rsieg

Logan is 12 1/2 today, so I thought I'd make a post. He is doing pretty good, went for over a mile and a half walking today, over morning and evening walks. He rarely gets much more than that in nowadays, but still enjoys his walks. A couple photos from his half-birthday. Logan resting after his evening walk: Annoyed that I'm pointing my cellphone at him: And, getting playful after being annoyed: Thanks for looking...

He could still see out. Last night he actually jumped in on his own, which I don't think he could have done with the Fusion with the back seats in, but had a hard time doing it. This morning he did allow me to lift his back end up, but he is hesitant. He tends to pull has front feet off the ledge before I can lift. But I think he is getting the idea and will go along with it. He also went into the rear cargo area. That was possible since he can get in (with me lifting) without the steps so the cargo area is available. To encourage him I put the carpet fragment we were using in the Fusion into the cargo area, and I think that made him realize it was ok. So it is a work in progress, but I think it will work out better than the Fusuion once we get used to it. Here is a shot of him in the rear cargo area:

Update. I ended up getting a 2020 Ford Escape. Backseat is actually only a couple inches higher than the Fusion the back seat. However, Logan seems to have had a lot more trouble with getting in the Escape versus the Fusion. I think part of the problem is the rear door opening is smaller. So this morning I took the Escape back to the dealer and had them remove the rear seats entirely. Cost $75, but worth it as removing them is now something of a challenge as they have electrical connections for the airbags. Looks like it will work great with those seats removed. The back is mostly flat except there are four threaded posts for the seat sticking up in the back. I padded those a lot then added a couple blankets and a carpet fragment. He is now able to get in much easier. Two pics of the fixed up back area with the back seats removed below: One problem that remains is that Logan is a bit space-limited as his feet hang off slightly, but he seems ok with it. I can't convince him to go into the back hatch area so far (he put his front feet there but would not go all the way), but will try to work on that. A bonus is that the back seats were blocking the lower third of the view in the rearview mirror, now the entire back window is visible in the rearview mirror.

Yeah, I guess the sheet would solve the problem. I think what I will do though is the following. I measured it is about 11 inches from the top of the styrofoam steps to the top of the back seat in the Ford Fusion. So I can just put those steps up against the side of the Escape and see what the difference is. There may be one other option - I took the back seat entirely out of the last Ford Fusion I had and added some padding - doing that drops pretty much all of that 11 inches. Never had an SUV so not sure what can be done along those lines with an Escape, but could be an option. (Of course, no humans can sit in the back seat, but that's not necessarily a bad thing :-) Looks like the Focus went out of manufacture a couple years ago as they only have some 5-6 year old cars on the website. I tried picking up Logan last night, I don't think that's going to be an option -- he fought it and as he is 75+ pounds unless he is going to cooperate I'm not going to be able to safely lift him into any vehicle. I couldn't even get him to do the front feet on the seat and lift the rear end trick which always worked with Max.

I gotta admit, if I was a car dealer I might hesitate to let a potential buyer put a dog in the car, unless the buyer is close to a purchase and that is the final sticking point. They do put in a lot of work getting those interiors pristine, and I could understand a reluctance to get dog hair all over the upholstery only to have the potential buyer say: "Ok, but let's look at this other car". Or, to flip it around, how would you feel if you bought a car and right off the lot you found it had dog hair covering the backseat :-)

greysmom, I crossed your post. Interesting idea about bringing Logan to the dealer, I may do that!

Thanks for the replies, though not too encouraging for the Escape. I have access to a Ford employee discount which is why I'm looking at Ford again. Logan rides a lot, at least once a day on average, and he uses his styrofoam steps well so I'm not concerned about him getting in right now, but in a year who knows? Unfortunately I have never lifted him up into the car (or anywhere else), and I doubt he would like that much not being used to it. I think I will try lifting him in the house this week and see how he responds. If that is an option with him then the big rear opening of an SUV would probably be better than lifting and angling him through the back door opening of a sedan. Anyway, thanks for all the feedback, and I will update once we have made a vehicular transition :-)

So I currently have a 2016 Ford Fusion. Logan has a set of styrofoam stairs to get into the back seat (he can still jump in without those but is hesitant so I assume it hurts him) and he just lies down and seems happy back there. However, the Fusion just passed 100,000 miles, so I am looking for a new vehicle. Apparently Ford no longer makes sedans (shows how out of touch I am with the automotive industry :-) so I am looking at a Ford Escape, probably a model of the 2020-2022 redesign. My question is, if anyone has made a switch from a Fusion (or similar midsize sedan) to an Escape (or similar compact SUV), is it a lot more difficult for a senior greyhound to get in? Logan is almost 12.5 years old now, so I hate changing things up for him at this stage. I'm assuming he will like the extra room in back, I understand the back seats fold flat which is nice for him and I can add padding et cetera, but I'm a bit concerned about the SUV body style making it harder for him to get in and out. Any experiences? Any thoughts on how best to configure the back seats would also be appreciated. Thanks in advance...

At least Mark does look guilty in that first picture :-)

I switched from a grain-free kibble to regular kibble (usually IAMS or Purina Pro Plan, depending on what is available) due to the heart concerns with grain-free. Besides being cheaper, Logan seems to like it just as well (although in both cases it has cooked turkey, tuna, sardines, or something like that added :-) and best of all his bowel movements which were pretty, ah, fluid on the grain-free kibble have become much more solid. But I understand that is a pretty individual hound thing.

Any Grateful Dead fans?

That is interesting about his increased sensitivity to the alarm chirping. My Logan is just past twelve now as well, and he was definitely more sensitive to the sounds of fireworks than in previous years. (Like, first crack and he's dragging me back home :-)

Probably not aliens, more likely the CIA is behind it. They've done it before: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acoustic_Kitty

Congratulations! When I first skimmed through the pictures in the first post I saw the one with the cat on a bed, immediately followed by the one with the greyhound attacking something on a bed, and thought: That can't be good. (Then I read the captions :-)

Logan did not go out for a BM last night, due to the heat and getting scared by fireworks. (He is getting really sensitive to that, one "bang" and he is heading back home). So this morning was cooler and he finally got out, went almost two miles and dropped four loads :-) He was really tired when he got home, and as I was in the kitchen preparing his breakfast I turned around and saw this: He had actually dragged the boot into the living room last night, so it was available.

Happy 14th, Val!

Oh, he wants my coffee too! The pup cup is small and I usually get a large iced coffee. So he finishes by the time I've had two or three sips of the coffee, and then he tries to go for my coffee. Actually, I drink decaf nowadays, so I suppose a little bit of coffee would be ok for him?

Whipped cream, a small dog treat on top, and they add some sweetener, I think it is caramel. Basically their version of the Starbucks puppucdino.

So we recently found a local coffee shop that lets dogs in. And, they give them free pup cups! Logan was nervous the first couple times we went in, but now he runs to the door. We usually stop by on the weekend after a walk in the park, but this Sunday afternoon was hot enough we just stopped for (iced) coffee and the pup cup :-) Some gratuitous shots of him downing his pup cup: Thanks for looking!

Happy 13th Jagger. Good job training your owner to keep your sandpit in shape.

Logan was a leaner, even at our first meeting at the greyhound adoption agency. Still had to wait a week for the adoption to be approved though.

I picked up Logan on May 18, 2013, so nine years ago today. He is still doing well at 12 years 1 month now, though his walks have dropped down in distance a bit he still gets 2-2 1/2 miles per day in most days, over two or three walks. A couple pictures from his morning walk today: Ok, maybe he has lost some (all?) of his prey drive? Thanks for looking!

Thanks for the comments! Logan seems to be over the sore leg - he walked five miles (over four walks) yesterday, no limp that I could see at all. Sadly it was raining this morning and I'm back at work now, so he only got out this morning long enough to do his business :-(

It's Logan's 12th birthday today! He had a rough winter, slipped on ice and sprained his right rear leg, took several weeks to recover. But now he is back to his usual walks. A few pics from this morning: Getting ready for his walk (not happy about the delay for the pic): at the halfway point: and crashed after the walk: Happy birthday, buddy :-) Thanks for looking, - Rob

Quick follow-up here. Vet prescribed an additional pain pill on Monday, but did not recommend bandaging the foot again. Her big concern was to keep it rested. Logan actually started putting weight on it Monday evening when I took him out to go potty, so since it seemed to be improving I held off on the additional pain pill (still getting 2 vetprofen per day). He seems to be getting better each day, now he puts full weight on it and generally walks normally on our potty walks, though he is still holding it up sometimes especially right after he gets up after sleeping for a few hours. So I am feeling pretty good about his progress, big challenges are that he now wants to go for longer walks (I have kept him down to 0.5 mile of slow leash walking at most, and even that is difficult as he is quite stubborn and wants to go further), and of course we are supposed to get another ice snow/storm tonight. Thanks for all the information!