Sunday, October 28, 2007
Adopted greyhound needs lots of time to adjust to new home
Paws & Claws
Jill Bowen has practiced veterinary medicine in England and Texas. She lives in Blacksburg now, and answers local pet owners' questions every week in The Roanoke Times and roanoke.com.
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We adopted a female Italian greyhound last February. She is a survivor from a puppy mill in Kansas. She turned 2 this May. Before being spayed, she had at least one litter of puppies. When we first got her, we could not even look at her without her running and hiding.
With a lot of love and patience, she has made progress. She now lets us pet her if there is a chair arm or one of our other dogs between us. She still will not take food from our hands. She does not like to be picked up. When we tried to trim her nails, she bit both of us. She loves our other two male Italian greyhounds. After seeing an episode of “Dog Whisperer” where they used acupuncture on a frightened dog to help calm her down, we are wondering if this might help. Do you know of anyone in the area who performs this service? Or do you know of anyone who can deal with this type of skittish dog?
It is still too early to expect your new dog to have become the ideal pet. Unfamiliar situations and people are very unnerving to many pets. A dog that has been kept confined and has limited opportunity to socialize with people may remain fearful for some time. Shyness in adult dogs requires a lot of patience to overcome. Gentle coaxing and verbal praise are the keys to overcoming her fears.
Many dogs do not like being picked up and will snap or run away and hide. The same applies to having their toenails clipped. It is important that you are the primary person she learns to trust. I suggest it would be better for your veterinarian to cut your dog’s nails during her annual checkup. You do not want to do anything that may make her more fearful of you than she is already.
I have no experience with acupuncture used in this situation, but I cannot think that an already fearful pet would appreciate a total stranger sticking needles into her. The fact that she has bonded with your two other dogs is a good sign, because often dogs from breeding farms experience difficulty with and fear other dogs.
Your veterinarian can tell you about dog-training classes in your area. It is important that you go with her and do not be surprised if at first she just wants to run away and hide. Do not force her to mingle; this will come with time if you are patient and calm. The presence of your other two dogs could act as a reassuring presence for her in strange surroundings. Such classes would be better than a personal trainer because you wish her to bond to you and not someone else.
* * * *
During the past year we had an elderly, incontinent dog in our home. The dog has now gone but the odor remains in spite of cleaning the carpet and vigorous scrubbing. Any suggestions?
Old dog and cat urine stains and smells are difficult to remove. Unfortunately most home remedies do not work on old stains and odors. To be effective they need to be used promptly when the problem is discovered.
The most effective treatment for old stains is to use a product that breaks down the odor and stain molecules. These enzymatic products should be used liberally and according to the directions. The carpet needs to be saturated with the product because the urine will have penetrated into the underlay and the floor beneath.
I have had good reports of two of these products: Zero-Odor and Urine-Off Stain and Odor Remover. The latter claims to eliminate all types of urine stains and works on all types of surfaces. It even works on tomcat urine and includes a pheromone blocker that should prevent remarking in that area.
With a lot of love and patience, she has made progress. She now lets us pet her if there is a chair arm or one of our other dogs between us. She still will not take food from our hands. She does not like to be picked up. When we tried to trim her nails, she bit both of us. She loves our other two male Italian greyhounds. After seeing an episode of “Dog Whisperer” where they used acupuncture on a frightened dog to help calm her down, we are wondering if this might help. Do you know of anyone in the area who performs this service? Or do you know of anyone who can deal with this type of skittish dog?
It is still too early to expect your new dog to have become the ideal pet. Unfamiliar situations and people are very unnerving to many pets. A dog that has been kept confined and has limited opportunity to socialize with people may remain fearful for some time. Shyness in adult dogs requires a lot of patience to overcome. Gentle coaxing and verbal praise are the keys to overcoming her fears.
Many dogs do not like being picked up and will snap or run away and hide. The same applies to having their toenails clipped. It is important that you are the primary person she learns to trust. I suggest it would be better for your veterinarian to cut your dog’s nails during her annual checkup. You do not want to do anything that may make her more fearful of you than she is already.
I have no experience with acupuncture used in this situation, but I cannot think that an already fearful pet would appreciate a total stranger sticking needles into her. The fact that she has bonded with your two other dogs is a good sign, because often dogs from breeding farms experience difficulty with and fear other dogs.
Your veterinarian can tell you about dog-training classes in your area. It is important that you go with her and do not be surprised if at first she just wants to run away and hide. Do not force her to mingle; this will come with time if you are patient and calm. The presence of your other two dogs could act as a reassuring presence for her in strange surroundings. Such classes would be better than a personal trainer because you wish her to bond to you and not someone else.
* * * *
During the past year we had an elderly, incontinent dog in our home. The dog has now gone but the odor remains in spite of cleaning the carpet and vigorous scrubbing. Any suggestions?
Old dog and cat urine stains and smells are difficult to remove. Unfortunately most home remedies do not work on old stains and odors. To be effective they need to be used promptly when the problem is discovered.
The most effective treatment for old stains is to use a product that breaks down the odor and stain molecules. These enzymatic products should be used liberally and according to the directions. The carpet needs to be saturated with the product because the urine will have penetrated into the underlay and the floor beneath.
I have had good reports of two of these products: Zero-Odor and Urine-Off Stain and Odor Remover. The latter claims to eliminate all types of urine stains and works on all types of surfaces. It even works on tomcat urine and includes a pheromone blocker that should prevent remarking in that area.
