Laurenbiz

Thanks! I'll look into the Springtime supplements. My parents' neighbor gave me the recipe for "slop" since she feeds that to her three dogs. (She didn't call it "slop," but DH and I started calling it that soon after we started cooking it! ) He's never turned up his nose to the slop! It's a winner. I haven't given him just the raw ground meat. That actually might work! I'm sure he would stay at his bowl and eat it if I crumbled it up with his kibble. (And no raw meat chunks would be touching the carpet!)

Thanks! I can definitely add some potatoes or rice. Maybe sweet potatoes would be a more nutritious starch option than just plain write rice or plain russet potatoes? I know Bernie has enjoyed little sweet potato bites I've given him int he past. What calcium and multivitamin brands do you suggest? I don't recall Bernie having digestive upsets when I added pork into his slop, although I've only tried that once! The poultry/beef mix seems to work well.

I have some questions about cooking for your greyhound. At Thanksgiving dinner at my parents' house, my parents' next door neighbor talked to me about what she cooks for her golden retriever and corgis. I then tried it with Bernie, and he LOVES it. I have been using my cooked food to replace canned food, basically. He's sort of a picky eater, and before I started cooking for him, I would give him kibble (TOTW Sierra Mountain mix, which is lamb-based) mixed with other stuff (canned food, boiled eggs, sweet potatoes, cheese, etc.) So currently, this is Bernie's breakfast/dinner mix: -1 c. kibble -1 c. "slop" (DH and I call Bernie's cooked food "slop" because that's what it looks like!) Bernie's slop consists of: -1 lb. ground poultry (usually turkey) -1 lb red meat (I switch between ground beef and steak/stew meat; I've also used ground pork) -1 10 oz. bag frozen organic pea/carrot mix (Bernie will spit out the green beans in the veggie mix ) -1/4 c. (eyeball it) plain quinoa -A few tbsp. (eyeball it) olive oil -Water (eyeball it) — maybe 12-14 oz I cook it for a few hours in the crockpot, and then it's ready to go. The batch will last usually 4 days. I've completely cut out all processed wet food for Bernie since he loves the slop. I will still give him eggs and cheese as snacks. HERE ARE MY QUESTIONS! -Now that I am cooking roughly half of the food in his diet, do I need to be giving him some sort of vitamin supplements? -If so, what supplements does he need, and what are good supplement brands for dogs? -Should I be incorporating more animal parts in his food, like organ meat? I've always purchased just the "muscle" meat but not organs, liver, etc. -Are these questions for a nutritionist? I am not sure if this is a big deal and I should be speaking with a nutritionist? Since he has loved his half kibble/half slop diet for the past few months, I figured that I should just stick to this. I want to make sure I am doing things the right way, though, so I thought I should ask in Greytalk. PS: ETA: feeding raw is not really a good option. Bernie takes things to his bed for chewing. When I give him raw turkey necks as treats, I only do this when the weather is nice so he eats the turkey neck outside! So if I were to feed him a raw breakfast or dinner, with a chunk of meat in his bowl for example, that raw meat would end up getting on his bed and on our carpet! So completely raw food isn't really practical at our house.

Interesting! Our vet's office does have a holistic vet available. (All of the three vets at the office know Bernie because of his daily visits over the summer after he was attacked by a dog!) I could always ask the holistic vet more questions about Bernie's arthritis. I usually do not take him to see appointments with her. Do you know what your vet does with the aloe vera? Is this what your 10 y/o takes? http://www.springtimeinc.com/product/joint-health-chewables/All-Natural-Dog-Supplements

Hi everyone, In January when we moved into a small apartment after selling our home, Bernie went crazy and dug the carpet up and trashed the place. He limped for a week or so, and we took him to the vet to discover that he had a mixture of tendonitis (from digging) and arthritis in his front legs. His limping subsided after a month or so, and his anxiety completely disappeared when we again moved into a home in April! We take him to doggy daycare once a week, and he absolutely loves going there. He went last Thursday 12/3, and we've seen some intermittent limping since then. Our thought is that he is an older guy (9 y/o) with known arthritis, and he's on his feet all day at daycare, so stiffness and some limping are probably expected. Just yesterday, he went into our backyard and ran around like crazy, so it doesn't really seem to bother him much. (It bothers me because I'm a worrywart! ) So his symptoms are: Occasional limping Occasional stiffness Licking front feet/arms (I've seen him licking both left and right) More frontward stretching than usual (downward dog position) Still zoomies in the backyard like nothing is wrong Our vet prescribed Previcox earlier in the year when he had the tendonitis/arthritis issue. We got a refill on it a few months ago. I give him 1/4 pill as a dose just when I see him acting a little stiff. This past week, though, he's gotten at least two doses daily over a period of several days. This is much more frequent than usual — sometimes we go a whole week or two and don't give him any Previcox because he doesn't seem like he needs it. Does anyone have any suggestions for other ways I can help Bernie not have the occasional stiffness/limp? I know my vet also offers laser therapy and acupuncture. Do any of you have good experiences with these therapies with your arthritic hounds? Thank you!

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UPDATE! Hi everyone. I know it's been a while since Bernie's skin debriding procedure back on 7/19/15 that he had to have because the dog bite caused an infection that killed the skin. Because the leg wound was so large, and because the vet cut down to his muscle, he had to go to the vet twice a day for bandage changes for about a week after that. My mother (Bernie's grandma) was even kind enough to drive to Wisconsin from Missouri to help us with his vet appointments. Both Justin and I finally had a few normal days where we could go to work and actually do some laundry! A few weeks after the skin debriding, his bandage changes were decreased to just once a day for the next month or so. Also, once a week at the least (sometimes twice a week), Bernie's vet was performing laser therapy to stimulate the growth of new granulation tissue (new tissue/skin) ... free of charge! We got really excited around the middle of August when Dr. Collins decreased Bernie's bandage changes to every other day. The wound was healing well and thus not seeping as much stuff, so the bandage could stay on longer. A few weeks later, his bandage changes decreased to just a few times a week. He still needed the big bandage, though, to keep his whole leg free of dust and debris since the very middle of his wound didn't yet have the new granulation tissue. Just a few weeks ago on September 5, our vet took his big bandage off, and — voila! — granulation tissue had formed in the very middle of the wound! And the big bandage changes were no more! His wound is now just a pink sliver on his leg. And Dr. Collins is letting us go a whole TWO WEEKS without a vet visit! Actually, Bernie's next visit to the vet is scheduled because he is due for his annual shots in October. This has been a truly horrible ordeal, but it seems to finally be coming to a close. How about pictures? Here was Bernie in the beginning after he got attacked on 7/12/15. He gravitated toward the office room at our house and then stayed there. This was odd since the office room isn't really his favorite spot when he is healthy. Justin and I even slept on the floor with Bernie for about the first week while he felt that he needed to stay in that room. He was lethargic and was doped up on 3 painkillers and 2 antibiotics. We had to drain his grenade-style drain once a day. We shoved pills down his throat since he was not interested in any food or treats. He lost about 10 pounds in one week! The process of him laying down from being in a standing position took him at least an hours worth of attempts because his leg was so painful with bending. Here was his leg a few days after they drained the abscess and inserted the tube drain into his leg. Unfortunately, even with antibiotics, draining the abscess and the new drain, the skin in that area had become black and died. (PS: And it smelled BAD!) So this was not too long before the skin debriding. After skin debriding. Gruesome, yes, but necessary! At this point, he actually was acting like himself and was back to eating normally. Bernie's big bandages came in all colors — sometimes pink! He also had red, purple, royal blue, baby blue, mint green, dark green, brown, gray, orange ... and I'm sure I'm missing a few. His wound kept getting smaller and smaller — here it was on 8/8/15: And here is his wound today! Bernie is a happy boy!

Oh, Anne. I've been checking Greytalk since Tuesday, thinking you would post an update. I am so terribly sorry. You are not alone in the tears you've shed since Tuesday. The world has lost a gentle and wonderful soul. I am confident that she is in good hands. You will meet again someday. I am one of them! Even though my Bernie boy and his half sister Beth never met in person, I've always looked at you and Beth as extended family! And of course I've always enjoyed seeing her pictures on her Facebook fan page. I have been searching on Greytalk this afternoon trying to find the thread where you suddenly realized that Bernie and Beth were related. I had just recently started posting on GT in late 2010 (we adopted Bernie in October 2010,) and you made a comment in a thread where you realized that they were related! (I found this thread: http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php/topic/265628-limping-question/?hl=%2Bbernie+%2Bbeth&do=findComment&comment=4778104, but even I mention there that I missed your original post. I still can't find it.) I've never met (online or offline) any other dog who I know is related at all to Bernie. Even though I didn't know Beth, I always thought of her as special. Again, I am so extremely sorry.

Got it, thank you.

Hi everyone, thank you for your responses so far! I can't argue with you that this guy needs to be held fully responsible. The fact of not seeing money is a concern of mine. I totally love my DH, but he does not have the same mentality of "get it in writing" like I do! Justin works in sales and loves talking to people over the phone and in person. Written communication just isn't his thing. I am not comfortable with just a verbal agreement. I was happy to learn that the police keep talking to him daily. We only spoke with the police on two occasions last week, and the police have been quiet since. I assumed they had bigger fish to fry, and that's why we hadn't heard from them. So I'm happy that the police are taking this seriously! Thanks!

Hi everyone! Here is the most recent update. You knew about the e-vet surgeon going in and cutting out the dead/black skin on Bernie's leg (which died because of an infection in his leg; the infection developed due to the dog bite) on Sunday 7/19 and recommending twice-daily bandage changes for that open wound. We've taken him to the e-vet and/or our own vet so far twice a day for the changes. It's a deep wound, and the vets want to change the bandage instead of just us as pet owners who have no medical experience. They do have to give Bernie a small amount of sedatives with each bandage change, but then they give him a reversal. Again, the sedation is just because it's a deep wound, and he has a crater in his skin! (Anne, I am planning on asking our vet about the laser therapy for skin healing as you suggested via Facebook!) GOOD NEWS: My mom actually drove up to Wisconsin from Missouri this week. Justin and I have worked round the clock with Bernie since his initial attack, and she wanted to help. So she is taking him to the vet twice today and tomorrow for his bandage changes. A third person in all of this is an extremely huge help. OTHER GOOD NEWS: Bernie is pretty much acting like himself! When I grabbed the car keys last night to go to the vet for his bandage change, he jumped a little, acting exited for a ride. But I still had to scold him since he is not supposed to be jumping right now. His appetite is back to normal. (He was not eating well the first few days after his attack.) OTHER OWNER NEWS: You may recall that the police provided me with the other dog owner's contact information last week after they located him. We've been waiting and deciding on the next step to take. Justin finally called him and had a conversation in which the other owner agreed to cover half of the bills. Justin also told me that this man said the local police have been threatening him since the attack. (I am simply relaying what Justin said; the man used the word "threatening.") Justin and I are still going to discuss this more. No decision yet on the whole financial side of things. More updates later!

That is a good idea, thank you! I think his plan is to call the owner on the phone and plan a meeting time/place. So after that phone call, I'll see what his thoughts are about going alone or going with an officer.

Hi everyone! Thank you all for your kind words and advice. Please know that I've read every single word that every single one of you typed! Here is an update as of this afternoon (Sunday 7/19) — in a timeline format, which might make the most sense: Sun 7/12: Original dog attack with two bite wounds. E-vet stitched up wounds, and 1 wound included Jackson Pratt grenade-style drain. He stayed overnight. Mon 7:13: Picked him up from e-vet on Monday afternoon. Tues 7/14: Back to e-vet since we thought something was wrong with the drain. The drain was fine, but with some swelling in bottom of leg, the vet wrapped his leg to force fluid upward toward drain. Wed 7/15: Just monitored at home and kept Tuesday's wrap in place. Thurs 7/16: Went to e-vet to remove Jackson Pratt drain. Took out Jackson Pratt drain at top bite wound since it worked well, and that wound is healing nicely. Once they unwrapped the leg wrap, they discovered an infected abscess on the outside of his right back leg, about halfway up (like the side of the knee). Drained the abscess, and put in penrose-style tube drain in to promote more draining of the abscess. Wrapped it up loosely to catch the stuff draining out of the leg. Fri 7/17: Our local vet (the other vet at the practice; ours was out) did a new wrap twice that day. Sat 7/18: His local vet (still the other vet; ours was out) did another new wrap. Also added enrofluoxacine antibiotic since she still saw some puss that had soaked into the wrap. Also said some black skin was present that must have died from the infection. She said wait until Monday to remove the dead skin. Sun 7/19: Went to e-vet for the daily wrapping change since our vet isn't open on Sundays. Once the e-vet opened up the wrap, said the black/dead skin was very prevalent and stinky and had to get out of there. So the penrose-style drain was removed from the leg, and Bernie had all of the dead tissue cut out to promote new growth. The vet said there's too much skin gone to be able to stitch it up, so the wound area is packed with gauze and wrapped again. He said, though, because it's a big open wound, it will need two daily changes for the next few days. We're going back tonight to the e-vet to get it changed, then back to our regular vet tomorrow for the new wraps. The e-vet today even said that he sends animals to Dr. Collins (our vet) for bandage changes because she does a good job with it. ... And that's where we stand! I'm typing with a dopey dog behind me. We're going to load Bernie into the car around 7pm or so to go back. I feel like we keep having these setbacks. The worst of the two bite wounds is actually fine at this point! Justin is planning on getting in touch with the other dog's owner. He said he wants to plan on meeting him somewhere to discuss this. He said he didn't want to talk over the phone and wants to talk to this guy face-to-face. I will let Justin do this on his own ... I don't want to talk to the guy and honestly don't want to ever see him again. More updates later!

PS — Not sure if the details about DH matters; maybe you're curious. I know I keep mentioning Justin, but he was not on the walk with us. We all had just finished dinner Sunday night, and I said that Bernie should go on an evening walk. Justin already talked to me during dinner about a big meeting that he had with his work that upcoming week. So he went to his office room after dinner to get started prepping for his big work meeting. I decided to take Bernie on a walk by myself. I am so happy I always carry my phone with me on walks! As Bernie and I were running back home, I called Justin and said, "We're coming home! That loud beagle attacked us! We're both hurt! We're bleeding! He's gotta get to the vet!" Needless to say, Justin never made it to that meeting this week! Thank you! In fact, just the other night as we were in our front yard taking Bernie out for a potty break, a man walked past our house with a little vizsla type of dog. He said hi, and we said hi. And I had a bad feeling in my stomach when I saw them. I guess my first thought was, "that dog better not hurt us!" But in reality, it was a nicely behaved dog, and didn't really pay much attention to us. Sigh ...

Oops, sorry I didn't respond to this. I went to the ER and got a tetanus shot and was prescribed augmentin. Out of my two bites, my hand was the worst of the two. My left thumb has a bite mark, and the top of my left hand has the other mark. My thumb was really swollen Sunday through about Wednesday and had basically no mobility. It was so swollen that I could not see any of the horizontal lines in the skin on my knuckle. The swelling has gone down some, and I can now move my thumb a little. My right hip (as of this morning) has a bruise about the size of a grapefruit, and two small bite marks. I guess my pants protected me there since that bite barely opened the skin. And I'm thinking I bruised my pelvis or some interior bone in my butt! There's some pain when sitting down (like a tender pain like a bruise.) At one point in this scuffle, I found myself down on the ground (on my butt) for about a second before I popped up and swooped my left arm toward the other dog and around Bernie — I know that's how my left hand got bit. Honestly, I don't know why or how I was on the ground at one point. I don't know at all when or how I got bit on my hip. The event happened so quickly, and parts of it in my mind are just a blur! The day after, I kept finding new scuff marks and bruises all over me. Bernie has several little scuff marks all over as well!

The other owner is a whole separate story! As you can imagine, once I got the dogs separated (which is how I got bit on my hand — I have no clue how my hip bite even happened), I sprinted back home in my flip-flops (somehow it worked!) with Bernie. I wasn’t going to stick around and chat with the owner about his contact info or about vaccines. In my rush of adrenaline, and seeing blood coming out of Bernie’s leg and my whole left hand covered in blood, my only thought was to run. Justin told me this was my “flight” in the fight or flight scenario; he said his reaction would have been “fight” — and he said if this happened with him walking Bernie, that dog would have been quite hurt because Justin would have been kicking it! (And I’m sure probably kicking the guy!) When I was at the hospital, the staff contacted the local police. They said they have to do that when they have a dog bite patient. (This was about 10pm.) The police actually called me at 1am while we were waiting at the e-vet and after I was finished at the hospital. During the day Monday, the police located the owner and said that the owner is polite and cooperative with the police. Based on my description of the dog and owner, and based on the street where this all took place, they somehow found him. The police gave that owner a form that says his dog needs to be seen by a vet three times during a 10-day time frame after the bite to ensure that it isn’t showing signs of rabies. I assume if the owner complies and the police receive the form with vet signatures, then it’s a done deal. An officer sent me a rabies certificate he received from the owner. For peace of mind, I actually called that vet and talked to him on the phone. He also told me that the dog is current on vaccinations and that he is seeing the dog during the police-mandated 10-day period. The officer also gave me the owner’s contact information. I told him that I didn’t want to sound ignorant, but what am I expected to do with the owner’s name, address and phone? He said since I was the victim, I’m entitled to know that information, and he also said the owner was willing to let me know how to reach him in case I want to discuss vet and medical bills. I do feel that there is responsibility on the other owner’s part because he was handling his dog, and his dog got loose. Once loose, it attacked us — but it could have ran 50 feet the other way and attacked any of the toddlers who were at the nearby playground. (I feel bad that I’m sure they witnessed the whole thing!) I feel so incredibly horrible, though, because I was walking toward the owner and dog when the dog got loose. I keep thinking if I would have just walked past them, or if I would have just turned around and gone the opposite way, this never would have happened. But, really anyone could have been approaching them — a mailman, a jogger, a door-to-door salesman. I do wonder if this beagle really needed that sort of submissive tactic. We’ve seen this dog on walks before near our house. (He lives in the next subdivision over.) It hoots and hollers the whole walk — we always thought it was funny, and we thought it just must really love to be on a walk. When we’ve seen him, he walks well with the leash and does not pull the owner or anything. Once the dog saw Bernie on Sunday night, he started hollering a lot, and I think that’s why the guy thought he should do some sort of behavioral correction to make him quiet. But if the man stood still and stayed calm, then did a quick “hey” or “no” if the beagle made a peep, I wonder if that would have led to a totally different outcome.

Greytalk friends, I’ve not yet posted anything yet about Bernie’s current ordeal since I’ve been too busy dealing with his injuries. Last Sunday, July 12, Bernie and I got attacked by another dog on our evening walk. Bernie’s injuries were worse than mine, and I would absolutely trade with him any day! Here’s what happened: I went on a walk with Bernie on Sunday. I saw the other dog (beagle) and owner at a distance, walking just fine. As we got closer, I suddenly saw the owner wrestle his dog down to the ground. I was totally shocked and immediately thought, “OMG, he’s hurting that dog,” and I started approaching them. (Motherly instinct, I guess, to go toward the dog that I thought was being hurt.) When I was within about 20 feet of them, I realized he was doing the Cesar Milan "submissive" tactic where the owner keeps the dog on its back against the ground. But then the dog was thrashing around too much and got away from the guy (or slipped its collar? I honestly don’t know) and charged right at us. Bernie got bit twice on his back right thigh, and I got bit on my hand and hip. With my adrenaline through the roof, I hightailed out of there with Bernie — we ran back home and planned for the e-vet. Justin took Bernie to the e-vet, and I went to a local hospital’s ER/urgent care department. Bernie stayed at the e-vet until Monday PM when we took him home. He got stitched up in two locations and had a drainage tube (grenade-style Johnson Pratt drain) in his thigh. He was prescribed Gabapentin and Tramadol for pain and Clovamox as an antibiotic. (And is still taking these.) We took him to the e-vet Tuesday since we thought something was wrong with the drain. Turns out the drain was okay, but that vet noticed some swelling in the lower part of his leg, so he wrapped up the leg. He said the compression would help with gravity so extra fluid would not stay at the bottom. Last night (Thursday), we took Bernie back, according to the discharge instructions, to remove the drain. Last night had good and bad news: the original drain at the thigh worked well and did its job. The bottom part of his leg that showed some swelling earlier was actually full of puss. They removed the thigh drain, drained the lower leg puss, put in a different lower leg drain (penrose drain), and re-wrapped the leg since the new drain will just let stuff ooze out. They took a culture of the fluid to determine if Clovamox or a different antibiotic will work best. They said that will take 3-5 days for results. This morning, Justin took Bernie to our regular vet for a re-wrap. The e-vet last night said Bernie will have to do a new wrap daily and said it should be done by a vet and not us. Our regular vet been in the loop with this, but we’ve been dealing with the e-vet since they did the original treatment and some follow-ups. I didn’t like the vet we dealt with last night at the e-vet, though (seemed rude!), so I’m glad we’re getting back to our normal vet! He just texted me and said they’re done, but with a lot of drainage still going on, she wants him back tonight for another wrap. Temp this morning was lower than last night, so the decrease in temp is a welcomed sign. And so this is where we currently stand! The original vet at the e-vet who treated Bernie said the extent of his injuries did not come from an “I don’t like you” dog — she said they were from an “I’m going to kill you” dog. She said if that dog attacked a toy dog, the toy dog would be dead. This has been a hellish ordeal, and I am praying every day and doing my best to get Bernie healthy again!

Hi! Sorry for the delay in my post. Thank you, Anne. I emailed Dr. Couto back and forth over the weekend since I received the news last Thursday from our vet Dr. Collins about the "thickening of the bone." Dr. Couto wanted to know more details about Bernie's limping. I asked him if he saw anything in the x-rays that looked anything like osteosarcoma. He wrote me back and said he did not see anything in Bernie's x-rays that made him think osteo! He confirmed that he just saw some signs of arthritis in the x-rays. He also said that he emailed Dr. Collins some suggestions about Bernie's leg, but I am not sure what those are. I know she was wanting a fellow vet colleague of hers (here in Madison) to also review the x-rays, and she said we would know more early this week. So I just haven't heard back from her yet. In other news, Bernie didn't show any sort of limping or lameness over the weekend. It comes and goes ... and I can't tell you how RELIEVED I am to know that his limping is not from cancer!!!

Hello again, The vet called me this afternoon. From the phone call, it doesn't sound like Bernie is in the clear. She said she was reviewing the x-rays again this afternoon and noticed a "thickening of the bone in one spot" that she wants an orthopaedic vet colleague of hers to look at. She said the bone is the "radius bone below elbow." (I'm quoting verbatim what I jotted down on a notepad as she told me this.) She said she wanted this other vet to review the x-rays to determine if there was an issue like a hairline fracture. I told her to definitely have the orthopaedic vet take a look at the x-rays. I also contacted Dr. Couto about the x-rays earlier in the week and he replied, but I don't think he has the x-rays yet. So I haven't heard from him specifically about this issue. I am also troubled at this "thickening of the bone" news because I have seen Bernie lick his front right arm in the area of the radius bone. Of course, I've thought, "well, it's hurts since he has some tendonitis" because tendonitis since January and arthritis (more recently) have been the diagnosis. I am not sure which way my emotions are going at the moment. I just have to say that I don't have a good feeling.

Hi! I'm back. We're home from the vet. We have good news: no cancer, no tumors. Dr. Collins showed us Bernie's right leg x-rays and pointed out some areas that she said show signs of arthritis (jagged edges on a few of the bones). Combined with the diagnosis in January that he had tendonitis from digging, our vet believes that Bernie's continued limping is from an arthritis/tendonitis combination. I know this is good news, but just for peace of mind, I'm going to reach out to Dr. Couto to also review the x-rays. Thank you to everyone for your good thoughts and prayers for Bernie. I know that I don't really know many of you in real life, and I'm simply just reading words on a screen, but knowing that other Greyhound owners were thinking of Bernie today really meant a lot! Your support is just wonderful.

Hi all, Bernie has an appointment on Monday for an x-ray of his right front leg. In December, we moved into an apartment due to us building a home and selling our existing home prior to the new home being complete. In January, he had a sudden severe outburst of separation anxiety (an ongoing issue since 2010 when we adopted him,) and dug up a lot of carpet at our apartment, even though he was taking Clomipramine and Xanax prescribed by our previous vet. We took him to a new vet who put him on Prozac, and he is doing much better. She also looked at his right front leg then and determined that he had some tendinitis issues from the digging. I originally noticed the limping after he was digging at the carpet. The limping came and went during the month of February, and we kept thinking that his leg still hurt from digging. It's now March, and the limping is very prevalent, and Bernie is walking slowly. I've made an appointment for an x-ray, and I can't even tell you how scared I am!

Hello! News about Bernie. BACKGROUND: Adopted in 2010. Had SA, gave him 25mg Clomipramine (from a consumer pharmacy) and it worked like a charm. Weaned him off successfully. Went on for a few years SA-free and medication-free. DEC 2014: BACK ON MEDS: Put him on Clomipramine anticipating some issues with moving. Ordered 40mg from a compounding pharmacy since the consumer pharmacy price shot up to $600. The new compounding pharmacy Clomipramine has never seemed to have any effect. JAN 12: CRAZY SA RETURNS: Sudden severe SA that has never really gone away since. Pee/poop inside, tear down blinds, tear up and move the couch, dig up carpet. Vet added 1.5 mg as needed Xanax along with the Clomipramine. -Also has been occasionally limping since Jan 12. -Has been super tired and lost 8 lbs since Jan 12. (We assumed he's just using up all his energy during the day panicking.) Jan 22: VET VISIT #1: Contacted previous vet in previous town; he recommended bloodwork. DH took Bernie to the first available appt. but saw the other vet in the practice. Justin said the appt. was a waste of time, the vet didn't take blood and told him, "well, you could increase this, you could increase that." Feb 4: VET VISIT #2: Took Bernie to a new vet near our new town. She took blood, mentioned potential thyroid issues, and wants to "switch to a non-compounded medication" and called in an RX to my Target pharmacy for Prozac. (Sidenote: the whole compounding pharmacy thing seems like a joke to me!) Bernie has a tendon or ligament strain in his arm, probably from so much carpet-digging. (This is causing the limping since his initial outburst Jan. 12.) Feb 5: BLOODWORK RESULTS: Vet called me this afternoon to discuss bloodwork. Everything was normal except thyroid. She also emailed me his exam document that talks about the bloodwork. It reads: (1) His liver values are normal. This is important as he is on medications that need to be processed by his liver. His other chemistry values are normal, as well. (2) Due to the change in behavior from the clomipramine to the compounded version; we are changing to Prozac (fluoxetine) instead. To begin - we will wean the Clomipramine to every other day. While he is being weaned, you can begin giving Prozac - 2 tablets in the morning (or 1 tablet am and 1 tablet pm) on the days he has no Clomipramine. After a week of weaning, you can continue with the same dose of Prozac or go to the labeled dose of 2 tablets in the morning and 1 tablet at night. Give for 4 weeks, if no improvement, we can increase to 2 am and 2 pm. (3) He may be hypothyroid as seen by a low T4 (0.3) and a low, normal heart rate (80) (Greyhounds generally are at 120-140 in the clinic). His thinness may be due to maldigestion, stress or chronic pacing and activity when you are away. The full thyroid panel should be checked to assess if this is a true metabolic concern (that can add to his anxious behavior). There is a chance that it is low due to stress or other illness. The good news is that his bloodwork doesn't indicate other types of illnesses. We talked on the phone about the bloodwork/antidepressants/thyroid for about 15 minutes. I figured copying/pasting her actual notes about the thyroid made sense here. I admit I'm not very well-versed on thyroid function. What do you think???

Lots of updates that I think make more sense to discuss regarding health/medical. I'm posting over there!

Hi, Yes, I did try the muzzle last week. Bernie isn't used to the muzzle, so when I put it on, he rubs his head against the couch or the floor since he wants to take it off! With the muzzle on, he was still able to dig at the carpet and (of course) pee inside while he was alone. When he had the muzzle on when he was alone, I didn't think that it really helped him (it didn't hurt him, either) and it didn't really prevent any destruction that he does while alone.

I'm back! Sorry I have not updated this post in a while. In response to the training I'm doing while he is on meds: - Alone training: In/out of apartment. I stay in the hallway for 10-15 seconds, and then his whining will begin. Sometimes, I just close the door. Other times, I lock it so he hears the key. - Desensitization: Jiggle car keys. Put coat on or put purse on my shoulder and do house chores, walk around apartment, or sit down. I'm keeping tally of each. Yesterday, I did these a total of 25 times. RECENT NEWS: - Our existing vet (in our former town) prescribed Xanax as needed. He said it's fast-acting and should help - Bernie has been taking Xanax for about 3 or so weeks (1 to 1.5mg/day) - Bernie had his first day at doggy daycare last Friday. (Unfortunately, the daycare center is all booked up for the next 2 weeks, but Bernie is on the call list if anyone cancels!) - Bernie still tore up carpet the day following his daycare visit. (He was SO tired that day too when I was home. This SA is super strong.) Today, (I've already checked on my webcam), he tore up carpet again! NEXT STEPS: - Appt. with new vet on Wednesday (since we've moved, he has not seen a new vet in the area) - Hopefully change medication (Clomipramine 40mg/daily for a few months now plus Xanax 1.5mg/daily for 3+ weeks have had no effect!) - Pray for cancellations at doggy daycare so he can go! I can't tell you how helpless I feel!!!