Stairs

We got Louie straight from the kennel in Florida so one issue we were ready to deal with was teaching him how to climb the stairs. His first day with us was a challenge, everything was new and the stairs were too much for him so husband carried him up and down the stairs. The following day, with Hanna's help, he mastered (and conquered!)the stairs. We laid down treats on a few steps. Hanna was hovering around (as if telling/showing Louie, this is how it's done) and I was pushing/lifting him from behind (as taught by husband). It helped that our stairs are carpeted (some greys freak out when walking on hardwood floors).

Anyway, I just remembered this while reading this grey manual (the link was from our greyhound e-group):

http://www.bayareagreyhounds.org/pdf/greyhoundcaremanual.pdf

Cats & UTI

Our dear friends' cat just had urinary tract surgery. I didn't get the exact details (the cat's urethra was shortened, he couldn't pee well) anyway, the vet apparently was attributing this to the ash content of the cat food. So I "googled" ash content in cat food:

http://cat-care.suite101.com/article.cfm/ash_content_in_cat_

And here's an article about how to encourage cats to drink more:

http://cat-care.suite101.com/article.cfm/how_to_get_your_cat_to_drink_more_water

Thankfully, our 2 senior cats (12sh) seem to have healthy urinary tracts (I need to change litterbox every 2 days or so, aside from daily scooping). I have their eating area in the basement so Hanna won't be tempted to feast on the cats' kibbles and leftover canned food. I can't really monitor their "drinking habits" with this set-up though. When we got the pups, the cats started drinking from the dogs' waterbowls. I now know that both cats, based on watching them, love their water, esp. if it's fresh (have to change it twice a day)and in the clean aluminum bowls. Sometimes, Ringo will drink and come up to us with his water beard....

Good to Know (medical) Facts About Greys

Husband found this greyhound rescue group's website

http://www.goinghomegreyhounds.org/

At the bottom of their homepage is an article /handout about medical idiosyncracies in greys. It is a comprehensive listing & explanation of the common (& actually, must know medical facts) health issues among greys. It would have saved us grief when Louie (for a brief period of time) had some incontinence and had to be on some drug that made him lose appetite and when Hanna had bilateral front paw corns.

Here's the link,

http://www.greyhoundadoptionofoh.org/Greyhound_Health_Packet_08.pdf