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ArrowOwner

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  1. ArrowOwner
    Hi, We have a wonderful 9 year old Brood Mom named Arrow. We've had her for 3 years and her personality is just the best - loving, easygoing, personable, active but not hyper. She won a lot of races and then had four litters of pups. I recently told a grey enthusiast she was a brood mom, and she said they were the most desirable greys and had the best personalities. I am wondering why this is the case? Is it because they've had more domestic experiences prior to adoption? Is it because having pups chilled them out and made them more caring? Just curious...
  2. ArrowOwner
    Hi! Our wonderful grey Arrow just had her first pools session. It was a benefit they do at the public pool before closing for the season. All the dogs get to have a free for all in the pool. She did great in shallow water and had a lot of fun, but seemed to struggle in the deep and we had to monitor closely and eventually just keep her away from areas where she couldn't touch the bottom. Any recommendations around swimming. Do greys do well in deep water with practice? Or should we avoid the deep all together? Also, do we need to bathe her now that she's been drenched in a chlorine treated pool? She is not itching or acting agitated in any way yet, but she's pretty much totally zonked at the moment from the swim. Would love any suggestions! Thanks as always!
  3. ArrowOwner
    Thank you this is very helpful! Tonight we will try and give her a portion of her dinner right before bed and see how it goes. Appreciate it!
  4. ArrowOwner
    HI All, Our wonderful blue brindle 7-year old Arrow is doing great since we got her last November. She has yet to conquer our staircase, which is a premise to a current issue we've noticed... We sleep upstairs and she sleeps downstairs in her doggie bed. Lately, about once every three days or so, she will start whining early in the morning. We tried to ignore it so as to not encourage it, but we were a bit worried so started going down. When we go down, her stomach is making growling noises as if it's upset. She then wants only to go out and eat grass. Usually after 10 minutes of this she's fine and is soon ready to eat her breakfast. It doesn't seem serious, but it does seem to be persisting. We're wondering if we feed her dinner too early (5:30pm) and she's getting overly hungry? Or could it be separation anxiety inducing the upset stomach? Again, It's not every day, only 2-3 times a week. Usually, especially if she's had a big day at the park or daycare the day before she just sleeps till we come down. Perhaps getting her to conquer the stairs and sleep upstairs would solve this? Any thoughts? Much appreciated!
  5. ArrowOwner
    Thank you! Any tips for how to begin with the steps? They are somewhat steep and narrow, which i think scares her, but they are thankfully carpeted. When she came over for her pre-adoption visit, we asked if she did stairs and they didn't know, so we showed them to her. She went right up them, no problem. But then she wouldn't go back down and seemed scared. I had to carry her down. She's never gone up since then. I feel like she remembers this incident and it scared her. Would love any suggestions as to how to get started! Thanks again!
  6. ArrowOwner
    Hi everybody, We've had our Arrow for about 8 months now and she's so wonderful. Things are going great. Her statue-ing was an issue at first, but it has improved quite dramatically. We have recently started to have a little issue with her whining in the middle of the night. One thing I should mention is that she will not go up the stairs, where our bedroom is. So she sleeps downstairs on her bed and we are upstairs. I've tried to work with her on the stairs, but she seems quite scared of them. When she whines in the middle of the night, I let her out but she mainly just eats a bit of grass and walks around a bit. It doesn't seem to be a bathroom emergency. Sometimes I give her a treat after she gets in and it seems to help get her back to sleep. She's been so great with no big signs of separation anxiety for 8 months, and we really hope this doesn't become a nightly thing. Any thoughts? Should be wait it out and let her whine until she gives up? Do you all think there could be a medical issue? Usually she goes through the night and is fine, but the issue does seem to be growing in frequency. Thank you all as always!
  7. ArrowOwner
    Thank you all for the heads up about rhabdomyolysis. I will try and keep her running jaunts spread out and during cooler weather in the summer. I've also noticed that she does love to lay in the sun and sometimes doesn't seem to realize she's getting really hot. I've noticed that if I toss her a couple of pieces of ice, she'll eat them and then tends to get in the shade; as if the ice reminds her that she's getting hot or something. Lots to learn! Thanks!
  8. ArrowOwner
    Hi All, Quick question about running: Our Arrow, whom we've had for about six months, is doing great. She's about seven years old, raced in about 60 races and was then kept for breeding racers (three litters of pups). Arrow is pretty chill at home, but she LOVES to run at the dog park and doggy day care. It's just now starting to get a bit hot outside, and we took her to the dog park this weekend. She did a big round of several loops, dazzling everyone with her speed and agility. After about 15-20 minutes, she went for the shade and was panting quite hard. We brought her home, got her lots of cold water. The panting kept going for a good while and she seemed overheated, we cooled her down with some cold wash cloths and it eventually stopped. We noticed the next few days she would have weird breathing things happen occasionally, almost like a weird little cough or snort. It's allergy season here, so that could be it. But I'm wondering for a dog her age, if you all have any advice as to how much they should run and if they can overdo it in the summer. I'm thinking 1-2 good runs a week, but maybe even that is too much in the heat? So appreciate this forum!
  9. ArrowOwner
    Hey y'all, Our wonderful new grey Arrow (going on 6 months) was a big time statuer on walks when we first got her. She's gradually improved and the walks generally go pretty well these days. However, this morning she was freezing big time in the driveway which is highly unusual. I then noticed that it was windy outside. The weather was nice otherwise, but the wind was significant and the big trees in the backyard were blowing around a fair amount. Do you all think that a windy day can be a factor in whether or not greys want to walk? So thankful for this forum. It's helped so much in learning the way of the grey. Cheers, John
  10. ArrowOwner
    Update: Vet said it was a staph infection. Antibiotics prescribed. It seems to be going away. Salmon oil helping with the dandruff. Thank you all so much!
  11. ArrowOwner
    Thanks! Anyone else have thoughts on coconut oil? Any bad reactions or experiences? We initially thought it was a god send, cause it really helped the dryness and flaking, plus she smelled great! But maybe it's not so good ???? .... Thanks again! John
  12. ArrowOwner
    Hi All: Our Arrow (had her four months now, going great, freezing is gradually improving) started having a lot of dandruff and dry skin during the normal shedding season. Today I noticed that one side of her upper belly is all red and seems to have several little red dots - looks like some kind of rash. We were giving her sardines once a week with food and rubbing some coconut oil on her topically. I tend to think it's not that cause most areas are fine. Any insights? Before noticing this spot today, her skin and dandruff seemed to be improving. By the way, I can't figure out how to upload a pic or I'd include one. I go to MyMedia, but it seems to never give me an options to actually upload. It asks for a category and when I select it just takes me to a viewing page for the category. I'd love to upload an image if possible. Thanks as always!
  13. ArrowOwner
    Hi All: We've had Arrow for almost 4 months. You all have been so helpful with her statue-ing issues (which are slowly beginning to improve). As the weather is gradually warming, she seems to be shedding a bit and we're noticing a fair amount of dandruff and some skin flaking particularly around her side/belly region. There's also a region of dry skin where her harness goes behind her front legs (the harness is absolutely necessary for her freezing issues unfortunately, though we only use it for longer walks). Can you all recommend products to help with her skin? We'd also hate for her to start losing a bunch of hair - she has such a beautiful coat. We've heard salmon oil (oral) and coconut oil (topical). Someone also suggested occasionally topping her food with some canned sardines. Thoughts on these or other remedies? Thank you as always - so thankful for this forum!
  14. ArrowOwner
    Yes, our Arrow (who is the greatest in every other way) is a deeply committed freezer. But I shall say we may be starting to turn a corner. Two new things are really helping: 1) Going on walks with other dogs who know how to walk on a leash. The next few walks after a group walk she does exceptionally well, as if she's understanding how it's done. 2) Learning her frequent freezing spots and giving her a big sniff of a high quality treat before we hit that spot. This way she's often focused on the treat and breezes through the freezing spot. I'm also trying to give her treats as rewards for walking well rather than throwing them out in front as lures. That worked when the freezing was really bad, but I don't think it's a great tool in terms of improving the freezing over time. More suggestions welcome!
  15. ArrowOwner
    Our grey was considered "cat workable" - meaning she did show a lot of interest in the cat though it was not considered aggressive or exhibiting prey drive behavior. We kept the muzzle and leash on during their first interactions, and if she approached the cat or stared too long, we'd just direct her towards her doggie bed. Now, three months in, she COMPLETELY ignores the cat - showing literally no interest at all. They sleep in the same room all day long sometimes (keeping their distance) and we don't feel the need to muzzle when we're away. We were pretty nervous about it at first, but it has turned out to not be an issue in the least. It helps to have a bold, non-skittish cat. Good luck!
  16. ArrowOwner
    UPDATE: So I have started box walking Arrow! She haaaaates it and is verrry bad at it. It's making me realize that she's really not prepared for big walks and maybe we rushed into them. I think she was used to walking with a group of foster greys, and she usually walks fine with a group. The freezing didn't emerge as an issue until she started doing solo walks regularly, which she maybe has never done before. She wants to be the leader and is very curious. So accordingly she is not good at me directing the walk in such a regimented way. But it makes me feel more determined to keep doing it. Would you keep it to the back yard? There is a small park a few blocks away, but there are lots of smells, sights and sounds along the way and even getting her there and back is a struggle. She wants to smell everything extensively and also seems to occasionally get spooked by the sound of a nearby train. It's a real eye opener seeing how badly she does at box walking. It's going to be a long term project to get her to improve I think. How long does box walking usually generate an improvement on longer walks for you? Thx!
  17. ArrowOwner
    Great! Thank you! This is very helpful. I will integrate this into our routine. She's improving, but still has some learning to do. Much appreciated!
  18. ArrowOwner
    Thank you all for your input. Yesterday was the first warmer, sunny day in some time, and I do believe our grey perked up a bit. So the seasonal thing seems to be a factor. One nice thing is that though she's less playful lately, she's very snuggly and affectionate during the cold weather!
  19. ArrowOwner
    Hi All: You've been so helpful with insight into our new grey's freezing issues. We're at the three month mark now and while it's still an issue, I do believe we are finding solutions and it is gradually beginning to improve (fingers crossed). I've noticed that over the past months, she's showing less and less interest in toys and she also seems less playful generally while in the house. It is of course February, and it's constantly grey and cold, so that may be playing a role. But I'm wondering if this is just normal settling in behavior or if it could suggest boredom or even depression? We have to keep her walks on the short end and nearby because of the freezing, but we take her to all day doggie day care two days a week (which she seems to love) and try to let her run once a week (though that's weather dependent). Is she just getting more comfortable? Adjusting to being a single dog? Or could it be signaling that she is less than happy in her new environment? She is 6.5 years old, so not a puppy. But she had a reputation for being playful with her foster, and that just seems to be less and less the case. Thanks so much for fielding all our questions as newbies - there' so much to learn!
  20. ArrowOwner
    You might want to discuss the situation with your adoption agency as some dogs will do better than others. Mine sometimes doesn't want to go out before bed, suggesting she can comfortably hold it for 12-14 hours. If there is a good doggy day care nearby, that might be a good option. Mine goes all day two days a week. She's completely zonked for the next 24 hours afterwards and it alleviates some of the need for me to exercise her. I try to take her to run once a week, but often times it's more like once every two weeks. Vet thinks she's in very good health.
  21. ArrowOwner
    What is "box walking" ?!?!?
  22. ArrowOwner
    It's good to hear the lifting and moving forward technique has had some success for you! Mine is still freezing, but I feel like that technique along with treats is beginning to thaw out the really deep, 30 min freezes. Now often times if I just touch the harness where the handle is, she starts moving.
  23. ArrowOwner
    I hear you, though with our dog, I feel it is generally less fear based. She is quite confident, and often much of her freezing is clearly about wanting to go greet other humans, pets or seek out smells rather than staying the course of the walk. Sometimes this is fine, if it's a friend or someone who wants to engage and I always try to be generous with her time for sniffing around. But for example, if we pass the mailman, he doesn't want to engage and will just keep going in the opposite direction on his route. This can completely upend a walk that was proceeding nicely, as the dog is just intensely curious about the mailman and wants desperately to turn around and get to him. She's extremely social, always the life of the party, and I feel that this is a big part of her freezing - she just has her own agenda on the walks. So it's tricky, I want her to be able to explore and meet people and so on, but sometimes we need to keep going. My tendency lately as been to take her to a field or empty lot and just kind of let her take the lead and sniff around wherever she wants, then I take her home. It's not ideal but I feel it helps to let her do her own thing for part of the walk. We're now at the 3 month mark. We love her so much and everything else is a dream, be we really hope this improves. Holding out hope for a change with the warmer weather.
  24. ArrowOwner
    Hi All: I posted this in a related thread, but am really curious for any input you all might have... Regarding Freezing/Statuing: Does anyone have thoughts about "waiting it out" vs "letting the dog know whose boss"? With ours, if we wait it out, we've learned it could be a looooong wait, and we just don't always have time for that in our hectic schedules. With the harness, I've begun to immediately lift her up and forward when she statues (it may take two or three times, but it tends to get her going). Sometimes I worry it is too forceful, but it doesn't seem to bother her and I feel she is beginning to show signs of self-correction when she starts to statue, as if she knows it's not going to stop the walk from proceeding. When she does get going I give her lots of praise and I try to be very consistent with an encouraging "let's go" whenever I lift the harness up. It really beats picking her up and carrying her. Any thoughts on this approach as opposed to waiting it out?
  25. ArrowOwner
    Does anyone have thoughts about "waiting it out" vs "letting the dog know whose boss"? With ours, if we wait it out, we've learned it could be a looooong wait, and we just don't always have time for that in our hectic schedules. With the harness, I've begun to immediately lift her up and forward when she statues (it may take two or three times, but it tends to get her going). Sometimes I worry it is too forceful, but it doesn't seem to bother her and I feel she is beginning to show signs of self-correction when she starts to statue, as if she knows it's not going to stop the walk from proceeding. When she does get going I give her lots of praise and I try to be very consistent with an encouraging "let's go" whenever I lift the harness up. It really beats picking her up and carrying her.
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