Sighthounds4me

I have been told that Immodium works by slowing the action of the gut, so it absorbs more of the water, thus leading to more solid poo. But it also slows the "vacating" of the culprit behind the diarrhea. This is the reason that many vets no longer recommend it, and the same reason I don't like to use on on myself if I can help it.

FANTASTIC news!!! So happy!!!

I've been following this, and praying for Dude and his family! I am THRILLED that he is on his way home!! That is SO AWESOME!!!

Not SA. And I don't think you really need anything to calm him, other than more exercise. Give him a good, long walk or run in the morning before you head off to work. Sounds to me like he's a normal dog, doing normal dog things!

We find that a humidifier makes a huge difference! In addition, you can do fish oil or other skin supplementation (but I see that you are doing that already). As for moisturizers, you'll probably want to do one that is designed for pets, so it does not get them goopy. Sprays seem to work well. My favorite is Quicker Slicker by Nature's Specialies. It's tough to find, but SO worth it! I spray on liberally, then massage in, and let it sit (it is a leave-on conditioner). I've also used the Lusterizer by Miracle Coat with good luck, and a conditioning spray from Vet's Best. They are more widely available, at places like Petco and Petsmart. You can also use a rinse out conditioner when you bathe, much like you'd do with your own hair. I warm it first, buy placing the bottle in the sink with warm water (otherwise the dog gets shocked), but you don't have to. Then I apply it all over, and massage in (the dog LOVES this). Then I let it sit for at least 5 minutes, to really soak into the skin. Then rinse with lukewarm water. For shampoos, I really like Plum Silky, also by Nature's Specialties. It's very highly concentrated, so I dilute a 16 oz. bottle into a gallon, then refill the bottle. But it's a conditioning shampoo, so it's also very good for the skin. For conditioners, I like Aloe Re-Moisturizer or Oatmeal Creme Rinse, also by Nature's Specialties. And no, I don't work for this company! I just have not found much I like better than this company!

Gunnar had it, and I had a bitch (non-Grey) that had it when I was in my teens. Gunnar was neutered when he was 2, and we got him at 9. My intact male does not have it (at least, not that I've noticed, though he does have a LOT of hair!), and none of his breeders' boys have it, either, intact or neutered.

I would fast the dogs for 24-26 hours. No food at all, not even treats. Provide plenty of water, though. As Ola said, the fasting gives the gut a chance to calm down and heal. After the fast, boil lean hamburger or chicken, and some rice. (If you use hamburger, be sure you rinse well. I usually put in into a colander, and use the sink sprayer with HOT water). Feed this only for 24 hours, then gradually reintroduce kibble. I agree, it's possible that you have a bad bag of food. I would contact the store where you bought it, and ask if they've had problems with this lot, and what their policy is in cases like this. Also, taking a sample to the vet is not a bad idea. I understand that it might be difficult, but if you talk to the staff, they can probably give you an idea of how to do it, or maybe they'll ask you to bring the dogs in, and they have ways of making it happen... Good luck!

To try to heal up the irritated pads, soak his feet in an epsom salt solution. The package will tell you how much to use. Them when his feet are dry, you can apply Bag Balm (available at any farm supply store, and often through catalogs). This will help moisturize and heal.

I agree with Cathy. My Naples is 8, and is still a bouncy puppy. She will never grow up! Teeth are not always bad... you probably got a dog with good genetics, that leads to good teeth. Naples is the opposite: she's always had awful teeth, even back when we adopted her at age 2.

If you notice a funky odor, often fishy, it can be a sign, as well. Oh, and I should add: Many, if not most, dogs rarely, if ever, have problems with anal glands. If the stools are firm on a regular basis, you generally have nothing to worry about.

Good for her, and for you, DeVon!!!

Beer works better than Nature's Miracle? Really?! What a waste of beer...I thought we were supposed to drink it! What type do you recommend, Lynn? I prefer to drink dark ales, so could I use an IPA to clean up after doggie accidents?

Might be the beginning of "bald thights," as he sheds his track coat? How long have you had him?

So if we have Clavamox (a leftover from what we thought was a vaginal infection in Naples, and turned out not to be), would you think we can use that as a pre-dental antibiotic? Obviously, I will talk to out vet, and see what they suggest, but it will save us money, since we already have it.

We've always done well on clindamycin. We rarely have stomach upsets over the course of a week of abx!

The trouble with this is that heat can damage the effectiveness of some supplements. I wanted to make treats with Doc's Blend, but the makers say the baking would damage the product. You might want to check into that before baking into treats or the like... I did, however, make "frosty paws" with it: mix yogurt, PB and mashed banana with the supplement in a blender or food processor, and freeze in individual servings. Most supplements do fine if frozen.

Yogurt works, and you can freeze it, for future use, if desired. There are also many gravies and the like out there these days. You could get those, mix the supplement in, and freeze individual portions.

Except that in greyhounds and other long boned breeds, the growth plates don't close until around 1 year old if not later. Greyhounds are NOTORIOUSLY slow to mature. Many bitches don't have their first season until after 2 years old, and neither bitches nor dogs acheive their peak weight until then. For pet dogs, it's a pretty moot point. The dog will live a normal life, either way. Lynn My thoughts exactly...

I'm so sorry for you, having to make this decision! I have to say that, given the choice, I would much rather have the vet come to my pet's home. They are much more comfortable, and it's likely to be easier on them to do it this way. And, if you have other pets, they will know. They will not be as likely to wonder "Where did she go?" When Gunnar left us, we were able to do it in his favorite sunny spot in the living room. He went very peacefully, and that made it easier for us to deal with. Naples and Cooper *knew* he was gone, so they were able to grieve better. With King-kitty, he was in DH's arms. Cooper walked to him, and buried his nose in King's tummy (soemthing he liked to do - kitty torture. It was fun to get King to squeak!). He then walked to me with a terribly confused, yet understanding look on his face, as if to say, "Mom! He's gone!" He simply *knew*, and was at peace right away. Besides that it was much easier in King, and DH and I... Best of luck in whatever your decision. And again, I am so sorry!

I am kinda thinking that the breeders and/or people they breed dogs for would prefer not to have their dogs face any type of health problems, before or after they retire. Jenn Well, you would hope so. But my impression is, and has always been, that racing Greyhound breeders care primarily about money. Meaning that they are going to breed the best racers to the best racers, and hope to come up with even better racers. While they care about the puppies' health as it applies to this end, yes, they will breed healthy pups. But after they retire and are petted out, the breeders do not care, mainly because it's very difficult to keep up. Having said that, I am sure there are plenty who do care. And I suspect as more and more adoption groups work to place Greyhounds as pets, even more racing breeders will start to realize that long-term health is important. But it's still not like a reputable breeder of show stock, for example. Breeders like my boys' breeder, for example, breed rarely, and very responsibly. My boys are a part of their most recent litter, and will be 5 years old in March! So for them, it's far easier to keep up on health, because they own dogs from the litters they breed (for their whole natural lives), and keep in contact with buyers of the pups. They can follow the health of the parents, and grandparents, as well as following the health of each pup. It's harder for commercial breeders of racing Greys to do that, because they breed far more... BUT, the good new sis, with the age of the internet, it's far more possible that sources such as Greytalk, and other databases may just make it easier to moniter long-term health of dogs bred by racing breeders.

I hear a lot of people claiming the wonders of fish oil, or other supplements. I am sure there is an affect on some dogs, but I wonder how much of it is just the fact they aren't traiing at the intensity they were before and the adoptor puts it on a supplement soon after adopting them? Has anyone out there had a dog retired for a while, say a year or more, with no growth on their thghs, then tried a supplement that had a positive affect? Yes! We had Naples for about 2 (maybe even 3, I have to think back now) years when we started her on Hair of the Dog. We had tried a couple of other supplements, with limited results. While she does not have fully-hairy thighs, and probably never will, her bald spots are a lot smaller now. Her scars have also filled in well, and the skin is a lot lighter in color. The quality of her skin and coat is a lot nicer, too.

I agree with this. And for the record, I know racing Whippets (who race for fun, and are their owners' pets when not running) who have bald thighs too. So the exercise-induced hormone theory seems to be a good one.

Yep! I use plain old acidophilus capsules, too. Actually, there are flavored wafers out there too, which seem to go over pretty well here. You should wait about an hour after the antibiotic, though, or the med will just kill the good guys, too.

Ooo - I've never heard that one! I will have to keep that in mind! Sounds like a really good idea!

As far as marking behavior: MANY bitches will be markers, Greyhounds or otherwise. They are also more sneaky about it, because they don't *have* to lift their legs (though some chose to do so. Interesting aside: Leg-lifting in males is a learned behavior. Not all males do it, because they may not have seen another male do it. And some that are exposed to other leg-lifing males don't bother... I've also heard that activity level can play a role (at least, that's another theory). More active Greys and Whippets (like racers, for example) are more likely to show the baldness. Not that genetics is to be ruled out. I'm sure that is a factor, as well.