SHAMPOO THE POOCH
How to get your canine friend to embrace bath time,
Our dog hates getting a bath. We have tried giving her chicken while she is in the water but she will not eat anything. She shakes and pants in terror. What can we do to ease her fear?
When I was a little girl, I was terrified of deep water. Growing up in rural Ontario, we swam in the abandoned gravel pits that had filled from underwater springs. No amount of bribing, cajoling, begging or pleading would entice me into the deep black water.
My dad gave me a life vest. Unknown to me, he had cut the interior foam into many small strips. Each week, he removed a segment. By the end of the summer, I was an excellent swimmer, and eventually made aware that my life-jacket no longer served any purpose.
Times have changed. Parents should take children to swimming lessons. However, the disappearing life-jacket illustrates two important concepts. Fear can be overcome in many small baby steps. Secondly, students do not need to be aware of the process in order to learn.
These concepts can help pets. Start easy with fearful dogs. Work toward the end goal. Begin with an empty tub. Visit it regularly. Help the dog into the dry tub. So long as the dog is inside, feed special treats. Keep the session short and positive. Remove the dog while they are still having fun. The dog should wish they could get back in.
Dry tubs may be too difficult for extremely fearful dogs that have learned to fear the bathroom. Should this happen, there’s always a way to make something easier. Try using an empty kiddie pool. Deal with the bathtub later.
Introduce water slowly. Add less than a centimetre of water into the bathtub. Do this before bringing the dog into the room so as not to spook them. Keep using food. Play games such as “bobbing for hotdogs.” Have fun. Make increases in difficulty so minute that the dog is not aware that the water level is increasing over time.
Small steps are less stressful for pets. They are also less stressful for people. It feels good to see steady progress. Our German shepherd dog has had a long list of health issues. These include problems with his hips and skin problems. Both require medications. He has recently also started developing aggression problems. We do not want the aggressive reactions to escalate. Any suggestions on what we could do to help him?
Pain and illness are difficult for dogs. If we are completely honest, most of us can empathize with this. Whether it’s back pain, a migraine or an infected tooth, pain can make anyone react out of character. Dogs do the same thing.
Additionally, some medications have behavioural side effects. For example, some corticosteroids, prescribed for allergies, inflamma- tion and other diseases can trigger aggression.
The mind and body are connected. Dogs simply don’t learn well when unwell. While it might be seem like behavioural intervention is needed, the first order of business is medical.
Consult with the dog’s veterinarian. Reassess pain management strategies. Ensure doses are correct and offering relief. Talk about potential side effects for all prescriptions. Sometimes a change in dose or different medication may be indicated. Explore other treatment options to see if adjunct treatments might assist in getting the dog’s health back where it needs to be.
Once the dog feels relief, it’s entirely possible that the dog goes back to their usual self. If any behaviour strategies are still required, they can then be done in conjunction with a comprehensive wellness plan. Yvette Van Veen is an animal behaviour consultant and Canada’s 1st Tested and Certified PCT-A. Write her at advice@awesomedogs.ca