Feisty49

I use it for Annie's meals a few times a week. It usually works; that is her poos get firmer. Giving it to her every meal or even one meal a day makes no difference in her output, which is why she gets it only 3-4 times a week. She doesn't like it much so I have to mix it really well with water and kibble and add a dash of something like parm cheese, bully stick shreds, etc.

Welcome from New York State in the U.S. He is a gorgeous boy.

How close to 8 PM do you ask him to go out? If he goes at 6:30, he probably needs 3 or 4 hours before having to pee again, or at least pee enough to make it worth his while. If he's laying on his bed, lift it up by pushing your foot under one end of it. It won't hurt him but it may make him stand up. Have him ready to go out with collar and leash on. When he stands up, just keep on walking and if necessary, a gentle push on his bottom.

The test did find bacteria, which we know can be caused by the non-sterile catch, but Annie's white blood cell count was high. I didn't get the number. My vet is greyhound savvy (has Greyhounds herself) so I trust her. I agree about the antibiotic not being a problem. It's a big, horse-like pill, beef flavored, so Annie eats it like a treat. I just feel bad thinking she was feeling yucky and I had no idea. That's the "problem" with Greys who are totally retired. Annie doesn't run in the fenced yard. She doesn't do zoomies. She doesn't like to play with other Greyhounds. Once a day, just before our morning walk, she'll spend 30 seconds playing with a stuffy. Her greatest joy is going for walks and meeting other people. She assumes, rightly so, that every human she sees was made for her. Her appetite didn't change. Her water consumption didn't change. Her output appeared to be the same (and I actually watch her when she's in the backyard because I .. well.. I love to watch her!). She continued to love all the attention I gave her. In essence, she was Annie. I take another sample 3 days after she finishes the antibiotic.

Welcome and we need pictures and names of your kids.

This could be difficult because in the U.S. curbs aren't 8" high as well as we usually parallel park to a curb when on the street. Most of us have driveways anyway with no curbs at all.

Annie has a UTI. The first one she's had in the 4 years I've had her. It was discovered when a first-morning urine specimen was brought to the vet to check for its specific gravity (regarding another potential problem which turned out to be nothing). I was surprised. She had/has shown no symptoms. She was peeing her normal amounts. She was drinking her normal amounts. She wasn't licking her genitalia area any more than the usual quick clean-up she gives a couple of times a day. She showed no pain or reluctance to squat and pee. In other words, she was herself. Actually, with the cooler weather she's been frisky and better than she is when it's hot and humid. My question: Is there something else I might have noticed? I feel terrible. Because of no symptoms, I have no idea how long she's had it. It could be 2 weeks or 2 months or longer. When I told the vet tech that there were no symptoms, she said Annie is a very stoic dog.

I'd be very cautious around off-leash dogs... not for them but for your girl. One little play nip can do damage to a Grey. I'm cautious even when a dog is on a leash because most people let them wander at the full length of the leash. If I see that, and they're on the same side of the street I'm on (no sidewalks here), I immediately stop and put Annie behind me....to protect her in case the dog is too rambunctious but also to avoid me doing something to another dog who hurts my girl.

I agree about not using a coat. It doesn't take much for them to be uncomfortably hot without a coat. Adding one would exacerbate the situation. With the kind of weather your parts of the country have been having (TX and AZ), you're probably not outside for lengths of time anyway. Heck, I live in Upstate New York, temp is only 90 with a dew point in the 60s, so high humidity, and Annie's walks are limited to early morning, late evening and only 15-20 minutes each time or less if she's panting excessively.

Love the black hounds. The picture of her with your cat is a keeper. BTW, your cat looks just like my B&W kitty.

He's gorgeous and I like the B&W bed. I think that him following you around will probably decrease the longer he lives with you. The more at ease he becomes in his new home (and 3 weeks is not long at all), the more confident he will be and not need to be with you constantly. If it were me, I'd let time work its magic, but then I'm lazy when it comes to training (and also have a dog that never did this). Eventually he'll barely lift his head when you walk in the house. Getting upset when you leave: IMO, he's playing you. That is, he knows you're leaving. He wishes you would stay home. He displays displeasure. If you respond, that reinforces his behavior. It doesn't appear he's got SA, so I'd give him a kong filled with something good and walk out the door *without making a big deal of it*. Don't even say good-bye. Just go. The same with your return. Don't make a big deal out of it. You'll get lots of advice about trading up to get him to drop something as well as leash pulling. I've not had experience with either. Well, now that I'm thinking about it, Annie can pull on the leash but she has learned when I say, "No pulling," to halt the action and stay by my side, most of the time. LOL Hmmm..I don't remember how I taught her this. I suppose by keeping her on a short leash (which is how I walk her all the time - she's not allowed to go wandering out the full 6-foot length), controlling her pulling (I just don't allow it) and telling her to "wait." When she does, I give a treat. We never walk without treats in my pocket. Having her not overreact to another dog -- and she is friendly with all dogs -- just came naturally I guess. Don't give a long leash, and control when he tries to pull. Give positive reinforcement with a treat.

I don't have any advice because I've had no experience with your situation but I want to tell you I don't think you're "complaining about something small." I don't think it's a small issue and I don't think you're complaining. You'll get good suggestions from those more experienced.

I moved two years ago. It didn't bother Annie but I'm retired and home most of the time so I assume I'm her touchstone for being calm in new situations. She actually loved taking our walks because of the new smells, new roads, new friends to make. I didn't get a fence installed for six weeks after moving into the new place and I think it worked out for the best because I walked Annie to the very back of the yard to P&P and she continued doing that for poo even after the fence was put up. Maybe she would have done that anyway because dogs don't like to dirty near their homes but I like to think I helped encourage the habit. Dogs take cues from us. Assume Houston will be fine and I bet he will be sooner rather than later.

How exciting! She is gorgeous and sounds like a great fit.

This is so very common. I remember being in tears the first time Annie did this because she would. not. move. One way to avoid (sometimes) the whole planting issue is not to slow down when he slows down. Too often we who walk our dogs, especially newbies, will let the dog set the pace of the walk, meaning when he slows down, we do also. This gives Jax a chance to stop. Keep the leash short and his head near your body and walk strong and with confidence and do not let him set the pace. Once he's used to walking and he knows you're walking him, not the other way around, he'll be able to stop and sniff and you'll be confident that he'll get going again. Don't panic. I swear most of them do this. Why? I think it's because they can. I remember the first couple of weeks after adopting Annie. It wasn't all fun and games. She was stubborn (planting was common). She didn't want to go out for a potty break, even if it had been 8 hours or more. She would not learn stairs. I got advice from a trainer about getting her to move on walks when she didn't want to, and after a couple of weeks I realized that she is a dog... granted a Greyhound.. but still a dog and I am a human. An intelligent, confident human who was being pushed around by a dog! LOL It got easier and better for both of us when I took charge, so to speak. She learned that I had rules (we don't not walk and stare at the sky unless her human allowed it) and she learned to trust me. It was pretty much a piece of cake after that.

The subject of crating was brought up in another post a couple of days ago. http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php/topic/314538-bribing-for-the-crate/ IMO, your adoption group steered you wrong. I think the change of routine from going into the crate only when you leave for work to other times is what makes Ziggy cry and bark. The most likely way of erasing this behavior is to not crate. I am not a person who thinks crates are necessary. If the Greyhound has proved her/himself trustworthy regarding being house trained, not chewing up furniture, etc., then I say ditch the crate. I think the crate is good for a dog new to the house. It can give the dog security. It's a place to have the dog stay until the parents are confident in how he'll be around the house uncrated. But how can Ziggy prove himself without being let out of the crate? How to transition? Open the door, leave it open and let him have the run of the house (see below about cat). As I said in the other post, my girl Annie, who I adopted four years ago, hated her crate from day 1, so within 48 hours, I no longer made her go in the crate, though I left the door open. She never went in it again and I took it down by the end of the week. But you have a cat. There are ways around what could be a problem by using baby gates so the cat has a safe room into which Ziggy can't go. The cat may hiss and growl, but that's good because it's a warning to Ziggy to keep away. IMO, the cat will adjust. You'll never know unless you give it a try. BTW, I have a cat who wishes Annie liked her more. The cat wants nothing more than to share Annie's bed, but if the cat is on the bed, Annie walks away. Penny-the-cat likes to walk up to Annie, rub against her face, purr in her ears and share her warmth. Annie ignores her but if she's on the bed first, Annie will tolerate the cat laying down next to her. Good luck and we need pictures!

He is gorgeous. Lizard Lick? OMG... LOL Flynn is *much* better.

I'm one of the members who doesn't think crates are a necessity if the dog has proven himself to be trustworthy, and it sounds like Jax has. I understand you want him crated at night "just in case," but you'll never know if he can be trusted until he is left out of the crate at night. Also, as you've probably read many times on this board, dogs in general, and perhaps Greyhounds in particular, do not like to be alone. It sounds like Jax has already bonded. You are his family and Greyhounds don't like to be apart from their family. My girl Annie, who I adopted four years ago, hated her crate almost from day 1, so within 48 hours, I no longer made her go in the crate, though I left the door open. She never went in it again and I took it down by the end of the week. My suggestion is to move Jax's bed into your bedroom, if it will fit, or outside where he can see you when you go to bed. Better yet, get another bed so he has choices. I'm sure he'll be fine! ETA: He is a gorgeous boy!!

I just turned 66. We're skewing the numbers up. I like it!

Hugs to Ruby and you! Good news in many ways. Glad she's OK re heart and sooo nice to find a vet you like and is good with Greyhounds.

Another couple of questions: How much do you feed her? How big is your crockpot? I'm assuming it's a very big one to accommodate the quantity of food needed to feed Diana for a week. I don't have a need for a special diet now, but one never knows what the future will bring and I'm keeping this info to refer to it.

The vet is wrong. Greyhounds *need* their family. They *need* their humans. lMO, the vet knows nothing or so little about Greyhounds that I would be wary of using her/him. Don't make your guy be away from you at night. All that will do is make him more anxious, scared and lonely and he will let you know by whining and crying and generally expressing his unhappiness. Please tell your husband that just because a person has the title of doctor, it doesn't mean you have to take all the advice given. If the vet had said put Harry in the garden by himself for hours on end, including night time, would you do it? No, and frankly, making him separate from you is the same thing.

He's beautiful and smart because almost every person he meets will be his new BFF.

My Annie is always changing where she sleeps at night. Sometimes on her bed in my bedroom. Sometimes on her bed in the living room. Sometimes she switches during the night. Makes no difference if it's hot or cold. Whether it's noisy or quiet. I've had her four years and what I've learned is sometimes (often, usually) there is no answer to why they do what they do.

About a month ago, FountainLady posted that she had switched her dogs to Diamond Natural Whitefish and Sweet Potato kibble. It firmed up their poos and they no longer ate their feces. I had Annie on Green Iams for 3 +/- years but for the last 6 months, she was showing little interest in it and her poos were getting mushy. Adding Olweo helped a little bit but she didn't like it and showed less interest in her Iams. After reading FountainLady's testament to the subject food, I decided to try it. Annie's been on it for over a month and she loves it and her poos are much better. They are completely formed and not mushy, though with this hot weather, they do get softer as the day goes on. Right after I started Annie on Green Bag Iams, and it seemed fine, I swore I'd never change kibble again... ever... but I am so glad I tried the Diamond Natural Whitefish and Sweet Potato.