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Yay!!! Another Iams success story! Fingers crossed it continues to work.

Glad it worked for you! It's my understanding that when you discontinue it, the fur falls out again. We had opposite results. Not only did the fur not grow back, Henry even turned up with a bacterial skin infection while taking melatonin.

I crated both of mine, mainly for housebreaking reasons. One of my boys couldn't hold it all night. If he wasn't crated, he would just sneak off and pee.

Never! Truman will be 2 at the end of August, and he still looks anorexic. I get comments all the time (from greyhound people and non greyhound people alike) that he's too skinny. I've recently come to find out the Trumans breeder, Whimsey Greyhounds, purposely breeds for tall, lanky dogs whose ribs aren't sprung. And to be honest, that's the thing that really makes him look skinny/different compared to other greyhounds. He's flat as a pancake on both sides. I want to say he looked his worst around one year. I remember that because we were looking into getting him neutered, and the vet from the adoption group said he was severely underweight (even though he was eating six cups of kibble a day with tons of mix ins). He went through one more growth spurt, then at about 18 months or so, he leveled out. At this point, I'm not concerned. I know he's healthy, eats well, tolerates his food, and is parasite free. I'd actually rather him be on the skinny side since he's so active. It is highly annoying getting those 'too skinny' comments, though. We'll be at Grapehounds next weekend, so I'm expecting to field at least a few. ETA: This is what Truman reminds me off. Flats from Spongebob.

Jennifer and Kristie, what are the chances the murmur was caused by his leg infection? And any speculation on how the joint became septic in the first place? My vet seems to think it's pretty rare (especially since it happened over a matter of 2-3 days).

I don't want to lure you into a false sense of security (because it is possible she may become more curious when she gets more settled). But, from everything you described, it sounds like Grace is going to be one of the cat-oblivious greyhounds. My Henry is the same way. I'm a little embarrassed to admit this, but we never muzzled him except for the initial introduction. It's good to be careful for awhile, but she can probably spend less time muzzled since she's proving she's trustworthy.

Another vote for a stool guard on the muzzle. I got mine from the GEM Store for $6. They're also really nice to use if your dog ever gets a cut and you need them to stop licking at it. It's way more comfortable and efficient than an e-collar.

Brandi, you're a fine girl... What a good wife you would be.

No muzzle. Having her muzzled in the presence of other, unmuzzled dogs will make her at a higher vulnerability to them. It may also put her on edge. The only time you'll ever really use a muzzle outside of the house is if she has a playdate with other greys (where every other dog is also muzzled). I'd start really slow, like a drive around the neighborhood. Pet stores have a lot of sights, sounds, and smells, so I'd reserve that for when she's a little more adjusted.

Yep, Proactive Health Adult. Whether you get the large breed or the mini chunks is a personal preference. I like the large breed formula because I can get it at Sam's Club (around $35 for a 46 pound bag). The pieces are larger, which forces my guys to chew a little more. Then, other people like the mini chunks. There is a slight difference between the two in terms of protein and fiber analysis, but it's pretty negligible.

I agonized to find the right food for my boys, especially with Henry because he was my first dog, and I wanted to do everything right. Over two years, I tried five different foods that had good ratings on DogFoodAdvisor. Two gave him diarrhea, one triggered a legitimate food allergy (itchy paws and bum with lots of licking and scratching), one got recalled twice, and the other he refused to eat. After becoming totally frustrated and overwhelmed, I bit the bullet and bought a bag of Iams green bag at Wal-Mart. Instant change. Firm poops for the first time ever. Nice, shiny coat. Energy level great. It took ME a long time to get over the fact that I was feeding him "grocery store food." And I'm sure Iams is one of the lowest rated foods there is. But it worked for my dog, and I'll never go back. I'm not necessarily saying to go out and buy a bag of Iams, because not every food works well for every dog. But don't let something as arbitrary as website ratings prevent you from finding the one that works.

Hmmm, I've never heard of it. I just wanted to say that I don't put a lot of merit into the ratings of DogFoodAnalysis or DogFoodAdvisor anymore. Their reviews seem really biased. I'd just go with whatever works the best for your dog, regardless of how many stars it gets.

I talked to the vet about it and gave her an article I found from Iowa State. This is what it said: "As with any athlete, human or canine, the more exercise the body endures, the more conditioned it will become and all muscles, including the heart will exhibit some degree of hypertrophy (thickening or enlarging). According to Dr. Tilley, greyhounds have “totally different heart values”, particularly in relation to ultrasound testing, and cannot be compared to other breeds. An enlarged heart, as determined by ultrasound studies, does not always indicate disease of the heart. Heart murmurs in greyhounds appear to occur at a younger age than most breeds, however are likely to be genetic rather than indicative of pathology... In Dr. Tilley’s opinion, medicating an asymptomatic dog for heart murmur is most likely of little or no benefit." I interpreted the research to mean that it's most likely of little importance, especially if he's not having any other problems or symptoms. If it's a horse, I don't want to start looking for zebras with all kinds of unneccessary testing. Not to mention, I'm up to $1700 with the infection. I anticipate this would be another expensive process.

Update: We went to the vet yesterday for Henry's follow up appointment. I brought up the heart murmur, and the vet gave me some more info. It was only 1/6 yesterday, which was down from 2/6 at the e-vet two weeks ago. Our regular vet is a little concerned that the murmur may be attributed to the leg infection. If it is, the massive amount of antibiotics should make it go away. If it doesn't go away, she's recommending a chest x-ray and a test to check his heart enzymes. I'm still not really that concerned... I feel like it's probably genetic and went unnoticed all this time, rather than a heart condition that just popped up. But I still might do the additional tests to be on the safe side. Those of you who have experience on this... any thoughts?

I can't find the words to tell you how sorry I am... Sending hugs.

Awww, come on! Shelf the important ones and get this girl a stuffy riteawayquick! And yeah, I'd definitely continue with the handfeeding. It doesn't have to be every meal, but every now and again is a nice exercise in bonding.

I love it! Now that she's used to your presence, try hand-feeding her meals (if she'll allow it). Great exercise in bonding.

Yeah, Henry's culture was negative too. But the e-vet explained that that doesn't mean there's no infection present. "Negative" just meant that he was responding to the antibiotics. We're three weeks in, and he still has some residual fluid in the joint pocket. The vet said at least another 3 weeks of Baytril and Clavamox until everything looks 100% normal again. For something like a spider bite, I'd think that two weeks isn't long enough for the ABX, but I'm interested to see what your vet says. Update us when you can!

I totally feel for you! If it makes you feel any better, Truman is what we call "moody blues" sometimes. He gets in these weird funks (usually at events or the dog park where he's had enough excitement), and he becomes standoffish and growly. It might be an immaturity thing because he's young and still a little insecure. Maybe it's just how he is. I find it a little embarrassing, but I don't discipline him for growling at dogs. To me, better a growl than a bite. Luckily, other greyhound owners are always really nice about it. I apologize, and they usually stop me and say, "no need." But I do receive my fair share of, "What's wrong with him? Why is he so aggressive?" That always sticks in my craw.

You might've already mentioned this, but is he on antibiotics? After our ordeal with Henry, they put him on heavy, heavy duty ABX. Clavamox and Baytril twice a day, for at least 4-6 weeks. The infection was unlike anything the e-vet ever saw.

The intranasal bordatella vaccine works immediately and has a real low reaction rate. The downside is that kennel cough is like the equivalent of the human flu virus. The vaccine only protects against the most common strains. I'd probably still get the vaccine, though. My guys go to training classes, dog parks, and the doggie pool, so we get one every six months. Neither of my guys has ever had kennel cough.

Prey drive is variable. Some greys are fine with cats and small dogs (some grey owners on this board even live safely with chickens and bunnies). Other greys are almost prey-obsessed. Someone once told me that 25% are low to no prey, 25% are high prey, and the rest are somewhere in the middle. Hopefully this is just an isolated incident, because it seems like you are doing everything else right.

I love the video of her playing! Absolutely heartwarming.

How long have you had Banner, and did your adoption group explain that he is high-prey? The reason I ask is because it sounds like you're dealing with a high prey greyhound. It doesn't mean he's an "aggressive" dog. It simply means that he will not be safe around small animals, including puppies. And you're right, they act like nothing happened, because really high prey dogs don't view puppies as dogs. They get in the zone (as they have been bred for centuries to do), and their one goal is to attack and kill their prey. I've met many, many high-prey dogs who are sweet and good-natured and would never hurt a person or another dog. But all bets are off when it comes to a small animal. It's important that you make every possible accommodation to (1) set your dog up for success by, if possible, not exposing him to small animals, and (2) make sure you have control over him in those types of situations (i.e. muzzle and possibly a harness). There is a lot of methods of desensitization, but unfortunately, prey drive is one of the most difficult things to "train out" of a dog.