Tips.
On this page I would like to mention a collection of useful or important tips. If you have a good tip that other people can benefit from, please email me and place it on this page.
Health:
If your hound (also suitable for people) has severe diarrhea, you can give a very old German home remedy; “Morosche Möhre”. The recipe is as follows; boil 500 grams of carrots for one hour in 1 liter of water. Then puree very finely, add 1 teaspoon of salt and top up again to 1 liter with boiled water. Give a few scoops with cooked rice and your hound will get rid of the diarrhea in no time.
You can freeze it per portion so that it is always at hand.
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If your hound has an infection you can also give instead of Rimadyl or such meds, Yucca Intensive of Holistic Animal Care. It is a holistic drug that works well against inflammation, cleans up the organs, stimulates blood flow, promotes tissue repair and it is analgesic. Yucca contains a high concentration of steroid saponins, the most natural inflammatory inhibitor. It tastes very dirty so better don’t do it through the food. 1 drop to 4.5 kilo’s of body weight dissolve in some water and give 2 x daily. In acute cases, you can give a triple dose and slowly phase it out in 6 weeks.
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To improve the immune system of your hound you can give him elder berries. These also improve the pigmentation. Also, vitamin C is of course good for better resistance (see nutrition and care-important vitamins).
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Do not let your hound drink out of puddles that are created in places where cars are often parked. It can happen that antifreeze is leaked from a car and if your hound drinks it, it can be lethal. So only let de hounds drink from puddles where no cars come!
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Feel the heart beat of your hound every day. A Deerhound at rest can have a heart rate of 40 (usually it is slightly higher), at normal movement 80 to 100 and at great exertion over the 200. The latter must be very short and must go down immediately after the effort. Do you feel that in rest, the heart rate goes up to or over the 100, go to a sighthound heart specialist. The latter is really important because the values of a sighthound heart are different from a common dog. It is normal that the heart rate is somewhat irregular. It is a regular irregularity-the frequency changes with the inhalation and exhalation.
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Many pups of large breeds, and therefore also the Deerhound, suffer from Panostitis or growing pains. Usually the owner does not notice it and finds the puppy only somewhat “sensitive” if he e.g. is picked up or hit himself hard. The puppy beeps but the owner does not pay attention to it and over time the puppy is no longer so “sensitive”. But very often the puppy suffers from growing pains. It can also express itself by going lame which can change from one leg to another. This usually occurs when the puppy is 5 months but it can also be earlier. The puppy can be off with two/three weeks but it can also last up to 18 months of age. It will pass by itself but by good nutrition (e.g. lots of ground chicken/chicken necks – no red meat/pens/kibble with high protein content > than 24%) you can promote the healing a little. There are also homeopathic resources that have a supportive effect. If your puppy is “sensitive”, go to a holistic or homeopathic veterinarian for a proper diagnosis.
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If you have a Deerhound with a Hernia Perinealis and need to add Isogel to his/her food to make the stool easier to pass through the intestines, you can also use Psyllium Husk. Psyllium Husk consists of fibers that can absorb up to twenty times their own weight of water, making the intestinal contents softer and bulkier and that supports the intestinal passage. However, the manual says that after a week it is no longer working enough but my experience is that this varies per hound. You can also give it two/three weeks and then again a while Isogel.
Care:
If you cut accidentally in the living part of the nail and it continues to bleed, you can use the barbaric method of close up. Take a knife and heat the tip for a few minutes in the fire. Then press it (before it cools down) a few seconds against the end of the nail. It hurts but is very effective.
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Cut the hair at the bottom of the feet and between the toes briefly with a scissors with bent and round points. This greatly reduces the amount of dirt in the house.
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Regularly I see people combing/brushing their Deerhounds. Still often they do this from top to bottom, this is not good, you pile up the clots. Use a not too coarse comb (also no flea comb!), no brush. The best way to start is at the bottom of the hindfeet and then work with not too big strokes, up and forward. This way you removes all clots and dead hairs. If the coat is dusty, you can go through it with a brush after combing.
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If your hound has a wound or an inflammation in which you suspect that there is something in it or an ignition from the inside, you can clean it/open it with green clay. Apply a thick layer and cover as needed with a gauze (if a wound at the foot: sock on) and let it sit for at least an hour, then rinse with warm water. Do it twice a day. The wound is nicely clean.
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If your hound has incur a snag or just a hole in his body, you can quickly let close the wound with organic honey. Lubricate a layer of biologic honey (Manuka) over it and make sure the hound doesn’t lick it of right away!
Nutrition:
Do you have a very skinny hound, a sick hound or a hound who really does not want to eat then you can also try the “Magic Meat balls”. The recipe you can find here https://www.o-cockaigne.eu/?page_id=13099&lang=en
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Do you have a bad eater? Try to do small pieces of cooked liver (and some cooking fluid) through the food. Most hounds are crazy about this! Also sheep fat, grated cheese, liver pies but especially cat food do wonders!
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Give the hound daily a small pressed/crushed garlic clove through his food. It is a natural antibiotic and very good against fleas and worms.
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If you feed your hounds macaroni or rice (of course brown rice, which has at least still nutritional values), make this extra tasty by adding a small splash of salmon oil during or after cooking.
Education:
Let your puppy run from an early age in places where this is safe. A puppy will never take off by himself, he only does this if he is very shocked by something. Make sure you have filled your jacket pocket or pouch with something very tasty, for example pieces of cheese. Before you let him go, let the puppy know that you have something tasty with you. Let the puppy go and call him after a few minutes, going through the knees, call very enthusiastic and cheerful, and give him a treat as soon as he is with you. Repeat this regularly. In this way you will teach the puppy to come and you will benefit a lot of it later. A sighthound MUST be able to run free to be a healthy sighthound. (Of course, a puppy that is playing never listens, do not call him, wait until he is out of play and then try to get his attention).
General:
If your hound is afraid of loud noises (popping, thunderstorms) you can stop a thick gag of greasy cotton wool in the ears. The STREZZ drops of Phytonics also work well. With the one hound 5 drops are enough, the other one has to get 10 drops every hour, a matter of trying out.
With New Year’s Day we always turn on the radio or T.V. quite hard so they don’t hear the popping from outside. To make sure they don’t see it, the curtains will be closed.
Is there a thunderstorm at night then I close the curtains and turn on a bright lamp, also some drops and a gag of greasy cotton make sure the hound has less to no bother.
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Make sure you always have a bottle of Resque Spray from Bach (Original Bach Flowers). If something happens that causes stress or unrest, in humans or animals, spray twice in the mouth/beak. This works quickly reassuring.