Dog wont settle in dog walker van anymore

[Sarah4416]

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Hi there,

Just looking for a bit of advise. My dog has been going with his walker for 6 months, he settled quite quickly as he get picked up first, they go and pick up the morning dogs go for a walk then drop of the dogs while he stays all day. On Monday he just wouldn't settle, dog walker could feel him walking around the crate and when arriving at the walk my dog had been that distressed he had cut his head on the crate and was drooling badly and panting. I picked him up and took him to the vet, I am trying to work out what the issue could be, he is 18 months and is being neutered next Friday and it was said that the dog walkers dog who is not spayed was in the van a few weeks prior who was on heat. Freddie (my dog) had been in the van multiple times since then and there wasn't an issue. I have kept him off the last few days and he is away this morning to see how he gets on, I am here waiting for a phone call or text and worried sick, can anyone give advise or shed any light on it?

 

[JudyN]

Was he unsettled on Monday before the dog walker turned up? Was he reluctant to get into the van, or did this start once they were under way?

Are the dogs crated individually in the van, and have there been any new dogs added to the group?

 

[Sarah4416]

Was he unsettled on Monday before the dog walker turned up? Was he reluctant to get into the van, or did this start once they were under way?

Are the dogs crated individually in the van, and have there been any new dogs added to the group?

He was fine going away with him on Monday, was watching for him as usual. He jumped into his crate and it wasn't until they started driving he was burling about in the van. He is in the same crate each time. No new dogs have been added to the group.

Dog walker has just called and he has done the same thing so they are on the walk now and he will take him home afterwards. I am going to keep him home until after he recovers from his op next week but I just can't pin point what could have happened or could be wrong. I can't have him hurting himself but he adores going for the walks with him and I really don't want him missing out.

 

[JudyN]

Hmm... I'm just thinking if there might be any clues. Was he OK when he got to the walk today? Was he desperate to get out of the van? Fine on the actual walk? I'd ask the dog walker how he is on the drive back - it might indicate whether it's something to do with the van, or being separated from you, or a specific other dog. Also, if you haven't already, ask the dog walker if there was anything different about the day, e.g. needing to brake sharply, a lorry backfiring, car horn... The difficulty is that if he had a fright just once, he might associate it with the van in the future.

I'm glad you're able to keep him home for the time being, and hope he's back to normal when he's recovered from the op. Fingers crossed.

 

[Sarah4416]

Hmm... I'm just thinking if there might be any clues. Was he OK when he got to the walk today? Was he desperate to get out of the van? Fine on the actual walk? I'd ask the dog walker how he is on the drive back - it might indicate whether it's something to do with the van, or being separated from you, or a specific other dog. Also, if you haven't already, ask the dog walker if there was anything different about the day, e.g. needing to brake sharply, a lorry backfiring, car horn... The difficulty is that if he had a fright just once, he might associate it with the van in the future.

I'm glad you're able to keep him home for the time being, and hope he's back to normal when he's recovered from the op. Fingers crossed.

He is absolutely perfect on his walks and not rushing to get out of the van. Thank you for the reply and I will speak to the dog walker when he comes home shortly. Fingers crossed!

 

[KaweyMeild]

That's so strange. However I think such things happen when a dog is in pain due to some hidden health problems. This is the only way they can talk to us. Some dogs are 'dramatic' and do something crazy to draw attention. Watch your do; has anything else changed? Is he upset? Is he too quiet? I think you should go to the vet again and check everything possible. I won't make you think bad about the walker, but he may also have done something wrong, which impacted the dog. I hope he didn't but You should stay careful. If you find the problem was there, I suggest you draw your attention to another dog walker

 

[JoanneF]

There's a little date stamp at the top left of each post, in the purple banner - this one is a year old. Hopefully they resolved the problem.