Scrumpy Has Problems

[J.T.]

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When we got Scrumpy she was scared of traffic as she'd been found on a busy road & maybe had a near miss with a vehicle. We have no way of really knowing what happened before we got her at about 10 weeks old. To get to my local park is about a 3 minute walk along a fairly busy road (bus route), she pulls all the way & shakes & pants. It hasn't got any better with age, she's 2 now & if anything it's worse than ever.

As soon as I get the leads out she goes into her bed & starts to shake & lick her lips. She is fine as soon as we get to the park but on the way home again, when we are getting near to the park gates she lags further & further behind as tho she's delaying the moment we have to go on the road again.

Apart from this, she's always been an outgoing dog but recently she's been acting more & more nervously & has developed a phobia about loud noises too. Any loud bang will have her shaking & panting. At a recent show a big skip was emptied 2 fields away & the bang turned her into a jelly, not good

I was going to get one of the CD's with loud noises on but when I phoned to order it I spoke to one of the behaviourists & ended up with an appointment with one of them.....that'll be £235 please. (w00t) Luckily she's insured so it's covered.

I'm at a loss to figure out how my lively little dog has turned into a shivering wreck in less than 6months. I can't pin it down to one incident, it just seems to have got steadily worse & she spends a lot of her time lying in the kitchen by herself or slinking around looking worried

My appointment isn't for another 2 weeks but I'm really hoping they can help as I hate her being so stressed, she's only 2 & should be enjoying life not constantly worried.

Has anyone else used a behaviourist for anything & did it help?

 

[FeeFee]

I've used a behaviourist once, but for a very different kind of problem (a foster dog that was extremely dog aggressive). She was extremely helpful, and gave me loads of ideas for different strategies to help him - and I have to say cost nothing like the amount you have mentioned, from memory I think it was £30 for the initial assessment then £50 for two subsequent sessions.

I'm sorry to hear about the problems Scrumpy is having. My Sophie is very fearful in many situations (she spent seven years shut in a cage in a barn before she came to me), and it can be heartbreaking and very difficult to deal with. She is terrified of loud noises, I'm using a desensitisation CD with her at the moment in the hope it might help.

Have you thought about trying methods like T-Touch, which can work wonders with nervous dogs? There are also some homeopathic remedies that are recommended for anxiety.

Wishing you the best of luck, anyway. Scrumpy is a gorgeous dog, and I hope you manage to find ways to help him :luck:

 

[Trish]

poor scrumpy :huggles: ive no advise really,hope you can get her to overcome her fears .

good luck julie :thumbsup: :luck: :luck: :luck:

 

[OEH]

Poor Scrumpy and poor you. She's so lovely looking. :wub: I do hope the behaviourist can help. :luck: :luck:

 

[Zephyr]

Good luck at the behaviurist - I'm sure they will have many ideas to help, but in the meantime, Bach's Rescue Remedy is very calming and may help if you give a few drops five mins before each walk. :luck: :huggles:

 

[kita]

This was on another forum:

http://ttlntl.co.uk/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1165065932

http://ttlntl.co.uk/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1166022991

sounds like very similar problems to what you are having but with a JR.

In the second link they went to a behaviourist in Anglesey who sounds very good, don't know if you are near enough to her to pay her a visit, but even with petrol money added on top she may be cheaper!!

Always remember that you (or at least the insurance company) are paying the behaviourist, if you do not feel comfortable with what they recommend then don't do it. There are good behaviourists out there but there are also alot of bad ones. Are they linked to the APDT or any other organisation?

Sue

 

[Evie]

Poor Scrumpy, sounds like you are going to have to take things really slowly. Do keep us posted on how it all goes and progress made.

Best of Luck.

:luck:

 

[whippetsrus]

You could also try Skullcap and Valerian tablets from Dorwest Herbs. They work very well for one of mine who is scared of fireworks.

 

[kris]

poor Scrumpy.it must be awful for her.when you think how much dogs enjoy their walks it must be very traumatic for her to go near that road with all the traffic on.i cant give any advice as ive been lucky in that ive never had a dog with behavioural problems but when i take a pup out for the first time they always hate the traffic on the road where we live cos its a busy road(well it used to be but theyve built a bypass since and its relatively quiet now)but they eventually get used to it some taking longer than others to get used.whatever you decide to do i hope it gets sorted out and Scrumpy can look forward to enjoying her walks :huggles:

 

[wild whippies]

My Nell can be a bag of nerves, it was the reason I kept her. She would cling to her Mum something chronic and I figured her going to a new home would be too traumatic, prospective owners would be put off her because she was so timid as well so she ended up staying.

As far as I know, Nell never had any traumatic incident that made her like this, she was just born 'nervy', the funny thing is it's not immediately apparent to most people as she displays much confidence at the track and is quite outgoing and friendly with people.

Things that set her off are, walking over grid covers that are loose and rattle underfoot, wagons / trailers banging by as we're walking, laminate wood flooring, and people banging about whilst she's eating (e.g. cupboard doors etc)

She's incredibly confident at the track, with traps banging open leaving her totally unphased. She'll happily greet friendly strangers and is a right yob when playing with the other dogs, fireworks don't bother her either which doesn't make sense when you read at the things that set her off. :blink:

Lead walking her was a nightmare, she's very edgy when walking along main roads and regularly tried to buck and slip her lead. As I was so worried about her doing this, I really hammered her with walking, taking her along bypasses etc.

I tend to talk to reassure her which does seem to work but I also gave her rescue remedy which helped a lot. The other thing is I try not to let her get overexcited before walking her as I suspect the excitement / adrenalin of going walkies exascerbates her behaviour. I don't know if any of these ideas may help but I do think it's worthwhile seeing an animal behaviourist, especially as in Scrumpy's case, she's progressively getting worse and they may well be able to see what the triggers are and how to handle them. Good luck. :luck:

 

[jayp]

Hiya,

Have you got other dogs or does she go out on her own? Jan

 

[jezza]

Poor Scrumpy I can sympathise with you as Lenny has problems too! We have been going to a behaviourist for about 18 months now. It didn't cost as much as you have been quoted but we have spent more than that now (w00t) it depends on how many sessions they have quoted you for. Also ours wasn't covered by our insurance as we weren't refferred by a vet so check your policy.

As to whether it has worked - it has to a certain extent but Lennys problems are very deep rooted (he received no socialisation before we got him at 5 months) so we see a lot of improvement then all our hard work seems to fall apart again very depressing.

I know now that I can't expect Lenny to behave like a 'normal' dog, and have accepted that, so that does make it a bit easier - I try not to put him in a situation when he will flip out!

Did the behaviourist tell you how to treat her in the two weeks running up to the appointment? When we went to our first meeting we were told to only take Lenny out when we knew for certain that we would not see any other dogs (which is what he is afraid of) for 2 weeks. We ended up not taking him for a walk at all as we kept bumping into people! This was to reduce his anxiety levels to a level when we could actually do some work with him. I don't know if it may be helpful for you to do similar with Scrumpy, ie. not take her near any roads? Perhaps you could ring up the behaviourists and ask them about this?

I would also recommend t-touch which has been very effective with Lenny (when we remember to do it :b ).

If ou want to ask me anything about Lennys treatment please pm me. Good luck with Scrumpy, and let us know how you're getting on :luck:

 

[J.T.]

Thanks everyone, wow, what a lot of nervy dogs out there, it's sort of reassuring to know we're not on our own

I've tried most of the things people have suggested, rescue remedy has no effect on her at all, homoeopathic remedies would probably help if only I remembered to dose her up regularly

I went on a T-Touch course a few months ago & it does relax her when I'm actually doing it but all that goes to pot the minute we get outside.

I walk her with the other 2 dogs who are not the slightest bit bothered by traffic & they don't go mad when it's walkies time so she's not getting too hyped up beforehand.

I got Neil to video her behaviour just before a walk so the behaviourist can see exactly what she's like.

Once we get to the park she's different again, totally mad & happy, chasing all over the place, a normal 2yr old (w00t)

I did think of stuffing her ears with cotton wool or fitting little ear muffs but that would just give her the perfect excuse never to come back when I call her :- "

Well I just hope we can sort something out soon. It will be our local carnival in a couple of weeks & we can hear the noise from our garden, all the drums & bass music will petrify her. Hopefully it will be a weekend when I'm away, otherwise I'll have to take her out for the day somewhere quiet.... I know, a day at the local library :blink:

The consultation lasts for around two & a half hours & there is a 12 month telephone help line included in the fee. It's a dear do but the insurance will cover up to £250 for behavioural stuff.

I'll keep you all updated on her progress,

Julie.

Here she is looking more relaxed with her "big sister" Hebe