nycinpdx

I did the same, and yes, it's much more comfortable. Thanks so much - I'm so glad too!

I contacted Lap of Love via their website and they called me within 15 minutes. Thank you for that advice @MandysMom - they were really lovely. No pressure to pay anything, they sent me a bunch of links to helpful info, including a daily assessment that is a life saver! I'm glad I didn't go with Blue Pearl, and thanks for the confirmation @cleptogrey. I contacted them and didn't get a good vibe. And I'm aware that he's an old dog and will likely not be with me much longer. I understand that we've all been under a lot of stress during the last three years, especially vets, and even though he's not perfect feel good about him. (His previous long-term vet moved out of the state during covid.) I appreciate your concern, and as much as I desire a stressless time, I appreciate that life gives us what it does. Thank goodness for this forum and help from loving people like all of you! Re: the latest, he's doing well, considering. He's enjoying his food, he's walking longer and better, I eliminated Trazodone at night after learning it can make dogs urinate more frequently, and added CBD so at we're both now sleeping better. (I'm still downstairs on the floor with him, but added more padding!) I feel sane again. I know this only goes one way, but that's true for all of us, so I'm doing the best I can for him on his/our journey! Thanks again.

I've wondered about this. Did you use Blue Pearl Pet Hospice?

Thank you all for your helpful and thoughtful responses. Leo and I have had a spell of good days, and he seems to be enjoying life as much as a 12-year-old Leo can. We can't walk as long as we used to, but he is able to sniff and pee on most of the things. This is SO helpful. When Leo came out of the water treadmill without the ability to stand on his back legs last week, I saw for the first time how instinctual it can be to know where the line is when it comes to keeping them alive. It was like a gut-punch. Thankfully, like I said, he's back to walking, and I'm supplementing with Myos Muscle Formula which should help steady him. Luckily he's now only 60 pounds (he was originally 85!) and I can get him in and out of the car relatively easily, without hurting myself too much. And he is DEFINITELY a spoiled boy, although I feel sure he doesn't think so. I have considered reaching out to my ex, but it's been lovely having him out of my life all these years, and the idea of inviting him back in is a deterrent. However, my housemate stayed downstairs with Leo this weekend all day Saturday so that I could go upstairs and take a long bath and then a nap in my bedroom in my own bed! It was glorious! Thank you for your suggestions and reminders about good quality of life and giving myself a break. Unfortunately, a dog door is not an option. (I wish!) We have too many steps to get to the ground in the backyard, and he really struggles with them. Yes, thank you for this! He is still able to get up and down from his bed and go for walks. He enjoys his meals and seeing his people (and neighbor dogs). I am concerned about a crisis. He's recently had lab work and x-rays which all look good. He seems to be in good health according to his vet, which adds a bit to my confusion. (Again, he's my first dog.) Part of my reason for reaching out here is to get an idea of what could happen, while understanding, of course, that no one can predict the future. I love your idea of sitting with Leo and asking him what he wants. It'll be interesting to see what he says. (He's a very talkative hound. ) Yes, I'm in Portland, OR, and have Compassionate Care's information in my phone for when the time comes. Are they able to give advice prior to the decision to euthanise? And I should be able to have a more in-depth discussion with his PT vet in a couple of weeks at our next follow-up, where I can ask better questions about what to expect. You all are wonderful! Thank you for your care and please give all of your pups scritches and hugs from me and Leo!

I'm hoping someone can help me with my 12-1/2 year old greyhound Leo. I've had him since he was 1-1/2. He has had a multitude of health issues over the years, and he now has arthritis, disc issues, hypothyroidism, mitral valve disease and some weakness and neuropathy in his back legs. I started taking him to PT about three months ago since he became unable to climb the stairs to my bedroom and started struggling during walks. The journey's been up and down and all around. The PT vet is amazing, and he's had adjustments and acupuncture and shock therapy, and I am able to do TENS treatments now from home. They tried the water treadmill last week and he was unable to use his back legs at all. Now he's got feeling back so the treatments are much more conservative, with mobility and other manual strength exercises. I love him, of course, but he is challenging many ways. He's very needy and barks if I'm out of his sight for too long...like five-ten minutes. (Unless he's asleep, or, strangely, left completely alone in the house.) So, at night I have been sleeping downstairs with him on the couch or on a roll out bed on the floor. He also needs to go out in the middle of the night to pee and/or poop 9 nights out of ten, usually about 11:30 and then again at 4-5 am. So, it also just makes sense to stay downstairs since we'll need to go out anyway. I cannot keep this up. And I can only afford his care, of course, if I keep working, but I may not be able to keep working if I keep this up. I have him because although my ex-husband wanted him, he bonded to me, and I was willing and able to care for him. I am trying my best to care for him and do his daily exercises, but I also work full-time from home, and between taking him out 6-9 times a day, feeding him by hand due to his cervical issues, and all of the other Leo-related tasks (including driving him to and from PT once a week) I'm losing it. I'm basically a wreck, between body pain from sleeping on the couch/floor and extreme fatigue from never sleeping through the night. He's on of drugs and supplements of course: gabapentin and l-thyroxine and enalapril and trazodone just to name a few. (Though I'm starting to reduce trazodone because although it knocks him out, which is wonderful, when he's awake he's unsteady and unable to walk.) Another hitch to all of this is that I have a roommate, so I can't just let him bark at night while I sleep in my bed and am hesitant to leave him alone because if she's home he'll bark constantly. I have no idea how all of this will play out and am looking for advice and information from those with more experience. I know that he can die suddenly from something unexpected, but he can also go on for years. What will those years be like, especially if he's losing feeling in his back legs and is having trouble walking? As most of you may know, it's hard to get much time with your vet to have this kind of conversation post-covid. If there's someone else I should talk to, or something else I can read, please let me know. Thanks for any help you can provide!

This greyhound corn cream worked for Leo: https://glutathionepharmacist.com/product.html?id=0a498e18-eb73-11e6-e8a3-0b2f21afbb7d. I’ve only had to buy one jar and it has resolved his corns—I haven’t had to think about them for years. (I still keep it in the refrigerator just in case!) It’s a bit of a regimen but I followed it every time corns popped up and eventually they were gone for good.🤞🏽Good luck!

I know this is a late post, but if you're still needing something for the corn, pick up some Greyhound Corn & Callus Cream and Hyaluronic Acid from Murray Apothecary at https://maapgh.com/greyhound-corn-cream.html. My greyhound Leo started limping two years ago and his vet couldn't figure out what it was. Once I identified the corn, she would hull it, but the hulling didn't make any difference, so I scoured the interwebs until I found information about the corn cream, bought it, and started using it. It's not cheap, but you don't need much and the jar's lasted two years. I would apply it twice a day per the instructions, and later bought a Therapaw boot that alleviated the limping while treating it. Since 2019 there have been a number of occurrences, with the corn cream working to the extent that he could walk bootless and pain-free, only to have the corn come back and the treatment start again...until FINALLY it's truly gone for good! (We have other issues, of course, because he's a ten year old greyhound, but the corn is not one of them!) Anyway, it works! Hope this helps someone!