Dog advice

[ChiRie]

Oh the bit about negative reinforcement wasn’t aimed at you, I know you’re not punishing him! Yes, it definitely sounds like he has some issues around your dad being there doesn’t it! I think you’re making the right choice getting a behaviourist involved. And then if you can get the behaviour sorted, then go for surgical castration. I know what you mean in regards to avoiding health issues - I didn’t get my dog castrated till he was 6 as he had issues I needed to get on top of first but I was so nervous about cancer!

I’d definitely give that nurse a go! Hopefully she can get a plan in place for you and if she thinks it’s more complex she may refer you onto a clinical behaviourist who would come out to your house. Let us know how you get on, I find behaviour fascinating!

Thanks. His behaviour towards me is terrible. He does go for my dad too if we need to do anything like nail cutting. I'm currently shaking like a leaf after the ordeal of trying to bath him. Not because I was scared but I have neuropathy and it set off my legs and hands shaking trying to control him. I used my dog bite gloves to get him into the bath, washing him he was growling and turning to bite me. I managed to get that done. Got him out with the gloves and tried trying him and he went mental. Totally uncontrollable. I tried to calmly get him to sit so he could calm down a bit before I carried on. He totally refused and he knows sit. Managed to dry him off as best I could. Getting his collar back on was a nightmare and he bit me several times on my fingers and hands. The gloves are too thick to allow me to clip it closed so I took one off after I got it round his neck. Thankfully it's on so he can have his walk later.

It's so frustrating it's such an ordeal to do something that would have been over very quickly if he hadn't gone crazy. His owner said he loved baths but now he goes nuts. I noticed it's since he turned 2 his attitude changed. I ended up shouting for him to stop biting and I feel awful. He's probably scared I don't know? He's never been hit or anything. Btw I've only bathed him once before and he was the same. I bathed him today because he was covered in mud after his walk as it's been tipping down and he's so low to the ground it's all on his legs and belly.

I'll take him into the vet next week. I want him neutered too. For health reasons and hopefully it may potentially calm him down.

 

[Caffeine Fiend]

Not all insurance is the same, some like Petplan generally pay out no quibbles and the premium on PP doesnt seem to increase at the rate others do even if youve made a claim. It is more expensive usually for the premium.

If your dog ends up needing medication for the rest of their life, having taken a good quality all of life policy would work out well for you.

A broken leg can cost 7 or 8 grand.

It is my own experience that some insurers are not worth paying a penny. We were stung by perfect pet, also heard horror stories from Animal Friends. However some are worth the money and Ive had whole bills minus excess covered.

Its all a gamble really, you could put the money into a bank account every month as a savings account and keep it. Your dog never gets unwell or doesnt needs anything in its life youve won a watch and have a savings pot. However you could suffer one incident after another and run out of money quickly.

If you have good quality insurance its worth its weight in gold. The poorer insurers probably not worth it in all honesty. They sometimes wont even cover the out of hours fee if they dont deem it 'life saving' and stuff like eating poisonous foods is not considered this by them despite the vet advising it is.

 

[chickhicks86]

I'm decided I'm going to be strict lifting his food up after 15minutes for a bit see if it helps but if not maybe I'll try this thanks! The raw food also takes up too much room in the freezer
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I was just looking at the amount and it says my 5kg dog would need 48 nuggets a day?

Maybe that's why he's so keen, because I'm not giving enough? His weight is perfect though, and we've been using it for a few months now. I guess I might need to increase it a bit now the weather's cooling and we can do longer walks again. He's been sat by his bowl waiting this morning, which is literally unheard of!

 

[FeelingPrawny]

I'm seeking some pearls of wisdom regarding house training. A month ago I adopted a rescue dog. She's 10 months old and has never lived in a house before, having been in a shelter since a few weeks old. Leash training is coming along but house training is not. I can walk the legs off her and she does nothing and then poops and pees when back in the house. I take her outside every 2-3 hours but she still has "accidents" in the house. I tell her she's been bad and take her outside when it happens but there's no improvement. She's never yet asked to go out. This is my third rescue dog and the other two only ever had a couple of accidents before learning what to do.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

@Wolfshead She definitely isn't being naughty bless her and you. Definitely take her out more often, are you able to leave the door open for her to wander outside on her own too? Lots of high treat rewardswhen she does go outside. With going inside, is she roughly going in the same places? How are you cleaning them? Dogs will leave pheromones and keep going in the same in the same place so you need to neutralise. What mental stimulations does she have in the house and what breed is she?

 

[Caffeine Fiend]

Had my cockapoo at the vets today, surgery for undescended testicles. Long story short they cut him open couldn't find them, then his heart rate crashed and apparently we were very close to losing him .

I'm thankful he is home and recovering but now I have several problems. I am £500 worse off and my dog still has testes (somewhere). After recovery they are recommending an MRI at £2.5k (not covered by insurance) But in reality the problem is I don't want to have him put under again after today. I'm tempted to leave him be. Is that selfish?.

Youd need to find out the risks of leaving him as is.

I think undescended testicles left can increase the risk of cancer. So Id want to know what % increase. If its low then you need to weigh it up.

Also I hope youre ok. That sounds such a stressful experience. Your poor boy and you!

 

[Caffeine Fiend]

I also think maybe he can tell I don't feel much for him. Not like my own dogs even one that I adopted at 2. Since my last went I didn't want to ever feel that way again and I do think

He's been checked out by my vet and is only young. I know from previous experience a change in behaviour can mean they are ill. I would never ever hit a dog. I always praise him up and for the most part he is very good bar the going for my ankles and growling at the same time. It does seem to happen when my dad is around or is coming in the door and I get up to go open it for him or say there is post he has to be the first there and I've only been able to open the door a crack because he's going crazy biting at my ankles and feet. There is a new Nurse at the practice I go to who trained in behavioural problems I thought we could give a try. He's also not neutered as per his owners request and I'm not sure if this may be the issue? I would prefer him done if she's not going to be able to take him back as I had a male who got prostate problems because he wasn't done.

Sounds like youre doing all you can with a dog that hasnt been trained properly by the other owner.

 

[Bleurghgram]

Thank you for your reply, how did introducing the cats and dog go? Was it quite easy and stress free or did it take quite a while? I definitely think visiting a rescue is a good idea, though the fact so many say no cats next to each dog is what's sadly led me to thinking about a puppy from a breeder, I'd always prefer to rescue. I will suggest this and see what happens
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I don't know anyone who's dog I can borrow as such but the fostering idea may be worth a try? So long as that's an option given that I work, thank you

It was easier than I could have imagined! She doesn’t get on with new dogs, so I can see how the rescue assessed her as no cats, but honestly she barely registers that they exist now except to cry at me for help if one of them has stolen her bed. The cats can still be wary and will scratch her if she’s being too boisterous around them.

We took it slowly, separate rooms at first, then allowed them to mix with her on lead, lots of feeding around each other and lots of handing out treats. She’s muzzle trained which definitely helped with my stress levels.

It was a new relationship that would have been made very difficult if they hadn’t have been able to mix… or if she’d eaten one of them so it wasn’t like I had to tell the rescue I had a cat at home when I adopted her. But just goes to show their assessments aren’t necessarily correct.

 

[SpaceshipEarth]

My 13 year old has had 4 seizures or episodes over the course of 3 years or so. 3 were similar and after extensive tests including MRI scan, results were inconclusive regarding the cause. Each time though, he lost the use of his back legs although he regained full mobility over a couple of weeks. The last episode was a completely different type of seizure. No loss of back legs, no funny eye movements. Vets ran blood tests and think it might be related to low glucose levels, we are waiting for a further test on that. With each seizure or episode, I feel better knowing what it definitely isn't (eg tumor on the brain) so even though the tests are mostly inconclusive, it has put my mind at rest that certain things have been ruled out. And the last one was definitely a different kind of episode so close observation of what is happening at the time is really helpful. Hope your collie is OK, watching them age is a special kind of pain x

 

[Facehugger]

I have a dog 5 days after giving birth first pregnancy she had one pup. She also had difficulty getting pregnant. She isn't a great mom leaves a lot of it to me. Won't mother the pup unless she is laying on me. Even when pup is asleep very heavy panting. When away from pup no panting at all

How are they both doing today? Have you managed to see a vet yet?

 

[no-no]

What was the funny turn? A one-off seizure could be the sign of another issue so I would still go and get them checked by the vet. It will give you peace of mind.

 

[markcorriganscrisps]

Had my cockapoo at the vets today, surgery for undescended testicles. Long story short they cut him open couldn't find them, then his heart rate crashed and apparently we were very close to losing him .

I'm thankful he is home and recovering but now I have several problems. I am £500 worse off and my dog still has testes (somewhere). After recovery they are recommending an MRI at £2.5k (not covered by insurance) But in reality the problem is I don't want to have him put under again after today. I'm tempted to leave him be. Is that selfish?.

Poor lad (and poor you) Have they said why his heart rate crashed or was it just the length of time of surgery? Our vets around here are really variable in which ones are great with surgery and which aren't (according to local dog walkers, would it be worth having a chat with another surgery to see whether they could give you more reassurances?

 

[Maid22]

I’m sorry to hear this has happened and it’s obviously had quite an effect on you which is sad. You say you’ve never trusted him fully, is there any specific reason? Do you find yourself being cautious around him at all? I know you’ve said you’ve had dogs before so you’re obviously experienced but I’m wondering if maybe he can sense if you don’t fully trust him?

I hope you’re ok! It’s really hard when they snap.

I don't know why I felt like this at the start, he was actually the first dog Ive chosen, my others have chosen me or my oh has picked them. I'm not anxious or anything around him, he really is a good boy, so this has come out of the blue, he's only 4 and a half, he grew up with my other dogs, when I lost my boy who was his best friend, we tried with another pup, but he was nasty with pup so we had to re-home which broke my heart, I really want another dog, but it feels like he's ruling me, if that makes sense?

 

[ChiRie]

I think you're in the same place of country to me, have you not had trouble with these blighters!
My dog has a bright orange football, he's just come in, saw abit of orange on his eyelid, thought it was abit of the footie, nope another bleddy tick, I hate having to 'operate' around his eyes.

Yes. No Barney walks on a trail near ours but he's not had any. None of my dogs ever had one in their lives. Yeah must be tricky round the eye area.

 

[aidil]

Then I wonder why so many of my colleagues leave the profession

 

[aidil]

And how are vets supposed to stay open, pay for their training and expensive equipment without charging for their time? Cost of living has hit everyone! My practice’s electric bill was £2500 last month alone.

 

[GinBunny18]

Rather than buying a puppy, you could start looking at rescue centres so you know what temperament you’re getting, and involve your daughter in any meet and greets with the dog.

If that still doesn’t get you anywhere… at 18 she may not wish to live with you for that much longer, I’d wait rather than risk her feeling afraid in the family home. If she wants to take the kitten with her eventually that eliminates that issue too - although my rescue dog was advertised as no cats, we’ve now got her living with two older rescue cats, so it is doable.

Thank you for your reply, how did introducing the cats and dog go? Was it quite easy and stress free or did it take quite a while? I definitely think visiting a rescue is a good idea, though the fact so many say no cats next to each dog is what's sadly led me to thinking about a puppy from a breeder, I'd always prefer to rescue. I will suggest this and see what happens
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Do you know anyone with a well trained dog you could borrow for a weekend? Or whilst they go away? Then you can tell her it's only staying a few days/a week and will be going home. Then she may see it's not bad and if she still finds it bad then the dog is going back anyway so it's not like a long term thing. Or what about fostering? I know someone who had their guide dog looked after by a carer as they were unable to care for it whilst it was ill. I just googled as well hearing dogs look for volunteers that will do short term care for their dogs which involves you helping keep up their training and going to classes so that may be helpful in showing her what you'd do with your dog? I'm sure other charities will do similar

I don't know anyone who's dog I can borrow as such but the fostering idea may be worth a try? So long as that's an option given that I work, thank you

 

[chickhicks86]

My pup is 10months old. He is not a food orientated dog at all. So it's hard to train him as he isn't really interested in treats especially after a few, I found he loves salmon and mackerel and will focus for them. But his main meals are my issue. I ended up putting him on raw as a puppy in the end after about 5/6 months of dry/wet mix. Even the raw he isn't overly fussed on but he will eat it and it helps that he needs a lot of it over the other food, he needs around 150g raw Vs 100gbdry but the dry seems a lot more Vs over a big tin (400g) wet!
Does anyone know either a good dry food where they don't need many grams to meet their daily requirement or recommend a raw food that isn't too expensive. I did really want a diet with grain in though and I can't find a raw diet with grain in.

My dog is the same, just not fussed by food at all! He has to have grain free though. I have recently discover freeze dried, and he does seem a bit more enthused for it than regular kibble. It is fed by number of pieces - the one we have each nugget is about the size of 4 stacked up pennies and he has 14, twice daily. He is 10kg for that quantity. Honestly it is the first time in his life that he has ever been even slightly excited for food!

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[Elle Woods]

Nope came out of no where! But tbh, I've never trusted him fully, but he's been good as gold recently.
He's a collie, and I know they get issues, but this has really upset me.

I’m sorry to hear this has happened and it’s obviously had quite an effect on you which is sad. You say you’ve never trusted him fully, is there any specific reason? Do you find yourself being cautious around him at all? I know you’ve said you’ve had dogs before so you’re obviously experienced but I’m wondering if maybe he can sense if you don’t fully trust him?

I hope you’re ok! It’s really hard when they snap.

 

[ChiRie]

I'm abit squeamish when it comes to claws, and his dew claw is black so couldn't see the blood vein.
Was annoyed because he didn't have an injection to numb it, they literally just pulled it out. No wonder he cried, another bad vet experience for him.
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Come on, vets are doing well, we changed vets recently, couldn't get over how many staff there was, and the first thing I get asked is, is your dog insured, so they can make more money and the insurance pays for it.
How much does your practice charge for pulling out a dew claw?

Yeah that's the thing with black nails. One of mine had black ones and I cut the quick by accident a few times. My first two dogs didn't have any but my second two did front and back! The boy I have now just has front dew claws. My vet is soooo expensive it's like £50 just for the consultation let alone anything else but I've been going since I was a teenager so stick with them as I do trust them.

 

[Maid22]

Yes. No Barney walks on a trail near ours but he's not had any. None of my dogs ever had one in their lives. Yeah must be tricky round the eye area.

Gosh you've been lucky, my oh was chatting to someone yesterday and they've had the same problems with ticks!
The eye area is awful, needs 2 of us to get the blighter out! he's got a bald spot there now!