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I gave my dog a bath yesterday and the kitten LOVES the dog shampoo. She rubbed and purred and bothered him all day. The poor dog just stood there with eyes as big as saucers. He loves the kitten, but he's learned she plays with claws and teeth and he's not so into that.
I saw this dog on television, and he was AMAZING!!!!!
Almost makes me wish I was a dog person!
http://www.urlesque.com/2011/02/11/d..._lnk3%7C200843
Need Help! Has anyone ever used or know of "Bach Rescue Remedy"? A friend of mine recommended it for my little 5-lb Maltese who is normally quite calm but just seems to be one step short of a stroke when going in the car!
She's long overdue for shots and spaying (she never really goes outside, so we're not that critical on that), but the risk of breast cancer rises after the second "cycle" and she's already been through her first.
She's so tiny, there's hardly any muscle on her little body (she's healthy), and shots are painful because it's hard for the doc to gauge through all of that hair and smallness of her muscle mass! I can't even take her to our mailbox (1/4 of a mile) without her starting to shake and start to panic. And our vet is 25 minutes away!
Anyway, my friend says drops of the homeopathic Bach Rescue Remedy calms her dog, who is the same way. She loaned me her bottle. This is made in Britain and the reviews seem great overall. But little Sugar (hence, my name) is so small, I'm afraid to give her anything not wanting to overdose.
And our vet is a personal friend, but I also know that most medical trained folks are skeptical about homeopathic remedies and default instead to the pharmaceuticals. Gosh, I don't want to go that route! I've not called him yet, because I'm sure he'll want to have me give her (and charge me for) an animal sedative.
Anybody know anything about this or have any advice? Thanks so much!
I've seen him too; he's pretty amazing.
I got to meet the famous Bogie and Rosie yesterday. They are VERY cute and well behaved as well. And MRD got to be the first FORT friend to meet Rory....and drumroll please...the new kitten I got to help keep him away from BooBoo. Right now she's staying in my bedroom until she adjusts to the new home. She is a purebred Burmese; I fell in love with them at the cat show. She is brown, not black, but her face looks VERY like a baby BooBoo, but with even bigger eyes (that are gold, not green). The breeder had given her the call name martha after a dear old friend, but I may have to change that.
And here's her brother on one of my little cat beds (this is an extra small bed; this breed of cat doesn't get very big at all!) He's the one that made me decide I wanted this kind of cat--too cute and LOVES people!
ETA--SugarMama, I hate to say it, but I've never had much luck with any of those type of things, and i've used several. Still, it might depend on the animal. You could try it on a day you don't really have to take her anywhere, and if it doesn't work, go get the vet to give you a mild sedative to use on the day you have to actually take her somewhere. Good luck!
Wow, funny you should post that SugarMomma. Our local NBC affiliate just did a bit on this item Thundershirt | The Best Dog Anxiety Treatment.
Thundershirt Claims To Help Dogs With Anxiety | NBC 4i
COLUMBUS, Ohio --
Drake is an active border collie. He likes to go running with his owner. He also likes to leap the fence and go running on his own. When someone knocks on the door, he barks like a madman and actually begins spinning in a circle, biting at his own tail. He's loveable, even if he's a little nuts.
Winnie lives in the same house. He's a nervous little guy with wiry hair, a bum shoulder that gives him a bit of a limp and a perpetual shake. He finds most of the world a little scary and distracting. And that makes it difficult for him to learn and follow his owner's commands.
And they both like to get in the trash when their owner leaves them home alone.
Susan Bechtel is their very patient, loving owner. She's the one who has the pick up the trash from the living room and kitchen floors three to five times a week. She's done everything she can to make the dogs comfortable and make them feel secure. But she'd really like for their behavior to improve.
The Thundershirt (Thundershirt | The Best Dog Anxiety Treatment) claims to have the solution. Its own website calls it the "Best Solution for Dog Anxiety."
The Thundershirt is, essentially, a tight-fitting, neoprene jacket for your dog. It wraps around the animal's neck and mid-section and is secured in place with Velcro straps. The wrap creates pressure without restricting the dog's movement. "Pressure has a calming effect on the nervous system," the site says. "Using pressure to relieve anxiety has been a common practice for years."
"That's like a giant, wearable hug that never ends," says the site's promotional video.
"Probably the toughest dog to train is a dog that's afraid of the world," says Scott MacConachie, a certified dog trainer and owner of K9 Ponderosa (K-9 Ponderosa Dog Training and Behavior Modification Center located in Delaware Ohio. Dog Training in Columbus, Dublin, Powell, Lewis Center, Hilliard, Gahanna, Westerville, Grove City. Dog training in Ohio) in Delaware. He says our pets are just "designer wolves" that have the same pack mentality as their undomesticated cousins. He often uses his own pack of "balanced dogs" to help heal issues with problem pooches.
His own dogs are trained to flip light switches and even retrieve the mail from a closed mailbox.
NBC4 took the Thundershirt to him for a few tests.
"I think it has some validity. Dogs do like compression," MacConachie says. "But I don't think it's going to cure a dog that's fearful of the world or a dog that has real fear or anxiety issues."
As MacConachie gave commands to Winnie in the K9 Ponderosa facility, the dog seemed to understand, but was too nervous to stay in a sit or down position. He would bounce up and down, unable to stay still or concentrate. When told to walk or heel, Winnie would break into a near run.
Then he was strapped into a Thundershirt. The straps needed to be adjusted a few times to give his troubled shoulder some support. But MacConachie and Winnie's owner, Susan Bechtel, noticed an immediate change in his behavior. Almost instantly, the dog was less anxious and he was able to concentrate.
"This is different," noticed MacConachie with a bit of surprise. "And now, he is listening and he is doing the commands and he is being more patient."
The dog stayed in a sit position. He stayed in a down position. He walked more slowly and confidently.
"He's never really held his commands like he just did. So there is something to be said about that."
"I'm seeing a very calm dog compared to when we first walked in," said Susan once Winnie was sitting on her lap again. The dog was nearly falling asleep in her arms. That never happened before the Thundershirt.
The trash was strewn around Susan's house again as an NBC4 crew walked in the kitchen door with her. Drake and Johnny were the culprits.
"Unless I put a chair in front of the garbage can, the dogs will make a mess like this," she said while putting wrappers and cups back in a plastic bag.
MacConachie stepped outside and knocked on the door. The dogs began barking. Drake jumped up on his hind legs to paw at the door and then jumped to the middle of the kitchen to practice is own bizarre, spinning-and-chasing-his-tail ritual.
Drake was then strapped into a large-sized Thundershirt. Like Winnie, his behavior and demeanor changed almost instantly.
When another knock came at the door, Drake slowly wandered over to the door without barking. And then turned and walked away as the other dogs continued barking.
"That is amazing. That is unbelievable," remarked Susan. "He's not spinning."
"He's not even barking or jumping," noted MacConachie.
"I would love for him to wear this all the time. He's a new dog," she said.
When asked if, in his experience, if it was unusual for a dog's behavior change so quickly, MacConachie said it was. Sort of.
"It's unusual, yes," he said. "I'm not going to say that it's going to change the world, but it definitely made a difference."
Every dog's situation and psyche is different. They are as individual as humans. And not every solution works for every animal. The Thundershirt's own website only claims 80-percent success. But the tests conducted by NBC4 certainly seemed successful.
I'll definitely look into that tomorrow! Sugar doesn't get crazy, loud, barky, circling, etc. Her body starts shaking from head to toe, her eyes get huge and sad, and it's the most pitiful site you could imagine (I have to laugh to not cry it's so extreme!) Nothing, absolutely nothing seems to comfort her, even my holding her (not driving, of course).Originally Posted by Unklescott;4193385;
We took her to the beach last fall (a 7 hour drive)...she just got so weak she slept most of the way after her panic attack. Weak as a newborn kitten.
I want her to be able to go places with me/us, to travel...even as far as the darned mailbox without having the living daylights scared out of her. She just as sweet as...well, sugar
She is re-scenting him.
phroshay See what you are missing.
queenb your new kitty is beautiful.
SugarMama I would consult my Vet before giving any meds.
My concerns would be... dosage amounts for her size, possible drug interaction, if she might be allergic to the meds and could the meds mask an illness that the Vet might find during a physical exam.
We tried rescue remedy on Rosie because thunder scares her. Did not work at all.
Queenb's new kitty is beautiful. Never seen that color in a cat. But she is so silky and adorable.
Thanks for saying they were well behaved.
Begged at the table, went in the neighbors yard and the street. They knew we had company and could test the limits.
Saw this on the news today. "Dusty" the cat burglar is amazing!
(The video is a Must-See)
by Eyder Peralta
Here's a bit of fun from TV station KGO: For three years, Dusty has been stealing personal items from his neighbors in San Mateo, Calif.
But nobody's ever called the police because they know the thief well. It turns out the cat burglar is, well, a neighborhood cat. Dusty's owners estimate the cat has stolen some 600 items over the course of three years. Here's the video:
No, Not A Cat Burglar, A Cat That's A Burglar : The Two-Way : NPR
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