Attempted fixes
As Lilly’s agility meltdown worsened, and transferred to other venues, I assembled a vast team of people and suggestions in hopes of solving the issue. Here’s a recap of what I’ve tried, with limited success and innumerable setbacks.
What I have tried:
Changing trainers and training locations
Trying socialization work to agility environments
Taking easier group classes, several clicks below Lilly’s known skill level
Allowing Lilly to interact with other dogs she really liked as lures and rewards during class
Letting Lilly just run around and relax with other dogs before and after class
Taking her for walks around the nearby ponds before and after class so that she associates more fun things with the agility location
Breaking myself of habits that Lilly perceived as corrections and using much bigger rewards (like jackpots) for breakthroughs
Incorporating more play into training (great idea, except Lilly rarely lets loose and plays anymore if other dogs are around … even when I have the best ball (or toy) that normally turns her into a wild monkey girl)
Allowing a longer time span between vaccination boosters (She had a bad reaction to vaccinations in early 2005, which preceded the early meltdown stages. I’m not saying cause and effect. I’m just pointing to a link in the timeline.)
Ignoring her fear behavior (with the idea, I now know is totally wrong, that interacting with her at all only reinforced the fear)
Climbing onto equipment myself to show it’s safe (used after we lost our dog walk due to teeter fear since they look alike on approach)
Using the bang-treat method of teeter training
Trying to desensitize her to recorded teeter noise
Regularly using many nutritional supplements, including strong multivitamin/mineral, essential fatty acids, and Chinese herbs (2 different kinds)
Using Nutracalm (a prescription-type herbal tranquilizer of sorts), both as a daily maintenance dose and/or before class
Using homeopathic solutions, including Rescue Remedy and a confab of 5 different things, both regular use and in the moment
Asking an animal communicator to ask Lilly what’s wrong, what I can do to help, etc.
Using accupressure points, used in the moment to help calm her down
Taking up an outdoor, low-key, work-and-play class (drop in) to keep her working when taking a break from agility
Taking up Rally Obedience training as a way to build ring confidence
Taking long breaks from ALL classes
Using Click-to-Calm behavior modification strategies
Using of DAP (dog appeasing pheromone) to help keep her calm during class (sprayed in her crate for the drive to class and on a bandana she wears at class)
What I have not tried (yet):
As of yet, I have NOT tried having detailed thyroid testing done because both our family veterinarian and our holistic veterinarian did not think the tests were necessary.
I also have NOT tried thulia (not sure on spelling), which I’m told is used to treat vaccinosis. Again, our holistic veterinarian did not suggest this as an option.
I’ve NOT yet caved into suggestions from our veterinarian and others that we try anti-depressants because I fear negative side-effects and the trauma of coming off them, should they not work.
Tell me your story!
I’d love to hear your story, if you have one, especially if the solution wasn’t a simple one. Sure, it’s nice to meet people who say things like, “Oh, my dog used to be shy like that, but once I did (insert painfully simple thing here), he was just fine.” But, I’d also love to know of examples, where it took years of hard work to turn a shy dog around.
I’ll chip away at the problem bit by bit, but once in a while my faith that there’s really a diamond beneath the crud needs a boost.
What I have tried:
Changing trainers and training locations
Trying socialization work to agility environments
Taking easier group classes, several clicks below Lilly’s known skill level
Allowing Lilly to interact with other dogs she really liked as lures and rewards during class
Letting Lilly just run around and relax with other dogs before and after class
Taking her for walks around the nearby ponds before and after class so that she associates more fun things with the agility location
Breaking myself of habits that Lilly perceived as corrections and using much bigger rewards (like jackpots) for breakthroughs
Incorporating more play into training (great idea, except Lilly rarely lets loose and plays anymore if other dogs are around … even when I have the best ball (or toy) that normally turns her into a wild monkey girl)
Allowing a longer time span between vaccination boosters (She had a bad reaction to vaccinations in early 2005, which preceded the early meltdown stages. I’m not saying cause and effect. I’m just pointing to a link in the timeline.)
Ignoring her fear behavior (with the idea, I now know is totally wrong, that interacting with her at all only reinforced the fear)
Climbing onto equipment myself to show it’s safe (used after we lost our dog walk due to teeter fear since they look alike on approach)
Using the bang-treat method of teeter training
Trying to desensitize her to recorded teeter noise
Regularly using many nutritional supplements, including strong multivitamin/mineral, essential fatty acids, and Chinese herbs (2 different kinds)
Using Nutracalm (a prescription-type herbal tranquilizer of sorts), both as a daily maintenance dose and/or before class
Using homeopathic solutions, including Rescue Remedy and a confab of 5 different things, both regular use and in the moment
Asking an animal communicator to ask Lilly what’s wrong, what I can do to help, etc.
Using accupressure points, used in the moment to help calm her down
Taking up an outdoor, low-key, work-and-play class (drop in) to keep her working when taking a break from agility
Taking up Rally Obedience training as a way to build ring confidence
Taking long breaks from ALL classes
Using Click-to-Calm behavior modification strategies
Using of DAP (dog appeasing pheromone) to help keep her calm during class (sprayed in her crate for the drive to class and on a bandana she wears at class)
What I have not tried (yet):
As of yet, I have NOT tried having detailed thyroid testing done because both our family veterinarian and our holistic veterinarian did not think the tests were necessary.
I also have NOT tried thulia (not sure on spelling), which I’m told is used to treat vaccinosis. Again, our holistic veterinarian did not suggest this as an option.
I’ve NOT yet caved into suggestions from our veterinarian and others that we try anti-depressants because I fear negative side-effects and the trauma of coming off them, should they not work.
Tell me your story!
I’d love to hear your story, if you have one, especially if the solution wasn’t a simple one. Sure, it’s nice to meet people who say things like, “Oh, my dog used to be shy like that, but once I did (insert painfully simple thing here), he was just fine.” But, I’d also love to know of examples, where it took years of hard work to turn a shy dog around.
I’ll chip away at the problem bit by bit, but once in a while my faith that there’s really a diamond beneath the crud needs a boost.
Trackbacks
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2/3/2008 10:12 AM
Champion of My Heart wrote:
I promised before the holidays to give some details on the supplements Lilly takes. Since I know that some of you share people health concerns too, I'm including information on what I take as well. ... -
1/23/2008 9:47 AM
Champion of My Heart wrote:
I promised before the holidays to give some details on the supplements Lilly takes. Since I know that some of you share people health concerns too, I'm including information on what I take as well. ... -
2/3/2008 10:12 AM
Champion of My Heart wrote:
I promised before the holidays to give some details on the supplements Lilly takes. Since I know that some of you share people health concerns too, I'm including information on what I take as well. ...
Simply by looking at the list of things that you've tried I can tell that Lilly isn't just the victim of some unfortunate experiences in her early agility training. Lots and lots of dogs have unfortunate early experiences and recover fully with the treatments you've tried.
Have you read accounts of dogs that have been treated with SSRIs? Have you ever known anyone who took them? (Yes, I'm sure you have but whether or not they admitted it is another thing. There's still too much of a stigma about taking them for most people to admit it to other than close friends or family members. SSRIs are a very safe and very beneficial class of drugs that have minimal side effects which tend to decrease over time anyway. They have helped literally millions of people and I don't know how many dogs to feel better and feel what "normal" people and dogs feel. They don't make you feel high or weird and drs are very careful to titrate levels slowly over a period of weeks to months.)
I suggest you try to find accounts from people who have used them successfully on their dogs, possibly on Veterinary Behavior websites. I personally know 3 people who have used them very successfully on Border Collies and I myself have used Prozac for a Doberman. There is a lot of information on how they're used and what types of results/reactions ocurred. Look for information based on science and not on anectodal evidence and make your decision based on that.
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