NewGrey2017

My dog does not care for other dogs. He either ignores them, growls at them or for those little yippee dogs we encounter on our walks, he barks at them. Then one day, a lady pulled her car over and said she lived a few doors away and had a greyhound too. So, I followed her and she brought out a female grey (mine's male). Well, I don't know if you remember those old cartoons where the male dog's eyes pop out of his head and his heart leaps out of his chest, but that's about what happened. He was in heaven. The female thought he was just okay, but wanted to get back to her couch and keep her options open. So, the point being, if you can find a greyhound play group near you, that may be worthwhile for you and your hound.

My deepest sympathy for your loss. At least your dog experienced kindness during her last days. As for the hookworms, our grey adopted in late October 2017 was in the 3+ hookworm territory all the way until February. We finally got two clean reports in a row, but will retest in a few weeks. Our experience was similar, lots of money, time, meds, etc. He had and still has very loose stool to diarrhea. He was absolutely ravenous when we got him and continues to prize food above anything. However, never the blood issue you experienced. Ours was 3 1/2 when we got him. How old was Soji? If she was older, perhaps the infestation went unchecked for a longer period? There are a ton of threads on this site about new greyhounds with hookworms. It seems to be epidemic and the strains seem resistant to treatment, but as an owner who battled them, it can be overcome. I truly hope you decide to get another greyhound. You sound like exactly the kind of people a greyhound deserves and vice versa.

1 for 1 on greyhounds with hookworms, and they are difficult to terminate.

About 20 years ago, my wife and I had friends who had a true rage syndrome dog. It attacked them as they slept one night and the husband was lucky to get a pillow in front of his throat. The dog drove him across the bed. 5 minutes later it was as if nothing had happened. This isn't like that. The growling and snapping at us was classic resource guarding. That has improved to the point where I can pet him on his bed, pet him while he eats and we play tug of war with toys. This aggression is primarily directed at my kids' friends. He does not like anyone to approach him from behind and when we walk, he often looks behind him. We just took a short walk (too hot for him) and he snatched a bug out of the air, so his reflexes/eyesight are keen. If he truly wanted to bite someone, he wouldn't miss. I have another thread where I was asking about him turning "purple". I don't think that is related since a lot of other people have had a similar experience. He has had bloodwork and poop work as a result of his hookworm battle, but maybe something more extensive is in order. 99% of the time, he is a good boy, although somewhat aloof. My wife thinks he is protecting our kids and that is why this is directed at their friends. The charging into other rooms barking could be related to a noise he heard that I can't hear. Not sure. Getting that on film would difficult unless we filmed him 24/7. We agree that this is fear based. I try not to correct when it's us but when it is a guest, I do grab his collar and lead him away. I should mention perhaps that all of the kids he has done this to have dogs of their own. Not sure if that could be a factor. I'll get a vet appointment for this week if I can. @NeylasMom We are in western Fairfax county. If that is anywhere near you I'd be interested in pursuing this further. Thanks.

'I'm looking for a behavior modification specialist in the Northern Virginia area. Here's the deal. We've had the dog 6 months. He has always had a bit of a temper. But lately, it is getting worse and not directed at our family, but at our friends and our kid's friends. This afternoon he has snapped at my son's friend and my other son's girlfriend. These are older kids, 14 and 16, and they approach him very cautiously and with their hand out for him to sniff. He growls, snaps and lunges. We're going to start muzzling him when people are over, but that is not a long term solution for him or us. He has yet to make contact, which is the primary reason he is still with us. Beyond feeling absolutely horrible, I couldn't take the lawsuit that would ensue. In the past two hours he has attacked "phantoms". He has growled and charged barking into empty rooms. This is escalating unfortunately. We suspected that he was starting to view our house as his den and was trying to protect it, but he just snapped at my son's girlfriend out front. He has snapped/growled/lunged at all of us at one time or another. He goes after us less, but our friends and family more. I'd like to keep him, so hoping someone knows a qualified professional who can help us out. Thanks.

Now it is monthly, but it was advanced while he was positive.

When mine was 3+ with hooks, he was starving all the time. The vet used to say the hookworms were stealing his nutrients/protein. So, I would say your hypothesis is plausible.

I strive to remain emboweled at all costs.

When mine is super excited, he will mouth you, do a lap around the house, then kangaroo punch you when he comes back around. I have learned to sidestep the double fisted punch like a matador.

Mine is taking the Advantage Multi. Got 2 clean fecal reports in a row. It does make him smell for a couple days. We'll probably get him tested again around June. He stepped in another dog's pile while we were walking the other day. These non-picker-uppers who walk my same path better not let me catch them.

Mine does it when I get home and uncrate him or when he's very excited. I kind of like it. He also snaps at me when he's grouchy. It's just who he is at this juncture. I'm hopeful to get rid of the grouchy snapping and keep the happy nibbling. Of course, I have no plan for either.

Thanks to all for responding. Though we do have a fenced yard (3.5 foot picket), I don't let him out there to lounge. Between the hookworm and the diarrhea, I monitor his outside activity 100%. Also, we haven't had a whole lot of sun since we got him and they are calling for snow again this weekend. This is the south for pete's sake! I'm transitioning to the 3rd different kind of dog food (IAMS green bag) and perhaps that is having an impact. Also, I switched from Interceptor to Advantage Multi (topical) to battle the hookworms, so that could have an impact as well I suppose. But so far the consensus seems to be let purple dogs lie, which is what I was hoping to hear.

Okay, perhaps purple is a strong choice. I'm not real good with colors but a brownish/light purplish hue. He's a 3.5 year old red fawn male that we have had for 5 months. We finally won a 4 month battle (not the war) with hookworms and are just now getting to the point where every poop he takes is not diarrhea. His butt hair has mostly grown back from his track days. All good things. Over the past few months, his "undercoat" has been darkening. It is easiest to see it on his belly. His belly used to be mostly white. The "purple" is creeping down from the sides. He now has some speckling and the strip of white on his belly has become narrower. Many of his nipples have darkish rings around them, whereas they used to be hard to find. His legs seem darker than before. Meanwhile.....if anything, he seems healthier and happier. I've had some powerful vet bills since adoption to get him healthy, fully vaccinated, dewormed, etc., so I don't want to haul him to the vet for another load of tests to find out that....yep, he's purple. So, I'm inclined to do nothing, nickname him Barney and take a wait and see approach. But, I don't want to be one of those owners who ignored their dog's transition to muppet until it was too late. Anyone have a similar experience or able to comment that my dog will probably explode if I don't get this looked at?

We got our grey in Oct 2017 and he still has many of these same issues. The food and toys are exactly as you described. He never had interest in the couch or bed and has a bed of his own in our room, the family room and in his crate. These issues are improving, but far from gone. What is changing is our reaction to them. We have learned to treat them as moments in time and when they are over, they are over. Now, granted, he has never actually connected with a bite. He still growls quite a bit and will occasionally snap. I initially viewed this as aggression but have come to realize that if he was truly aggressive, only one of us would be walking away. For meals, I generally stand there and give him a few pieces of kibble by hand from his bowl before I set it down. We've hit the point where i can pet his head as he starts to eat, but I don't linger there. Toys we started grabbing when he had no interest and getting him interested. Sometimes now he will play tug of war with me. We can usually approach him on his bed now. But last night he growled at me and when I didn't move away fast enough he snapped. Again, he didn't make contact but it's hard to get used to the snap. Initially we were trying to "correct" his growl, but as I've read here as well as elsewhere, the growl is good because it's a warning. Agree with all greysmom said above. Hopefully time and consistency will pay off for you. Just wanted to chime in so that you didn't feel like you were the only one this was happening to.

WW Sole Society. 68 races. 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th Grade AA 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 Grade A 1 0 0 0 1 1 3 5 Grade B 3 0 0 4 3 2 5 2 Grade C 5 2 4 3 3 2 4 3 Grade D 1 1 2 0 0 0 1 0 GR Maiden 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 GR Mixed B 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 11 3 6 8 9 6 13 12

Mine does it all the time. I just assumed he was in witness protection.

Our boy is a poop walker.

Mine will eat anything, anyplace, anytime EXCEPT Drontal. That, we had to wrap in ham to get in him. We started with the Kirkland food and transitioned to the Sensitive Stomach just because we were trying to put his stomach right. I'm going to give the IAMS green bag a shot, but if that doesn't improve anything we might just go back to the Kirkland brand. We still give about 3 tbsp of the Olewo Carrots per day. Olewo also makes a dehydrated beet product, but I have not tried that.

No change on that front I'm afraid. Still 1 good, 2-4 bad, 1-3 terrible. I've decided with this continued good news I'm just going to give him a break from the non-standard meds. We'll keep going with the Frontline and the Advantage Multi. But I'm going to give him a break from other meds for a month or two and just deal with the results. I might do another box of Fortiflora, although it didn't make a huge difference. My vet suggested Proviable, so perhaps that instead. I'm transitioning him to IAMS green bag mini chunks from Pro Plan Salmon and Rice sensitive stomach, just to see if it makes any change. The vet said we could try Royal Canin Hydrolyed Protein, but that might require me to get a second job. I might try a bag of it, but I couldn't afford to make that his primary food. Between being with us nearly 5 months now and improving his health, he is becoming a new dog. He is more impish. Last evening he stole my hat. When I was petting him, he was trying to bite me (playfully, not hard) which is a recent trait. It is enjoyable to watch him transition.

Is there a particular song or dance that goes with this? 2 in a row! Thank you for bringing a fecal sample. We have gotten those results back and no ova or parasites were seen at this time. Please continue your monthly dose of flea, tick & heartworm preventative.

Yes. Drontal impacts my boy the same way.

When mine threw up from the Drontal (both times) it was pretty much all of dinner and still....um....looked like dinner. He would have eaten it if we let him. Drontal is very tough on my dog's stomach, so messy stool would be part of the package.

Once off metronidazole, his poop has returned to some good, some bad and some liquid. Right now, I'm just dealing with the diarrhea and trying to walk him in wooded areas not in people's yards. I still pick up everything I can, no matter what form it takes. (Wish I could say that for others who walk the same path.) Poor guy has been on so many meds since I got him, I thought I'd give his body a break since he currently has no immediate medical issues.

I had the same impression of the Advantage. There is a lot of liquid to get on him. I did it in 3 spots about 2 inches apart down his back to use all of it. According to my vet, you can re-test for hook 7-10 days after the treatment of choice. No clue on giardia. Someone earlier mentioned having used metronidazole to treat giardia. I can't comment on that use for it, but my dog has been on metronidazole 3 times and it really improved his poop.

What worked for my dog was the Advantage Multi topical on a Friday followed by Drontal Plus on Saturday. This took him from 3+ hookworm level to 0. We had to break the Drontal into half pills and space throughout the day to get it in him and keep it down. We had to put it in the most cherished treats. By the third half pill he wouldn't even take it with peanut butter. We made sure to be home for 48 hours while giving Drontal because the first time we gave the whole dose around 5PM and he threw up around 2AM. Then there was a struggle to keep him from "re-ingesting" the product. (You haven't lived until you've challenged a snarling hound at 2AM over who gets ownership of the barf!) After reading a lot on this site and other websites, I am of the opinion (my opinion, not fact) that there are different strains of hookworm in different parts of the country that react differently to different treatments. So, while panacur may have worked great for some, my dog did 3 rounds of it and stayed 3+ the entire time. My dog came from the track at Wheeling, WV straight to us. When we got him the agency gave us 1/2 a Drontal to give the next day. Then he went on Heartguard and when we got the hookworm diagnosis, panacur. Our vet wrote to the greyhound group at OSU who do a lot of work with West Virginia based dogs. That is where the protocol above came from.