New Grey, New Owner. House Training Issues

[Guest Lofarber]

Hi all. My new greyhound, Alfred, has been with us since Sunday. He went from the track to a kennel with a doggie door. Now he is with us in a apartment in Denver. He had 2 pees in the house on the first day, none since. One diareeah on Monday, I didn't know his "sign" he had to go out. But beyond that he's been great. Last night he had LOADS of loose stools in the bedroom where we all sleep at 3 am. His stool has been really loose the whole time....so, I'm wondering if I should only feed him earlier? Or does he have worms? Or is he just really nervous still? I have been taking him outside to the same areas for potty and then a long walk for fun so he gets the idea of it. He will poop outside within the first 15 mins and he has been going A LOT. Any advice? Is he sick and just couldn't hold it all night? I can't get up at 3 am cleaning poop every night. Thank god my mini carpet cleaner is coming from Amazon today. Ha ha.

[Guest Lofarber]

Update: his poop was a bit firmer for his 2nd morning walk. So that's good.

I think I *may* have overdone the whole pumpkin thing. I gave him a half a can. I just read it's like 2 TBSP. Oh boy am I dumb...

[GeorgeofNE]

Please take any newly adopted dog to the vet for a check up, including checking his stool for parasites.

[Guest Lofarber]

Yep we have a Fri appointment.

[Feisty49]

Pumpkin can have two effects: It can firm and it can also make poo loose.

 

You need to have him and his stool checked by the vet. It's necessary to establish yourself with a Greyhound-savvy vet before an emergency arises.

 

How much food is he getting? If he's getting too much, the excess might just be going through him. What kind? Some dogs react negatively to what is considered high-end food, that is those with no grain, etc. Many of us think that's a bunch of crap -- no pun intended. Many people and their dogs have great output using Iams in the Green Bag. It's not considered high end but we mostly agree that whatever works is the best.

 

There is a product that some of us use called Olewo. It's available on Amazon. It can firm up poo very nicely, but I wouldn't use it until you've established he's free of worms and it's not the food causing the issue.

 

Regarding a sign that he has to go poo: I'm laughing a little bit because I've had Annie for almost 5 years and she has never had a sign. I'm retired so am home most of the time, and I have to remember to put her out every 5 hours or so because she'd hold it for 10 hours! In extreme cases, where she's had to go very, very bad, she will come to me and stare into my face, but that happens only every couple of months.

 

ETA: I see you have a vet appt.

Edited April 6, 2016 by Feisty49

[Guest Lofarber]

Thanks for info! I am using diamond naturals beef and rice. Feeding according to bag- 4 cups. ( hes 85 lbs) I was adding rice too because of diareeah. Should I give it a week to see what happens? I want to eliminate stress as a factor before changing food...and yes, i read after it was too late about the pumpkin having an opposite effect....duh. Ha ha

[NeedlenoseJake]

You have received some great advice here so I won't repeat... but I wanted to say that you are doing great and sometimes the dogs just have loose stools because they are still settling in. Enjoy this getting to know you period and try to have fun!

[Houndtime]

Thanks for info! I am using diamond naturals beef and rice. Feeding according to bag- 4 cups. ( hes 85 lbs) I was adding rice too because of diareeah. Should I give it a week to see what happens? I want to eliminate stress as a factor before changing food...and yes, i read after it was too late about the pumpkin having an opposite effect....duh. Ha ha

Is that 4 cups at a time, or two cups twice a day? I would feed him twice a day. Four cups in one feeding is an awful lot. Diamond is an ok food. If you find it works, I would stick with it. Good luck at the vet.

[NeedlenoseJake]

Is that 4 cups at a time, or two cups twice a day? I would feed him twice a day. Four cups in one feeding is an awful lot. Diamond is an ok food. If you find it works, I would stick with it. Good luck at the vet.

I think Costco Nature's Domain is the same food as Diamond for a lot cheaper- like made in the same plant but just given a different label.

[Guest Lofarber]

Is that 4 cups at a time, or two cups twice a day? I would feed him twice a day. Four cups in one feeding is an awful lot. Diamond is an ok food. If you find it works, I would stick with it. Good

luck at the vet.

2 cups at a time....which seems weird to me as the kennel said they were feeding him 10 cups a day 1x day

Edited April 6, 2016 by Lofarber

[Roo]

2 cups at a time....which seems weird to me as the kennel said they were feeding him 10 cups a day 1x day

That would be a ton of food! Could you have misheard? It can be loud in there

[Guest Lofarber]

No I swear they said 10!!! Crazy right?!!

[Sundrop]

Also remember he is new, and likely anxious about this new chapter in his life. He doesn't know you, or what you expect of him and he's been taken away from the only life he's ever known! Having said that, I have found that letting our hounds out on a schedule works great. We are on hound #5 and we've always let them out at specific times during the day - in the morning after they eat, and about an hour later they get a walk - at lunch after their treat - after dinner - and then about an hour after dinner another walk - and finally, right before bed. We've had minimal problems with house-training - a few accidents here and there, or over-zealous marking by our newly-neutered males, but really only in the first week or so.

 

Once they settle in and learn the schedule, we never have issues unless one is ill or something is wrong. We have also learned that every once in a while they need to go out "off the schedule" and the biggest cue is they will pace, normally near the door to go out. You'll learn your guy's signs, but I'd encourage you to set up a schedule and stick to it as much as possible. Giving him some routine will help him settle in.

 

Already lots of advice about the food, but I wouldn't put too many mix-ins right now until you know how he'll react just to the food. We've made the mistake of adding too many "other things" too quickly (pumpkin, yogurt, Olewo carrots, plus new lunch-time treats and bed-time treats and treats for training, etc.) - it makes it difficult to pinpoint what he is reacting to with so much going on. I like to stabilize them on their food and one kind of treat (we treat at lunch & bedtime) and once we know they are okay, we can start the other things.

 

Just what we do and has worked for all the houndies so far.

 

Good luck!

[GeorgeofNE]

Maybe they meant "10 scoops" of whatever size they have? I can't imagine any dog eating that much.

 

My dog, and my prior dog, get 2 cups a day. My mutt, who was extremely active, got 5 cups when he was young and at the dog par 3 hours a day, but as he aged he also went down to 2 cups.

 

Never go by the bag. Their goal is to sell more dog food, right?

[Guest Jordan33]

I'm planning to get a new grey in the coming weeks and I found a dog food company called The Honest Kitchen. They have a product you mix with food to help minimize gastrointestinal issues due to stress and a changing diet. It's all natural. Expensive though, but they will ship to you.

 

As has been said, talk to your vet first, of course, but for now at least you know it's there.

[Guest AtticusMom]

Hang in there! You'll work it out. Every time I've adopted a grey (and, my cats), I go through a "what have I done?!" period. I agree with Sundrop about keeping to a schedule of sorts. I think greys appreciate a (mostly) predictable schedule.

[Guest Lofarber]

Thanks all! It's been a crazy week and things are better! Vet checked out with no problems ( besides teeth), We've got him on a good schedule and he hasn't had an accident since Thurs but that was the first time the dog walker came so I think he was nervous....so yay! Appreciate all the great advice