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turbotaina

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    Belly Band or Wrap Recommendations for Male Incontinence?

    in Health and Medical discussion

    Posted

    Been a long time since I posted here!  Heyokha is now 12.5 and has gotten incontinent at night (and if he’s sleeping hard during the day). I’ve tried using the “male wraps” from Petsmart, but like many greyhounds, H’s penis is set back farther between his legs, so the wrap doesn’t adequately cover it and it scrunches up and doesn’t catch all the urine. Any recommendations for wraps, belly bands or diapers that can keep him (and the bed) dry at night?

    (And yes, I am working with my vet on the problem itself, but trying to keep him comfortable (and bedding dry) as much as possible.)

    Tick Preventative with Advantage Multi?

    in Health and Medical discussion

    Posted

    On 9/14/2020 at 7:57 AM, ramonaghan said:

    We used Bravecto for a few years and it was very effective and convenient since it was only every 3 months. However, Sweep hated the taste and detected it in anything we tried disguising it with, so we gave up wrestling her and switched to Simparica. It's a monthly but works great and she takes it easily in a pill pocket. 

    Thanks!

    Healthy Paws Massive Rate Increase

    in Everything else Greyhound

    Posted · Edited by turbotaina

    Also, Here4thdogs, Ouch!  I know dobies have more health issues than greys, but ouch! Even with my premium increase, I’m under $200 a month for the two of mine (I think it’s like $180) and they’re 11 and 8.  I’m not in CA, but I’m in the metro DC area, which is just as expensive. Ugh.

    Healthy Paws Massive Rate Increase

    in Everything else Greyhound

    Posted

    I am getting my massive rate increase this year. My premium is going up by about $50 a month.  When I asked, they gave me the same “catching up with local rates” spiel and the fact that H is turning 11 this year.  I’ll keep it, because the alternative isn’t better.  We didn’t even meet the deductibles last year for either of them (which is good, from a health stance :) ).  But after having gone through a $16k crisis, I won’t be without health coverage for my dogs again.

    How to stop barking

    in Training and Behavior discussion

    Posted

    Seeing this a month late because I'm rarely on the board these days, but not only do you need to ignore the barking, you need to REWARD the quiet. Remember that even yelling at him is giving him attention (which is what he wants) so don't do it. Do not respond. He will escalate before he gets better (this is called an extinction burst).  Reward the behaviors you want and he's more likely to repeat them.  To understand the science-y part of positive reinforcement training, I highly recommend "Don't Shoot the Dog" (Karen Pryor) and "Culture Clash" by Jean Donaldson.  I'd also enroll in a positive reinforcement training class so you can get a good understanding of timing, etc.  In your other thread regarding his energy levels, you intimated that teaching him commands was akin to torture.  You don't need to be the bad guy to teach him good behaviors.  And if he's food motivated (and it sounds like he is, what with the butter theft :lol) he should be easy to train.  Another bonus:  training tires them out.  Remember the more exercise he has, the fitter he is, the more exercise he needs.  Training tires out their little lemon brains, so it's a good way to contain all that energy.  Training should be fun and engaging for both of you.  One of my two is super freaking smart (learned how to ride a skateboard in his tricks class!) and would love it if we were in a training class every day. The other one is not bright and training moderately stresses him out. But he's easy to live with so I don't push the issue :lol

     

    Iso Advice For My Anxious Grey

    in Training and Behavior discussion

    Posted

    What else have you tried? Have you done *any* Alone Training?

     

    Search for threads here on separation anxiety and read through them. Get the book "I'll Be Home Soon" by Patricia McConnell, it have tons of good advice and stretegies to follow.

     

    Try baby gating her in a room that has been dogproofed and is easily cleanable. The crate is not going to work anymore now that she's learned she can break out of it. It's dangerous and she could seriously hurt herself.

     

    All this.

     

    My dog is on fluoxetine and clonazepam for noise phobia (terrified of booming noises such as thunder and fireworks and gun shots). His personality flattened a lot - he was no longer playful or snuggly. When we reduced his clonazepam over the winter, his personality came back (though he's still not as snuggly as he once was; at least he'll play now). So yes, the drugs may be playing a part, but my guess is that it's likely the general anxiety. There are several pharmaceutical options for separation anxiety (including the two drugs my dog takes for noise phobia) and I don't know what your dog is on, but you should discuss with the vet. And yes, you absolutely need to do alone training in conjunction with the meds - the meds basically take the edge off to make the dog receptive to learning. If you search here for separation anxiety, see if you can find threads by a woman named Glynnis or Glenda, I think? She had a greyhound named Lady irrc and she had to do SA training in BABY steps. And she was ultimately successful.

     

    Best of luck to you!

    One Month In - The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly.

    in Introductions & Biography

    Posted

    My guys never did well on the Costco food, however they do great on Fromms 4 Star Nutritionals line - you can switch out the proteins with no transition so they can get lots of variety.

     

    You need to do alone training. A good place to start is Dr. Patricia McConnell's booklet "I'll be Home Soon".

     

    Good luck! Lovely pup :)


    Also, I appreciate how your kitty in the cone of shame is lording the dog bed :lol

    Cannot Teach Stella Anything

    in Training and Behavior discussion

    Posted

    You also may want to start with something a little easier so she understands that she gets the treat in exchange for doing something. This is why "touch" is a good first step to teach. With Heyokha, my other greyhound, at the second week of training, a light turned on and he suddenly understood "the game" and started offering behaviors like crazy.

    Cannot Teach Stella Anything

    in Training and Behavior discussion

    Posted · Edited by turbotaina

    Sounds like my dog, Crow. He is not bright. At all. After 6 weeks in a training class, the only thing he learned is "touch" and he's even hesitant at that one. Some dogs, it just take a loooong time to click. Start small and reward any tiny movement of the paw, even something so subtle as shifting her weight. Also - up the treat game - make it something super yummy: people food like chicken, hot dogs or cheese. Good luck!

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