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I so enjoyed all these photo flashbacks of our GT puppies. FWIW, Truman came at 15 weeks. He was a moose at 40+ pounds. Had a real hard time keeping weight on him from about 9-14 months. By that point, he'd grown into his body, but had not filled out at all. I fed him puppy food until about 6 months old, and he was neutered at exactly one year.

I'm active on a canine epilepsy site, and this seems to be the general consensus about KBr as well.

Wow! Pretty impressive! Some people will tell you there are tricks, pennies in cans and such. I've used them all. I even wasted a lot of money on a Scat Mat which uses static electricity as a deterrant. Truthfully, none of those things ever worked for our dogs because for one, they're relentless. Also, they don't spook very easily. The best advice I can tell you is... constant vigilance! Get used to not leaving anything out on the counters or in the sink. If you have a determined dog (and it sounds like you do), there's no way to 100% deter them and training only goes so far, because you aren't always going to be right there watching them. Also, remember that our dogs know our routines and patterns. You can turn your back for two seconds, and they've already gotten a major score. Everytime that happens, it's another reward that becomes harder to undo. One time our cleaning lady was talking to me, perplexed. She said, "I find silverware, mostly spoons, all over the house. Where are they coming from??" It was Truman! He would take the spoon out of the sink when I'd get up for a late night snack and had been half asleep and too lazy to put it in the dishwasher.

Same with Henry. It took him a few weeks/months (I can't remember), before he got confident enough to vocalize it. But once he did, he had no problem telling us he's uncomfortable with being disturbed/jostled when he's sleeping. He gets up on the bed when we're not home, but at night, he sleeps on his own bed.

I think this is right. FWIW, we use Nexgard and Heartgard Plus.

Here's a similar thread that might be helpful to you: http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php/topic/313534-therapy-dog Many organizations require that you've had your dog for at least six months before obtaining a certificate to practice therapy.

Great news! Congratulations! I'm sure Magic is sending his love from the bridge.

How sad. Godspeed, Barb. Thanks for everything you did in this world for greyhounds.

Long story short, we were walking down the sidewalk at GIG, and we passed by a man with three little Shih tzus on flexi-leads. One of them started freaking out and jumped up and bit Henry on his back leg. Had to go to the e-vet out there- it was a whole thing. It was quite the deep puncture, through the muscle and everything. Dude walked away quick and did not offer to pay for anything! Hen goes to the vet tomorrow for his chiro appointment. I'll see what they say about these sutures. I imagine that if they actually break through the skin, they'll need to come out.

Henry had two layers of sutures at GIG during the dreaded Shih Tzu bite debacle- one layer holding the muscle together, and one closing up the skin. I'm guessing the subdermal sutures were (or should have been) the dissolvable kind). Anyway, the top layer of sutures were removed after 10 days. But now I'm seeing these odd little bumps on the incision scar, and it feels like the subdermals are trying to come through. Is this a problem? It doesn't look irritated or infected. But when you touch it, you can definitely feel the little knots underneath.

Interesting! She might be a CKC. Either way, I'm glad she ended up with you. Have fun, and take lots of pictures! They grow up too quick!

Interesting! You don't see BYBs too often with greyhounds, unless they're breeding coyote hunting dogs. Here's Truman as a puppy. His eyes were light blue then. When he got older, they got a little bit more yellow. They're still light, though. That's more common in the AKCs.

Oh, she's adorable! You don't have to say who the breeder is exactly, but is she an AKC greyhound, or from an NGA breeder? She's got those light eyes like my AKC boy Truman.

Sending good thoughts for Kasey.

I posted a very similar question a few months ago regarding my cat. He was forever having dirty ears with brown discharge. It looked dark brown, so I thought it HAD to be ear mites. I took him in for a ear cytology, and everything was negative. I was adamant that they run the test again, because the cat was in real distress. He was shaking his head constantly. Over the next few months, we went back and forth with a hypoallergenic diet, regular cleanings with ph balance cleanser, antibiotics, repeat cytology tests, and on and on and on. The one thing that finally worked for him was the BNT paraffin ear treatments. Your vet just puts the medication in their ears- one and done. My cat will sometimes get flare-ups every six months or so, but we go back for another BNT, and he's good for awhile.

Huh, I don't hear of too many vets prescribing KBr anymore. I know it's less taxing on the liver than Pb, but can have a lot of weird side effects. I'm just wondering (and I understand he's very new, so you might not know), did they settle on this protocol because other meds didn't work? I've had great luck with Zonisamide for my seizure boy. He's on 200 mg twice a day, no side effects, no liver damage, and the seizures are very well controlled. The price isn't too bad either. Best of all, it comes in pill form!

So sorry for your loss. Godspeed, Pistol.

I'd probably give her another few months to get to know her more and find out if any potential issues crop up. A month isn't a very long time, and you want your dog to be 100% adjusted in her new environment before making the decision to work her. Also, you also want to become 100% familiar of her reactions/triggers in a wide array of situations related to space, certain people, certain dogs, resources, etc. If, at that time, you decide she's still a good candidate for therapy work, your next step would be to prepare her for the CGC/TDI (Canine Good Citizen, Therapy Dog International) test. There are a few other certificate agencies, but I believe TDI is the most commonly recognized. The test focuses on basic obedience commands (sit, down, stay, recall), noise distractions, medical equipment, and interactions with other people and dogs (small dogs included). Once she's passed the test, she would receive certification and insurance. Just a note on this, some hospitals and nursing homes will tell you that your dog doesn't need to be certified. Just my humble opinion, I would never work a dog without it, mainly due to the insurance issue. Once your dog receives certification from TDI, they are assigned an insurance policy that protects you in the event of an unexpected situation. For example, if your dog is having a bad day (in pain, stressed out, whatever) and bites someone, the insurance would cover you if you're sued. There are a lot of litigious people in the world- it helps to have this safety net in the rare event something goes horribly wrong on a visit. Although we think we *know* our dogs, we can't predict what they will do in every situation, with every type of person, and it happens more often than you'd think. If you decide that you are really serious about doing therapy work, my advice would be to look for a TDI-prep class in your area. Make sure the trainer is reputable and certified in positive reinforcement training (they should have a certificate from the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers, or CCPDT). Take a few classes and see how your dog does. Both of my dogs are certified CGC/TDI, and although neither of them does visits anymore (one is reactive to dogs, the other is sketched out by kids), I don't regret taking the classes. The skills they learned are invaluable and make for socialized, well-rounded pets. Good luck!

So sorry for your loss, Nancy. Thanks for sharing her beautiful tribute.

I'm so sorry, Chris. I'll be giving my problem-dog a hug today.

Sterling and I were thinking about you today. Hoping you're okay.

You're not a bad parent. It happens sometimes, even with the most "cat-oblivious" greyhounds. The switch flips, and the dog gets carried away. FWIW, there are two positive things about the situation. One being, (it sounds like) Aidan immediately let go and backed off. A lot of high prey dogs will go "into the zone" and absolutely will not let go until the prey is fatally injured or dead. The second good thing, your cat fought back. It's much easier to continue cat training when the cat is feisty (i.e. not spooky, not running away, and not generally acting like prey). I would muzzle and separate to maintain safety, but continue working with him. If they've already lived together harmoniously for a decent amount of time, there's no reason why you can't get back to that.

Nancy! You've already had a rough year with Polly. I hate to see you go through this again with Tess.

Weird. What's so unusual about it?