difficult experience with my greyhound puppy, so I did a ton of research on housebreaking. A few really important things to remember. Take him out after he eats (mine usually have to go about twenty minutes afterwards) and after naps At first, take him out as often as necessary, once he becomes accustomed to going outside, he will prefer it Try not to give him too much freedom when he's not supervised- either by crating him or confining him Reward good behavior, do not punish the bad unless you catch him in the act Clean the soiled area with an enzyme-based cleaner to prevent him from returning to that spot

I would try a different tactic. Reward the positive behavior instead of scolding the negative. Contrary to popular belief, scolding a dog when he goes inside the house only creates fear and teaches the dog to go when and where you're not looking. When you take him outside, slip a treat in his mouth immediately after he finishes going. It's gotta be right then- if you give the treat when he returns, he'll associate the treat with coming inside. My 9-month-old greyhound is very motivated by affection and praise. If your boy is the same way, throw him a mini party everytime he goes where you want him to. Make it a really big deal. Pet him, tell him he's a good boy. And also, make sure you completely saturate the area in the house with an enzyme-based cleaner like Nature's Miracle. No amount of training can stop dogs from returning to a spot that smells familiar. Good luck to you, and try to stay optimistic. Housetraining is really frustrating.

Childproofing Your Greyhound has a lot of good info. We worked with Henry's aversion to children through desensitivization training. We had calm and well-behaved kids from our obedience class throw him treats, then eventually work up to taking treats from their hands. A little bit at a time, he started tolerating kids doing "kid things" like running around and making noise. Henry still does not "prefer" kids, but he has become managable around them. Best of luck to you!

Mine know the usual ones. These are a few of my favorites: Dinner Go Poo-Poo Pee-Pees No Kitty! Hurryhurryhurry

I bought some raw turkey necks for Henry and Truman. The grocery stores in my neighborhood doesn't carry them, but I happened upon some at Wholey's in Pittsburgh's Strip District. Last time I gave Hen a raw knuckle bone, it really upset his stomach. Had diarrhea for days, the whole nine. How should I feed him the turkey necks while minimizing the chance of intestinal upset? My dogs aren't used to raw.

Yay! We're also from the Pittsburgh area. If there's anything we can help with, let me know.

Henry did NOT like other people in "his" house for quite awhile after we adopted him. I think it has less to do with the dog being aggressive, and more to do with feeling that her personal space is being invaded. Once, my sister approached him on his bed (which was in a corner) and he snapped at her. We worked extensively on training Henry to be comfortable with people coming in the house. After two years, he still doesn't like it, however he has learned to tolerate it. We started by making sure he had a safe space to retreat. Then, when he was comfortable coming out and investigating, the visitor would toss him treats. We worked up to having him approach the visitor and taking treats from their hand. If you have a friend or neighbor who is willing to help you, just have them enter and re-enter a few different times and try this. Over the course of a few days/weeks, you should see some progress. I really wouldn't make any rash decisions at this point. A month is still a relatively short time for a greyhound to adjust, get used to your schedule, and learn to trust you. I'm sure many (if not all) of the people on GT have thought to themselves at one point or another "OMG, I made a terrible mistake. I have to give this dog back!!" Henry was my first dog as well, and it was very exhausting and frustrating to deal with some of his fearful behaviors. I didn't know how to handle them. I would try some desensitivization training, and maybe think about taking an obedience class. Henry really started to come out of his shell after his first few classes. Now he's a therapy dog! Let us know if we can help in any way

Truman kept bothering the cats, and ended up with a little scar on his face from the cat swatting him. I used Vitamin E oil on it twice a day. The hair eventually grew back within a couple of weeks. I've heard you can also use Mederma (Target has a generic brand that's half the price). This was just a surface scar that wasn't very deep, so I'm not sure how much can be done with a more substantial scar.

My 8-month-old eats anything and everything in sight. One day, he stole a carton of strawberries from the kitchen counter and ate the entire thing. I don't feed raw, but I supplement a lot of their food with raw ingredients. They get cut-up hot dogs, cheese, yogurt, rice. I think your little one would be fine on raw, if that's what you choose to do. Puppies don't have digestive intolerances like dogs just off the track. I primarily feed my dogs a high quality kibble (just because it's a personal choice and it's easy). The only real difference in puppy kibble is that it usually has higher amounts of calcium and nutrients for bone development. If you do decide to feed raw, I wouldn't stress too much about the meat-bone-organ ratio. Just make sure she's eating enough!

Oh wow. I'm very sorry you had to go through this. You've received a lot of good advice here. I just wanted to share this with you- I adopted my first greyhound, Henry, about two years ago. He was very shy and timid. We had lots of problems with him, but we were able to work through them. He is now a certified therapy dog and behaves wonderfully. So, yes, I do agree that all dogs have issues and need work. But awhile ago, I entered into a foster-to-adopt situation in which the group told me the dog was "cat curious." I consider myself a pretty good trainer, but I knew immediately that this dog would not be safe in my home. She was extremely high prey-drive, absolutely dangerous with my cats. It was agonizing, but I ended up returning her after two days. Sometimes you just know. After this whole ordeal, I never thought I'd ever want to introduce another dog into my home. There was so much stress for everyone involved. Several months later, we bit the bullet and adopted Truman, a four-month-old greyhound puppy. He has had a thousand problems, but they are ones I can handle and control. It is 100% okay to acknowledge your expectations and limitations as a pet-owner. I hope after some more thought, you will decide to try again. You can absolutely find greyhounds that are safe with cats and children. My two boys are living proof. Either way, you deserve a ton of credit for your efforts.

Truman is almost 8-months-old, so I recently had a conversation with the vet about having him neutered. I've decided to wait until he is at least a year old. Because he is a monorchid (only one testicle is descended), his neuter surgery will be a little more complicated. A friend of mine suggested having his stomach tacked (gastropexy) during the neuter surgery, as he will already be under anesthesia and they will need to make an abdominal incision. Our regular vet does not do this particular surgery, so she referred me to a specialty vet in the city. Both of the ones I called quoted me between $800-$1000. Truman is an AKC dog, and I know AKC greyhounds have a higher prevalence for bloat. But is this necessary? I don't want to put Truman through a lengthy and complex surgery, nor do I want to incur such a big expense for the one in a million off chance he bloats. I also have pet insurance on both dogs in the event of an accident or emergency. However, if it's going to be helpful and will likely prevent bloat in his lifetime, I will find a way to make it happen. Any thoughts?

My Henry is the same way... I've just resigned not to leave bones out. My boys will inevitably fight over them otherwise. The only time they get bones is when they're separated and I can supervise.

Oh no!! Get well soon, Tony!

Truman is a bread hog. I give him a slice occasionally, it doesn't seem to affect his stomach either way.

Sounds like a touch of space aggression. I would make sure she has a special spot to lay down where she can retreat from the other dogs. Somewhere that's not a high traffic area. If she is intentionally laying in the doorway, I would probably discourage her from being there. I've taught both of my boys the command "on your bed" which comes in handy when they're doing something they're not supposed to. Also, keep in mind that it takes time for greys to become accustomed to being in the company of non-greys. They have lived the majority of their lives exclusively with other greyhounds. Although most live comfortably with dogs of other breeds, it does take some time to adjust. I'm wondering, when you "correct her," what do you do? If you yell at her, you might be reinforcing the behavior. From my experience, the root of most greys' aggression is usually fear. There may be something about the beagle and lab that makes Maggie uncomfortable. You can work on positive reinforcement training by giving her a treat whenever those two dogs come near her. And definitely make sure you supervise these interactions for the safety of all your dogs. Best of luck

Best of luck and positive thoughts for your big guy.

But who can resist Taylor with his big, spotted belly?!

Obviously!