New Mom With Questions About What's Normal

[Guest mandm]

The dog park -- it was a new & exciting place for him. I think they enjoy sniffing new smells even more than they enjoy running. But I bet if you go there regularly, he will start running with the other dogs. I would love to keep my house that warm, but I can't afford to. I'm in Wisconsin.

 

Heat -- if he came from a FL racetrack, then he is probably used to the heat too.

 

Greenies & rawhide -- it has been my experience that they can really throw off a sensitive greyhound's digestive system, especially Greenies, though they really do love them.

 

Treats/brushing -- if you are not opposed to handling/feeding some raw meaty bones, he could get a treat & the best teeth cleaning available all at the same time. As an added bonus, bone helps to firm their poop.

 

He is very, very handsome. How big is he? He looks big in the pictures, but it's hard to tell.

[ahicks51]

If the pumpkin doesn't work, try beet pulp (~1-2 tbs per meal). It helps sponge up extra water, changing the stool texture from "pudding" to "acceptable." Concerns about stool quality in greyhounds turns most hound owner chats into pure scatology, so this is nothing new.

 

If you can't get beet pulp locally, PM me and I'll send you a box of the stuff to try.

Don't you have to soak beet bulp before feeding? or do you just throw the dry flakes in their food?

 

I get the chunky stuff; never tried the powdered beet pulp. I used to mix it in with an equal weight of peanut butter, and that greatly improved palatability. Sometimes I take a bit of blood from the beef heart that gets fed to the "regulars" and let the beet pulp sit in that for a minute or so before I throw it in the bowl with the foster's food. On nights when we cook up chicken thighs, I do the same with a bit of grease from the bottom of the pan- not even a tablespoon. Just a little something to get him to eat it; otherwise, he'll sometimes eat around the big pieces.

[Guest RosiesMom]

What a sweetie! Congratulations on your new grey!

 

We have the same stories to tell: Rosie's nose drips - the glass door has a drip-line at Rosie-nose level.

It took her several months to really settle in to a routine - and that was really important - that there were times when she could count on something happening (dinner, a walk). She slowly bloomed.

 

She had poop issues until we took her off of everything but a completely grain-free food. Now she produces compact solid poo (unless there is a traumatic event of some sort - a visit to a very strange or loud place, something like that - in which case she gets farty and loose. She eats Solid Gold Barking at the Moon, but it is not so much the brand as the grain-freeness that makes the difference. Ditto for treats - raw or some kind of jerky treats are her faves.

 

W

 

 

[KingsMom]

I believe he raced in FL and VA... I'm surprised to see on the poll that I started that so far most people keep their house around 68. We'd be shivering!! I cropped the pictures to be smaller and only show him, but I guess it makes it hard to tell his size... He's about 78 lbs. I put up a couple more that aren't cropped and give you a better view of how he compares to me (or at least the bottom half of me...)! www.geocities.com/stermenwedding/King His poop this morning was still loose but it wasn't as bad as yesterday; however, my husband didn't realize he was supposed to get the pumpkin with dinner, so he only had it in his Kong yesterday and that wasn't much because when I came home there was still some in the small end of the kong. I think he just can't figure out how to get stuff out of the small end. Today I put some kibble in the Kong and then the pumpkin on top of that, hoping it would help him get more of it out. I guess we'll see how he does. He also got a bit of pumpkin in his breakfast this morning! His diet is now a 75% new 25% old mix of the 2 kibbles (but tomorrow is the last day for that, Wed it will be all new) some oil that is reccommended for his coat, pumpkin and milk bones . I wanted to try and leave the milk bones out but I think he would go nuts if he didn't have anything to chew on, I think the milkbones are the least likely culprit, but if I have to I will take them out. He wanders around at night looking for his raw hide or something to chew on, I feel bad... It's like his little routine, go upstairs, find raw hide, lay down, chew, chew, chew for 10-15 min then sleep, but now he's missing his chewing. It's kind of odd because the first day he had a raw hide he didn't touch it but all of a sudden bed time, he couldn't get enough! He wakes up earlier than we would like as well, so we're trying to just give him a milk bone for a while and then get up but he does better with the raw hide, so I'm hoping we can get his system sorted out so we can try the rawhides again... If those don't agree with him I'll have to find something that lasts a while that he can chew on. One last thought, I remembered that he pooped the first day we got him and my husband says he believes it is the best poop we've ever had from him, does that seem odd considering we think he was eating Beneful? Does anyone think we should go back to the Beneful? Just wondering... Thanks!!

[Moclips]

Well, I think the heat and panting is covered -- Razzle is so finiky that if it's over 72 he pants and if it's under 70 he shakes ... Climate control is a big help.

 

As for feeding; it took me a year to find a raw diet and rice combination that works. Razzle literally waters his poop if he gets any dog food at all. I use wet noses and about 2 cups of cooked brown rice (Costco organic brown rice bags are fine) and two patties of wet noses 2 x day. We tightened right up and have been dandy ever since!

 

 

[KingsMom]

Update!! King is doing better already... he has had mostly good poops (aside from one slightly mushy one this morning, but we'll keep watching!). He has transitioned nicely to the new food and we gave him the rawhide back today. Hopefully all will go well because we could tell he definately missed it! We're slowly adding things into his diet and hopeuflly soon we will know if it was just the kibble or if it was something else too. His personality is truly starting to show. We got him on the couch and he slept there all night (because my sister was also in the room). But just getting him comfy on the couch was a big step. His pee is significantly improved and I don't have any worries about it now. I guess the antibiotics did their job! We're keeping the house a few degrees cooler now and leaving fans on all the time for him, he seems to be panting less (at least while inside). I certainly appreciate all the advice and information everyone has to offer. I posted a new thread about what might be a sunburn on his snout, I'll wait to see what everyone thinks of that... Thanks again!!!

[Guest Redpack]

I agree with limited treats...and eliminating greenies! They give Em projectile "D". And the number one thing you need to do, is.....RELAX and ENJOY your pup...if you are worried or tense, he'll pick that up from you. He sounds perfectly normal for a new grey! Congrats!

[fsugrad]

If the pumpkin doesn't work, try beet pulp (~1-2 tbs per meal). It helps sponge up extra water, changing the stool texture from "pudding" to "acceptable." Concerns about stool quality in greyhounds turns most hound owner chats into pure scatology, so this is nothing new.

 

If you can't get beet pulp locally, PM me and I'll send you a box of the stuff to try.

I second the beet pulp! I'm a new GH mom too. We brought Toby home 3 months ago. He had mushy to liquidy poops. We tried pumpkin and it didn't do anything, although he enjoyed the taste. We also tried different foods til we hit on the right one. This is what worked for us: Science Diet Sensitive Stomach formula. In the morning, he gets that with a tbsp of beet pulp shreds mixed in with a little warm water. You can buy a 40 lb bag of beet pulp shreds at Tractor Supply for about $13! In the evening, he gets less of the dry food but I add in cooked white or brown rice with veggies mixed in--he likes green beans the best). Again I add a tbsp of beet pulp shreds and I mix in a tbsp of plain yogurt.

His poops are great now. Hang in there and you will find the right combination that works for your dog. And congrats on your new addition!!

Edit: we are native floridians too. In the summertime, we keep our house at 78 degrees. No colder than that. Right now it's "open window weather" in north FL so I would guess our temp in the house is about 75 or so...

Edited March 18, 2008 by fsugrad

[Guest mysymba]

Congrats and best wishes with your new baby boy.....sounds like things are coming together!!!

 

The diet issue is not unusual for a new grey....it can take months for his poo to be firm.....be patient and you will see him blossom before your eyes.....