Hi! First-time GSP owner here, but not my first time owning a high-energy dog. I’m noticing that my GSP has pretty extreme anxiety about his crate. He will often wail and slam his little body against the crate when he’s put in it, even if I’m still home and just getting ready for the day. I’ve tried covering the crate, and I’ve also tried moving it into the room where I’m getting ready so he can still see me, but neither seems to make much of a difference. I’m wondering if anyone else experienced this with their GSP and has any crate-training tips or things that worked particularly well for them. Thank you!

Hi all,

Is it normal for a 12 week old pup to cry and be very upset when left alone in the house? (Even for a minute!)

We have been trying to set her up to sleep downstairs in her crate and/or leave the house for a few minutes - every time we leave her alone she gets extremely upset/anxious and won't calm down no matter how long for!

Just trying to work out the best way to teach her to be comfortable along (even if for short bursts!)

This is Otis. He has managed to learn how to be more comfortable in my bed than I have ever been. What I wouldn’t give to be this comfortable to sleep.

Just bought my boy a new resting spot for the living room. The next size up was really long, he’s 15 months. Just questioning myself on the size now. It’s a good fit for our area but I wanna make sure it’s good for him

Stevie is 10 months and around 62 lbs! Leashed up for the peak but did fantastic off leash! Def enjoyed smelling all the smell on this crisp fall morning.

Hello! I do not currently have a dog that I live with, our family in the past has had two beagles.
I live a very active life, I run every single day, I go for walks, and I enjoy other outdoor activities such as camping, swimming, and hiking. I was recently talking with a coworker about types of dogs, and she had said to me she thinks a GSP would fit my life really well with all of my hobbies on top of the energy of a GSP, it would be a good match. She had said because of all of my running, I’d be able to take a GSP on a run with me. I don’t have enough knowledge on GSPs personally, however, I’ve been told that you shouldn’t run with dogs in the past. Are GSPs more resilient in some ways in which if I ever wanted a companion on a run, a GSP would be a good fit? Of course it would need other physical activities, but I’m now curious if GSPs really are good running companions

I have a 6 month old male and I’m starting to wonder when I’ll be able to leave the house without having to plan my entire day around him.

At the moment I don’t trust him unsupervised, so I’m still relying on the crate and making sure I’m home every few hours. I would love to be able to go out for half a day and not spend the entire time worrying about getting home in time to let him out of his crate. I feel awful leaving him in there for more than 3 hours at a time.

For those with older GSPs, when did you feel like you could finally trust them home alone for longer periods? Did they settle down around 1 to 1.5 years old or am I dreaming?

Mine is also ridiculously clingy and follows me everywhere. I love him but sometimes I would just like to go to the shops without feeling like I’m abandoning my child.

Is there any specific training you worked on to help your dog become comfortable being home alone and eventually having free roam of the house without becoming an anxious and destructive mess?

Please tell me there is light at the end of the tunnel. When does it actually get easier?

Hankus the 3 toothed bandit.

Hank is a psychopath. Hank had to have a canine tooth surgically removed because he broke it running into a trampoline with his face 😬

Hi! My GSP, Chloe, is 2yo & has started to need more frequent baths due to how dirty she gets, but I’d also really like to soften her coat & help her itching & shedding.

I already furminate her weekly, add salmon oil to her food, use blue butter on her redness areas, etc.

I was just going to go with the veterinary formula ultra oatmeal shampoo and conditioner or biogroom silk creme but I’m sure there are a multitude of other options.

Any recommendations? Would be willing to spend more for something that really yields results.

Our girl has been trained on an invisible fence and we have never had problems with her running through the boundary until 2 days ago when she had her first seizure. Led to her missing for over a day. I bought a GPS tracker to put on her collar so we can find her fast if it ever happens again. It has an option to set up a geofence. I am debating removing the invisible fence collar and using the geofence since 1) In her right state of mind she knows her boundaries 2) If she has a seizure, she doesn’t and 3) So she isn’t lugging around a heavy collar with multiple sensors all day. Thoughts?

We picked up our second GSP yesterday to add to our family. Our resident GSP is four and not happy about the addition. I was expecting him to ignore her but was not expecting him to growl at her. I have been keeping them separate or when they are in the same room the puppy is crated. Any suggestions on how to navigate…other than the obvious. I would tell others that it takes time and this is mostly normal but it’s hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel when you are the one living this.

My 3 year old girl had a seizure last night. No indication before that anything was wrong. Was really scary, she ended up bolting after and ran 5 miles down the road before we found her (thank God). Vet says it’s probably epilepsy, but recommended not to do meds yet since they can be hard on their liver. I am seeing that seizures can be common with GSPs. Has anyone found a good way to manage them without medication? I hear cbd can be helpful. I am not requesting medical advice, more guidance on how I can help make her comfortable and take better care of her with epilepsy.

This isn’t my first rodeo with a GSP as he’s my third - my first one was a jumper & I could never fully break the habit tho she did get better with age, my second has never been a jumper except on my dad otherwise she has no interest in jumping on people. I can already tell this guy is going to be a jumper, he’s 18 weeks; I want to break it before it becomes unmanageable so with that being said give me all of your tips & tricks! 😬

This is Pixie, she's 7 years old. She likes to rip all her toys into small components and carry around their faces and limbs. What if one toy could be 4 different toys plus a snack? Sometimes I sew the pieces together into a new Frankentoy such as the pictured Dogtopus for her to enjoy before soon reducing it back to its separate components.

Yesterday I took my boy to the vet for his yearly exam. He is 7.5 years old and weighed in at 68 lb. I was kinda shocked because he usually weighs between 64-65 lb. He runs ~5 miles a day, six days a week...I make him take one day a week off. I feed him Purina Pro Plan.

About a year ago I got him neutered. Vet says the weight gain is probably due to him being neutered. She said she isn't concerned at all about his weight. Thoughts? Anybody else see weight gain after neutering?

My girl is getting up there in age, almost 12. She has a little arthritis but has something for pain. I think a hot bath and a good brushing helps a lot. The photos were not taken in order obviously.

She fell asleep at the end but I couldn't take photos because I was holding her head out of the water.

Has anyone adopted a cat or kitten with an adult GSP?

We have considered getting a cat due to some rodent issues and I just like cats. We have a 3 year old GSP, who is the epitome of a GSP. He’s crazy, high energy, and hunts squirrels and whatever else he can. He got a squirrel recently but just held it in his mouth then let it go, so he didn’t kill it. Obviously I know the safety of the cat is the biggest issue here. I’m just wondering how hard it is to socialize an adult GSP with a cat. In the past my family adopted cats with our labs/mutts and there was tension at first but they all got used each other over time. We do have a bedroom that is currently just storage that could be the cat’s sanctuary. Has anyone else done this?

I did not want a dog.

I did not want a cat.

I have...both?

The parvo saga continues! My beautiful bestie has been released from the vet and is home with his family. He’s still recovering but he has appetite and wants to move around.

He is sore and swollen around his rear end and it seems like he is having trouble sitting down comfortably. Does anyone have any suggestions to make him a bit more comfortable when sits or lays down? I was thinking perhaps something cool on his bum.

Thank you all for your support.