Medication

When we first got Chopper we were warned that he may need medication to help him with his anxiety. We noted it, but thought we'd wait and see. Greg and I subscribe to the theory that drugs should be used only if necessary. We aren't anti-drug, but we do believe we should be thoughtful about what we put into our, and our pets, bodies. Well since Chopper has been backsliding and less resilient we figured now may be time to give it a try. Plus a trainer I am consulting with made a good point--he may be far more miserable then we realize, he just can't tell us exactly.

I made an appointment to take Chopper to the vet. This would be his third car ride with us. The first was when I brought him home, which was very traumatic for Chopper. He jumped around the car manically, not understand what was going on. The second trip was his initial check up at the vet, which he handled beautifully. The third time, this time, he relieved himself in our car. Poor dear. I am guessing that because the car ride wasn't a regular thing it was too traumatic for him. I also wonder if not having Kolohe with him was stressful. Needless to say we were late to the vet because we had to clean the car and put down blankets etc. Thankfully they still fit us in. Greg just wanted to reschedule my exact response: "Are you kidding?? We need medication more then ever now!"

At the vet we met a new doctor. She was filling in for one who called out sick. Well things often work out the way they are supposed to, because she has a fearful dog too! So did the tech who was shadowing her! I felt like we were in very capable hands. She examined Chopper, drew some blood, and walked us through what to expect with the anxiety medicine. We learned that it can take about a month to really work into his system. At that time we'll revisit how he is doing to see if any adjustments need to be made. I also learned that the first few weeks he can seem almost sedated, and that is normal. There is a chance he may be weaned off the medicine at some point to see if he doesn't need it anymore. I'm not counting on that, but it's nice to know it's an option--the medicine isn't cheap. Still, if it helps, it's worth it!! I want this pup to experience how wonderful life can be, and right now he can't.

On the drive home from the vet it started to rain. Greg was driving and he turned on the rear windshield wiper on our SUV. Well that turned out to be a mistake, Chopper freaked out. He jumped over the backseat and into the front seat where he stood in my lap shaking. I hugged him close, rubbing him gently. I think perhaps I was a human anxiety wrap at that point. We drove along until we could find a safe place to pull over and got him out of the car and into the very back where it was safer for him. I switched to the back seat to both keep him from jumping over, and to comfort him. I fed him cheese and gave him rubs on his shoulders and shank. While I'm not happy he was scared, I am happy to see that he sees me as a place of safety and comfort. Also happy that he didn't try to jump in the drivers lap.

Here's a photo Greg took of me acting as human Anxiety Wrap for Chopper.  It's early on, he got further and further in my lap until you almost couldn't see me anymore.