If You Love Dogs… Please Answer!!!?
Filed under Care & Training Q&As
Okay, since my 1st and 2nd attempt try to post this question failed, because only 1 person answered, I decided to re-post it and make a poll, so things get more interesting.
It’s just that I adopted a retired Greyhound called Gracye. She is very wierd, but I honestly think that’s very cool… But 2 months after it gets sickening. Just read:
1st of all. As a retired racer, her only joy is to walk off-leash, but she runs away from me and I am afraid she gets run over by a car or gets lost. I tried luring her with food, toys and calling her. I also tried Clicker training, but she thinks it’s a game and keeps running from me I managed to catch her until now but I am so sick of this and afraid for her.
2nd, she isn’t potty trained, because she is an older dog and was never potty trained before. As I live in an appartment – yes, Greyhounds CAN live in apartments – it is not very enjoyable to find a puddle of pee waiting for me. She gets over-excited easily and wee-wees on the floor when so. I would like her to know how to pee in the terrace.
3rd, she is terribly thin. Need proof? – http://www.gpa-nw.org/images/PuddleDuck-… – the vet says “it’s normal”, but I’ve had whippets and lurchers who are naturally thin too, is it normal for them to be like this? She refuses to eat. I have tried rests of our dinner, all the dog food from the market, it’s just that she is a little… how do I say… strange. She only eats the food if I roll it throught the floor or give it piece by piece to her mouth.This is very irritating! And her stomach is so weak that if I feed her something a little bit diferent she pukes.
4rth (promisse the last question): I KNOW I must be pacient, of course. But just for curiousity: why does she don’t let me pet her when it’s my intention, but asks for petting when I am busy? Is it on porpuse, LOL.
POLL: What dogs do you have? Names? What is the most WIERD thing he ever done?
Related posts:
1) Try the retractable leash, it works well and will allow her to run around with you still being in control. She might be running away from you because she thinks your playing a game.. Dogs love playing games, one of their favourites is chase! If your dog runns away, wither ignore her, or run away to. If you run away she might think “Ok now its my time to chase!”
2)Try crate training, it works well…
3)Your dog looks incredibly anorexic. My dog was thin before but not THAT thin. He refused to eat his food (like your dog) and we had to force feed him to eat (physically putting th efood in his mouth and opening and closing his mouth until he ate it. He would only eat bones (cooked in the microwave, not raw) only. That was, until we found out something… Apparently, at the dog park we went to a lady there said that her dog would only eat catfood. Try that with your dog, cat food is a whole lot less processed, your dog may like natural food. We don’t gie our dog cat food, instead we give him TUNA!! He bsolutley loves it, try this with your dog too. We don’t give him a can everytime, we just put some tuna bits into his bowl of dog food. DON’T give her human food, this makes dogs stomachs upset with all the additives and chemicals (the tuna we buy is just in its natural oil and isn’t processed)
4) I have no idea.. .sorry…
Poll: I only have one dog, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel (fussiest dog on the world I tell you) his name is Rimu and the wierdest thing he ever did was when I was taking him on a walk with my friends dog and my friends dog (female) pooed and peed on her poo, then my dog proceeded to lick the poo covered in pee (he won’t eat dog food but give him dog poopee anyday)
!st answer: I’ve never had a greyhound before but what about retractable leashes?
2nd answer: I don’t know if you have day time company but take her outside every 3 hours like you would with a puppy, or start from the very beginning as if she was an untrained puppy
3rd Answer: Give her her food, 10 minutes then take it away. Soon enough she’ll know thats how she needs to eat, dogs shouldnt be that dumb, they won’t starve themselves.
4th, i have no idea!
Poll answer:
-Jack Russell Terrier, 14 weeks. his name is Oscar Hamish Carlisle; Oscar for short, he “swims” on the carpet
-Golden Retriever , 5y.o, name is King Luca the Great Stinky; Luca for short. he… well he’s weird cuz he doesnt do anything weird lol… he’s like a perfect dog.
Hi, as others have said, get a long leash she’lll be fine. Secondly, put news papers down (if you want to do it the old fashioned way) if not, get her a crate and crate train her. Third of all, your vet is nuts and you need to find a better one, your dog is not healthy and that weight is not normal,she is too skinny. If she can not keep much food down try feeding her dry kibble with some water added to it (it will help from keeping the dog food so dry) and feed her small portions of that each meal time, her stomach could get upset if you feed her to much at one time. You can also try a wet – canned dog food. Last answer to your final question-She probably is a bit skittish,i doubt that she is doing it on purpose,you guys just run in different circles.
POLL: ~ANSWER~my dog name is precious she is a chihuahua mix and the most weird that she has ever done was try to eat her leg (dead serious), she was biting at it like there was no tomorrow! I call her legs chicken legs now XD
You really have taken on a handful there and all credit to you.
Anybody that takes on a retired racer has the experience of wishing they could be let off lead but knowing the consequences if they do. This is where a big garden would help or a local confined area like a tennis court of something where there is all-round fencing for her to run free now and again.
I believe that whoever you adopted her from should of been a little more careful in placing in an apartment if they knew she wasn’t houseclean, and not able to be let offlead.
As for being underweight I totally agree there. That is definitely too thin. Have you tried raw meat. I don’t want to force it on you but most dogs will eat it. Some dogs are left to catch their own dinner sometimes (rabbit) and maybe she has been used to doing this. Try throwing her a raw meaty bone onto the balcony and see if she eats that. Or even a whole rabbit, fur as well.
In general it is not good to allow a dog to choose when it is petted by you but for a dog that has lived the greyhound type of life and hasn’t really learned any human interaction skills then I would forgive this completely unless you thought she was being very dominant over you and I don’t think she would be looking at her.
Dear sweet little girl she looks — do hope you succeed with her.
1. It IS a game to the dog. With a little help (and preferably a fenced in area) try calling the dog and running AWAY from the dog. Now the game has changed and often the dog will come to you since you’re now running. Instead of “Chase me” play, it’s hunting play and you’re the “prey”. May not work, but it’s a different switch in the mind if the dog and it might be the key.
2. Get a kennel cage of the proper size for her and keep her in it during the day. She might still “go” in the cage, but it’s better than on the carpet. Besides you can get those under sheet pads for incontinent people to catch the mess and make clean-up easier.
3. Greyhounds are thin animals, but that seems a little extreme to me. On the other hand I’ve had neither whippets nor greyhounds so I’m not an expert. My advice is to take the picture to a different vet and get his opinion. If they both say it’s fine, then odds are it’s fine.
Just remember that vets make money off of office visits. IF there was something wrong, they’d jump on the chance to try and talk you into more visits.
4. It’s a little insecurity issue that a lot of dogs have. If you’re coming at her to pet, then you are a potential threat and the dog goes defensive. If you’re not coming after her and are occupied with something else then you’re not a threat and she can come to you.
Next time you want to pet her on your terms, try to pet her once, then when she backs off sit down and turn away from her. When she realizes that you aren’t the threat she’ll come to you (might take a while, be patient) and get petted. Next time do the same thing. Eventually she’ll get the idea that you mean her no harm and will allow you that first petting. Then another, and another until she understands that it’s ok.
1. Get a long leash
2. train your dog to use pee pads
3. I think your dog just wants the attention. My dog does that sometimes too.
4. Your dog just wants attention. Sometimes dogs won’t let you pet them because they want you to play with them instead.
POLL: I have a Shih Tzu named Tasha. She licks her BFF’s tongue.
1, Get a long leash so she can run but you still have control.
2,Crate train her, this will solve the toilet training.
3, Do NOT giver her human food, it can make her worse. See the vet as it may be something medical going on.
4, I don’t think its on purpose. Maybe she is anxious so she comes for attention when the situation is less threatening?
POLL: English Springer Spaniel. Molly. Eaten a moth.
Hopefully I can help you with this:http://www.peteducation.com/category.cfm…
this link should take you to a page on all dog behavior and training read the articles and hopefully you find your answer to your problems…I cant help you much because i am not an expert but my dog got really thin because she had a tumor in her stomach and we gave her PETCO Puppy Vitamin Gel that helped her survive until the operation and got her eating better than without it and I think this can get your dog to be healthier or also check for worms that can cause them to be very thin all of this i know from experience
POLL ANSWERS: I have a chihuahua; Puka, the weirdest thing she has ever done is went wee wee on my moms bed when my mom ignored her because she was to busy giving attention to the new puppy
Hey! I have a cat who is just as weird. I know this is strange but try BBQ chicken from coles or woolworhts its not to rich or filling either,, my cat loves it!!!! i think you should try a long lead and make sure you do discipline her when she is being naughty. pointing the finger and having a loud voice does work. have a room for her when ur not home filled with newspaper so u she can do her business without u coming home with a pleasent surprise lol
good luck
Attempts to post did not fail. You received no response. You and your dog need help. Contact your local Greyhound Rescue group for help. You need to learn to train a dog, feed a dog and learn that a retired greyhound racer is special all unto its own. Stop feeding it people food. Your pet store can help advise a food. Dogs will eat from the bowl when they get hungry. Leave the food until they eat it. Contact the rescue group!!
1.) Get her a retractable leash or invisible fence.
2.) Get her a belly band to stop her from peeing. You should get her a pee potty system or Petapotty w/ fake grass and put it on your terrace and try training her with treats and practice patience!
3.) Yes she is too thin you shouldn’t see bones! You need to feed her high quality foods that your vet can recommend you or something like Innova EVO with a high protein count!
4.) She wants to hop in!
Ok so it seems you have a lot to deal with! but that’s your choice!
)
As you said you must be patient and of course cause she is old you must be 4times more!
1st – As someone else said get a very big rope and use it as leash so you can have control. It is just a matter of time to get used to it.
2nd – Every time she pees grab her if you can and take her in the terrace. If she gets over excited just ignore her and clean. she will finally learn not to do it.
3rd – Yes she is very thin but sometimes it is normal for such dogs. If the vet says it ok it probably will. I think if she gets hungry she will eat but you are not bored feed her but be careful cause she might learn to eat only that way.
4th – my dogs do exactly the same sometimes. when you try to pet her is she afraid? don’t approach her standing above her cause she might get scared. try to sit down and call her or trow a ball and get some toys around you.
POLL: German Shepherd named Ebony, Fox terrier – Emilou, Rottweiler – Abby, mini-Poodle – Liza, Bullmastiff – Sherlock, Doberman – Rocco. My mini-Poodle gets all the toys in her dog-house and don’t let the other dogs to take them back so they come to me especially Abby and barks to come and give them their toys.
Chihuahua’s & a Chiweenie
Zoey, Taz, Pixie, & Maya
Taz has a fear of anything blown up…balloons, pool toys, etc. & he also hates the color RED. Weird enough for ya? other than that he is an excellent little guy!!
First of all congradulations for adopting a retired greyhound.As a proud owner of one myself I hope i can help you out here.If you have any more questions just get back to me!
Firstly, my dog has & still runs away when i let off the leash…calling, food, playing or anything doesn;t seem to work. A new trick i have come up with is when she runs away & is finished excercising(still wont come back to me) i go away from her, ignore her, then after about a half an hour ( can be too long sometimes) she will come back right into your arms.
2nd I cant help you with potty training, i’ve no experience but i would think as an older dog it is certainly a challenge.
3rd I looked at the photo you posted & yes that is how a normal greyhound looks it may be a bit frightning but that is breeding for you!
I would say however she is a little thin & maybe some extra food would be a help. (next parg)
4th my dog loves tea, good old tea.
fresh tea with milk she loves-try it.
Hope this was of some help to you
1st
Leash train her. My dog hated the leash. You just cant give in. Take her for a long walk and pull her along sooner or later she will get the idea. Be in control. Don’t let her control you.
2nd
When she pees on the floor make her lay in it. She will fight you. Dogs know that pee isn’t fun. Make her understand that its wrong to pee in the house. Also take her out to the terrace and when she finally goes praise her abundantly.
With my dog we gave specific names to his “duties”. I use “quickies” and “pooies”. So every time you want Gracye to do her business say the word and she will connect the two.
3rd
The food is being given to her. Dogs need to work for their food. Take her for a long run. Then cool her down and make her sit before you give her the food. You should own the food. she shouldn’t just get to eat whenever. I met a dog like this. It was fixed after we made him work for it. Don’t just give her the food. Make her really earn it.
4th
Yes she is doing it on purpose. She is trying to be a leader when you need to be. Make her earn your attention. Do trick and then praise her (don’t give her treats) Treats always end up badly. Praise should be enough if she has to work for it. Most working dogs don’t understand when and when not to earn praise because they always worked for it before so now that she doesn’t have to she wants it when she wants it.
My dog Tecumseh Great Pyr/ Border Collie mix
He rips up fiberglass (bad!) and eats pillbug/ rollie pollies.
i have had a pug, a golden retriever, a germanShepherd ,a Pomeranian pomeranian tore the bed sheet as i went to the market and my mom was watching tv in the other room.
a pug does not do weird things but ya he is still there and he is Still trying to lick my nose and rub his hand on my cheeks.
a retriever is a boring one i find it boring but ya he also
climbs up on the bed at night and sleeps with me i had a german shepherd now he is not. but ya he even barked at my tutor……………………………..…
this is a real incidence i m telling u