Brandiandwe

In the past I've given mine a shell pool full f sand and let them dig there.

All of mine bark, but some more than others. The two main barkers are closely related (aunt and nephew)..... And the nephew, who is big and black, is also quite protective of me. He barks, but more threatening is his stare and growl. That said, he'd be a disaster in your workplace because he doesn't like strange humans. At all. So I think it would be possible, but my groups tend to be either people lovers (no barking but great for your work) or people takethemorleavethem (plenty of alert barking and possibly more, but disasters for your work). And, dammit, I've lost my signature. Thank you photobucket!

Sigh. I was given this news about a Brandi this week also. She's just seven, but has been dodgy in terms of utis and bladder stuff her whole life. We've been told to sit tight for now. A kidney diet was suggested but she doesn't do well in kibble. She's on a renal supplement now which is helping and we're trying tomincrease her weight a little, because it has dropped off. But we know there is little we can do to halt things, though we may be able to slow it.

Yes. Hermon, at least, adores all men. Every man he meets. Especially ones with trucks, and tradies. I now meet every single man in a radius of about 3 km of our house because of Hermon. And children. Completely and utterly. Women are ok, but men are the best. The only exception is a tiny older Chinese lady with no English. Whenever Hermon sees her he trots over then leans against her, looking up adoringly. The are literally nose to nose when he does that, but they definitely have a connection. So I believe they remember and recognise people.

We have never created any of ours, so why not allow her into your room? Ours are much happier all sleeping together!

It strikes me that one option would be to stop your son from putting her into positions and situations which are causing the issue. But perhaps I misread that post?

I've got a very bossy bitch as well. She has remained bossy with everyone. Generally I just let her get on with it. Sniffing is on her terms and that's it. She also regularly growls and tells off pack members. She's never inappropriate, just a queen bee. The only other bitch she's ever bonded immediately with (other than Brandi her pack mate) was another top bitch who was a mixed breed. Both jumped into play bows and spent the whole walk we were on pressed side by side. I'd just keep on going with her but accept that she may retain her standoffishness.

I've got both. My girls are trickier. Lots more going on in those heads. Cuddles but generally more complicated. One is independent, the other has severe SA. I adore them! My boys have been a lot easier. Less snark. My newest (not yet in my sig) doesn't do strangers, and is very closely related to the black girl there (mother is Paige's half sister), so I believe genetics plays a strong role in determining some behaviour. That sais, his sire is throwing some (I say sharp, my vet who deals with a lot of racing greys says aggressive for greyhounds) interesting pups depending on the dam. Benny and Hermon in my signature, both completely and utterly bombproof and perfect. My suggestion is to write your list of necessaries (things you absolutely need) might be things like size if you're small or have a small car or whatever, but definitely think about if you're around children, have a cat or small dog, able to live alone, etc etc. then think about desireables. These might include sex, but really personality and your necessaries should guide you towards your dog. Don't discount a dog because of looks or first impressions. Some dogs are just right but my mercurial little princess who has my heart took several weeks to decide that I was ok, and several years to turn into the charmer she is now.

Settle! The questions asked were pretty reasonable. Regardless of whether he flew as your ESA, the fact that you knowingly took a puppy who 'might' have been sick with parvo on a plane means that you risked infecting other animals on the flight. He tested positive for parvo. Which, as a pet owner, I would have been mightily annoyed about. I would also have been profoundly unhappy with the breeder, who should have kept all of the pups on the property until the risk was completely clear. GeorgeofNE's attitude was quite reasonable. For the rest, as everyone has said, he'll gain weight slowly, but should not be roly poly. He'll look like a walking skeleton for some time yet.

Begin teaching him verbal commands now. A good friend of mine had a blind IG who she had completely voice trained. Basic stuff like: right, left, forward, stop, step up (step up step up for flights of stairs once for each step), step down. Do this before he goes blind completely. I think you'll find he adapts well.

If he's eating, I really wouldn't be too worried. Perhaps take him to the vet, but he's a baby. They can't eat much, and regularly get hit with the ugly stick. Give him time.

This is our strategy too!

We are coming up to the first anniversary of letting Benny go. I also made the call. We could have kept him going, but I asked him and he told me he was ready. It was peaceful at home, he was on his bed, with my husband and I holding him while my friend helped him on. I held him till he left, and he was then carried out wrapped in his favourite blankets. I still miss him, and cry for him. But he came back to visit me a little while later. I believe I will see him again. He also sent me Waylin, my rowdy, chattering funny guy. Better a day early than late. Go forward without regrets and with love.

Struggles and surprises he had which he attributed to the dog not being what he expected. When many of the shocks were completely avoidable had the research been done.

This, and that his research seemed to be cursory at best! Given that the sad face, aloofness, sensitivity and non-highenergylabpitbullinyourfaceseekingaffection i pretty much the first thing you find out about the greyhound temperament.....

Interesting that all the things that you don't like and the 'problems' and 'psychological issues' are pretty easy to find. In fact, some of them are in the breed standard, or recognised as sighthound traits. Probably for the best to return him. Good luck finding an Insta-pet.

A friend of mine suggested, when we were worried that one of ours was losing his sight, that it would be a good idea to netball some basic voice commands to assist navigation. Things like 'step up' 'step down' 'stop''left/ right' etc to help them manage kerbs, staircases and obstacles.

8 can be old. We have an old 9 year old, and lost Benny at an old 11. So much depends on what they have done, experienced, their care, racing life etc etc. So you need to look at the dog in front of you, not the dog you think you've got, or their numerical age.

How big is your pound pup? I would give some thought as to the relative weights of each dog and the physics of one dog who might be heavier and much faster running into a smaller, slower dog. Something will tend to squish..... I run mine at a friends gallop paddock. But there tends to be more snugging and peering than running!

Maybe he just takes retirement seriously? Is there a reason you want him to talk 5 times a day? I know that all of mine would think that that many walks is simply interrupting valuable napping time.

My view, as the owner of a dog who is both large, and raced quite heavily, is that you will eventually lose them anyhow. I would rather see my dog(s) living their lives to the full, with zoomies, walks, car trips, explorations of smelly drains and wonderful scents, and rough-housing, than wrapped up in cotton wool. So we take the approach that we allow our dogs to do what they feel up to (within reason), and manage the pain accordingly. If it becomes too much to manage, then we take the hard decision. But we want them to live a full life, not a life half lived and limited. ETA: this is also why another one of our dogs is on a drug which gives her greater bladder control and retains her dignity, but which also increases her risk of cancer. She is happier now, and more relaxed. So if we lose her slightly sooner I must accept that her time with us was happier than it would have otherwise been. This is not a decision everyone would make, but it's one I'm at peace with.

Paige took about 3 years to bond with my husband. 3 years of her tolerating his pats, cuddles, walking her and being around. Then one say she just went 'I'm your Princess!'. They're all different. ETA. It took me a while to bond with her too. She was highly prey driven, leash reactive and a complete nightmare. But she was good for Brandi so I persevered. Then about a month in, I was sitting on the couch, and I just looked at her and thought 'I don't know if I can do this anymore.' Just looked at me, climbed very slowly up onto the couch, turned around beside me, flopped down with her head under my arm and her body up against me. Then she let out the biggest sigh and relaxed. And I realised how tense and upset she'd been for so long. So she finally found a safe place. But, yeah. She then wouldn't eat for anyone else (that's still standard) until she started accepting food from DH at the three year mark. We've had her over 5 years now and I wouldn't trade her.

I wonder about impact this has on injuries, racing career length and so on...... American dogs tend to be larger too, although Hermon is by Kiowa Sweet Trey so has American half siblings all over the place!

Just for fun, a video of our Hermon, aka Big Block. http://www.greyhound-data.com/play.htm?video=%2Fvideo2%2FAU%2FMAN%2F2010%2FMAN-2010-01-07-HT01.mp4&name=Silver+Sands+Resort Funnily enough, a close friend of mine worked as a track vet, and she checked him that day. Years later, we're all in NSW, and we realise Hermon and her had met before!

If it's his gait, it is fore or hind? Waylin has a noticeably crooked pelvis, and I've noticed that he yelps sometimes. We believe that it's cramp or muscle fatigue from compensating for the structural weakness. I'd be checking his neck, back and pelvis for any issues through there. Poor guy!