Can someone please help with my dog?

welsh_cake

Hi everyone,

I have a Bichon Frise Dog who is 4 years old. He has always had problems with his skin, i.e. scratching it. It usually clears up with some stuff I get from the vet, but this time he has scratched so bad that when I got up this morning his fur was covered in blood. He is scratching right on his neck, so I can’t put one of those collars on him, as it would irritate him more.

To make things worse, he is so clingy with me and I can’t leave the room without him going mental and crying and running after me. It’s upsetting for both of us and it was heart breaking leaving him this morning. If anyone has any experience of this, please can they let me know.

He has been to dog training classes to try and get him to come out of his shell a bit, but he was so scarred he wouldn’t move from my feet and I didn’t like it when the trainer grabbed him and dragged him around the floor and was really rough with him. I did tell him he wasn’t used to be dragged around, but he didn’t really care.

I suppose it would be more helpful if I had a local vet who actually cared about my dog, but every time I take him they just say “its one of those things”:mad:

linni

Will the DTClub let you just sit and watch for a few weeks? It might take him a while to get used to it and I certainly wouldn't want him to be dragged around, it would just make him more nervous, poor thing. Or just sit on a bench outside a shopping centre and people will want to stroke him. His skin problem is probably making him feel terrible. Are there any other vets in the area or a Pets at Home you could take him to for a second opinion?

1sue23

I do not have any advice about his skin ,but trainers who take a fearful dog and think that it helps the dog to force them to do the things they fear only make the problem worse .
I am fostering a border collie, I rescued her from a farm as she was to be shot ,she is a fearful dog but has shown no aggression I am very slowly building her confidence up ,I am not forcing her to confront the things she fears and am allowing her to build up trust in her own time the telly is one example she was very afraid of it so I sat in the room with her the telly on silent and as she got used to this I then slowly increased the volume ,if she showed any fear I decreased the volume until it was at the level she tolerated within a week she now accepts the telly with no fear ,I am now working on her fear of men I take her to a quite part of the park and just sit with her on a loose lead I go with lots of tasty tit bits ,at first she hid below the bench but now she will sit by my feet and watch the world go by ,I then get friends of mine to just come and sit with me no eye contact at all to the dog they then just hold their hand out with a treat in it ,yesterday I was so pleased because for the first time she took the treat and then allowed herself to be fussed by a man .
You need to get her used to being apart from you in the home when you are there ,you could start with a stairgate between the kitchen and lounge for example so that she can see you but cannot cling then when she is happy with that leave her behind a shut door not for long then go back in and ignore her keep repeating this ,it may take some time, and build the time up that you leave her alone when she is quite and happily settles without fuss offer her a treat on your return ,the other thing I do when I leave a clingy dog alone ,is leave the house without fussing the dog ,go out of the door wait a while and then return ignore the dog completly then keep repeating this ,it may take sometime but should work with time .

welsh_cake

The problem I have is that he hates even going for a walk. if we go out, his tail goes in between his legs and he is looking around as if he is waiting for someone to come out and grab him and hurt him. With regards to sitting in a busy area, i am too afraid because he will snap at people if they get too close to him.

I have no ideas where these problems came from, as i had him from a puppy and things just seem to be getting worse.

I sometimes look at him when we are in the house and he looks so sad. I hate to think that he isn't enjoying his life, but the fact is that he can't really be happy because he is so attached to me. I think I need to get him back into the training again, but seeing him sitting there shivering and petrified makes me sad.

ktp1975

One of my dogs has skin problems like you describe, after many tests, much money spent we found out it was a food allergy and she is now fed a special food and no more problems.

However, it could be possible that the anxiety problems your dog has are leading to the skin problems?

You could try a special diet first though as most (but not all) skin complaints in dogs are caused by food allergies.

welsh_cake

I have changed his food. I tried him with Burns and with James Wellbeloved. He won't eat it though. I have had food in his dish for 2 days before now and he will not touch it no matter how hungry he is.

Now you have mentioned it though, I put him on Frolic about 3 weeks ago and this is when the scratching started again. I wonder if this is the problem.

Any tips on how I can get him to eat the Burns of James Wellbeloved?

DKLS

When my akita had a skin problem, I tried all sorts at the vets without success, I spoke to an old chap down the road and he recommended Goats Milk, I was sceptical, but tried it, and within 3 weeks his skin had fully cleared up.

cheepskate_2

[QUOTE=welsh_cake;20434415

Any tips on how I can get him to eat the Burns of James Wellbeloved?[/QUOTE]

You just put it down and leave it, no fuss or anything, they will not starve themselves to death so just persevere.

Agree with other posters on the clingyness.

Short times away, i.e start off with maybe 30 seconds, BUT dont go back in and make a fuss, just walk back in without petting the dog and resume normal buisness like you had not been out. then slowly build up the time, give it cuddles when YOU want to not when it wants it .
.
We had this with our weimmy and she went crazy when you went out and even more so when you came in. If i had been out i never petted her until she had calmed down(usually i just buisied myself in the kitchen and ignored her behaviour), and she had to stay calm or i moved or turned away from her as she was usually jumping and yelping like a looney. Didnt take her long to figure out the best way to get attention

QUOTE The problem I have is that he hates even going for a walk. if we go out, his tail goes in between his legs and he is looking around as if he is waiting for someone to come out and grab him and hurt him. With regards to sitting in a busy area, i am too afraid because he will snap at people if they get too close to him

You need to go back to puppy training with him, just lots of very small walks in quiet time of day and again dont re-inforce bad behaviour but give encouragement to follow you. gradually build this up. It may mean at first this walk is just to the edge of the gate etc, but thats fine, just increase in tiny steps.

Oh and change your vets if you dont feel you are getting any help.

welsh_cake

Re: the goats milk - how much is he allowed to have a day?

I will try leaving him for short periods - I must be doing everything wrong because as soon as i walk through the door i make the biggest fuss of him and chase him round the house/garden. He is happy when he is in the garden, but hates it when we leave the garden and go further afield!

foreign_correspondent

Re:the dry food - try soaking it with in a little hot water, letting it cool and seeing if he prefers it then. I agree that a healthy dog will not starve itself, and I would say only leave the food down for 20 minutes, then pick ip up and dont put any down again till his next meal. You could also try adding a few tasty morsels to make it more intersting, a dollop of natural yogurt, meat scraps, a bit of mashed up sardine etc (mix them through so he cant jst pick out the tasty stuff)

Re:the itching - change your vet, yours probably doesnt know enough to help by the sounds of it!

Re:the seperation anxiety - does he bark or make a noise or chew things when you are out? I agree that you need to make you coming and going as boring as possible, otherwise you re-inforce to the dog that its a big deal.

I agree that you also need to start doing walks little and often, several times a day, even if its only to the bottom of the road and back! Dont make the alks a big deal, be very calm and relaxed, but perhaps take a few special treats out and give him one when you are out, to make him look forward to walks!

welsh_cake

He just sort of squeeks when I leave the room and if he can't find me in the house (if I am in the bath and he hasn't noticed i have left) when he realises he goes mental and runs around the house looking for me.

If i let him upstairs he runs straight under my bed and I can't get him out for ages unles I bribe him (i.e. with treats).

I think he needs to see a psychiatrist!!

I am going to nip out lunch time and get him some tuna to mix in his food. I know he loves that and won't be able to resist. Maybe he will pick up the dried food then too.

Thanks for your all help eveyone. Its nice to speak to people who know what to do!