Special shout out to the Denverites who made it down - Coffee and Susan, Naomi and Matt with Artemis and Apollo, and Becky with Jasper. Glad you could make it.
St Paddy's Parade!
Thanks to everyone who came to march with the greys this year! We had a total 39 greyhounds dressed in green! To see lots of photos, go to our yahoo group and click into the "Photos" link in the left column.
Special shout out to the Denverites who made it down - Coffee and Susan, Naomi and Matt with Artemis and Apollo, and Becky with Jasper. Glad you could make it.
Special shout out to the Denverites who made it down - Coffee and Susan, Naomi and Matt with Artemis and Apollo, and Becky with Jasper. Glad you could make it.
"Rescue Remedy" Warning!
The following was posted on another greyhound list. As a vet tech, I think it's really great information, although a bit alarmist. Recent studies suggest (by no means conclusively) that in the pill form, Rescue Remedy - which is commonly used to calm dogs - may be harmful. Although the post says repeatedly that "small amounts" are toxic, that really is not true. It is harmful in amounts greater than 100 milligrams per kilogram of body weight, and possibly causes fatal liver complications in greater amounts. So take the following with a grain of salt, but as I said, it's good info to be aware of.
"Rescue Remedy" is an herbal concoction that can and does calm your dog, safely. However, there is some suggestion that when in the "Pastilles" (pill) form, it may have concentrations of a naturally-occurring chemical sweetener Xylitol which may be life-threatening in dogs (studies show possiblity of hypoglycemia and/or liver failure). However, it's important to note that the jury is out on this one: the World Health Association concluded after studies using high levels of Xylitol (more than 100 mg per kilogram weight of animal) that no adverse effects were present. It is important to note that not only do different studies suggest different conclusions at this point in the research, but in all cases very large doses were given.
But until there is more research, it might be a good idea to stick to the liquid form, which you can count on as being safe for use in dogs.
If you have concerns about the Xylitol content of any food or herbal substance, here are the suggested precautions:
To find your dog's weight in kilograms: weight in pounds divided by 2.2 = kilos (Remember that the weight in kilos is always a lower number than the weight in pounds.)
Over 100 milligrams Xylitol PER kilogram of body weight: It has been suggested that this could cause hypoglycemia. Symptoms: disorientation, vomiting, fainting, stumbling.
Over 500 milligrams Xylitol PER kilogram of body weight: It has been suggested that this could cause liver failure. Symptoms: vomiting, jaundice, severe lethargy.
Susie
"Rescue Remedy" is an herbal concoction that can and does calm your dog, safely. However, there is some suggestion that when in the "Pastilles" (pill) form, it may have concentrations of a naturally-occurring chemical sweetener Xylitol which may be life-threatening in dogs (studies show possiblity of hypoglycemia and/or liver failure). However, it's important to note that the jury is out on this one: the World Health Association concluded after studies using high levels of Xylitol (more than 100 mg per kilogram weight of animal) that no adverse effects were present. It is important to note that not only do different studies suggest different conclusions at this point in the research, but in all cases very large doses were given.
But until there is more research, it might be a good idea to stick to the liquid form, which you can count on as being safe for use in dogs.
If you have concerns about the Xylitol content of any food or herbal substance, here are the suggested precautions:
To find your dog's weight in kilograms: weight in pounds divided by 2.2 = kilos (Remember that the weight in kilos is always a lower number than the weight in pounds.)
Over 100 milligrams Xylitol PER kilogram of body weight: It has been suggested that this could cause hypoglycemia. Symptoms: disorientation, vomiting, fainting, stumbling.
Over 500 milligrams Xylitol PER kilogram of body weight: It has been suggested that this could cause liver failure. Symptoms: vomiting, jaundice, severe lethargy.
Susie
I bought it, took it home and gave one to her. It did ease her anxiety so I went
to their web site to learn more about it and I found a warning that the
"pastilles" form is not recommended for pets because it contains the artificial
sweeter Xylitol and it is highly toxic to dogs. Apparently this product hasn't
been out very long and people are getting confused because "Rescue Remedy" is
fairly commonly recommened for pets.
Yikes! My old girl is OK (too big to react to only one piece) but that was
almost a scary accident. There is no warning on the packaging to say that you
should not give it to pets. Of course, I should have checked in advance but I
didn't think about it.
It is only the "pastilles" form that is the problem. The liquids and creams are
OK.I didn't know what a small dose of Xylitol could do to a dog. And since it is a
sweetener it may be tasty so that dogs would seek it out. This is a good
article.
http://www.petconnection.com/blog/hansen-xylitol/"
Be careful! Xylitol is popping up in more and more places and a scary small
amount can sicken/kill a dog. I have some xylitol products but they have xylitol
in the name and I do keep them out of dog reach. I hadn't thought of what it
might be put into without any sort of advertising.
Picnic - Fun and More Fun!
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It turned into a wonderful day - the weather cooperated right up until we were cleaning up! We had a great turn-out, lots of costume entries, musical "chairs" (note the towels on the ground), fun bobbing for hotdogs (notice the hotdogs in the pool!), a great silent auction and CGA store set-up, plus great vendors and food this year! Read more!
"Master McGrath" at Feathered Gems!
I recently discovered Feathered Gems thanks to our volunteer Dr. Lauren Halby. Lauren often wears a pendant with a greyhound on it, that turns out to be an old Irish coin, with an image of the famous Irish racer "Master McGrath" (pronounced McGraw). See the painting below. . . He was a tiny, 'weakling' greyhound - born 1866 - that no one thought would amount to much, and became to everyone's amazement the greatest racer in Ireland and England. See info about the pendant here. Read more about Master McGrath here. 
Feathered Gems carries a lot of unusual greyhound-themed jewelry, and is unique in that it allows you to "design" your own by picking specific chains, gemstones, pendants and designs. They also carry horse-themed jewelry. Check it out! Read more!
Keeping Them Cool!
Thanks to Lauren Halby, we who have done a lot of events this summer have made good use of an unlikely product to keep the dogs cool. You will find in your local Ace Hardware, Walmart, or anywhere with a good automotive section - cloths like the one in photo. This one is excellent: it is big enough to lay over the dog's back, and when wetted stays wet and COLD for some time. You'll find it displayed hanging, and do keep the plastic container for storage. Although there are several brands - the Absorber runs about $8 at Walmart - worth every penny.
Read more!
What is Your Grey Thinking?
I ran into the following today - I am trying to hunt down the actual author. It is really insightful, and a good read for anyone who fosters or owns a grey. While reading it, it occurred to me that it is remarkable that they adjust as quickly as they do to life in our homes! (Photo is of Leeloo, a beautiful young grey who passed away this past spring, belonging to Brooke Henry.)
"What is your new adopted greyhound thinking? This breed has never been asked to do anything for itself, make any decisions or answer any questions. It has been waited on, paw and tail. The only prohibition in a racing greyhound's life is not to get into a fight - or eat certain stuff in the turn out pen. . .
"Let us review a little. From weaning until you go away for schooling, at probably a year and a half, you eat, grow and run around with your siblings. When you go away to begin your racing career, you get your own "apartment," in a large housing development. No one is allowed in your bed but you, and when you are in there, no one can touch you, without plenty of warning.
"Someone hears a vehicle drive up, or the kennel door being unlocked. The light switches are flipped on. The loud mouths in residence, and there always are some, begin to bark or howl. You are wide awake by the time the human opens your door to turn you out. A Greyhound has never been touched while he was asleep.
"You eat when you are fed, usually on a strict schedule. No one asks if you are hungry or what you want to eat. You are never told not to eat any food within your reach. No one ever touches your bowl while you are eating. You are not to be disturbed because it is important you clean your plate.
"You are not asked if you have to "go outside." You are placed in a turn out pen and it isn't long before you get the idea of what you are supposed to do while you are out there. Unless you really get out of hand, you may chase, rough house and put your feet on everyone and every thing else. The only humans you know are the "waiters" who feed you, and the "restroom attendants" who turn you out to go to the bathroom. Respect people? Surely you jest.
"No one comes into or goes out of your kennel without your knowledge. You are all- seeing; all-knowing. There are no surprises, day in and day out. The only thing it is ever hoped you will do is win, place or show, and that you don't have much control over. It is in your blood, it is in your heart, it is in your fate - or it is not.
"And when it is not, then suddenly you are expected to be a civilized person in a fur coat. But people don't realize you may not even speak English. Some of you don't even know your names, because you didn'tneed to. You were not asked or told to do anything as an individual; you were always part of the "condo association"; the sorority or fraternity and everyone did everything together, as a group or pack.
The only time you did anything as an individual is when you schooled or raced, and even then, You Were Not Alone.
"Suddenly, he is expected to behave himself in places he's never been taught how to act. He is expected to take responsibility for saying when he needs to go outside, to come when he is called, not to get on some or all of the furniture, and to not eat food off counters and tables. He is dropped in a world that is not his, and totally without warning, at that.
"Almost everything he does is wrong. Suddenly he is a minority. Now he is just a pet. He is unemployed, in a place where people expect him to know the rules and the schedule, even when there aren't any. (How many times have you heard someone say, "He won't tell me when he has to go out." What kind of schedule is that?) Have you heard the joke about the dog who says, "My name is No-No Bad Dog. What's yours?" To me that is not even funny. All the protective barriers are gone. There is no more warning before something happens. There is no more strength in numbers. He wakes up with a monster human face two inches from his. (With some people's breath, this could scare Godzilla!) Why should he not, believe that this "someone," who has crept up on him, isn't going to eat him for lunch? (I really do have to ask you ladies to consider how you would react if someone you barely knew crawled up on you while you were asleep? No, I will not ask for any male input.)
"Now he is left alone, for the first time in his life, in a strange place, with no idea of what will happen or how long it will be beforesomeone comes to him again. If he is not crated, he may go thoughwalls, windows or over fences, desperately seeking something familiar, something with which to reconnect his life. If he does get
free, he will find the familiarity, within himself: the adrenaline high, the wind in his ears, the blood pulsing and racing though hisheart once again - until he crashes into a car.
"Often, the first contact with his new family is punishment, something he's never had before, something he doesn't understand now, especially in the middle of the rest of the chaos. And worst of all, what are the most common human reactions to misbehavior? We live in a violent society, where the answer to any irritation is a slap, punch, kick, whip, or rub your nose in it. Under these circumstances, sometimes I think any successful adoption is a miracle.
"He is, in effect, expected to have all the manners of at least a six-year-old child. But, how many of you would leave an unfamiliar six-year-old human alone and loose in your home for hours at a time and not expect to find who knows what when you got back? Consider that if you did, you could be brought up on charges of child abuse, neglect and endangerment. Yet people do this to greyhounds, and this is often the reason for so many returns.
"How many dogs have been returned because they did not know how to tell the adopter when they had to go out? How many for jumping on people, getting on furniture, counter surfing, separation anxiety, or defensive actions due to being startled or hurt (such as growling or biting? So, let's understand: Sometimes it is the dog's "fault" he cannot fit in. He is not equipped with the social skills of a six-
year-old human but you can teach him. . . With LOVE."
Anonymous
Read more!
"What is your new adopted greyhound thinking? This breed has never been asked to do anything for itself, make any decisions or answer any questions. It has been waited on, paw and tail. The only prohibition in a racing greyhound's life is not to get into a fight - or eat certain stuff in the turn out pen. . . "Let us review a little. From weaning until you go away for schooling, at probably a year and a half, you eat, grow and run around with your siblings. When you go away to begin your racing career, you get your own "apartment," in a large housing development. No one is allowed in your bed but you, and when you are in there, no one can touch you, without plenty of warning.
"Someone hears a vehicle drive up, or the kennel door being unlocked. The light switches are flipped on. The loud mouths in residence, and there always are some, begin to bark or howl. You are wide awake by the time the human opens your door to turn you out. A Greyhound has never been touched while he was asleep.
"You eat when you are fed, usually on a strict schedule. No one asks if you are hungry or what you want to eat. You are never told not to eat any food within your reach. No one ever touches your bowl while you are eating. You are not to be disturbed because it is important you clean your plate.
"You are not asked if you have to "go outside." You are placed in a turn out pen and it isn't long before you get the idea of what you are supposed to do while you are out there. Unless you really get out of hand, you may chase, rough house and put your feet on everyone and every thing else. The only humans you know are the "waiters" who feed you, and the "restroom attendants" who turn you out to go to the bathroom. Respect people? Surely you jest.
"No one comes into or goes out of your kennel without your knowledge. You are all- seeing; all-knowing. There are no surprises, day in and day out. The only thing it is ever hoped you will do is win, place or show, and that you don't have much control over. It is in your blood, it is in your heart, it is in your fate - or it is not.
"And when it is not, then suddenly you are expected to be a civilized person in a fur coat. But people don't realize you may not even speak English. Some of you don't even know your names, because you didn'tneed to. You were not asked or told to do anything as an individual; you were always part of the "condo association"; the sorority or fraternity and everyone did everything together, as a group or pack.
The only time you did anything as an individual is when you schooled or raced, and even then, You Were Not Alone.
"Suddenly, he is expected to behave himself in places he's never been taught how to act. He is expected to take responsibility for saying when he needs to go outside, to come when he is called, not to get on some or all of the furniture, and to not eat food off counters and tables. He is dropped in a world that is not his, and totally without warning, at that.
"Almost everything he does is wrong. Suddenly he is a minority. Now he is just a pet. He is unemployed, in a place where people expect him to know the rules and the schedule, even when there aren't any. (How many times have you heard someone say, "He won't tell me when he has to go out." What kind of schedule is that?) Have you heard the joke about the dog who says, "My name is No-No Bad Dog. What's yours?" To me that is not even funny. All the protective barriers are gone. There is no more warning before something happens. There is no more strength in numbers. He wakes up with a monster human face two inches from his. (With some people's breath, this could scare Godzilla!) Why should he not, believe that this "someone," who has crept up on him, isn't going to eat him for lunch? (I really do have to ask you ladies to consider how you would react if someone you barely knew crawled up on you while you were asleep? No, I will not ask for any male input.)
"Now he is left alone, for the first time in his life, in a strange place, with no idea of what will happen or how long it will be beforesomeone comes to him again. If he is not crated, he may go thoughwalls, windows or over fences, desperately seeking something familiar, something with which to reconnect his life. If he does get
free, he will find the familiarity, within himself: the adrenaline high, the wind in his ears, the blood pulsing and racing though hisheart once again - until he crashes into a car.
"Often, the first contact with his new family is punishment, something he's never had before, something he doesn't understand now, especially in the middle of the rest of the chaos. And worst of all, what are the most common human reactions to misbehavior? We live in a violent society, where the answer to any irritation is a slap, punch, kick, whip, or rub your nose in it. Under these circumstances, sometimes I think any successful adoption is a miracle.
"He is, in effect, expected to have all the manners of at least a six-year-old child. But, how many of you would leave an unfamiliar six-year-old human alone and loose in your home for hours at a time and not expect to find who knows what when you got back? Consider that if you did, you could be brought up on charges of child abuse, neglect and endangerment. Yet people do this to greyhounds, and this is often the reason for so many returns.
"How many dogs have been returned because they did not know how to tell the adopter when they had to go out? How many for jumping on people, getting on furniture, counter surfing, separation anxiety, or defensive actions due to being startled or hurt (such as growling or biting? So, let's understand: Sometimes it is the dog's "fault" he cannot fit in. He is not equipped with the social skills of a six-
year-old human but you can teach him. . . With LOVE."
Anonymous
Read more!
Need a Collar? Check the Closet!
I recently discovered the Collar Closet. Although collar companies online are numerous, this one is worth checking out for several reasons. The biggest is that the martingales are the most reasonably priced I have come across. A standard greyhound-sized 1.5" is $10. 
... Those of you who know me know my dogs have a collar fetish. We do quite a bit of collar shopping! Those at Collar Closet are made of 100% cotton, so they are soft and easy on the neck; at the same time several layers ensure sturdiness. They are machine washable.
Collar Closet also carries buckle collars for your non-sighthound babies ($7.50), and even kitty collars. Glenda will do personalized martingales for $18. The greyhound standard is 1.5" wide, but martingales are available in 1" or 2" widths by request.
Check out the monthly contest, where you send in photos of your dog in the new collar, and compete to be the star of the month! Judging from the contestants for July - this is a fun and popular event!A percentage of every sale at Collar Closet goes to support greyhound adoption. Greyhound-lover Glenda, the owner, chooses adorable prints, from watermelon slices to paws to holiday themes, marines and navy, baseball, nurses, you name it. Check them out!
The Collar Closet - http://www.collarcloset.com
Read more!
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