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Yeah, three weeks is a long time to be having diarrhea. Hopefully he starts coming around soon. P.S. How does your bengal feel about the dog? I've heard they're pretty cool.

I spent a good two hours today researching insurance plans and reading reviews. If you don't want/need a wellness plan for routine things, then Healthy Paws, Pet Plan US, and Trupanion are the best. Healthy Paws was the cheapest of the three. If you want a wellness plan (sort of like an FSA for dogs), then Embrace is the way to go.

Fish oil. I've been using generic human-grade fish oil capsules from Wal-Mart, and they work fine. But you can get salmon oil or other comparable fish oil from the pet store or online.

Grain-free is a lot if hype, IMHO. Search any 'diarrhea' thread on here and you'll get the same response. IAMS green bag is magic!

IAMS in the green bag! You won't regret it!

Yay! Success! I've been thinking about Diamond all day. I'm glad to hear she's coming around.

This is definitely not-as-bad-as-it-could-be news! I was crossing my fingers it wasn't osteo or a brain tumor. Hopefully the meds give her some relief

No, no, no! Hang in there, Diamond!

Yep! They aren't dumb. It only takes one missed meal before they understand "OH! Better eat now, or I don't eat at all."

I got one from Wal-Mart, which worked for awhile but it rattled like crazy! I wouldn't recommend it!

Trupanion: Accident, illness, hereditary/congenital conditions, diagnostic tests, surgeries, medications, hospital stays, and veterinary supplements with the option to add hip dysplasia and other "alternative treatments" like acupuncture, physical therapy, hydrotherapy, and behavioral modification VPI: Most of the same things as Trupanion with the option to add wellness exams, vaccinations, deworming, microchip, flea and/or heartworm preventative, blood screen, urinalysis, dental cleaning, spay/neuter

It's not something I would be too concerned about... It sounds like your galgo is gaining some independence, which is normal after being home for 8 months. My Truman is a true velcro dog, and he HAS to lay in bed, touching one with us when we're awake. But when it's lights out, he goes downstairs and sleeps on the couch. The first few times he did it, I was confused. But I think he just prefers his own space when he's sleeping.

I wouldn't make the commitment if you're half-hearted. It's normal to have some nervousness, but it sounds like you have major concerns.

I have an accident/illness policy through ASPCA pet insurance for emergencies. It's only $12 a month. The only time I ever had to use it was when Henry required a partial tail amputation (I think he got his tail caught under the fence). They reimbursed 80% after the $100 annual deductible was met. I was very pleased with the claims process. It did take a pretty long time (6 weeks), but that wasn't a huge deal for me. I use Care Credit for everything else, because most charges are 6 or 12 month financing at 0% interest. I have friends who have more comprehensive pet insurance policies (Trupanion and VPI) that cover routine things, immunizations, flea/tick preventative, and on and on and on. They pay between $60-$80 a month. The only thing you have to be careful about is "pre-existing conditions." I never opted for the better package, because I was always afraid any run of the mill thing could be interpreted as a "pre-existing condition" when you're dealing with an ex-racer.

Any greyhound is likely to growl at one point or another. It is generally not an act of aggression, rather the dog communicating that he is anxious or uncomfortable (which can happen a lot as your dog is exposed to new environments and stimuli). Hopefully that's not a dealbreaker for you.

You might want to sprinkle some Metamucil on their meals until you find something to pair with the food to combat the constipation issue. Some people swear by green beans.

A dog that is truly hungry doesn't have the opportunity be picky. Are you free feeding him, or picking the bowl up after 15 minutes?

A couple funny/useful stories about hand-targeting. Our trainer has a JRT mix who is petrified of most things. During Halloween, one of her neighbors put up a witch decoration. The dog got so upset, he pooped himself when he saw it. He was pretty good at hand targeting, so she brought him up to the witch and targeted him around it. Then, after a few minutes, she got him to touch the witch, and he eventually realized it was fake. After that, he was okay with the witch. I also used hand-targeting with Truman outside a Chinese restaurant that had two, BIG, lion statues. Truman got down real low and started growling at them. He was so scared! I targeted him around the lion, then put treats on the lion's feet. After that, he calmed down and was able to walk past them without incident. Then also, one of my friend's greyhounds got really freaked out by the newspaper boy throwing a newspaper past him on their walk. The first time it happened, he statued and refused to move. The second time, she targeted him around the newspaper, and then put treats on top of it. He recovered well and now has no problems with the paper boy.

Yep, I started clicker training with both of my guys by just clicking, then giving them the treat. Let her get used to the sound and what it means. Wait until she makes eye contact naturally, then click her for that. You can then begin to use a phrase like "look" or "watch me" as her cue. Another thing I did was hand-targeting with a clicker. Touch her nose with your hand, then click and give her a treat. Do that a few times, then begin to let her come to you. When she touches her nose to your hand, click and treat. You can make it more challenging by putting your hand up high, down low, behind your back, etc. I liked hand-targeting for Henry because he was fearful of certain people and a little bit hand shy. So I would ask my friends to practice targeting with Henry when they came to our house. It helped Henry gain the confidence to use something he knew with something he was unsure of. Oh, and P.S. "the clicker never lies." Even if you accidentally click it, you should give a treat anyways.

I know! The best deal I found was on Amazon... $70 a month.

A meezer!

Just wanted to give my $0.02 on partial seizures. Henry has them (in addition to grand mals), and it's pretty obvious when he's having one. He'll stand in one spot, blinking and twitching. Sometimes one part of his body will be affected, like a back leg. Afterwards, it feels like he's snapped out of a trance. He'll usually void his bladder and start panting. Every dog is different, but those are things to watch out for as far as seizures go.

Deworm, and then try Iams in the green bag! Fromm is an excellent food, but maybe too rich. We tried five different premium limited ingredient, organic, grain free, boutique-y foods before trying Iams as a last resort. It was a life-saver!

I'm not going to say "you won't regret it" because truthfully, you might regret it. Especially if you are accustomed to another breed, you may find yourself comparing your greyhound to past shelties and being disappointed. When we brought Henry home, I had done all my research but was still vastly unprepared. Lots of times I thought, "Oh my God, what have we done??" Both of my dogs have had issues that needed worked out through patience and training. Even though I love greyhounds (obviously), and I would never trade my experiences with either dog, I wouldn't say they're the low-maintenance, couch-potato, "perfect" breed that a lot of people will have you believe. They require work, just like any other dog. My dogs have growled at me more times than I can count. One of them was very difficult to housetrain. One was fear aggressive and hates children. Many of the threads in T&B are common quirks about greyhounds. These are realistic possibilities that you'll have to consider. Sorry for being doom and gloom, but I've seen lots of dogs get bounced because the adopter was expecting an "easy" dog, and they weren't really prepared to deal with potential problems. Prepare for the worst and hope for the best, then make your decision from there.

Was it during the very first class? Any time we start a new class, Truman is a little off. He has to get used to new surroundings, new dogs, new instructors. After that first class, he calms down considerably and is able to perform the commands.