Need a little advice on one of my fur kids

[dspencer]

I need a little advice from all my friends in the Pet Stop. I have an approximately 4 - 5 y/o Boston Terrier that has been blind in one eye since birth. A little brief history, he was rescued from a puppy mill at the age of approximately 1 1/2 and we have had him 3 years now.

When we first got him he was moderately afraid of thunderstorms but nothing terrible and that was about it. The new problems started last year and appears to be getting worse. He seems to sense an oncoming T/Storm before they hit and he literally goes crazy when they hit. He is terrified. Now its also getting to be just almost any unusual noise and he is terrified, example is his sister has a squeaky toy that she likes to bring me and play fetch sometimes and poor little Sampson becomes terrified and starts shaking till it stops.

Any suggestions as to what is going on? Now once the noise stops he's his usual self. The DW and I have thought about trying a thundershirt. I hate too see the little guy so terrified.

[dspencer]

xteacher wrote:
DH and I adopted a poodle whom we named Sunny a couple of months ago that we thought was from a puppy mill. We've found out since that he was from a hoarding situation instead - ugh! Same problems from neglect and lack of socialization; possible abuse. We took him because we knew he was unadoptable - that seems to be DH's and my bread and butter - lol! Our last poodle (RIP Potsie) was from an abusive situation, as well.

Sunny came to us from the rescue already on Prozac b/c his issues were so severe. He had a BAD case of fear biting (drawing blood at the rescue's kennel), so it was either that or euthanize him. After two months with us, Sunny's still fearful, but taking small baby steps in the right direction. Today, for the first time in two months, I didn't have to muzzle him to shave his front feet - that's HUGE! This was the third time I've groomed him, so I'm very happy with this progress; shows he's starting to trust me just a little bit. He's also now going on walks and seems to enjoy them; before, he never wanted to leave the house. However, he's still very afraid when approached by any human, including us; he cowers and looks around for an escape route. The good news is that he now tries his best (still cowering) at standing his ground and letting us pick him up rather than bolting, the brave little boy! This is also HUGE progress. He's also found out that laying on the couch next to one of us is pretty darn comfortable! He used to start panting (stress reaction) after just a few minutes of doing this.

What I'm saying is, be prepared to have infinite patience. Do NOT feed into your dog's fear. When he starts a melt down, totally ignore it and only give attention when he starts calming down. That's very hard to do, but as already stated, trying to soothe him simply reinforces the meltdown. When Sunny starts his whole body trembling routine, I tell him, "come on, let's go; you're fine". He's SLOWLY getting better and having fewer of these episodes. Remember, I've only had him for two months. I'm expecting it to take up to a year (maybe more) before he starts acting more "normal". Sunny's eight, so he's got a lot of years worth of damage to undo.

Do you have a "safe" place for your dog to go and hide during a storm? We used to have a storm phobic lab, Chipper, and he learned to go in the dark laundry room when it stormed, and that made him feel better. He wouldn't come out until the storm was over. Do you have a crate that you could put your dog in in a darkened room, maybe covering it with a towel? Being in a den-like environment may help - worth a try?

I am not at all against the use of behavior modification medication, as Dr. Doug also mentioned, as long as you understand that it should be considered temporary and goes along with desensitization training. Prozac has literally saved Sunny's life, but I'll be happy when we can start weaning him off of it. There's nothing to lose either by trying the Thundershirt or Rescue Remedy (although I'm more partial to melatonin - we give it to our dogs before taking off on a trip).

Is your dog treat motivated? I'd have someone feed the dog treats when someone else plays with the other dog and his squeaky toy. Make that toy's sound something that your fearful dog starts equating with something good happening to him.

I have to share this with you, when my wife found him on the Internet and we called the rescue gal she was very upfront with us and told us that so far no one wanted him because (1) he was blind in one eye, (2) he needed dental work that we would need to do, (3) he hated males. Yes were a glutton for punishment I know, LOL.

At that point we still said we wanted to try a meet and greet. The lady scheduled a time to bring him to our house the next evening. She came to the door with Sampson in her arms. I sat down in the middle of the floor and just sat there. I told her too go ahead and put him down and lets see what happens. She done this against her better judgment I might add. Long story short he bounded up the stairs and jumped in my lap (remember he hates males) and starting licking me as if to say i'm home Dad. Need I say anymore? :S

She made it very clear that if we had problems to call her and she would come get him. We were scheduled to go on a long weekend camping trip 2 days later and we decided to take him with us. The first few hours he laid on the floor in front of the door then up on the couch in my lap and fit right in.

This fear thing has really started getting worse lately, not sure what to make of it but were in it for the long haul and he's a member of the family no matter what. We have the thunder shirt ordered and will try that first. Funny you mentioned treats, the boys know that when they come in from doing there duties they get a treat, he runs straight to the treat jar I might add. He has some great qualities and we will work through the fear thing for sure. I really appreciate everyone's thoughts.

[xteacher]

DH and I adopted a poodle whom we named Sunny a couple of months ago that we thought was from a puppy mill. We've found out since that he was from a hoarding situation instead - ugh! Same problems from neglect and lack of socialization; possible abuse. We took him because we knew he was unadoptable - that seems to be DH's and my bread and butter - lol! Our last poodle (RIP Potsie) was from an abusive situation, as well.

Sunny came to us from the rescue already on Prozac b/c his issues were so severe. He had a BAD case of fear biting (drawing blood at the rescue's kennel), so it was either that or euthanize him. After two months with us, Sunny's still fearful, but taking small baby steps in the right direction. Today, for the first time in two months, I didn't have to muzzle him to shave his front feet - that's HUGE! This was the third time I've groomed him, so I'm very happy with this progress; shows he's starting to trust me just a little bit. He's also now going on walks and seems to enjoy them; before, he never wanted to leave the house. However, he's still very afraid when approached by any human, including us; he cowers and looks around for an escape route. The good news is that he now tries his best (still cowering) at standing his ground and letting us pick him up rather than bolting, the brave little boy! This is also HUGE progress. He's also found out that laying on the couch next to one of us is pretty darn comfortable! He used to start panting (stress reaction) after just a few minutes of doing this.

What I'm saying is, be prepared to have infinite patience. Do NOT feed into your dog's fear. When he starts a melt down, totally ignore it and only give attention when he starts calming down. That's very hard to do, but as already stated, trying to soothe him simply reinforces the meltdown. When Sunny starts his whole body trembling routine, I tell him, "come on, let's go; you're fine". He's SLOWLY getting better and having fewer of these episodes. Remember, I've only had him for two months. I'm expecting it to take up to a year (maybe more) before he starts acting more "normal". Sunny's eight, so he's got a lot of years worth of damage to undo.

Do you have a "safe" place for your dog to go and hide during a storm? We used to have a storm phobic lab, Chipper, and he learned to go in the dark laundry room when it stormed, and that made him feel better. He wouldn't come out until the storm was over. Do you have a crate that you could put your dog in in a darkened room, maybe covering it with a towel? Being in a den-like environment may help - worth a try?

I am not at all against the use of behavior modification medication, as Dr. Doug also mentioned, as long as you understand that it should be considered temporary and goes along with desensitization training. Prozac has literally saved Sunny's life, but I'll be happy when we can start weaning him off of it. There's nothing to lose either by trying the Thundershirt or Rescue Remedy (although I'm more partial to melatonin - we give it to our dogs before taking off on a trip).

Is your dog treat motivated? I'd have someone feed the dog treats when someone else plays with the other dog and his squeaky toy. Make that toy's sound something that your fearful dog starts equating with something good happening to him.

[dspencer]

First of all a very special Thanks too you Lance for thinking about us. I really appreciate everyone's advice. As Nabi and a couple of other mentioned I think a trip to the vet is definitely warranted. The DW just ordered a thunder shirt so we will see how that does as well.

I may be way off base in my thoughts but I'm not convinced it is in relation to him only having one eye as he has never known anything different as he was born that way. Like I said I may be totally off base in those thoughts. He has always been a little stressed by thunderstorms but it's gotten much worse in the last year. We are working on the positive reinforcement by my wife while I play with the squeaky toy with my other girl who loves to play fetch with it.

I know for sure some puppy mill dogs has some baggage and I completely accept and understand that. Anyway we are 200 percent in this for the long haul to help our little guy get over his fears as best as he can. We will work with him and do what ever possible to help him.

[nabi]

My Izzy has a cataract on her remaining eye...she has trouble with depth perception and near vision..
..she has developed some quirky behaviours but fortunately does not have issues with t.storms or firecrackers etc..I think a good check up with the DVM is wise and maybe a course of anti-anxiety meds as suggested by Dr Doug.. Sorry I am not of more help but Izzys quirks are of a different nature..Zari only has one eye also but has no other problems other than with depth perception..

[toedtoes]

I would have him checked out by a vet to rule out physical problems first. It could be something as simple as wax buildup in the ears that is causing pain from certain tones.

When you're playing with the other dog and squeaky toy, is there someone who can pay attention to this little guy? If so, have them interact in a positive way with the dog while the toy is squeaking to divert his attention. Basically, the person with him should ignore the squeaking and his trembling and act like it's just time to play.

For thunderstorms, have you tried playing music? Something to cover the sounds of the storm.

[Go_Dogs]

My 2 cents, (FWIW). When they are pups, I take them out in thunderstorms, firecrackers, gunfire. Bring the old, bomb-proof dog, their favorite toys, treats, etc. and make a game of it. You know you got it right when they can sleep thru a thunderstorm in a tent.

Starting with a dog that has bad habits. First of all, this is a new home for this dog. New home-new rules-new start. This can even work after bad behaviors have been established. Teach the dog what is acceptable behavior. Excessive barking, jumping, getting on the sofa, chewing, and all other unacceptable behaviors should NOT be allowed, including fear of loud noises.
How is this accomplished? Become the Alpha/Pack leader. If a subordinate member of the back does something unacceptable-the pack leader will put him/her in order. If you establish leadership with all aspects of daily living-the dog will recognize your ability to lead and guide the pack, and look to you for proper behavior.
IOW: IF the dog trusts you and respects your judgment-they will do what you will them to do.
IMHO: No coddling, medication, thunder shirts,confinement etc. Much like a military command-If the commander,(Alpha)tells the dog to do it-the dog will-because they respect the leader.
People that adopt dogs with behavior issues really have their work cut out for them. It is not for everyone.

[Pawz4me]

My thunder-phobic dog was helped substantially by melatonin.

Rescue Remedy was useless.

I dealt with his thunder-phobia before Thundershirts came on the market. I'd definitely recommend trying one.

FWIW, he was almost completely deaf a year ago (he's 14 now). His thunder-phobia lessened proportionally with his hearing loss. Now it doesn't bother him at all.

[Code2High]

Rescue Remedy, thundershirt, pheremone collar are all things that could help in the moment, though the pheremone collar would be worn all the time.

If you get the RR, be sure to dose yourselves simultaneously when you dose the pup. Having a dog freaked out will stress you out, and your anxiety will feed his. The RR will help counteract that effect.

Anti-depressant/anti-anxiety stuff nutritionally would include a daily dose of sam-e and/or a daily dose of l-tryptophan to get seratonin levels up a little. I've had good results with both on me and my dogs and the tryptophan on the cats.

Also regular, structured exercise and, counter-intuitively, a week or so of "nothing in life is free" can be extremely helpful in fear cases. I realize that sounds like the last thing that would help, but it does. Clear pack structure provides a feeling of security.

Finally, you might want to talk to a doggy chiro and see if anything is out of whack. Acupuncture/massage could be helpful, too. But.... I don't know, just something feels like it might be misaligned and not helping. I know that a chiro told me that she saw a lot of "wierd symptoms" from dogs with their jaws out of alignment. He could also be carrying his head at an odd angle due to the vision issue.

If you get him a little bit calmed down, buying a thunderstorm cd and playing it starting at very low levels and slowly increasing... preferably while the dog is doing something fun (mealtimes are good) is one way to desensitize.

[CA_POPPY]

I, too, suspect that having only one eye makes him feel more afraid when he hears a loud noise, as in...."where is THAT coming from?" And has been said, there could be issues with the healthy eye. Nabi is our expert on the subject. Let's she what she says. That being said, our Chi mix Rosie, ten lbs when we lost her a few weeks ago, shivered and hyperventilated like a 2 lb chi at thunder, loud wind storms and small earthquakes. Unfortunately are all common here. She would be inconsolable when one or more of those events happened. I had a snug fitting little jacket for her that closed with velcro and she couldn't take it off. That and some Rescue Remedy on her tongue helped a whole lot. You can rub Rescue Remedy into his ear leather, too. Sometimes Rosie would go hide in a closet until the threat was over. It seems that if they have that kind of nervous system, we just have to adjust. Not baby the pooch or make a big deal out of comforting him, but some rituals like Rosie's jacket may help. Poor little guy!

[AZPops]

Sorry Doug, but I don't have any recommendations since the only dog I had that had somewhat of a problem with fireworks, and sometimes thunder was Harlee.

Anyways, I wanted to chime in to wish you the best in helping Sampson out with his fears.

Lance

[dturm]

I have seen many dogs that suffer from sensory loss (either eyesight or hearing) become more fearful or anxious in different situations. The behavior can become habitual, so I think you are doing the right thing by trying to address the issues now.

I've seen success with the thundershirt and somewhat less with the rescue remedy, but still worth a try. Also, talk to your vet as there are some mild anti-anxiety medications (not tranquilizers) that work extremely well either short term or even longer term if necessary.

Doug, DVM

[raindove]

I would give the Thundershirt a try. If you buy them and it doesn't give you any results you can return them, and get a refund. I would also keep some Rescue Remedy in the drinking water all the time.

I've had good luck with both the thundershirts and the rescue remedy.

If a thunderstorm hits, you can put a few drops directly in the mouth, or on the paw pads. You want the rescue remedy absorbed for full effect. Never put it on food.

Puppy mill dogs come with baggage and some of them adjust to a point, but there is always that boogey man, living in the back of their mind.

You want to reassure the dog that everything is okay, but in the same sense, you don't want to over do the coddling/attention. If you give them too much, it just reinforces their fears. Try to act non-chalant and find an activity that will draw their attention away from the storm....

I don't know what part of the country your dog came from, but puppy mills are pretty much the same nightmare everywhere - just the address changes. Many of them are kept in dark barns, with little to no temperature control, stacked in cages without trays underneath.

Several years ago, I got some mill dogs in rescue. The one was doing good in her home for months on end. One night the family's 20 yr old son came in around 1 am. She heard him coming up the steps and went berserk, screaming and running and hiding.

Mill dogs can come a very long way given patience, love, and time. However, there may always be something that triggers a memory and sets them off.

Good luck with him, I hope things work out so he can have some peace.

Edit: Do you know why he was blind in the one eye from birth? Was it something genetic or an injury - like from a loose wire on a cage or something? I was just wondering if his vision is declining in the good eye, and that might add to some of his anxiety if he can't see as well as he did. Just a thought...