Those with "no-touchie" dogs...

PWCorgi

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#1
how do you handle going to the vet?

Frodo and I have discovered the amazingness that is a basket muzzle and squeeze cheese thanks to our behaviorist and she was able to do a small exam without him growling. I'm pretty comfortable with this being the norm for us from here on out.

Normally Frodo is fine until the vet tries to touch him and then it's growling and trying to spin around to get at said vet. (ETA: At this juncture I am absolutely holding his head, I don't just let my reactive dog loose while a vet tries to touch him, lol)
My current (amazing) vet just sedates the crap out of him if she needs to get near the pointy end :cool:

So yeah, just wondering how those of you with dogs that don't normally handle being manipulated by strangers deal with going to the vet.
 
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Paige

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#2
This is actually Bandit's only downfall. He looses it at the vet and the groomer. Groomer is avoidable because he is fine with me grooming him so it saves me money too. The vet is not an option. I muzzle him and hold him still for the vet as I have no idea how to work through it as its like the same of the vets office sets him off.
 

CharlieDog

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#3
I don't really have a "no touch" dog per say, but Ozzy can get snappy if he's in pain, so he's in a basket muzzle if something invasive needs to be done at the vet. They're very good about dealing with him in a muzzle, the vet always gives him a treat and they sedate the crap out of him too for things like that.

Otherwise, I hold the end that bites and they do what they have to do with the other end.
 

Saeleofu

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#4
Gavroche isn't a total disaster. For now, though, I work at the vet and restrain him myself. My vet knows Gavroche's butt is a no-fly zone, and to warn me when he gets ready to do something back there. I did have one of my coworkers restrain him once to see how it goes, and even with butt-prodding it went pretty well.

Then the relief vet...well, Gavroche LURVES her and she can poke him in the butt all she wants and he's fine with it :rolleyes:
 

Babyblue5290

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#5
We are pretty lucky with Art. He absolutely hates strangers still, but on the rare occasion some stranger has gotten close enough to touch him he just get's very stressed out but no bitey bitey or teeth/growl at all. He more get's really scared and looks pitiful. At the vet he shakes and shivers, looks pathetic, but doesn't do anything bad at all. We always have the vet give him treats or have the vet give him treats. I think it helps we go to the same vet every time (as much as possible), because they get to know each other a bit more.
 

Southpaw

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#6
The amazing thing is that this is like, the ONLY time Juno is okay with strange people being all up in her business. I have actually only dealt with incredible veterinary staff though, and this is from multiple clinics.

Like today, Juno is at the vet for her anxiety. One of those things being that she is terrified of strangers. And as I'm talking about this, Juno is wiggly butt kissing and rubbing all over the tech. :rolleyes: But the tech was sitting on the floor the whole time, and made no attempt to approach or touch Juno, so this definitely helped.

She's not a growly or bitey kind of scared though, she is just the type that wants to get away. But in an exam room it's not like she has anywhere to run. Usually I just hold her collar and that's good enough, she lets them do whatever they need to do.

I always bring treats, too.
 

Lizmo

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#7
Same as you, muzzle, praise, and get it done as quick as humanly possible. :)
 

crazedACD

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#8
My former no touchie boy got put in a basket muzzle prior to the visit and I restrained him for any procedure. The time it was insisted that I not restrain him to get bloodwork I think he was absolutely volatile and poo'd all over himself. If I restrained he was still horrible towards others but not quite as bad. From then on I was allowed to restrain him and I would have walked out if they didn't let me.

Fez is quite defensive for the vet and gets basket muzzled too. I feel it is common courtesy for the vet, though when I worked for vets no one ever muzzled their dogs prior.
 

kaykay21

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#9
basket muzzle is a must when he goes anywhere that he can be touched by a stranger. at the vet he growls and wants to rip the vets face off. i bring treats but hes to stressed to eat them.
 
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#10
Our current vet (and everyone that works there) is absolutely amazing. They listened when I told them about his issues prior to the visit, and made sure everyone was on the same page, and everyone was very accomodating.

We always get there about 15-20 minutes early so we can do some calming exercises and matwork - both in the reception/waiting area and the exam room. I explained that one of his biggest reactions/alerts is people coming through doors, so everyone always knocked first so I could make sure he was on a leash or restrained. Both the vet and the tech fed him lots of hot dogs so he was comfortable with them, and they went slow.

I was the one that picked him up to put him on the table, and I was the one that restrained him for the exam. I held the end with the teeth, and he was constantly getting treats as she did the exam. I restrained him for the blood draw as well in the exam room (I do think they normally take pets in the back for blood draws and stuff, as when Sassy was there they took her into the back to do a blood draw and a cysto - I didn't ask if I could come with or if she could stay, since it didn't matter to me one way or the other since she's so good about that kind of thing).

He was muzzled for the entire exam at the ophthalmologist, since there were three of us (the vet, myself, and the tech) all in very close proximity, all very close to his face and poking him with weird things. We did do a whole treat session beforehand with both the vet and the tech.

All of our recent vet visits (since we moved to the new clinic) have gone extremely well, he didn't have a single reaction at any of his appointments, no growly moments, and seemed fairly relaxed.

Since a couple people brought up grooming as well...Jack absolutely loves his groomer. For a long time I thought it was just her (she owns her own shop and she was the only one there for a while), but her assistant groomer is able to groom him as well. I think at some point in his life he was desensitized to it enough that he is completely fine with grooming. I normally drop him off and hang out at the amazing coffee/bagel shop that's across the street, just so I'm close - it's really too far away to drive home and then come back again.
 

Sweet72947

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#11
Off the property, Daisy was never a biter. She was the type who would flip balls at the vet and poop, pee and express her anal glands all over herself (mostly for nail trims). We had to sedate her for trips for a little while, and I guess somehow the sedation helped her become a little desensitized because after a while she stopped needing it and she still stresses a lot (stress panting, drooling, yawning, shaking) but she doesn't flip balls anymore. It especially helps to have a female vet vs. a male vet, Daisy is much better with women. I also hold the pointy end if they are uncomfortable.

In public, I don't typically have a problem with people wanting to pet Daisy. Large black dogs tend to be imposing anyway, and even layman can plainly see that she's scared by the shaking and panting. She doesn't really go out in public though except for walks, to the nice lady that boards her and rocky when my parents go on trips (which is once a year), to doggie daycare, and to the vet.

Coco, the dog I had in childhood, was brought to the vet pre-muzzled and my dad or my mom would help with holding the pointy end. Coco was not a dog to be trifled with, but our vet was understanding and lovely.
 

Catsi

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#14
My vet is a godsend in this area. Abby is ok. Will get growly when temp is taken and I'm always aware that she is a very scared dog at the vets. My vet is wonderful with her, never seems worried and is so calm with her, gentle and patient.

He is pretty no-nonsense with me, because I exacerbate the issue by stressing about the situation. I'm getting better.
 

spiffy

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#15
Am I lucky or what? My dog bagged the Mr. Congeniality award in the local canine beauty contest. After after a little whimpering when the vet pokes and prods my well behaved baby would wag its tail. My dog will never be a guard dog. I guess he will meet an intruder with a grin and wagging tail.:lol-sign:
 

Maxy24

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#16
As embarrassing as it is to say, Tucker hasn't been since he was a puppy. He went like two weeks after we got him for an exam, he feel asleep on the table, no issues. He went back a week later for a shot, no issues. He went when he was 7 months to get neutered and the tech had to literally drag him into the room and I'm pretty sure he started to flip as soon as the door shut behind him. When we got him back they informed us that he was not friendly so I assume someone got bitten or almost bitten.


I have NO IDEA how we are going to deal with the vet when that day comes. He'll go in a muzzle but I mean, he will absolutely flip out. I'll probably end up crying. What worries me most of all are the long term effects. If I restrain him while the vet touches him will his trust in me erode? I mean not only will I be not protecting him from the evil person, I'll be physically forcing him to get touched by him. And then afterwards will his human aggression be through the roof because he's just been assaulted by his worst nightmare? I mean he has learned that when people approach us outside of the house they won't touch him, but is he going to change his mind and be reactive on walks again?


What I'd really like is to be able to bring Tucker by for visits to just hang out with the vet so Tucker can make friends. But I'm sure vets don't have time to hang out lol. We'd have to pay for an appointment.
 

milos_mommy

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#17
The vet tech restrains Milo. Surprisingly enough, they usually opt not to muzzle him, and he screams and fights but has never bitten at the vet.
 

Maxy24

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#18
Tucker would be the type of dog who would go after them after they let go and then be inconsolable until removed for several minutes. Or at least that is how he sort of acts in the house. He might be so shut down in a vet office that he opts to try and hide instead.
 

SaraB

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#19
It was easy for Classic. I work at a vet and there for, nobody else ever had to restrain him. I always but a basket muzzle on and would restrain him myself, he was pretty used to this because of all the dog show training and would actually do pretty well since he grew up knowing the vet. He wasn't a big fan of the vet and would still react when first seeing her, but would actually be pretty good during exams. Still always muzzled though. There was one vet tech that I trusted him unmuzzled around but he had a weird way with her from the beginning. When he was injured, we would automatically sedate him.
 

maxfox426

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#20
The only real issue with Morgan at the vet is that SOMETIMES he can be Mr. Dramatic. If they need to do bloodwork in the back room or anything of that nature, he will occasionally do the "dead dog on a leash" impression when they try to take him. It isn't common, but the times he does do it, the easy fix is for ME to walk out of the room first. At that point he's like, "Oh, mom-lady is gone, I guess YOU are my new mom-lady!" and will go with the vet without any hesitation. :rolleyes:

It's not really that he's a "no-touchy" dog, but he can put on a good pout when he's in a mood.
 

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