I have an 8 month old whippet, who in most ways is a complete dream - sweet tempered, easy going, great with my kids, just a sweetie. Our two challenges with her have been her recall (having had whippets before this was expected) and her fairly compulsive scavenging. I am really struggling with the scavenging.
We live near a large, busy park and a couple of months ago she seemed to become almost obsessed with eating others dogs’ poo. She is walked on a long lead (because recall) and I was even then really vigilant looking out for poo but every now and then she would manage to quickly eat some. For a while I just thought it was gross but something I would have to deal with/limit as much as possible. She then got terrible diarrhoea and we discovered she had giardia. It took a long time to clear and she became very ill, in the vets on a drip for two nights. Eventually she got better and I decided to only allow her on the long lead in a muzzle to try to break the habit. She hates the muzzle, but it did the job.
Meanwhile I have done lots of work on a ‘leave it’ command which she is amazing at in the house but hit and miss outside. And while wearing the muzzle her recall, which had been really coming on, has gone totally to pot. I have been working with a trainer who thought we should try to stop using the muzzle and work on her recall, and for a few weeks she seemed so much better, it was wonderful! She really benefitted from the chance to stretch her legs and run properly.
However she has started scavenging again (to be clear, she will eat ANYTHING (food, masks, lighters, stones, all plants, soil, sticks etc etc etc) but particularly loves poo), and has just been diagnosed with giardia again. I am feeling so disheartened. I have had to cancel two trips to see my mum who I haven’t seen since 2019 because the dog sitter wouldn’t/couldn’t look after pup like that. I go to work two half days a week, but I can’t take her to the daycare I have her booked into because of this. I just don’t know what to do. I feel I can’t trust a dog walker to make sure she doesn’t eat poo at every opportunity. I have had several dogs over the years with their own peculiarities and needs, but have never felt so trapped.
Should I leave her in the muzzle but just give up the hope of ever letting her off lead, even though I worry a whippet who can’t run will become frustrated? I love her but I am feeling so ground down by clearing up diarrhoea/hosing down my garden/washing bedding. I have two smallish children - I worry about keeping them safe and we can’t even enjoy a family walk with her, either because she is ill or because I am so worried about her eating something disgusting.
Any advice, recommendations or moral support would be really appreciated.