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Hi all! looking for some help. Occasionally when my dog is lying down I notice this movement under his skin mainly his hind left cheek almost like a little muscle pulse? Is this normal?

Hi, I can't find my old log in, so have registered again. This is a sad not to let everyone know that Peggy the black greyhound has passed. She had muscle weakness and arthritis issues which had been medicated for quite a while. This morning she lost the use of her back legs and was unable to support herself any more. So I lifted her in the car and took her to the local veterinary practice. They agreed that it was her time and she passed in the back of the car very very peacefully. September 2007 to September 14 2022. She just made it to 15. I'm so sad to have needed to let her go, but thank goodness there are vets who can gently end their suffering when nothing more can be done. https://pbase.com/johnfr/image/115601741.jpg

Hi, I haven't been on here for quite some time, so I just thought I'd let you all know that my Greyhound Peggy is still with us. She's suffering from arthritis and teeth issues plus some other symptoms of old age. We think she's probably too old to have a general for more teeth extractions (she doesn't have many left after 2 extractions a year and a half ago) so are hoping that the Loxicom, Gabapentin and 2 x 1.5 500mg Paracetamol tabs daily are keeping her sufficiently pain free. Sometimes she can wake up suddenly, shake her head violently, and paw at her face with tail tucked, so it's important the the pain relief is kept topped up. She still wants to go out on little walks even though she has to be lifted into the car when not reversed against a raised pavement, not least because the Gabapentin can make her a bit wobbly. But she's still eating a quality soft canned dog food supplemented by pulled cooked chicken breast, and is managing to maintain a weight around 24 kilos now (down from 30 in her prime), which is probably beneficial for the joints. So it's a day at a time and trying to be mindful about noticing how well the pain relief is working. Those who have been lucky enough to see their greys reach old age will probably know where I'm coming from. If you'd care to share some of your coping strategies it could be helpful.

Walking

This afternoon's dog walk was along the river and I stopped to take some photos. I don't think Peggy (13 1/2) was thrilled to be left waiting and not allowed down the bank... https://a4.pbase.com/g12/54/91454/2/171602108.mPRWkJ5k.jpg But it was a pretty little spot and maybe I did take 10 minutes setting it up

The first really warm day of Spring and the travel restrictions relating to the virus lockdown have been relaxed, so I took Peggy for a walk up on Dartmoor. But who was going to have to sit down first: 13 1/2 year old Peggy or me with an achilles tendon injury that won't go away any better than getting older will? Let's just say it wasn't Peggy

Hello everyone! I'll be rehoming a greyhound in a few weeks time but am so confused regarding what to feed him for breakfast and dinner. My greyhound, Benny, is 3 years old and around 33kg. A few adoption sites in Australia, I'm from there, recommend mixing wet meat with kibble. So, the diet would look something like this- Breakfast: 250g chicken neck/ chicken frame/ chicken wing Dinner: 1.5 cup kibble + 250g mince beef. I'm unsure of whether it'll be okay to mix wet meat with kibble from some sources though. My friend recommended me the PMR raw diet and has calculated this for me- Split between two meals: 1050g red meat (beef, roo) 130g raw bone (chicken neck, chicken feet- keep the nails, duck neck, wings) 66g (cow liver) 66g (giblets, kidney, spleen or lungs) Alternatively, could I just feed my greyhound solely kibbles? Would love some suggestions and advise on a diet that my greyhound can follow. Many thanks!

We’ve had our lovely Fred now for nearly 5 months. He’s a rescue ex racer and he’s adjusted super well to his new surroundings. When first being left on his own, we watched him on the camera and he would pace and look for us. We did notice he’d scratched the door a tad but he soon grew out of that. Often we will look on the camera and he’s snoozing away. At the longest, he’s probably left for 4 hours - and that’s when me and my partner are both out at work. I’m a freelancer, so I am lucky to work from home, or only be gone for around 4 hours. During the work day, he is given plenty of walks when one of us is on lunch or a break. So last week, he was left for around 3 hours and he completely chewed our door frame. Obviously we were shocked because he’s been so so good! We thought it may have been a one off, but everyday since he’s chewed something when we’re out. He even manages to open our sliding wardrobe and takes the clothes off the hanger? He will jump up on counters and try to grab anything. He’s a super happy grey, really energetic and loves a cuddle and it’s breaking my heart he’s going through this. He will never do this when we are home. He gets 3/4 walks a day so it shouldn’t be that he needs to burn energy. We’ve tried the radio and a plug in calming defusing for dogs. We also got a last minute behavioural therapist in who has said it’s isolation anxiety and could be a noise outside that’s triggered this. The behavioural therapist has Suggested a kong, a box full of toys and treats which we have done and nothing is working, he does destroy the box, so he must focus spending some time on it. He’s also suggested diet changes, and crating and basically retraining him to be ok on his own again. Ive called the vets and they’ve suggested a different behavioural therapist which I’ve called to arrange a meeting. When I came in this morning our hallway bench was destroyed and it’s so upsetting. Obviously all these things are replaceable but it’s still our home and knowing Fred is unhappy breaks our heart. Has anyone experienced this and how did you over come it? We feel really helpless right now and we feel like we can’t leave him for fear of what he will do. my next steps will be to try a crate, but leave it open for him. The guy from the adoption centre recommended muzzeling him, but I just feel like that would make him go even more crazy! Attached pictures of damage and of our lovely Fred! I’d love some advice. Just to note we live on a ground floor apartment, which we let him have the run of. Any advice would be so much appreciated :)

The Solvang Gathering will be held January 9~12, 2020 in Solvang, California. Registration is now open! It's a weekend filled with sighthounds and their people who come together for an event filled with friendship & fellowship and welcome the hounds of the world. 2020 event information: https://www.facebook.com/notes/the-solvang-gathering/-2020-registration-information-/2194727403895490/ Mail in registration: https://tinyurl.com/yy6jzqgf PayPal instructions: https://tinyurl.com/y6hdjw4a After event expenses, proceeds will be donated to greyhound and sighthound 501(c)3 adoption groups to assist them in finding forever homes for their adoptables. Please visit The Solvang Gathering Facebook page to learn more: https://www.facebook.com/The-Solvang-Gathering-155551541146430/

This is an update from my first post here. River (10) had her broken toe amputated. She just had her stitches and bandaid removed last weekend and she did excellent! She has been her normal happy self but we noticed she is rather stiff, usually whenever she gets up from a relaxed position or after a long nap. I feel like she wasn't always the best at balance because of how old she is and I'm sure at her age after racing until she was 8 she has stiff and sore aches in her joints, and now she has a missing toe on top of that after 10 years of life. What are some things we could do to help her relax? She deserves to be happy and healthy. I don't want to touch her paw until she is more adjusted, it's only been a total of three weeks I believe from the entire ordeal. Any suggestions? Any advice from experience from people who have had amputatee greyhounds and or other animals? Thank you!

The fourteenth annual Grapehound Wine Tour® kicks off on Tuesday, July 23 for those who wish to start their wine tasting early. We call them Early Birds. We have thirty-four wineries, five brew pubs and one gorgeous distillery signed up to participate with us this July. The event kicks off on Thursday, July 25th at Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards with a Welcome party from 5PM to 8PM. WE serve the hors d'oeuvres, hazitt has the wines (and do they!), and a food truck (the Little Red Wagon) will be serving tasty wraps and other foods for dinner. Friday (July 26) the festivities move to the main venue at Catharine Valley Winery where they have a beautiful view of 400 foot deep Seneca lake from the hill of Seneca Lake, along with a cool summer breeze. There we will have all our greyhound vendors in a big vendor tent sellings coats, beds, collars, leashes, T-shirts, dog treats ... well let's just say "...and a lot more!" We'll also have a big social tent where you can hang out with like-minded greyhound people and sip a glass of wine from your lawn chair. Hang out for an hour or an afternoon. Seneca Lake isn't going anywhere. On Saturday (July 27) at Catharine Valley Winery we'll continue our festivities with our Blessing of the Hounds at 2PM, then our greyhound ice cream social at 3PM with free ice cream for the people and free vanilla frozen yogurt for the hounds. At 4PM we will close out all the tremendous values in our Silent Auction. On Sunday (7/28) the fun continues at 10AM with our easy one-mile walk to the tallest waterfall in the Northeast, 215 ft. Taughannock Falls. People love to have their portrait taken with their hounds in front of the falling water. At 11AM folks may congregate at Fulkerson Winery which always volunteers to be our Sunday send-off winery. Or you can continue by touring around the lake at wineries of your choice until you have to head back home to the real world. (Ugh!) The Grapehound Wine Tour® is an event where you set the pace or set no pace, it's up to you and your hounds. Tour the lake or hang out with us at Catharine Valley. Go to twenty wineries or to six. We don't care! You could not visit all the wineries in a weekend if you tried! Make it your weekend, at your pace! Bring the husband or leave him at home, get some girlfriends and hang out with us! There are still plenty of rooms available, including cabins and hotel rooms within the area. The great hotels in Ithaca are a greyt option this year because Catharine Valley winery is closer to them than any other group of great dog-friendly, pet-fee waiving hotels! Plus they are next door to a huge Wegmans and a Walmart for all your travel needs. They are all listed on our Hotels page at https://www.grapehounds.org/hotels--ny-.html Whoever you bring, dogs or humans, we are glad to see you and hope to show you and your greyhounds a greyt time. You can keep up with all the plans for this year's event at www.grapehounds.org or on our Grapehound Wine Tour® facebook page. And you can enjoy your weekend knowing that all the money we earn for the event wil be donated (after expenses) to area greyhound adoption groups and to the Humane Society of Schuyler County. We hope we see you at Seneca Lake this summer! (Jeff and Trudy: Come back to NY and see us for Grapehounds! We miss you guys! Come back to New York!)

Hi Community! I am a new member thinking of adopting a Greyhound. My research has indicated a Grey (likely ex-racer) would be the right choice, but I'm looking for guidance from this community to help me think through whether this is right for me/the dog and what considerations I should be aware of. I am a newish dog owner (had a dog when I was very young) as well as never having owned a Grey, so I want to make sure I tread carefully in making this commitment. I live in a high rise apartment with no yard (a little green space for bathroom breaks, would have to go to public spaces for any vigorous exercise) and would mostly be worried about the dog being able to get into elevators, interaction with other people and dogs in the building, and not having too much room in an apartment. I work long hours, sometimes unpredictable, and do not have a significant other, so the dog may need to be home alone for anywhere between 9-12 hours at a time. I would plan to get a dog walker for days where it stretches on the 11-12 hour end. I am hoping to get the dog potty trained to use a pee pad (or in the bathtub?) in an emergency, though I know that's idealistic. In light of my lack of experience, working hours, etc., I think I should be looking for a somewhat low energy dog, maybe around 4-5 y.o. (ie not a pup), that is, importantly, able to be alone (though I'd love it to be otherwise affectionate and cuddly). I know I should look for a Grey that has been fostered so that hopefully I won't be working from the ground up training and assimilation-wise and so that any issues hopefully won't be a surprise. Does anyone have experience adopting under similar circumstances or have insight on what else I need to consider? If it helps, I am in New England.

Hi Everyone! I've had my greyhound for about 3.5years now. Within the past 6 months I've noticed some behavioral changes that have me worried. First off, he is way more nervous on our hardwood floors. He gets very weird about walking around corners and furniture and has stopped jumping on the couch/bed like he used to. He's stopped running on areas that are bumpy as if he's worried about his footing. And lastly he's started acting weird at night when there are shadows, he gets freaked out about shadows on walks and has on a couple of occasions started growling at the wall which I think was related to a shadow from a lamp at night. I'm wondering if there could be something going on with his vision, especially depth perception? Although, he still sees squirrels no problem from far away in broad daylight and he's only 5 years old. I'm also wondering if anyone has suggestions for non slip pads to put under his beds and make him more comfortable on hardwoods? Thank you in advance!

Hi all, I feel like there are so many threads on separation anxiety already but the tricks I've read on others aren't working for us. We've been using a crate when we're away and each day it's taking her longer to settle in and sleep (we have a camera on her). Right now, we're at 2+ hrs before she settles and then it's only 30 mins of sleep before she's up and howling / clawing at crate. Here's a summary of her and what we've tried: 18-month-old female that never raced. Our first greyhound. Very timid but learning. Can do city walks without her freezing now. Tail now wags even. At home with us for over three weeks. Work 8 hr days but stagger our times so she's only alone for 6, max. Very bonded to us. Can't close the door to the bathroom without her clawing at it. Always in the same room with us. Highly-food motivated, except when in the crate. She'll refuse to eat anything. Even her favorites (peanut butter filled Kong). She's not all that into toys (2-5 mins a day playing with them) but still put a few in the crate for her. Placed a pillow we'd used for a long time in the crate with her, so she'd have our sent. Covered the crate with blankets (except front) to make it cave like. Play doggie relaxation videos (youtube) when we leave her in the crate. Crate is in a spare bedroom that looks at our entryway, so she can see us come and go. We have to forcibly put her in the crate (lures no longer work). When left to free roam alone (we walk around the block or go to store), she howls nonstop and won't ever sleep. It just feels like we're going backwards with her taking more and more time to settle in and now running away from the crate when it's time to leave (even after mixing up the morning routine). We've considered getting a second dog, but she's had no interest in the other dogs we've introduced her too - including other greys. Thoughts? David

Almost a year ago i adopted my greyhound, when we adopted him i noticed he had a crusty nose, vets just said it was properly due to poor kennel diet and it would improve over time. Nearly a year has passed and his nose is still the same, sometimes the skin flakes off in big chunks and his nose looks normal again, but then it always goes back to being hard and crusty. I've tried changing his diet, oil and ointments and nothing seems to work... he doesn't seem to be in discomfort but it can't be very pleasant for him! Does anyone else have this problem/ know what it could be? here is a link with some pictures of his nose - https://postimg.cc/gallery/2332xls5k/ Thanks

Peggy, now 11, is scheduled for some dental work on Monday provided that her bloodwork first thing in the morning shows she can handle it. I expect there will be some extractions. So I'm wondering, after the anesthetic wears off, what is the right kind of food to give her to eat and for how long? Any advice greatly appreciated.

For us in the UK it's turning out to be one of those 'once in 20 years' hot summers when it gets up to 90 outside and refuses to drop below 75 inside. (most of us don't have ac.) For poor old Peggy it certainly isn't the best of times having to stay inside from about 9.30am to 9.30pm when the sun's just gone down every day. I've got a couple of fans going in my room where Peggy stays most of the time with tea towels pegged to them which I periodically mist in order to get 2 or 3 degrees more cooling. That's something I at least control to a point..... But it's Fleas which are spoiling everything and I didn't even know she had them until the vet, very politely, pointed out the flea dirt on her skin. I'd taken her in because she was scratching towards her ear far too often with one back leg and i couldn't see anything wrong with the ear and concluded it was most likely an older-dog neuro or spinal issue. It was the kind of scratching that would nearly make her fall over, just like that reflex you can stimulate in them when you rub their neck. Hmmmm... let's treat those fleas shall we.... my bad! So in goes an injection of Dexafort for the itchiness, down goes a big tablet of Simparica Pal for the fleas and possible ticks, and back home we go. Some 3 or so hours later all hell breaks loose on the itching front, with both back legs scratching at full force, ears being flapped like crazy, then being rubbed along the ground. Poor dog! I called the vet again and was told to give 4mg human Piriton to calm her down and reassured that the fleas would be dead by tomorrow. I certainly hope that's going to be the case in all this heat. A few days ago I bathed her with an anti-itch shampoo and I'd swear I didn't see a single flea! So there's the warning... check your dogs with a flea comb before they take over! Oh and the washing machine has been on 3 times on hot cycle with all the dog bedding etc. I expect i'll need to get some of that Indorex spray that kills the larvae indoors too. Fleas!!!

Hello everyone! I just recently adopted a 6 year old female retired racer and brood mom with my husband. We have 3 cats and due to the dynamic fostered her for 2 weeks to see how all would go. We officially adopted her this past Sunday after seeing that she showed no interest in the cats. However, just yesterday our youngest cat (4 yrs old... the other two are 10) ran up and mad a phst noise. There was no contact but it startled our Grey. I was surprised by this and didn't respond, I wasn't completely sure what I saw. Then it happened a second time maybe about and hour later, I scolded the cat and tried to reassure the Grey... after hours of coaxing and some treats I FINALLY got our Grey to come back into the livingroom (where it happened) because she wouldn't go in there again after the second incident. All was good for a couple hours. Then the cat did the same thing but in a different room, resulting in a time out for kitty in a closed room alone. After the time out there haven't been any more issues. There was NEVER any physical contact between cat and dog but now our Grey still doesn't like to come in the living room and hasn't eaten all day. The dog will not walk into the room where the cat is and is nervous. I can hear her stomach gurgling and I know she is hungry, plus she has been trying to eat grass when she goes outside. The dog is completely fine being around the other two cats btw, this hasn't created fear of them. I am at a loss for what I should do, I am worried that maybe this isn't a good fit for our Grey, I hate the idea of her being so miserable. Thanks in advance for any and all suggestions.

Hi, Philly and I live near New Haven, CT. Looking for monthly walks near us to socialize with. A potential dog sitter made a comment about seeing a bunch of greyhounds walking on West Haven beach; I've searched online for a group that does that to no avail. The adoption group I got Philly from does monthly walks but it's too far for us. Anybody out there near us? Thanks!!!

It started Wednesday night with restlessness and then nasty diarrhea that smelled like Hydrogen Sulphide from rotten eggs. I’d fried up some chicken breasts the day before and put them what she didn’t eat of them in the fridge, I really didn’t see anything wrong with them when I took them out to fry. However when I opened the lid on Thursday afternoon again there was this horrible stench so I threw them out. The vet gave me one of those probiotic kaolin paste tubes to dose her with. Peggy ate 1 and a quarter wet tins of the Veterinary Royal Canin Gastro-intestinal food last night, but since then won’t eat or drink. She had horrible gurgling noises in her stomach this morning. Ate grass twice and barfed it up twice too. She’s passed a couple of diarrhea motions which are browner and not yellow like yesterday’s So this afternoon it was back to the vet again for a set of blood tests including Liver, Pancreas, Kidneys, etc which all came back unremarkable. The only thing he said was slightly raised was the WBC but that was to be expected. He gave her injections for pain relief, acid suppression, antibiotic, steroids too I think. So that was five needles she had to put up with. At present she’s on the bed resting and not really fully engaged with anything, no doubt as a result of the drugs and lack of fluids today. So like an elderly human when they get like that. She won’t have water when offered, nor when she walks by it, so perhaps I shall have to try to syringe some later, or perhaps a small bottle of electrolytes similar to Pedialyte. I really don’t know what else to do until she sees the vet again tomorrow. Any ideas how to get water into her easily?

I was walking Peggy yesterday up a gentle south-facing slope on the open Moor and the sun was just over half-way up the sky. Her black coat got really hot to the touch, she started panting, statued, and clearly didn't want to go any further with the walk. Luckily some clouds soon blocked the sun, but I still didn't go much further in case it came out again. But it's only April, I'm in England, and the mid afternoon air temperature hadn't even reached 60F. She's 9 and a half years old now so I don't expect her to be as heat-tolerant as before. Do I need to get her a lightweight reflective coat; are they even any good? Obviously in the real summer she won't be taken out in the middle of the day, and I carry a spritzer bottle and keep to mostly shaday area, but I've not had this issue in spring before.

I am new participant in the forum, but not to greyhounds. Our most recent adoptee, Crouton, is a sweet-to-the-core ex-racer and brood mom who turned seven in January. Sadly, we got a diagnosis of Osteosarcoma, distal femur, a little over two weeks ago. It started with a limp in her left hind leg, and we are already on four meds to control pain. Due to a number of reasons, she is not a candidate for amputation or chemo, nor do we have easy access to radiation due to distance from a major metropolitan center. Thus, we have opted for palliative care. In doing research, we found that there has been some success using 4 mg zoledronic acid in an IV drip delivered every 28 days. I have read that it lessens the threat of spontaneous fracture, and that it helps with gait. It is not expected that it would stop the growth of the cancer, but it increases quality of life in the time that is left. Some dogs lived 14 to 16 months past their original diagnosis before needing to be euthanized, vs. the expected 3 months with pain/inflammation medications alone. Crouton had her first treatment yesterday, so it is very early and we do not know what to expect. Also, we do not know if we are already starting too late. It will be a full month tomorrow since we were first aware of a limp. I would really appreciate being able to ask questions of anyone who might have personal knowledge of this treatment. Thanks very much, Miriam

I don't post on here but am desperately looking for help. Maybe someone has had the same experience...hopefully not for you and your pup. Murphy will be 11 on May 13, 2016. He has been losing weight since Dec 2015. Was at 90.4 pounds and March 3 was at 79.0 pounds. Appetite very poor and lethargic. No diarrhea now but did have some in December. I have tried eggs, chicken breast , pumpkin, chicken broth over kibble, peanut butter with and without kibble. As a last resort I made satin balls last night. He tried a little of a satin ball last night but refused them this morning. Xrays, fecal tests, blood tests have been done and he was given a B-12 injection yesterday. We are waiting for malabsorbtion test results to come in. Thank you in advance or any insight.

Hi folks - I'm in the process of creating a guidance document for our foster families that have agreed to take on puppies! Does anyone have this already in their files? Would you be willing to share so I don't have to completely reinvent the wheel? Thanks in advance, leigh

Our dog recently died and I am considering adopting a greyhound. I have lived on a farm all my life and have always had a dog but never a greyhound. My farm is fenced completely and ten acres. I have six horses which I ride in my arena and around the property. My question is...how would a greyhound do living a farm dog life? I have had border collie/aussies, a chow, a lab, a dalmation and pugs over the last 30 years and all have been great dogs that followed me around while I did my chores and i didn't need to keep them on a leash. My dogs have always been well behaved because they are always with me and I spend time training them. Can a greyhounds live this way? Anyone out there with horses that has a greyhound? I like what I read about them in terms of their needs and their behavior when inside the house. I want a dog that is happy to be with me outside and is quiet and happy to rest and sleep and be near me when I am inside as well. I already know that they cannot live outside. Any feedback would be appreciated.