Tayda bit the dog sitter tonight… now what?

[Tayda_Lenny]

So a friend of ours is staying at our place watching the dogs for a few days (yesterday and today). As you all know,Tayda needs her pills and we had our friend over last week and showed her the pilling routine and had her pill Tayda. She did it no problem. Tayda has "known" this friend for a couple years, though this was the first time she pilled her.

Our friend is at our place watching the dogs yesterday and today. Last night and this morning Tayda took her pills okay. Tonight though -Tayda growled and bit our friend when she tried to pill her. Not hard enough to break the skin but definitely hard enough.

So I told our friend to make nice with Tayda for a while - cause Tayda is obviously scared. I said to coax her out of her bed with some treats and just pet her and be nice for a while. She tried to do this but Tayda is really weary of our friend now. And if she tries to approach Tayda in her bed, Tayda gives a growl so our friend is just letting Tayda be for now.

I will be going home tomorrow, and Tayda won't die if she doesn't get her pills tonight, but I'm looking for advice on how to get Tayda to not be scared of our friend anymore. We are going on our honeymoon in a few weeks, FOR a few weeks, and this friend was going to house sit and watch the dogs for us… so it is obviously REALLY important that we figure out a way to get Tayda over this fear.

We've had other dog sitters pill her before, and this is the first time she has ever bitten anyone.... makes me sad cause I know it's cause she's scared.

Any ideas? Sigh......

[Quercus]

She probably needs to stay at a vet's, or someone who is really familiar with how to pill a dog Also, if she bites a vet or tech, the vet is insured, and mentally prepared for the likelyhood..your friend probably isn't.

I am sorry I don't have any better advice

[Tayda_Lenny]

Oh man… that stinks. 3 weeks is such a long time for them to be at the kennel I do have reservations at a kennel that is part of a vet practice.... I'm glad I didn't cancel it. I was waiting until after this short trial with our friend to make sure everything went all right. This friend looks after dogs all the time, she's actually REALLY good with dogs so this really surprises me. Sigh....

But it seems that Tayda has decided that this friend is "not ok..." I've talked to her a few times tonight and Tayda is doing a lot of growling - guess she just wants to be alone. So she isn't going to get her Fanconi pills tonight. And probably not tomorrow morning either.

We do have some time before we leave - is there really nothing we can try? I have told her that the dogs can sleep on the bed with her, should I tell her to make sure they sleep on the ground?

[agilebasenji]

can you put the pills in something? I use sweet pot fries and cream cheese, but my kids aren't doing the Fanconi pills, so i dont know if that's possible for you. but my kids are always excited about pill time.

obviously, kennelling at the vet's is the safest option.

[Tayda_Lenny]

Oh yeah, the pills are hidden in cream cheese… she's not particularly hard to pill, usually.

At this point it doesn't really seem like it's about the pills, it's that Tayda has decided she doesn't want our friend near her. At least right now....

When I first got Tayda, we were visiting my parents and Tayda decided to curl up into a ball in the middle of the hallway. My mom accidentally stepped on her and Tayda bit her (totally out of defense). From then on, for the next several times we were visiting my parents, Tayda would growl when my mom came near. Never attacked, but I think she was just on edge from being stepped on.

Now, she and my mom are buddies. but it took a while.

Sigh.... this makes me really sad cause I know the dogs would be more comfortable at home, but I guess maybe not if Tayda will be on edge and fearful. Obviously the most important this is that they are safe, and the kennel should be "safe" right?

[agilebasenji]

i guess you could try to get a behaviorist and petsitter together in your house and see. The problem is this sort of thing is soooo hard to advise over the net. One of my favorite suggestions is a DAP, but that is only a piece of the puzzle, not an answer to the question.

[Kipawa]

Tayda is on the Fanconi protocol? I would think if she cannot get her pills for 3 weeks that it would be detrimental to her health. It's not the best, but I would have her safe at the vet's kennel where you know her Fanconi protocol is being followed 100%. At this point, I don't think the combination of Tayda and your friend will allow this. The few weeks of time before you go away again would probably not be long enough to ensure Tayda and your friend will be comfortable with each other for 3 weeks.

[misspodhradsky]

I dont know if it will help however you might try this:

you and your friend and Tayda all sit in a room when you get back. Give your friend lots of treats and everytime she makes nice with her, give her a treat. if she does not and growls or anything have her turn her back to her and you dont give her any attention either. It may take a while if it will work but its worth a chance. The only other thing i can think about it maybe the vet clinic, as others have already stated. Good luck and sorry to hear

[Tayda_Lenny]

Yes, definitely 3 weeks is way too long for Tayda to not be getting her pills - I would not even entertain that for half a millisecond. I suppose at least at the vets kennel she and Lenny will still be together, but (sigh) I hate to think about them being in a strange place for so long.

We've had a total of 5 people over the last couple years staying at the house to watch them and pill Tayda and this has never happened…. and of all the people staying at the house, this friend is the one that she actually has been around the most. So it's really strange....

I suppose we'll see how it goes this morning, she was going to just try to be friendly with Tayda for the rest of yesterday evening and give her lots of treats and praise and then see if she could pill her in the morning. My husband will be home around noon today so she'll get her pills then by the latest.

Sigh... I wish I could just explain to Tayda how all of this works and tell her that if she acts like this she'll have to be in the scary kennel for THREE WEEKS. BLAH!

[Quercus]

If this is someone that Tayda has felt comfortable with, there might be something that is making her feel cranky. Maybe a UTI? A tooth problem? You may not have time to repair the relationship before your trip, but I am sure that eventually it can be repaired. Is it possible that you could have someone else (maybe pay a vet tech that the dogs approve of?) to stay with them while you are gone? I am sure your friend has good dog skills, but sometimes it takes a professional to deal with the most challenging customers Or maybe just a change in the person trying to do the pilling would be enough for Tayda to accept it…she may just be done with this person for a while, if she accidentally hurt her, or whatever.

[tanza]

When was the last time that Tayda had her Vet Check up? Could she plain not feel well and not into dealing with a "mostly" stranger?… and the pilling part?

Is there anything different about this person from the last time when Tayda was OK with her?... A change in perfume?... Medications?.....

[DebraDownSouth]

The only thing I could add is perhaps have your sitter or someone go take her out to play each day so she gets attention and makes the vet's office less stressful. Or, work on making them get along as suggested, keep the kennel apt with the understanding you pay for the spot and the sitter will take her there if she can't get her to take the pills.

[Quercus]

or, if the vet isn't too far…or A vet isn't too far....and Tayda and housesitter can be friends, the housesitter can take to the vet am/pm just for pilling? you could pay everybody a little extra for the piece of mind?

[tanza]

Good idea Andrea!

[sharronhurlbut]

That really is the best idea, after the vet visit, the pet sitter can take her and do something "fun" for her..walk in a new area, buy her a bit of ice cream, something like that…

[Tayda_Lenny]

thanks for the suggestions everyone. Apparently after an evening of ignoring tayda she came around and slept on the bed with our friend, and then this morning's pilling went smoothly. The kennel is about an hour away from where I live so it's not all that convenient. But I will try to find a vet tech around here that could pill her just in case….

[agilebasenji]

i think if you decide to have the petsitter come stay in your house, i'd look into the DAP for that time period. can't hurt (doesn't mean pilling will go smoothly, but i think it would improve a bit of grumpiness)

[Tayda_Lenny]

@tanza:

When was the last time that Tayda had her Vet Check up? Could she plain not feel well and not into dealing with a "mostly" stranger?… and the pilling part?

Is there anything different about this person from the last time when Tayda was OK with her?... A change in perfume?... Medications?.....

Her last set of blood work was about a month ago - her blood gases were right on and her blood chemistries were showing slightly elevated phosphorus so we eliminated the pet cal from her protocol. I want to get her in for another set of blood chemistries because since that appointment, in addition to removing the pet cal, I have started making her a homemade diet - which she LOVES. I got some great guidance from another Fanconi B owner/breeder off the yahoo group to balance her protein/calcium/phosphorus. She is up to 18 lbs now! She was hovering around 14-15 lbs which was just too skinny, even for her petite frame. At 18 lbs she looks very healthy. yay!

[TuckerVA]

Have you considered having the pet sitter stay with you for a few days or even a week before you leave, doing what he/she normally would do with the dog or dogs while you are there also?

With most dogs, it's just the change in routine that is upsetting. Tucker likes things to have things be the same all the time and even the smallest change can start a spiteful peeing spree, some unusual growling and other things.

We used to get a housesitter/petsitter to com stay at our condo when we still lived there and EVERY time when we got home we would find pee somewhere in the house and Tucker would pee in the house for days after, sometime weeks. Tucker did okay at the kennel, but after 3-4 days, he becomes incorigable even to the trained staff there. My stepfather passed several years ago right at the end of my alumni reunion weekend. Wife and I were in Charleston, had spent the weekend there and got the call as we were leaving town and had to divert to Greenville rather than home. We were away for 10 days and around day 6 or 7, Tucker started biting the staff back home at the kennel…