Tuesday, October 21, 2008

When Donna and Vic were here they mentioned that once when they were in Wyoming at their son's house their little angel, Hannah found a open gate and wandered out. Within moments a search was launched. Before to long they found her. A kindly man who had seen Hannah and taken her in. He knew a greyhound loose was a greyhound in danger. Before they left with Hannah this man did a little finger wagging and said, "You may have a tag on your dog but with no area code it was worthless to me!" Morale of the story is make sure your tag has your complete phone number AND your cell phone number. I always put my cell phone on my dogs because if they are ever lost I WILL be out searching for them and not at home waiting for a call.

Lika (was Sparky) has a new trick to amuse her new adoptive family. She steals dirty dishes out of the sink so she can go polish them at her leisure. These are such great dogs!!!

Friday, October 17, 2008

TEETH

I had a nice surprise today when Donna and Vic from Billings called and were in the Bitterroot and wanted to visit and let Hannah run. It was great to meet them and Hannah had a good run. She did come in with some sore pads from running and turning. But we cleaned them with betadyne and she will be fine in a couple of days. Then we got looking at Hannah's teeth. It is one of my compulsions...I couldn't help myself. There was a little bit of gunk on her teeth which I HAD to get off. Before Donna could say "no" I had my scaler in hand and was giving her dog the once over. Vic was eager to learn and I showed him how to do it. We followed up with a good tooth brushing. Which brings me to something I have been meaning to discuss...TEETH

If there isn't infection you can clean them up yourself. Have your vet or someone who knows how show you how to use a scaler to just pop off the tartar. Vets would love it if you brushed your dogs teeth every day but honestly very few people I know actually do this. I would recommend that you check teeth the first of every month and/or every time you bathe your greyhound at least. Waiting until the smell bothers you is NOT the way to go and will end up with your dog on a table losing teeth. Dirty teeth ruin health. Just like people some have nice hard teeth and others have crummy enamel to which everything sticks. The unlucky dogs with bad enamel will benefit the most from lots of brushing to keep the tooth surface smooth. My Iris has soft teeth I check her teeth every couple of weeks or more. It is a battle to keep up with it but so far she still has her teeth.

I am not going to discuss the how-to of scaling teeth since that is more of a hands on thing but I would be happy to show you if you want to come out. So lets just assume the teeth are reasonably clean. First you need tools. Save your money and don't buy those stupid dog tooth brushes...awkward and ineffective = thumbs down. I have yet to find one that works well but the dog toothpaste is worth buying. I use an inexpensive battery operated people tooth brush ($5-$8). Look for one that the rotating brush is on the end. Those are your real cleaning bristles so you want them where they can get the most contact with the teeth in that long pointed jaw. Step one is desensitizing your dog to the brush. Turn it on while you examine the dog's mouth but don't try to use it yet. Flick it off and on a few times so the start up doesn't bother them. Next wet your brush and load with some dog tooth paste. Pushing the paste into the bristles slightly will keep it from falling right off. Next, with the turned off brush, open your greyhounds lips and brush the paste into the teeth. I always smear the paste into the teeth like this before I start to brush them because it keeps the paste where you need it instead of on the floor. At first work mostly on just the teeth you can reach. Don't worry about getting the back teeth until the dog understands what you are doing and relaxes. Now with the brush bristles resting against the teeth turn on the brush and start to move it. Be sure you push slightly so it doesn't just tickle. Brush both sides gently but quickly and stop. The tell them how smart and wonderful they are. Give them some love and repeat the process until your dog has very little reaction to this new concept. If your dog got wound up by the process stop before they fight you and do it again in a few minutes. But give them a break to think it over. Once they accept you brushing the front teeth, then you can start doing the back teeth. When I do the back teeth I hook my thumb in the back corner of the lip and pull the lips back resting my other fingers on the top of the skull. When I do the left side I use my fingers and rest my palm on the top of the skull. Its too awkward to use my thumb much on that side. Be sure you keep your fingers away from the chewing surfaces. Once you and your greyhound have the hang of it you won't have to lift the lips much and can just work under the lips like we do when we brush our own teeth. A simple brushing should only take a couple of minutes from start to finish if you do it right. Human tooth paste is not supposed to be swallowed so unless your dog knows how to sip, swirl and spit use dog tooth paste or baking soda. As for that stuff you can spend big money for to add to your dog's water to keep tartar at bay. It is proving not to be all that effective and some of it is actually dangerous. Ineffective, dangerous and expensive= thumbs down.

Some things you can do to help your dogs teeth stay clean. Many people like to give bones. They should be raw and you should watch your dog so you can take the bone away when it gets small. When you take it always give your dog a nice trade. A bite of meat or cheese in exchange for the used up bone. I have found big knuckle bones can break the teeth. So find a length of leg bone or even a rib....but keep checking the status of the bone and take it away when it is too small. You can also find sterilized bones which you can fill with a little cheese or peanut butter. When the dog gets bored the bone can go right into your dishwasher to be cleaned and ready for the next time. I have a friend who swears by giving her dogs fresh raw chicken (or turkey) necks or backs. On occasion I have done this and my dogs have had no trouble digesting it. Raw poultry bones don't splinter like cooked ones. Even beef bones will splinter if they are over cooked. Smoked bones sounds like a nice idea but smelly, carpet staining and splintering risk = thumbs down. Not over soaking your dogs dinner will also help. Greyhounds need a little lubrication to help them not choke when they gulp their food down but don't let the food become mush. The crunch of dry dog food will fall off the teeth to be swallowed instead of gathering in the teeth.

Giving some thought to your greyhounds teeth can save you hundreds of dollars in the long run...but feel free to pop those dollars in a envelope and send them over .

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Tonight is the Presidential debate. While I really encourage you all to watch the debate. I will watch as much as I can stand which will be about 15 minutes then I will be out playing with my pups. I would like to suggest a political debate format of my own. If it were my world this is what would happen.

The presidential "test" would be as follows.

The first part of the test would consist of both candidates being in a room with 10-15 dogs. After an hour or so I want to see who has the dogs near at hand and who the dogs are avoiding.

The second part of the test would be the candidates going into a room alone with about 20 kids ranging in age from 2-15 years. We would be able to see who is better at negotiation, behavior modification, delegating and organizing.

The third part of the test would be a camera following them after their experiences and seeing what they say after the fact. Would they sprint from the room like it was on fire or would they linger and watch the children or dogs at play? Would they talk about what they would do better next time or only point fingers at their opponent and talk about what the other guy did wrong?

My idea is based on the belief that dogs and kids can tell the difference between the good and bad guys better than any adult or political journalist. This test would clear up all the confusion the debates seem to leave in their wake. As it stands now I might be taking a coin for flipping into the voting booth.

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Run, Tava and Iris

This is a story about how two little greyhounds became three little greyhounds...and I ain't talking about a puppy! I picked Run for our group last Oct. She arrived from Kansas on Oct 27th without much fan fair. At first I tried everything to place her. I took her to the rep training and pawned her off on everyone. I tried to get people to foster her. I told everyone about her but nothing ever came together for her. Run was a bit intense and very smart. A bit much for some homes and she was absolutely horrible about cats. The weeks passed and one day I thought, "Heck I may as well give her a little training." Run proved to be super bright and loved the game of training...and I am a sucker for a smart dog! She learned everything I taught her fast. Greyhounds aren't the easiest dogs to train, but Run and I spoke the same language. By about March I started mentioning Run to less people and started thinking maybe I should keep her for myself. She was an easy fit for our home. I mean really, look at those three faces pictured above and tell me they aren't perfect together. Well, then the unexpected happened. The "right" home appeared for Run. They had no cats, had greyhound experience and whats more Run liked them. I grilled them to make sure they were good enough. I made them come out three times before I would even consider telling them she might be available. So Run packed her bags and she went into a home. As they were loading her up, I stood in the driveway amid their joy and happy faces, I was biting my cheek. I had to keep telling myself this was going to be good and not to grab the lead from their hands. My heart broke as I watched her drive away. For the most part things went well in her home. She was loved and it seemed like it was working. Then one day in July I got a call from Vicki. "Run is coming back." I couldn't believe my ears. "What do you mean she is coming back?" I asked. I struggled to wrap my brain around the idea she was being returned, and yet there was that little flicker in my heart. Then Vicki laid it on the line "She is being returned, can you take her?" The little flicker turned into a flame and my response was "How soon can she come home?"

It took a couple of days for the transfer to happen. I was anxious during that time....so worried it might not happen. Before long I was waiting in the driveway for Vicki to arrive with Run. While I was disappointed the home had fallen apart it was all I could do not to click my heels and dance a jig when I saw her. Run had been gone about 7 long weeks. Everyone asked what I was going to do about her and I simply said, "I think Run needs to be evaluated before she is put up for adoption". Which is why she never appeared on the "available" page of the web site. I had to endure the knowing snickers of my friends. I wanted to be sure it really would work. So here we are almost a year later and at last the commitment is cemented. Run is mine...as always....

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

The saga of Toby the whippet boy is over. This morning amid rush hour traffic Toby darted into traffic on I-90 and was killed. His broken hearted owner is returning home with Toby's body. When I got word I called Dana our greyhound family over there, she had already heard the glum news. I am very proud of Dana and how she took up his cause and gave so much. She spent hours searching went above and beyond. So hug your hounds tonight and give them a extra cookie and remember Toby. We have no guarantees...there is only NOW. Love deeply and often.