I had two really horrible experiences with my own dogs.
The first one was with my wire haired dachshund Wittgy. He developed auto immune hemolytic anemia after receiving a 5-way vaccine plus bordetella intranasal drops all at once. He was diagnosed and treated and he was able to live a pretty good life for another 8 years. Did it have significant influence on his behavior? You bet it did.
Wittgy
The second experence: Cosi, my 6 year old Briard girl. She was overdosed with flagyl wile being treated for recurring giardia infestation. Flagyl (Metronidazole) has neurological side effects. Cosi ended up in the hospital. She could not stand up she was so dizzy. She was treated with valium and the damage was reversed. Did the event trigger significant changes in her overall behavior ? Absolutely!
Cosi puppy
Even though “the books” say that neurological damage can be reversed: from a behavior standpoint I believe these traumatic events cause changes that are irreversible through behavior modification. Both of these dogs’ personalities changed.
This morning I stumbled upon Dr Sophia Yin’s highly interesting blogpost regarding chemicals.I wanted to share this very important information with anyone reading my posts because the subject is very close to my heart and it pains me when I hear about flea and tick control and metronidazole practically given out like candy.
Do you remember the story of June, the rescue mini dachshund with the megaesophagus? Yesterday I got a text that June was able to stay alone without any signs of anxiety or barking for a whole hour! It is an excellent example demonstrating that separation anxiety is largely a function…
I can’t touch her ears! She hates the brush! He shakes on the way to the groomer. Isn’t it an oxymoron that on one hand we “spoil” our beloved dogs with the fanciest beds and coats, find the greatest joy in giving them a toy they love to play with…
We now have a studio! The home-like atmosphere of the studio allows us to teach dogs and puppies manners that will transfer easily when they are back home. Sessions at the studio can be tailored to your needs. New services by Dog Relations NYC: Park and Train & SpaDoggy Would…
My dog is stubborn! He doesn’t listen! Wait….really? Maybe the “stubborn” behavior is the result of your own behavior. Maybe you have inadvertently sent out messages that reinforce the dog to be “deaf”. Don’t underestimate the power of intermittent reinforcement! If you reinforce a dog’s behavior in some way, he…
I frankly was not aware of Ian Dunbar’s theory that the playtime before puppy class where the pups are allowed to run free was to teach them bite inhibition. I always knew that bite inhibition was taught much earlier, when the pup was still with his mom and litter mates.…
Just because you say it, doesn’t mean it’s going to happen I think one of the biggest misconceptions people have about a dog’s learning process is that they think the dog can conceptualize new verbal input. Let’s take the famous “sit” example. What actually makes the dog understand “sit” and…
When I am out walking my dogs I try very hard to act like a “normal” dog owner and not a trainer. But tonight I experienced something that was deeply disturbing to me. I was walking Zeldi and we ran into a sweet young Labradoodle. They clearly were interested in one…
Let’s be practical here. As much as you would like to shape behaviors but not force the dog by molding or yanking (an example for molding would be: putting the dog into a sit position by pressing on his butt until the butt hits the floor) or teaching a sit stay…
Most of us have heard of the behavior exercise : Leave it! When the skill is learned the dog will turn away from an object he desires voluntarily because this action has been highly rewarded in training set ups. Here is a version of this game I thought would be…