Introducing.... General Chat

Stumbled into this forum, and I have seen quite a bit of good info here. By way of introductions, I have adopted Coco, who I have learned through a Wisdom Panel DNA test is 3/8 Belgian Shepherd (Groenendael), 2/8 German Shepherd, 1/8 Siberian Husky, 1/8 Chow, and 1/8 Mixed Breed (with the highest probability in the hound group. This lil fella has energy to no end. We are not sure of exactly how old he is, but I have had had him for about 12 weeks now, and my guess was about 3 months or so when I got him.

Looking forward to interacting with you guys in here.

Hi AJ, welcome to the forum. Looking forward to some photos of Coco. What an unusual mix of breeds.

Quite unusual. One grandparent was a pure Belgian Sheepdog, one was a German Shepherd/(likely) Hound mix, one was a Belgian Sheepdog/Chow Chow mix, and one was a German Shepherd/Siberian Husky mix...

Smart, energetic, clumsy, athletic, and stubborn.....all rolled into one.

hi and welcome
looking forwared to seeing some photos of coco he sounds great .....i have 7 year old archie who is a shih tzu great little dog iv posted pics of him so you may see him around as he does love his pic took ....

It's been a while since I last posted. And BOY has Coco grown. He's still very hyper, and like a bull in a china shop if I let him loose in the house. We are still working some basic training stuff outside. I learned the HARD way today why some handlers wear gloves. Got me a NASTY rope burn on my ring finger....LOL....Hasn't he grown?

This was him when I first posted (thought I had posted his puppy pics before)...

What a difference! I was interested to see the shawl along Coco's spine as my first Lurcher had one as well. I could never make up my mind whether to strip it out or leave it as a distinctive feature!

What a difference! I was interested to see his shawl along the spine. My first Lurcher had a shawl, - always longer when in her Winter coat. I could never decide whether to strip it out or leave it.

Do you mean that slightly darker stripe along lovely Coco's spine and tail?

See the fourth adult photo. A line of longer length, and differently textured hair, running down the spine.
My cream Mia Lurcher was smooth haired but had a stripe of longer, coarser hair down the length of her spine.

Strange. Tikva is red and smooth haired but she has a slightly darker thin stripe - also smooth, from just between her ears, all down her spine and on the top of her tail. Same length and same velvety texture, but almost like it has been drawn on to darken it slightly.

More updates on Coco. He STILL is a BUNDLE of energy. One issue that has started popping up is intermittent diarrhea. Once every month or two, I come home to mushy poop in the crate. I empty him out every morning, and usually this is enough to hold him until my kid comes home and takes him out mid-afternoon. Every once in a while, I suspect that he just can't hold it and it makes a HUGE mess. I also noticed that around the same times, he starts not eating, opting instead to "hide" his food under something in his crate. Otherwise, he is doing GREAT.

What a handsome boy, love his colour.

It's quite common for Gsd’s to have sensitive tummies, I found ‘Pro-Fibre’ great for firming them up quickly, and you can get it on Amazon)

Has been tested for worms and parasites, etc.
How much are you feeding, and how often?
Sometimes giving a good human grade probiotic and digestive enzymes can help.

He just had a comprehensive exam less than a month ago and he was negative for worms, parasites, etc. Vet said he's about 5 or so pounds underweight, but healthy. I've been giving him between 1 3/4 to 2 cups twice a day. Like I said earlier, I noticed that around the times that he has these random "blowouts", he refuses food by hiding his bowl under a blanket to save it for later, sometimes at both feedings. Either that, or he only eats about half a serving. I'm still figuring it out.

Coco really is so handsome - I love that last picture of him with you where he is showing his teeth and almost giving you the stinkeye for some reason!

I cannot help you with regard to what you call 'random "blowouts"' but when you say you are "still figuring it out" I hope you do soon.

Regarding his weight, you say his vet says he is about 5lb underweight - unless he is losing weight I do not think I would worry, but I would rather have a slightly underweight [according to standard] than an overweight dog.

If he is healthy otherwise and your tests at vet showed no parasites, then hopefully it's just a bout of random upset stomach and loose stool, If it gets more frequent then I'd worry.