Anti anxiety meds?

[msobey]

We have a four year old yorkie and up until about a year ago he always let me groom him and clip his nails. However, now he will not let me touch his paws. We have been to 3 different vets and they all have said there is nothing wrong with his paws, he is fine. I don't know why he started to do this but I can't clip his nails. I took him to a groomer the other day to see if she could get his nails clipped but she couldn't get him to calm down enough. He has luxating patellas and she didn't want to hurt him. She suggested I see the vet to get some anti anxiety pills for him. I called a few vets today, one told me the price I give them to him a few hours before I take him in to get his nails clipped. However, the other vet said they take weeks before they will work and that I'd be better off bringing him in to be sedated. I'd rather not sedate him. I've tried natural calming aids and they worked enough to trim his legs but he won't let me touch his paws. Anyone had experience with anti anxiety meds? I'd rather use those than sedate him. We have a baby due next month and he has to have his nails clipped they are too long and I don't want him scratching her.

[QuickSilver]

Did something trigger this change in behavior?

Have you tried behavioral mod? Touch his paw, give him a treat. Hold his paw, give him a treat. Clip a nail, give him a treat. Etc.

Also, have you considered trying another clipper, or just a strong nail file? Maybe a pedi-paw? Maybe the blades on your current clippers are dull, and it's started hurting him?

[msobey]

I have tried everything. We have tried a pedi paw, a dremmel tool on lowest setting, clippers. He won't even let you hold his paw long enough to clip it if you wanted to and he screams if you do happen to get lucky enough to get close to his paws. Like I said I took him to 3 vets and they all checked him and said there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with him or his paws. I thought maybe he had a toenail infection, but they all said no. I don't know what his problem is but I have to get his nails clipped. He has extreme seperation anxiety he hates it when I leave him anywhere I think because we are his 3rd home and he just thinks we are going to leave him, but we never do. That's the only type of anxiety I had ever seen prior to this past year when he won't let us cut the hair on his legs or his paws. I have tried treats, doesn't work. I tried natural calming aids, they don't work. I have tried praising him and talking to him, doesn't work. He will NOT let me or anyone else touch his paws. Even the vet had a hard time looking at them when I took him in- it took quite a while and 3 or us holding him. It's especially bad because his back knees are bad and I don't want to hurt him cutting his toenails. We have 3 yorkies and the others are fine, but he is not. He is fixed too, so it's not like he is aggressive or anything. I don't know what to do and was hoping someone might have experience with anti anxiety meds.

[QuickSilver]

I haven't put a dog on those kinds of meds, so I can't speak from personal experience.

It's my understanding that they work pretty much the same way they do in humans - they affect the parts of the brain that we share with dogs. If he has extreme separation anxiety, it could help with that as well.

I am curious because you said he used to let you clip his nails and now he doesn't, so I'm wondering what changed for him. Have you considered getting a trainer?

I don't know if you are familiar with desensitizing dogs generally. Usually it does take a while. For an extreme case like that, I would start when he's very relaxed and maybe getting his belly rubbed. Then I would just touch his paw for a second, say "good boy", and go back to rubbing his belly. I would do this several times in one session, probably twice a day. Then the next day, I would touch his paw for two seconds. Then after a week, I would try holding his paw for just a second. Then after a two weeks, work up to examining his paw with the clippers nearby. Then after three weeks, maybe cutting a nail, with lots of praise and treats.

It does take a long time, but OTOH, so do meds. Maybe you've already tried this approach, just wanted to throw it out there.

[msobey]

I have tried this, it doesn't work with him. This is how we trained our other dogs to have their nails clipped and teeth brushed but this one it does not work on. I wouldn't even consider giving him meds if there was something I could do, but we have exhausted everything I believe. I just spoke with a lady at work that gives acepromazine to her dog when they are having thunderstorms and it makes him very groggy. If I could just get him to calm down so I could clip his nails I would be happy. We don't have to clip his nails very often (every 4 or 5 months) because we walk them everyday but if it's the only way I can get him to calm down enough to get clipped then I will have to do it. He is such a cute little guy, I have no idea what changed for him. My husband came home from Iraq but that's about it, but we've even tried to clip him when Ben was gone and that hasn't worked either so I don't think that's it. That's why I thought maybe he had an infection but doesn't seem to be it either.

Thanks for your advice though.

[Britster]

Originally Posted by QuickSilver

I don't know if you are familiar with desensitizing dogs generally. Usually it does take a while. For an extreme case like that, I would start when he's very relaxed and maybe getting his belly rubbed. Then I would just touch his paw for a second, say "good boy", and go back to rubbing his belly. I would do this several times in one session, probably twice a day. Then the next day, I would touch his paw for two seconds. Then after a week, I would try holding his paw for just a second. Then after a two weeks, work up to examining his paw with the clippers nearby. Then after three weeks, maybe cutting a nail, with lots of praise and treats.

It does take a long time, but OTOH, so do meds. Maybe you've already tried this approach, just wanted to throw it out there.

Agree with this.

There was an episode of Dog Whisperer where he did this exact thing actually, rubbing the belly, calming, etc. I forget what kind of dog but it took an hour to just clip 1 nail but eventually, the dog becomes desensitized to it.

[RONLYNN]

I have tried Prozac on Teddi and it did NOTHING!! She was on it for a few months and there was no change what so ever. The vet told me her behavior would not just change but that she would calm down more so I could re-train her but that never happened. She pants incessantly when she goes in the car. She did not do this for the first year of her life but once she got sick and had to go to the vets, to a doggie hospital, to a doggie specialty vet and finally to another hospital to have surgery it started and never has stopped 2 years later. She goes in the car all the time but it has never gone away. She always thinks she is going to a hospital and just pants and looks around and when the car stops she starts yelling (I have to make sure my windows are up because people stare.) Once I get her out of the car she is fine. She also does this when I am packing or cleaning around the house....like she doesn't like a lot of movement because it worries her.

[katy-yorkie]

Originally Posted by RONLYNN

I have tried Prozac on Teddi and it did NOTHING!! She was on it for a few months and there was no change what so ever. The vet told me her behavior would not just change but that she would calm down more so I could re-train her but that never happened. She pants incessantly when she goes in the car. She did not do this for the first year of her life but once she got sick and had to go to the vets, to a doggie hospital, to a doggie specialty vet and finally to another hospital to have surgery it started and never has stopped 2 years later. She goes in the car all the time but it has never gone away. She always thinks she is going to a hospital and just pants and looks around and when the car stops she starts yelling (I have to make sure my windows are up because people stare.) Once I get her out of the car she is fine. She also does this when I am packing or cleaning around the house....like she doesn't like a lot of movement because it worries her.

You could be talking about Buster. He likes to go in the car but don't turn on the windsheild wipers. He starts panting, screeching, going crazy. He tries to jump out of the car seat to get to them. When we turn on the vacuum cleaner or the leaf blower he just goes crazy, panting and screeching. I have considered the meds for him but have never gotten them

[RONLYNN]

Originally Posted by katy-yorkie

You could be talking about Buster. He likes to go in the car but don't turn on the windsheild wipers. He starts panting, screeching, going crazy. He tries to jump out of the car seat to get to them. When we turn on the vacuum cleaner or the leaf blower he just goes crazy, panting and screeching. I have considered the meds for him but have never gotten them

Oh the vacuum cleaner is torture....I try to vacuum as little as possible but when I do I put her on my bed and shut the door and do the rest of the house. When I go back to find her she is usually in a really small ball under all the pillows. A few times I forgot to put her in there and I couldn't find her. Once I looked and looked and found her in a ball behind the curtains and another time in a ball beside the fridge. She definitely has issues. I am thinking of going to a doggie psychic to see if she can help. A lady at the dog park told me she went and it worked. I would just like someone to tell her she will not have to have surgery again and that everything is fine!! Also a friend of mine bought me this calming lavendar spray....I tried it this weekend and keep spaying her and spraying her in the car but the only thing that happened was she smelled like clean laundry!! No change in the panting!