Greyhound Dogs--Training Update #244

[Moonmom]

Oh..the stealing! Minty's favorite thing to steal is shoes. She doesn't hurt them..she just likes to gather them up and bring them to "her" spot. And if DD or my mom comes over for a visit, she'll grab their shoes and lay with her paw over them; I think she's trying to keep the people there since they can't leave barefoot!
Minty would "steal" stuffies and just relocate them...dropping them if she spotted me; she was rather timid at first. Then I started doing things like hiding a small treat in one of the stuffies ears or something; then she'd find it and I'd scoot around the floor and hide another little treat..and she'd snuffle around looking for that stuffie; then soon it evolved to her bringing me that stuffie...guess to "fill it up". Sometimes we'd bring a soft stuffie or her plush type frisbie outside and toss it in the air..away from her, (at first she got spooked it we tried tossing it to her) and she'd chase after it. Now, it's regular thing... and when she's tired of the game she picks up her toy and heads to the door to go back in for another nap.
Minty will steal from my closet occasionally.. a slipper, a shoe. But one day I was getting ready to go out of town (without her!) and I'd taken my Disney (Mickey print) suitcase out of the attic and left it in the hallway. While I was packing I had to run a quick errand and when I came home DH had gotten in from work. He said that he put my DVC backpack "back" onto my bed. Huh? I told him I didn't have it out... he said that he came in Minty was on her bed with her paws over it. She'd taken it out of my closet.. where it had been stacked on low shelf with plain one on top of it. The plain one was left on the closet floor. I guess she wanted to go with me and needed a bag for her things!
They sure do make us smile!

 

[ducklite]

DS came home from work and let Skeet out of his crate, took him out for a piddle, and brought him back in. Half an hour later Skeet had diarrhea in the hall again. :::::heavy sigh::::: DS was not at all happy about cleaning it up.

He seemed fine when I got home--bounce bounce wag wag bounce bouce wag wag...

We went for a walk after dinner, and had two scary things happen. The first one went something like this:

Me: See squirrel coming at us. Uh oh.
Squirrel: There's something coming at me. I'll stop here. :::Freeze:::
Skeet: Freeze. Sight. Stare.
Squirrel: I'm outta here.
Skeet: You're mine sucker.
Me: Somebody call an ambulance, my arm is now dislocated.

The squirrel ran up a tree and as soon as Skeet lost sight he began to pay more attention to the guy sweeping his driveway in the next house.

The guy was laughing at what he had just seen. I hadn't found it that funny, and was still trying to assess if my body parts were properly connected to each other. Something about inertia... I stopped to talk to him for a sec, and looked down, and Skeet was loose! Thank God for the seperation anxiety, he turned around to see if I was still there and I grabbed him--never thought I could move faster than a greyhound. Had I been 1/10th of a second slower he would have been gone.

Somehow his lead had come detached from the Martingale collar. I snapped it back together and was a nervous wreck the rest of the way home. There's now a caribiner acting as a safety. That will never happen again.

Now my lug is sleeping soundly after his big adventure, and I'm still trying to find my heart, which somehow lept out of my throat and ran down the street a few blocks from here.

Anne

 

[pumba]

our vet put our dalmatian on cooked ground up chicken with white rice.....she ate a half cup three or four times a day and plenty of water.....get her bowels back to normal.......we did this for five days. If it doesnt clear up the vet will probably give you something else to help it....poor thing and your poor arm.....we got a harness for our baby cause she is a puller and would have me down the street if she saw that squirrel......good luck

 

[winniedapooh]

Hey Anne...I have been following the adventures of Skeet since you were contemplating...this thread has had me in tears laughing and near tears worried about the big lug! Good luck and looking forward to tomorrow's installment!

 

[ducklite]

I've decided to call the vet about Skeet. He continues to have very smelly, very loose stools, even with the bland diet and Immodium. I want to get a fecal done, I suspect Giardia or Coccidia. I want to get him (and the ferrets) started on Albon or metronidazole asap if that's what it is.

You can smell him poop from 8-12 feet away--and it's unbelievably stinky.

He "roached" last night--first time he's totally been sound asleep on his back with all four paws in the air--that says that he's beginning to feel really comfortable in his surroundings.

We had an uneventful 45 minute walk this morning. No squirrels, no detached leads, no dislocated limbs.

Anne

 

[MickeysMommy]

I don't know how I missed this thread but your new baby is beautiful. I wish you all many happy years together.

 

[FloraFauna]

I just started reading this thread today. Skeet looks like he's a sweet boy. I am glad ya'll found each other.

 

[Am_I_There_Yet]

I've decided to call the vet about Skeet. He continues to have very smelly, very loose stools, even with the bland diet and Immodium. I want to get a fecal done, I suspect Giardia or Coccidia. I want to get him (and the ferrets) started on Albon or metronidazole asap if that's what it is.

You can smell him poop from 8-12 feet away--and it's unbelievably stinky.

He "roached" last night--first time he's totally been sound asleep on his back with all four paws in the air--that says that he's beginning to feel really comfortable in his surroundings.

We had an uneventful 45 minute walk this morning. No squirrels, no detached leads, no dislocated limbs.

Anne

Good idea. Keep us updated!

 

[LoriKay]

I know I keep saying this but I just can't believe how fast he's getting comfortable. First the tail wagging, now the sleeping on his back. Good for you! Hope you and the vet can get the little problem figured out.

 

[gallaj0]

Our grey had some "messy" issues too when we got her home. We had to feed her boiled chicken and white rice for 4-5 days, it stopped and never came back.

Glad yours feels at home now.

 

[Moonmom]

I've decided to call the vet about Skeet. He continues to have very smelly, very loose stools, even with the bland diet and Immodium. I want to get a fecal done, I suspect Giardia or Coccidia. I want to get him (and the ferrets) started on Albon or metronidazole asap if that's what it is.

You can smell him poop from 8-12 feet away--and it's unbelievably stinky.

He "roached" last night--first time he's totally been sound asleep on his back with all four paws in the air--that says that he's beginning to feel really comfortable in his surroundings.

We had an uneventful 45 minute walk this morning. No squirrels, no detached leads, no dislocated limbs.

Anne

Good thinking on the fecal. Minty's just finishing a round of Albon for Coccidia; one of the boys had it twice so I ..um..recognized the color in her "piles"...(jeesh, this is like going back to diaper days).. sure 'nuff; the vet said that was it.
Skeet sure is settling in well...roaching... what a happy boy already!
Has he "spoken" yet? I know as rule they say greys are quiet.... but I have a "blabbermouth"... she ranges from girly little whines to barks that can make your ears ring.
How's he like his new crate?

 

[Rozzie]

Bladdermouth Grey's are my new 2 one's. Our first 2 barked maybe 4 times in the 10 years we had them. These two "sing", bark, roo, and play growl toward each other all day. They are rooing champs, I know my neighbors are quite stoked about our new additions!

Anne, I remember our 2nd Grey Inky didn't play with babies until we went to a Grey Christmas party our rescue group hosted several months after we got her. It was so cute, she looked at 15-17 Greys playing with all these babies that Santa just brought in the floor, looked up at me, and said "no kidding, we play with those??" and jumped right in and joined them. Before then, she just stared at them. She was a baby hog from then on.

Our new one, Honey loves the babies, won't spend 2 seconds she is awake without one being in her mouth. Our other new one, Tater, won't touch the babies, have anything to with them one bit. Some of them just take longer. Much longer.

Have you read Retired Greyhounds for Dummies? (not implying you are dummie, LOL, lord knows I feel like a dummy though trying to figure these mysterious creatures out....)It's like our bible in this house, we use it as a reference for almost everything. They have a great bland diet in there for the big "D" also. Hope things go well at the Vet, I feel like I know Skeet! What a sweetheart. Please keep us posted.

 

[mattsdragon]

Glad he didn't get away from you too badly. Mickey got away from us once and boy tracking him down wasn't fun. The little attention grabber loves other people when he gets a chance to see them though. He had the squirts when we first got him, but not in the house. It took him about a month of eating regular dog food (he was never fostered out, we got him directly from the track, so he'd only eaten raw meat), but it went away.

He likes to steal the fish food containers when he can get them. He doesn't eat the food, but he works the lid off and sprinkles fish flakes like confetti.

 

[nephthys43]

i don't know if greyhounds can wear them (with their heade shape and all), but zara has a Gentle Leader for walks. she's very strong and just about yanks my arm out when she sees something she wants. even a harness didn't cut it. just gave her more leverage. now anytime she tries to pull, her head gets turned to me and she has to stop. she hates the thing cause she looses control, but she is the best puppy on walks now.

 

[MushyMushy]

i don't know if greyhounds can wear them (with their heade shape and all), but zara has a Gentle Leader for walks. she's very strong and just about yanks my arm out when she sees something she wants. even a harness didn't cut it. just gave her more leverage. now anytime she tries to pull, her head gets turned to me and she has to stop. she hates the thing cause she looses control, but she is the best puppy on walks now.

I'll second the Gentle Leader (or Halti -- they're both good). I'm not sure about greyhounds, but I don't see why they couldn't wear them. Our dog weighs 100 pounds, and the Gentle Leader allows even my daughter to walk her.

 

[ducklite]

Good thinking on the fecal. Minty's just finishing a round of Albon for Coccidia; one of the boys had it twice so I ..um..recognized the color in her "piles"...(jeesh, this is like going back to diaper days).. sure 'nuff; the vet said that was it.

I talked to the president of the rescue last night, she told me that he had tested + for giardia and was treated while he was in foster care. I know that Giardia can take a full 2-3 week course of treatment, so that's my guess. He goes to the vet Saturday and we'll see.

Skeet sure is settling in well...roaching... what a happy boy already!
Has he "spoken" yet? I know as rule they say greys are quiet.... but I have a "blabbermouth"... she ranges from girly little whines to barks that can make your ears ring.

He whines incessantly when I close a door between him and I. That's not good noise, and something I'm going to have the trainer work with us on. Otherwise he snorts a lot, but I haven't heard him bark yet.

How's he like his new crate?

He HATES it. I bribe him in with a dog biscuit. This morning that didn't work, so I got his two front paws in, got behind him, and p-u-s-h-e-d until he was forced in. I hated doing it, and another thing he's going to have to learn is to go into the crate when he's told to.

My son had let him out when he got home from work yesterday, and took him for a walk. He did nothing. Ten minutes after walking he pooped in the middle of the white carpet in my bedroom. I had to leave work to go home and clean it up. I crated him so he wouldn't track it all over, and he stood there and whined. I was really frustrated and yelled "Quiet!" at him and he layed down and didn't make another peep.

He ate really well this morning, it was the first time he's finished his food without me standing there coaxing him. I walked him a 5:30 this morning for half an hour, and he didn't even pee. He ate at 6:30 and I walked him again at 7:30 for 20 minutes and he pee'd but still hadn't pooped. I hope I don't have a mess in the crate when I get home--I'm thinking that he just got himself way over-excited being out of the crate and couldn't hold it any longer, like a little dog that piddles. After yesterday I told DS not to let him out of the crate when he gets home, so we'll see. I'm hoping once we get the diarrhea under control this issue will be moot.

Anne

 

[ducklite]

Have you read Retired Greyhounds for Dummies? (not implying you are dummie, LOL, lord knows I feel like a dummy though trying to figure these mysterious creatures out....)It's like our bible in this house, we use it as a reference for almost everything. They have a great bland diet in there for the big "D" also. Hope things go well at the Vet, I feel like I know Skeet! What a sweetheart. Please keep us posted.

I've ordered it from Amazon, but it hasn't come in yet.

Anne

 

[ducklite]

He likes to steal the fish food containers when he can get them. He doesn't eat the food, but he works the lid off and sprinkles fish flakes like confetti.

Anne

 

[ducklite]

I'll second the Gentle Leader (or Halti -- they're both good). I'm not sure about greyhounds, but I don't see why they couldn't wear them. Our dog weighs 100 pounds, and the Gentle Leader allows even my daughter to walk her.

He's actually been really good on our walks except for that one time. That same night something in some shrubs spooked him, and he's been easily spooked since then.

What I'm going to get is a chest harness, that is the most fooproof for a greyhound.

Anne

 

[Sherrypooh]

I have been following this story from the begining. My co-worker has two rescue greyhounds. I have been reading the updates to her and she suggested that you get his vitamin B12 level checked. It is a fasting blood test. She has to give one of her girls a B12 shot weekly. She said he could have some sort of vitamin deficency. Not sure if that helps. Good luck at the vet!