Let Me Show You Why They Give Us Those Muzzles

[Guest Profgumby]

Still following along here...I wanted to add they we will not allow our girls to run and play together or with other dogs if they ALL do not have muzzles. And pawing or rising up and rearing up is corrected immediately. Over protective doggie dad? probably but seein the consequences of a nip or dew claw here is worth it to me.

 

BTW,a little while back,our new(ish) girl Lady ended up with 3 or 4 staples on her neck (in the hollow behind her ear due to a mouthing or paw that went wrong...my sons are now also being trained to be overprotective with the girls.

[tammystroops]

I voted other.

 

We use muzzles when we let them out to run in the big yard.

 

we muzzle them when we go away

 

we muzzle them in the car

 

 

we keep the muzzles handy in case we need them in a hurry

 

Greyhounds are so competitive and they all want to be first in everything.

 

We learned our lesson a long time ago.

[Guest betheab199]

For anyone who missed it - the weather here has chilled this week. I remember from my youth that horses get frisky in the fall - it seems that hounds do too. My three were playing in the yard - playing hard. I remember seeing Pere running for all he's worth - leaned almost 45 degrees into the turns. I was inside feeding our youngest granddaughter - and I had gone to the door to ask my husband a question - he was outside throwing a frisbee for the hounds. I saw the two boys snap at each other and heard them threatening each other and I had just begun to yell at them when Bookie saw her chance and dove for the Frisbee. Pere saw what she was trying and he nailed her in the ribcage. She began to whimper and came through the landscaped area there in the middle of the yard walking funny. Luckily when I called her she came straight to me... The fence has been up for 3 weeks and we thought we were past the danger point. They have never shown aggression before.

I know my greyhounds would always get frisky when it cooled off!

[Guest betheab199]

Thank you for this post. I think many of us are naive (spelling?) about what CAN happen .

 

I would like to make the point that greyhounds are NOT more viscious- or mean- - or whatever- than most other dogs. Their scuffles just SHOW more, because of their thin skin.

 

I was at a friend's house this evening, and she told me about her basset and pit-mix "getting into it" for no reason. Biting, growing, snarling, attacking! And they've lived together for 2 years. Afterward- they were FINE. My comment: "Be happy they weren't greyhounds- you'd be at the vet getting stitches."

 

My 2 greys got into a tussle a couple weeks ago. NOT running. In the house. There were stitches needed. BUT- they're FINE together. Even the same day as the tussle. The hurt one didn't even know he was hurt (and I think he started it- sleep aggression.)

 

So- my point- not sure exactly- ..... stuff happens. Be smart if you have a pack...and take appropriate precautions...but even with less than a pack...stuff happens. Don't beat yourself up about it. We can't prevent every scuffle.

 

Isn't it amazing to see other breeds play after you have had greyhounds? Normal play between dogs like labs or goldens can be rough, but they have the skin and fur to deal with it.

 

I never muzzle any more but we have just the 1 grey. No fosters or anything. But I will muzzle if we get any new greys here. Hopefully someday!

[Guest betheab199]

Dogs like wolves are pack animals. The survival of the pack depends on the health of the pack, if you have a weak "link" (an injured or sick member) so to so to speak, for the pack to survive they have to rid themselves of the weak link. That's basically what "pack mentality" is.

 

With a group of dogs, sometimes all it takes is for one of the group to "scream" and the others will turn on it and each other. For instance, you have a group of greyhounds at a play date, one of the hounds steps wrong, hurts it's leg, screams and the others will go after it. It's instinctual. If you've ever seen this happen, you will never forget it.

 

I had it happen twice in my home. My pack went after Saint when he had a seizure. They immediately turned on him and since we were in the house, they weren't muzzled. I put myself between Saint and the pack and the only thing that kept them from getting to him was me. I'm very lucky because my pack listens to me and when I started yelling at them and pushing them back they listened, and don't kid yourself, size doesn't matter because the only dog in the house that had any success at getting passed me was Jilly Bean and she found herself tossed off to the side. My pack was deadly serious and it wasn't until after Saint quit seizing and things calmed down did the pictures come back one at a time as to how things looked and it was scary!

 

This is the reason you see greyhounds in a turn out pen at a track with muzzles. It's for the safety of the hounds and the people caring for them.

I was at a big greyhound function once. We had 15 or 20 hounds in a large fenced in area, all muzzled. A non-grey came into the yard and they all went after that poor dog. I'm sorry to say, the dog we eventually adopted seemed to be the leader of this! No one was hurt, but we pulled the non-grey right out. It was obvious that she was not being accepted into the pack. It really leaves an impression on you, how that pack behavior kicks in.

[Guest FlosMomma]

Oh my gosh....thanks for the post! As a new mom considering a second one, I had no idea!

[Guest abarnet1]

I voted other. I only have one dog. The first trip to a dog park. I used the muzzle when a new dog came in. Then I would take the muzzle off after the introduction. After reading these posts I will be muzzling always around other dogs. I do not want mine or someone else's dog to get hurt. I do not want to find myself getting sued, even though I would be will to pay for the damage my dog may do to another. Since she is retired racer and has a competitive dive. I am not sure we will ever go back to a dog park though because not all dogs will be muzzled. I do not want to risk my dog getting hurt by another. My have to make special play dated with other dog owners that I know and will muzzle their dogs.

[kudzu]

I voted other. I only have one dog. The first trip to a dog park. I used the muzzle when a new dog came in. Then I would take the muzzle off after the introduction.

Please do not muzzle your dog at an offleash event unless all the other dogs are muzzled. Muzzling greatly diminished a dog's ability to protect himself. In addition he knows it & so his own behavior may be altered in a negative way with the muzzle on.

 

After reading these posts I will be muzzling always around other dogs. I do not want mine or someone else's dog to get hurt.

While I understand why you may feel that way & will not try to talk you out of that, I strongly suspect that as time goes on you will lighten up in that feeling. It is the rare Greyhound who needs muzzling on leash walks. In those rare instances careful training combined with behavior modification is not only a must but may eventually create a better behaved, more trustworthy dog than the rest of us with dogs who never required muzzling.

[Guest abarnet1]

I voted other. I only have one dog. The first trip to a dog park. I used the muzzle when a new dog came in. Then I would take the muzzle off after the introduction.

Please do not muzzle your dog at an offleash event unless all the other dogs are muzzled. Muzzling greatly diminished a dog's ability to protect himself. In addition he knows it & so his own behavior may be altered in a negative way with the muzzle on.

 

After reading these posts I will be muzzling always around other dogs. I do not want mine or someone else's dog to get hurt.

While I understand why you may feel that way & will not try to talk you out of that, I strongly suspect that as time goes on you will lighten up in that feeling. It is the rare Greyhound who needs muzzling on leash walks. In those rare instances careful training combined with behavior modification is not only a must but may eventually create a better behaved, more trustworthy dog than the rest of us with dogs who never required muzzling.

We do go for walks and I do not muzzle her for them. I do agree that her being muzzled means she can not defend herself. I will have to really think about taking her back to the park. I just do not want anything to happen to her or any other dog. I may just let her play with dogs that I am familiar with as well as being familiar with the owner. Strangers with strange dogs are just to much of an unknown factor right now.

[Guest maxlover]

hope he will get better soon!

[Guest verthib]

I posted about this on the day that it happened, asking folks if they thought I could ever trust my hounds out in the yard without muzzles again. Now I am realizing how dangerously naive I was. Here are some pictures that I forgot I had taken on the day that it happened - my granddaughter had just arrived after school and went out to play with the gang...

 

<img src="http://www.mypetpages.net/artists/4206/0/01edb6e38c40240ad3a229350ab1517f.JPG" border="0" class="linked-image" />

 

<img src="http://www.mypetpages.net/artists/4206/0/873b468572680b8c2add75ed0a26bb00.JPG" border="0" class="linked-image" />

 

This is a shot of all three young dogs - about an hour before it happened...

 

<img src="http://www.mypetpages.net/artists/4206/0/f6dc223fd9c0e285f3bdc82c7479b65e.JPG" border="0" class="linked-image" />

 

Here is Pere - the guilty party...

 

<img src="http://www.mypetpages.net/artists/4206/0/13866e06bc8e5fef6c2435fa747f9a17.JPG" border="0" class="linked-image" />

 

Here is poor Bookie, doing what got her hurt:

 

<img src="http://www.mypetpages.net/artists/4206/0/367253ec793983a2ea506c9dc4506055.JPG" border="0" class="linked-image" />

 

Here are two shots of the damage.

 

<img src="http://www.mypetpages.net/artists/4206/0/7007ab1e2efc9a51b462deebc70dcee6.JPG" border="0" class="linked-image" />

 

<img src="http://www.mypetpages.net/artists/4206/0/81266da8c245bca1a94d2cbf254a6328.JPG" border="0" class="linked-image" />

 

I'm posting this in the hope that someone who thinks that their dogs "aren't like that", as I did, will realize that it can happen to you. We use muzzles around here now - this isn't Pere's fault, it's mine.

 

 

 

Oh lord - I just looked at my post to see if I had spelled everything correctly and realized that no one had collars on that day. Boy do I remember that - poor Bookie was bleeding and crying and all I could do was wrap my arms around her neck while Bill was on the phone to our vet, then another vet who still had staff on duty to stitch her up...

Everyone here is 'chipped, so we don't need collars either... <img src="http://forum.greytalk.com/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/headwall.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="headwall.gif" /> <img src="http://forum.greytalk.com/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/headwall.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="headwall.gif" /> <img src="http://forum.greytalk.com/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/headwall.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="headwall.gif" />

 

I learned the hard way...lots of vet bills later and stitches and antibiotics later...now my two ALWAYS wear a muzzle outside. It's just not worth the risk to me and it keeps them safer.

[Guest CampWhippet]

We muzzle when they are let from the dog yard to the big yard to keep things like this from happening:

 

For some reason both Sammie and Tansy like to grab onto each other and any whippet who dares to run faster. Whippets don't like that and my 22 pound whippet went after 70lb Tansy and Tansy nearly removed her ear. Lesson learned, or, reinforced. i already knew they should have been muzzled.

 

They don't mind the muzzle at all. In fact, when I grab the muzzle off the hook they go absolutely ape sh!t because they know they are about to go out to the lake.

 

[Guest Geostar]

You would be surprised how many times people have fussed at me for using muzzles on my greys or visiting greys! They call is 'cruel'..Huh?

Our late greyhound had her head bitten; one tooth barely missing her left eye. The large dominant foster male greyhound was devastated after he had done it, but, we decided to work with him and find him a good home. Then, another foster bite my late Gracie on the neck requiring 450 dollars to get stitched up.. Ugh..

[XTRAWLD]

I searched forever for this thread to cross-post on another forum. SO HANDY for owners....and new/old owners alike that just added another grey to their house. Could we get it stickied?

[TheFullHouse]

Bumping for newbies.

[Jimbuck]

Does anyone know if there is a US retailer for the Australian nylon muzzles? I've been wanting to get one for my boy but don't want to pay an excessive amount on shipping from AU. Thanks!

[Guest badderh]

wow, this post now has me freaked out. Was thinking about getting a second hound because of Rocky's SA.... but this is definitely one of my worries.

 

Rocky is very sensitive to other dogs jumping on him and rough play and growls at any dog that will do so. He'd much rather just jog side by side and play fetch without any rough play involved. I think this might be related to a few of the scars (small) he has on his back and the knick on his ear, that I'm told are from nips of other greyhounds, that occurred in his foster home

 

I'm not sure how you'd even prepare for something like this when adding a second dog to your home. I can only imagine myself paranoid about leaving them alone together. Queasy stomach = Not prepared for blood and huge gashes.

Edited June 14, 2012 by badderh

[OwnedBySummer]

Does anyone know if there is a US retailer for the Australian nylon muzzles? I've been wanting to get one for my boy but don't want to pay an excessive amount on shipping from AU. Thanks!

There's a Canadian retailer for the UK muzzles, if that helps? She can certainly tell you if she carries the Australian muzzles and, if not, may even be able to direct you to somewhere closer than Australia. http://www.freewebs.com/awesomepaws/apps/webstore/products/show/1032726.

[jetcitywoman]

Badderh, don't let it scare you from getting a second hound. Just make sure you get basket muzzles for everybody. Whether you muzzle them when they're home alone or in the yard is up to you. Some people do, some don't, it kind of depends on the dogs. I would say that if you take your Rocky with you to pick out the second dog and let him "choose" who his new buddy is, odds are you won't have to muzzle after the first week or two when they've bonded. (The usual disclaimer about accidents do happen regardless, but... cest la vie)

 

Personally I don't muzzle my duo when home alone or in the yard, but I do muzzle them in the car.

 

(Sigh, I keep thinking of things to add... ) Also, remember that the muzzle is NOT a punishment. It's simply protective gear. If blood makes you queasy, using a muzzle is a fine tool to use to prevent possible "issues".

Edited June 14, 2012 by jetcitywoman

[TheFullHouse]

Don't let this thread scare you to the point that you don't try a second hound. The key is to try and get a hound that compliments your first hounds personality. Your group can help you with that. Muzzles are safety equipment. None of my dogs are muzzled in the house. They are a great pack that gets along great, they are however muzzled outside because they are competitive and when racing each other it's easy for one of them to accidently hurt the other.

[Guest LindsaySF]

Don't let this thread scare you to the point that you don't try a second hound. The key is to try and get a hound that compliments your first hounds personality. Your group can help you with that. Muzzles are safety equipment. None of my dogs are muzzled in the house. They are a great pack that gets along great, they are however muzzled outside because they are competitive and when racing each other it's easy for one of them to accidently hurt the other.

 

Most disagreements between dogs occur as a result of specific triggers (play gets out of hand, defending high value items like food, treats, toys, etc). If you manage the triggers, and choose a second hound with a complementary personality to your current hound, you'll be fine.

[Xan]

Another cautionary tale.

DH and I went on a trip this winter, leaving our cats and dogs in the care of a petsitter who had been great with them in the past. Nonetheless, we left tons of notes and really labored the point that Pogo and Brilly can have issues, so when in doubt, MUZZLE!

 

Sure enough, the poor girl had just stepped into another room "for a minute!" when she heard a fight break out in the kitchen. It seems some sugar was reachable on the counter, and the two boys got into it. Brilly had a couple good gashes needing stitches. Everyone was shook up, including us out on our vacation a thousand miles away! When we're home, the kitchen is off-limits, reinforced with baby-gates, but all edibles are off the counters as a rule. But, baby gates can drift or be pushed open, and ....... Anyway, even in the house, fights can happen. You gotta know your dogs, and do as much fight-proofing as possible.

 

But, if you have a pet-sitter ... YOU are not there.

 

Now we have to decide if Pogo will be muzzled 24/7 if we ever leave him with a pet-sitter again, or if we need to have him stay at a kennel. He's just a loose cannon, that guy.

 

Oh, and for that matter, 2 of the 4 times Pogo has attacked Brilly were in the house. We guess that he was jealous or competitive about Brilly coming into a room where I was already with Pogo: "It's MY room now, and she's MY mom, so you DIE!" We are very conscious now of who goes where first, and about the dogs all knowing that we humans are our own, and that we care equally about all of them.

 

On the other hand ... This is Pogo and Brilly from just the other day.

 

(Yes, their claws are way too long! : )

[Guest CharlEYp]

Hi, new to Grey talk and this topic caught my attention.

My partner and i recently adopted a retired racer ( as in two days ago, that's how recent.)

He's settled surprisingly well, but having said that he was fostered for several months before we adopted him and we spent time with him at the kennels before we finally brought him home.

 

The kennel supplied us with a muzzle and a neck lead but even at the kennels he would pull all the time.

Having had Dobhermans and Labrador's before (First time grey owner) i decided to try a chest harness instead and bring the muzzle with me on walks but not use it. He's become a lot calmer on walks and responds more readily to my commands.

 

I voted "other" as we intend to muzzle him on introductions, around children and other dogs (untill he is familiar) and hopefully when he's learnt recall when off lead. He seems so much happier without the muzzle on and more resposive and i don't want to feel like our lovable boy can't be trusted.

 

A pug nipped at him on his morning walk this morning and he lunged forward emphasising his size but didn't show any other aggressive signs, no heckles, no growling, no baring of teeth. At was almost puppy-like playfulness, but i'm now worried; am i doing the right thing?

Having seen those pictures and never had any problems with pack hierarchy with my previous dogs i'm now very worried.

[BatterseaBrindl]

Don't let this thread scare you to the point that you don't try a second hound. The key is to try and get a hound that compliments your first hounds personality. Your group can help you with that. Muzzles are safety equipment. None of my dogs are muzzled in the house. They are a great pack that gets along great, they are however muzzled outside because they are competitive and when racing each other it's easy for one of them to accidently hurt the other.

 

Agreed!

 

Ours.are only muzzled in the house if nobody's going to be home and outside if they're not directly supervised.

They do play rough and run fast.

It only takes a split second for an accident to happen.

[Guest LindsaySF]

Charleyp, I wouldn't muzzle him on walks. He should be fine to meet other dogs out and about. If you aren't sure how he'd do with small dogs, I'd muzzle him then. Congrats on your new dog!