Category: Fear Free Pets

172 Noise phobias- new resources

I have had numerous clients report to me that recent thunderstorms are upset dogs and cats. I looks like we might finally get a break in the rain and storms, but then July 4 and fireworks will come along.

I normally recommend a ladder of approaches. The lowest rung in calming phermones like Adaptil for dogs or Feliway for cats. I have had some good results with Thundershirts, and white noise machines.


For the more serious affected dogs, I recommended medications. I normally start with Trazadone, but can escalate to Sileo if severe.


And I always recommend letting the pet feel safe, where ever that is, without inadvertently “rewarding” the attention seeking with lots of attention.


For a long term approach when it isn’t thunderstorm season, I recommend a gentle approach of playing a CD or digital file of thunderstorms, first very softly, then gradually increasing the volume, while the pet is distracted with pleasurable stimuli (food, treats, toys) to help desensitize to the noise. When the real deal comes along, there is much more than noise, but it can help decrease the severity of the pets reaction, or postpone the anxiety.

For more info:
https://www.fearfreehappyhomes.com/kit/fear-of-thunder-fireworks/?utm_source=ActiveCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=What+s+New+In+June&utm_campaign=20210601_Newsletter_FFP#blog_link1

168 National Bite Prevention Week

April 11 to 17 is AVMA’s Dog Bite Prevention Week, co-sponsored by the American Veterinary Medical Association and State Farm Insurance. Any dog CAN bite, but most dog bites can be prevented by paying attention to dogs’ body language and health and by desensitizing dogs to certain external stimuli. Most homeowner’s insurance will pay for damages but might have breed restrictions. According to State Farm’s claim information, there were more dog-related injury claims in March 2020 than in any other month last year, with a reported 21.6 percent increase in dog bites compared to March of the previous year

Nipping and play biting might be cute as a puppy, but we never want it to escalate to the point of breaking the skin. Taking the Fear Free training has trained me to look at biting as much more than “aggression”, but a sign of dog pushed past their point of control with anxiety and fear. It might be triggered by new people, pushing past a dog’s comfort zone on their body, or defending what they perceive as their home, or their resources. Resources might be food, toys, sleeping places, or their owner’s attention.

We have been seeing more behavior problems in “pandemic puppies” due to lack of opportunities to exposed them to new situations. Trainers were closed but starting to reopen for classes.

To help our pets with this transition, the National Dog Bite Prevention Coalition recommends the following tips:

  • Make sure your pet is healthy. Not all illnesses and injuries are obvious, and dogs are more likely to bite if they are sick or in pain. If you haven’t been to the veterinarian in a while, schedule an appointment for a checkup to discuss your dog’s physical and behavioral health.
  • Take it slow. If your dog has only been interacting with your family this past year, don’t rush out into crowded areas or dog parks. Try to expose your dogs to new situations slowly and for short periods of time, arrange for low-stress interactions, and give plenty of praise and rewards for good behavior.
  • Educate yourself in positive training techniques and devote time to interact with your dog.
  • Get outside for leash training and allow your dog to do more socializing.
  • Gradually start arranging play dates with other dogs and people as allowed, and carefully increase the amounts of time and freedom together. This will help your dog get used to being with other canine companions again.
  • Be responsible about approaching other people’s pets. Ask permission from the owner before approaching a dog, and look for signs that the dog wants to interact with you. Sometimes dogs want to be left alone, and we need to recognize and respect that.

If your puppy or adult dog (or cat) has triggers that might result in a “nip”, please call for a behavior appointment so we can “nip” it in the bud with helpful training tips for your pet and family.

https://www.avma.org/events/national-dog-bite-prevention-week



164 Free Free Cat Appointments

This cute picture of a cat with a grumpy looking face reminds me to talk about how to make cat appointments Fear Free.

Step #1– Make the appointment. If you know your cat is nervous/anxious, or just downright difficult to get into a carrier or cat, talk to our staff about some tips.
Step #2– Get the carrier out several days to weeks before the appointment. Clean it up so it is not scary. Put Fluffy’s favorite toys in it, snacks, anything that will create happy memories and experience associated with the carrier. In some cases, you may even have to take it apart into two halves to make it not scary.
Step #3– Get your cat used to being the carrier with the door closed for short periods of time. Make it a game. Wait until Fluffy is calm, then give treats through the door. Build special memories, then open the door. Pretty soon “carrier= treats/positive experience”.
Step #4 – Practice getting cat the carrier, putting carrier in car, wait until calm, give treats.
Step #5– Put cat in carrier, carrier in car, go for short trip, come home, give treats.
Step #6– Now we are ready to go the vet.
This is all classic conditioning to a new experience. We break it into lots of baby steps, with positive experiences at each step.

If you cannot get a calm cat in a carrier & into your car, we can also suggest adding calming pheromones (like Feliway spray by Ceva) sprayed onto a nice fluffy towel or fleece that is placed in the carrier. This is best done at least 5-10 minutes before attempting to put Fluffy in the carrier. We cannot smell these pheromones, but cats can get to their “happy place” easier. I compare it to humans and lavender.

If the pheromones are not calming enough, it is time to premeditated with gabapentin. This old human medicine for pain works on the nervous system of cats to blunt a panic attack. Better yet, it is a tasteless powder that comes in a capsule that you can open, sprinkle on some yummy, canned food, and most cats eat it without having to be “pilled”.

Our long-term goal is calm cats, not stressed out by carriers or car trips, so we can begin our vet experienced without fear.

https://fearfreehappyhomes.com/your-cats-vet-visit-begins-at-home/

162 National Peanut Butter Day (March 1) is for Dogs Too

Why am I talking about peanut butter in a veterinary blog?  As a Fear Free Certified Vet Professional, I use a lot of peanut butter during exams.   Happy dogs, nervous dogs, new puppies.   (We use other foods for cats).

Dogs love peanut butter. Just like with people, food can elicit an automatic positive response.   What we are going for is an association that a vet visit= yummy snack.  We want our patients to WANT to come in the building, hop on the scale, go into an exam room, be lifted onto a table, and a strange person (with a mask on these days) give them YUMMY treat like lick-able peanut butter. 

When do we use peanut butter?  We use it for almost everything, from weight checks, exams, vaccinations, blood draws, nail trims to grooming.  We even have sticky mats with little nubs that we can stick to the wall of the bathtub, coat with peanut butter, and it takes a while to lick it clean. I do avoid it if they get car sick, if they are already nauseated, in for anesthesia, or if the owners have a family member with peanut allergy.

Sometimes we go with freeze dried meats, pill pockets, or other small dog treats.  But the advantage of peanut butter on a tongue depressor is that is takes a while to lick and swallow it, so they are pleasurably distracted.  And we hope they shift from being a little nervous or anxious about all those needles to a memory of “that wasn’t so bad, and I got peanut butter!”

It is not just a reward for good behavior like giving a child a sucker after a pediatrician visit. We use peanut butter before touching them, while touching them, and after.  It is part of our whole Fear Free Approach to provide low stress experience for our pets, which also benefits owners and staff. 

If your dog is anxious or timid about even getting in the car or approaching the building, we might suggest adding some oral mild anti-anxiety medications.  We even schedule “Happy Visits” to some in when we do absolutely nothing except invite them in, offer treats. 

Expect more to come about using Fear Free techniques for nail trims, cats exam, and puppy visits.

For more information and videos, Fear Free has a companion website for pet owners that is free and loaded with articles and videos. Check it out! https://fearfreehappyhomes.com/

National Peanut Butter Lover’s Day – March 1

159 Going Back to Work Could Be Tough on Your Pet

As I prepare to return to being back in the building to see patients next week, I worry about my two little high energy terriers. They have LOVED this time when they were out in the country, running over acres, digging holes, and eating rodents and rabbits (yes Chuck eats rabbits now). I am anticipating some destructive chewing up the backyard, or the house if I keep them inside on a hot day.

Many of the owners I have talked with in the last two months have described good quality time with their pets since many are home more. Many of the behavior issue clients describe are better, except the thunderstorm phobias.

Veterinary behaviorists are predicting an increase in problems as many of us go “back to work” outside the home. I read a great article, which I will share rather than write my own. The bottom line is we need to train our pets to be OK home alone. Here is the link.


https://www.aaha.org/publications/newstat/articles/2020-05/as-people-return-to-work-those-who-adopted-a-dog-during-the-pandemic-could-be-in-for-a-rude-surprise/

“People are preparing to go back to work, but their new pets most likely won’t be going with them. And those who adopted a pet during lockdown could be in for a rude surprise once they get home.
While the number of pandemic-inspired pet adoptions may be less than media reports suggest, there are still a lot of new pet owners out there whose pets have never known anything but 24/7 attention from their owners.
And those new best friends who kept their owners from going crazy during lockdown are going to be faced with a lot of unfamiliar alone time.
That could mean problems.
“I think we’re being a little naive to think we can spend 24/7 for [several months] with these guys and then abruptly leave,” says Leslie Sinn, DVM, DACVB, CPDT-KA, a certified veterinary behaviorist and owner of Behavior Solutions for Pets, a consulting firm in Hamilton, Virginia.
Does that mean Sinn is expecting a huge wave of unpleasantly surprised pet owners? “Truthfully, yes,” she says.
Sinn told NEWStat that the primary issue is going to be separation anxiety. “With these dogs being used to having that social support and that social contact, and now being left basically alone under house arrest, I think that’s going to be rough for some of them.”
Sinn doesn’t blame this plethora of new pet owners for not expecting anxiety issues when the time comes to go back to work. “I don’t know that people are aware of [separation anxiety] as a problem in dogs and cats. So there’s been no reason for them to anticipate it [or] to take any particular steps.”
But Sinn says there are steps veterinarians can take to help their new patients and clients prepare for it.
“Hopefully, veterinarians have been having conversations with new owners about appropriate socialization in general,” Sinn says. That includes “encouraging independence and encouraging exposure to as many different people, places, and things as has been physically possible during the pandemic.” She acknowledges that introducing pets to the wider world can be difficult, given the CDC’s recent recommendations on social distancing pets, but stresses its importance.
The most important thing, she says, is “accustoming the pet to some period of time alone.”
For example: “In the past, if I had to run an errand, I’d take my dog with me when I left the house because it was a chance to spend more time with him,” Sinn says. But that’s the opposite of what you want to be doing during lockdown. “Now, when I go out for my [semimonthly] grocery run, I make a point of leaving the dog behind.” This allows for some much-needed separation between owner and pet, and gives the pet a chance to practice being alone.
Owners should avoid taking their dogs with them every single place they go, Sinn says. That way, it’s not such a shock when they have to leave for work.
Sinn says veterinarians can make these basic recommendations to owners to practice the healthy separation behaviors we want dogs to acquire while there’s still time: “The ability to be alone, the ability to be independent, the ability to settle without us having to encourage them to settle,” Sinn says. “Those are all things a new pet owner should be doing on a regular basis.”
Sinn adds that veterinarians who haven’t had this conversation with their clients yet should have it sooner rather than later.
“[Because] one way or another they will be having the conversation,” Sinn says. And if they’re having it later, then “it’s going to be a disaster-mitigation conversation versus a preventive conversation.”

https://www.aaha.org/publications/newstat/articles/2020-05/as-people-return-to-work-those-who-adopted-a-dog-during-the-pandemic-could-be-in-for-a-rude-surprise/

156 30th year Anniversary

On April 30, 1990, I opened Garden Ridge Animal Hospital. My ex-husband and I envisioned a free-standing homey small animal hospital where we could be our own bosses, grow a business, raise children, engage in our community, and have a wonderful life. The business succeeded, but the marriage failed in 1997 shortly after the birth of my son, Wayne. Life went on, I met a wonderful man in 2002, we married, and today we are celebrating 15 years of marriage.

Here I am 30 years later, and it has been a wonderful ride. The technology, computers, websites, and medicines, children and my hair color have changed, but the fundamentals of the human-animal bond, examining a pet, doing surgery, and communication with staff and owners are steadfast. The types of patients I have seen has changed slightly over the years, especially since I started seeing exotic pets like rabbits, ferrets, birds, reptiles, and pocket pets (rodents, hedgehogs). The last six weeks have been a crazy period, but we are still open for business. I am missing seeing my clients, many I have known for close to 30 years. I even have two clients I knew before 1990 from the first practice I worked at in Dallas, Hines North Animal Hospital.

I have been blessed with fantastic staff, pet parents, wonderful patients, lots of interesting cases, and social involvement. I have been on the City of Lewisville Animal Control committee several times, serving 6-8 years all together, most recently during the construction of the new Animal Shelter by Railroad Park. I have lead Girl Scout troops, Cub Scout troops, and hosted numerous scouting merit badge events. I have done Career Days at the High School level and Middle School level. I have worked with child daycares for Bite Prevention. We treat classroom pets. We work with pet stores to keep their critters healthy.

Lately, I have gotten involved with the Medical Reserve Corp in Denton, and Ham radio out in East Texas where we have a small cattle ranch and Airbnb lodge. My mom is alive and well, but cannot drive, so we do a weekly “lunch”, and run errands. And I get to enjoy my granddaughter in Flower Mound!

Achievements:

AAHA certification since 2006
Fear Free Certification since 2017
Best Animal Hospital People Choice Award
Best Landscaping award in 1995

I had hoped to do something special for the 30th anniversary. Something like a big open house, or a big 30% off sale, but that is not going to happen during the time of the Coronavirus. Maybe I will just have to do it for the 31st anniversary!

I hope to see ya’ll soon! Stay safe. Hug your pets.

151 Coronavirus Anxiety can be Contagious to Dogs and Cats

Many vets are getting phone calls from clients who are concerned that their pets are “acting out” in this time of anxiety. This would be completely normal whenever owners are experiencing anxiety or depression themselves. And it would be surprising if any pet parent who is watching the news isn’t experiencing stress,anxiety,fear, or depression. I have been using Fear Free Techniques to manage fear, anxiety and stress in pets for over 3 years now with fantastic results.

Ways Pets Act Out

Seeking attention
Destructive behavior
Not being able to settle down
House soiling
Aggression
Depression

Things Pet Parents Can Do

Keep a normal routine for yourself and pets
Stay calm yourself
Lots of exercise-go for a walk (if allowed); throw the ball in the backyard
Give your pet at least an hour alone for their “me time”
Try to stay on the same diet, feed at the same time
Calming OTC pheromones like Adaptil for dogs and Feliway for cats that can be purchased online

Things Vets Can Do To Help

Behavioral consults over the phone/telemedicine

Medications for anxiety like Trazadone for dogs and Gabapentin for cats

And lastly, plan proactively for your pets care in case you get sick and someone else has to care for your pets temporarily. Decide who the caretaker would be and write down what your pet eats, when they eat, what are three favorite treats, what medications they tske, and special habits they have. Try to keep two weeks worth of food and 30 day supply of meds.

Our pets can give us great emotional support at times of high stress like this, but we have to be there for them too. Give them a hug- as long as it doesn’t stress them out!

136 Recent Wins

We have had a few “winning” behavior cases in the last two weeks and reunited a lost dog with an owner from the microchip.

The stray dog was found today by one of our clients, who was able to catch him and bring him in for scanning. Animal Control could also do this, but he thought of us first. The dog was microchipped, but with an address in Carrollton, and a phone number that didn’t work. My staff didn’t give up there, and contacted the email address linked to the microchip, and got a phone call shortly afterward that he was indeed the owner, and the story has a happy ending. The takeaway is always have your pets microchipped, and check the contact information years, and whenever you move.

One of the winning behavior cases involved a dog who has become terrified out us touching his toenails. And last week he presented with a broken dewclaw nail, that had already stopped bleeding. We gave the owner several choices: just buck up and wrestle to dog to examine the feet, give him sedation by injection now, or send him home with some oral anti-anxiety medicine, Trazadone, and see him the next day, knowing we still might have to sedate. She chose Trazadone, and the next day he wasn’t as anxious, we were able to cover his head with a towel with some calming pheromones and touch his feet without sedation. Things went so well we even did his annual exam, vaccines & blood test for heartworms. Success with Trazadone!

The other success story was a very “reactive” Malinois patient. He usually barks nonstop while here, protecting his owner. Last month we tried seeing him and we couldn’t approach him at all. This time, he came here on Trazadone, wearing his basket muzzle, and we gave the intramuscular sedation in the parking lot, before he was aroused. Then he walked in, stayed in the exam room with the owner until the drugs took effect. The exam went calmly, with the owner present, we did everything we needed, and then gave him the reversal agent for the sedation. Fifteen minutes later he walked out on his own, not having had a bad experience, and not stressed.

These are a few of our recent Fear Free success stories. It is ok to use anti-anxiety medicine for a scary situation, and often these same dogs need less and less each year. The pets are less stressed, the owners are less stressed, and our staff is less stressed. Win-Win-Win

101 Puppy Toys

So last week I started Puppy Kindergarten for my little Dachshund mix, Chuck. We had a small class of 4 dogs, so it was easy for Chuck to focus. We all brought quiet chew toys so the puppies could entertain themselves as the instructor was talking. We also had some reward treats. I brought his favorite (so far), little “Slim Jim” style jerky dog treats from Winco that I can pinch off little tiny bits easily and some cooked chicken.

We started off with rewarding their response to their name. No problem there. We move on to sitting, staying for 5 seconds, then longer. Chuck is up to 15 seconds. Then we started stepping away or circling him. We didn’t get very far yet, but it was a new lesson for both of us. We walked on a leash inside the gym keeping a bubble around each puppy so they weren’t distracted. We ended by calmly walking around, “doing a drive by” the other puppies. They really didn’t greet each other yet. That will come later.

So by the end of the class, each puppy had 45-60 minutes of undivided time with their pet parent, and lots of rewards for performing the commands. No punishment, no choke collars, just lots of love and treats.

I have learned there are 5 kinds of toys: Passive, Active, Working, Old and New. Who knew? Passive toys are quiet chew toys like raw hides, and Bully sticks and yummy filled Kongs. Active toys are tennis balls, squeak toys, ropes, Frisbees. Chuck especially loves to destroy squeak toys. Working toys are ones that stimulate them mentally, and usually dispense a treat. I haven’t use this kind before, but the concept sounds great and sturdier then my plastic coke 2 liter bottle filled with kibble. The Old toys and New toys are self-explanatory, and as parents we all use this trick.

I discovered that the Kong website has a Kong Box, with 4 toys selected for your pet’s size and they mail right to your house. I chose the Kong brand because I was familiar with it and they are the only toys so far that are standing up to Chuck’s teeth. I will share more after it arrives.

99 Puppy Kindergarten

Well it’s time I got my puppies into Kindergarten. Puppy kindergarten, that is. Just like children go to school, so can puppies. The trick if finding a good fit.

Current behavior literature suggests puppy training begins with socialization at 7-16 weeks, because they are more open to new things and do learn faster. Our previous recommendation was to wait until 6 months to start because they had a longer attention span. These classes are more than just play time, just like kindergarten is more than playing.

I am going to take one of my puppies to a local trainer, Anne O’Neil. I have taken my Sheltie, Sarge, to her for his Good Manners Class, an Agility Class, and a Sniff and Search Class over the years. My puppy goal is to nail down sitting and coming when called, even when distracted. I also hope we learn how to walk on a leash without pulling and master the “leave it “ command. Basic stuff. I know the class will be based on positive reinforcement, no punishment. And it will be a great bonding time!

I have been working on the puppy socialization stuff at work, but even I need help. I am not too proud to need professional assistance, and the unique opportunities a group class opens. Kind of like a home schooled child still needs to go on group outings.

The classes are usually in Highland Village, and usually weekly. She also does in home training, which is better for some dogs (like private tutoring). Her next round of puppy classes starts Feb 26, 2019.

For more information on Puppy Kindergarten:
http://www.specialtypettraining.com/graphics/pop%20up%20puppy.html
For other classes and website home page: http://www.specialtypettraining.com/