Seclusion

[Guest evanderleeuw]

Hello all,

 

I need help / advice for my guy Luke who seems to be getting progressively more finicky, insecure and just plain weirder by the day. I won't go through all of his problems because I would be writing for a week. My newest problem with Luke is that he has taken to secluding himself in one room and won't leave except to go for a walk. As of two weeks ago he slept I. Our bedroom and would hangout and nap in our living room. Since that time I painted my bedroom and added some new furniture and now he won't go into the bedroom or anywhere else for that matter. Anyone else have this happen to their grey?

 

thanks

erik

[Time4ANap]

How long have you had him?

 

If this behavior is way out of the ordinary, then a vet check might be in order. Things like thyroids that are whacked out or some other level that is off can sometimes make any pet do strange things. All you can really do is check the basics and make sure that all medical stuff is normal and go from there.

 

If he's only been there a short time, then it might just be adjustment to the new situation. It often takes a year or two before you see the real personality bloom.

 

Good luck. it's tough when they can't tell you if something is wrong.

[JJNg]

Providing some details about some of his other problems might help us understand his personality better. It sounds like he's stressed by the recent changes you made (paint, new furniture). He might also be bothered by the smell of the new paint. Some dogs just handle change better than others. I agree with the vet check, and it might just take him some time to adjust. If you try to encourage him into the bedroom, or even put him on leash and try to walk him in, what does he do? Does he seem nervous or scared? Or does he go in ok with encouragement, but just won't voluntarily leave his room of choice?

[Scooby172]

My grey/whippet mix got weird on me many years ago, slowly became more anxious, not wanting to be in the yard, irritable. Had her checked out by the vet, turned out she needed to be treated for a thyroid condition, since being on meds she is back to her old bossy self! Worth a trip to the vet to make sure Luke does not have any issues. Good luck

Linda, Keeva and Jack

[Guest evanderleeuw]

We've had Luke for a year and eight months. We moved to this house last year in December. Since then he stopped eating and went on a hunger strike which we remedied by eventually feeding him in the room he now secludes himself in. Before this new problem, he was basically secluding himself in our bedroom but not as bad.

 

Last night I led him into our bed room up stairs and closed the door. He immediately went into panic mode panting, yawning, licking. Eventually he laid down but then woke me up doing the same so I gave up and let him out.

 

should I shut off the room he wants to always be in with a baby gate?

 

other factors that might be making him weird. My wife is due with our first baby in January.

[greyhoundlady]

They all have different personalities. Luke sounds like he doesn't handle change well, which isn't terrible. You might just need to be patient and let him figure out his comfort zone. I wouldn't prevent him from going in the room he wants to be in. It seems that is his safe spot. I have one grey who came to me a very shy, timid little girl. I let her go at her own pace to adjust to her surroundings. At first she would always run to the back bedroom and stay there except to eat, or go outside. Now she is always where we, and our other grey, are.

 

Do you walk Luke a lot, feed him treats, take him to meet and greets, let him meet other people? Is he okay otherwise in the house - doesn't have 'accidents', not destructive or snappy, eats his food, looks for you for treats, etc.? You said you had him for about a year and a half, but he also had a few changes happen, like moving, etc., which may have confused him.

 

I don't think your wife about to have a baby would make him strange, except if all the newness happening in the house is having an effect, like new baby things and preparation. He may be picking up on that excitement. I don't know Luke, but, if you can, try giving him more attention without being overbearing. I think walks are great - my greys and I are out all the time. Take trips to Petco or another pet friendly places, parks, etc. it might help his confidence. Are there any greyhound get togethers in your area or with your adoption group. Some groups have weekend walks and it is a great way for the greys to be together and exchange info with other owners. Even after the baby comes, try not to ignore him too much. Good luck and congratulations on your soon to be new addition!

[Guest evanderleeuw]

He is walked a lot 4-5 times a day. He loves his walks and basically pulls me to meet other people. He's very affectionate with everybody. Other dogs he's hit or miss with. He loves my families fogs and is a totally different Luke when around them, happy playful. In my house he does nothing and stays in one room. just seems so random that he just decides, ok I'm not going to eat for you, I'm not going to go into the kitchen, I'm no going to eat at all, I'm not going to leave this room.

[Time4ANap]

It sounds like he is designating that room as his safe spot. Have you tried setting up a crate in another part of the house where you would like him to hang out? You can leave it open and let him come and go as he pleases. Fill it with his blankets, toys etc. Maybe he just needs a spot to call his own....

[Guest evanderleeuw]

I really don't mind if the family room is his safe spot. It is den-like being below grade and not many windows, and is the only fully carpeted room in the house so I understand his wanting to be in there. I guess I created this by giving into him not wanting to eat his food in the kitchen. A few months ago after a four day hunger strike I put his food down in front of him in the family room and he ate it much to my amazement. We were having problems for months with his eating and had tried everything to get him to eat but moving the bowl was the only remedy. I was so relieved that I figured if that's where he'll eat than I'll just give it to him there. Now we have this new situation where he won't leave the room. I guess if someone fed me where I slept and I didn't have to do anything I wouldn't leave the room either!

 

I want to get him eating in the kitchen again because the food seems to really make the family room smell from dropped food and water. I guess I'll have to play hard ball again and see if he'll give in and eat in the kitchen.

[Guest Clawsandpaws]

Do you have different flooring in this house? You said the family room is the only carpeted area, and thats where he stays and eats.

 

My dog will not eat on tile floors, or hardwood laminate flooring. Maybe you can throw a temporary rug in the kitchen, big enough for him to stand on and see if that helps?

[greysmom]

Go for a vet check, first of all. make sure all his levels and values are greyhound normal - especially thyroid (search in the Helath and Medical section for normal greyhound values if your vet isn't familiar with the breed's idiosyncrasies).

 

If all that comes back OK, the next thing to try is some anti anxiety help - either in the form of natual remedies such a a DAP diffuser, Rescue Remedy, or other holistic solutions; or through some actual anti anxiety medication such as Clomicalm, Prozac, Paxil, Xanax, or other off-label uses for human drugs. (search here for threads about anxiety and separation anxiety for more info).

 

It is quite possible that your wife's pregnancy is adding to your dog's stress. My cousin just had to rehome her greyhound because she couldn't handle the addition of children to their house (they had the greyhound first). There are LOTS of changes going on in the house, in the schedule, in your wife and your dog doesn't sound like he handles change well. This will only get worse once the baby is born and things are even more crazy. You need to get his medical stuff on board before that happens.

[Guest evanderleeuw]

OK I brought him to the vet this morning for blood tests to rule out anything medical. I have a feeling it's purely behavioral but I want to be sure.

 

Clawsandpaws - yes I have different flooring. Hard wood which he is fine with and then a cheap linoleum type stuff in the kitchen and then carpet in the family room. He ate in the kitchen for close to a year and then decided he didn't like it. He also refuses to eat from raised feeders anymore too, even in carpeted room.

[Guest Clawsandpaws]

Don't forget how sensitive these dogs can be, Dudley has always been fine on non-shiny tile, but while at my mothers he slipped, and now he refuses to walk on them. You may not have been home and something "traumatic" happened to your boy, such as slipping, falling, sliding, and he is just not comfortable with it anymore. I would at least try something cheap and easy like a rug runner or rug and see if it helps at all. If that doesn't work then you can move on to examining other behavioral issues, which could very well be the case, but hopefully it is something easy

[greyhoundlady]

He is walked a lot 4-5 times a day. He loves his walks and basically pulls me to meet other people. He's very affectionate with everybody. Other dogs he's hit or miss with. He loves my families fogs and is a totally different Luke when around them, happy playful. In my house he does nothing and stays in one room. just seems so random that he just decides, ok I'm not going to eat for you, I'm not going to go into the kitchen, I'm no going to eat at all, I'm not going to leave this room.

I am glad to see he likes going out and meeting people/dogs and interacts well with them. Seems like he is maybe bored with things when he gets home? Have you tried giving him Kongs with stuffed treats, new toys, fun things when home? As to the food bowls - mine don't eat in the kitchen, mainly because there isn't a whole lot of room for two big greyhounds and two sets of raised feeders. One eats in a room off the kitchen and one eats in the hall. They eat everything immediately when the bowls are down, so nothing hangs about. It sounds like Luke likes carpeting better than slippery floors, and his bowls could have been sliding around on the kitchen floor, which bothered him, or as someone else mentioned, he might have slipped at some point. I would try putting some kind of rug (be sure it doesn't slide on the floor) under his raised feeder in the kitchen - and also keep the bowls in the other room for the time being. Keep feeding him in the room he likes, but put something in the kitchen bowls that might be really appealing. He may be tempted - at his own pace - to use the kitchen bowls eventually.

 

I try to get inside the head of my dogs . They have reasons for doing things that we don't understand at times. If something medical is ruled out, then you will know it is most likely behavior and you can work with that. He sounds like a sweet dog that isn't really giving you any big problems. Just have patience and he will probably come around to being ok.