Poor Jamie! I so wished that his testicles would drop so that he could undergo a normal neutering operation. I waited ten months but nothing appeared and the vets could not feel anything. According to the vet if his testicles remained inside his abdominal cavity there is a greater risk that he could contract cancer. So there was no question about him not undergoing surgery.
So I decided to take him in yesterday as I would like him to be fully recovered before we go on holiday. When I fetched him after his operation, the vet said they had really battled to find his testicles. He has two incisions - one in his groin area and one around the the base of his penis. They looked very painful and he came home drugged up to his eyeballs. That night he looked very unhappy and staggered around before eventually going to bed where I had to pile on the blankets to stop him shivering.
This morning he is looking more alert and even growled at Jemma over the new bones made from ostrich which I have bought them to chew. They are large and will hopefully keep them occupied and away from my furniture and other valuables.
Jamie is on a doze of antibiotics, pain killers and a new tranquilliser which will not only help keep him calm after his op but also eventually help him cope with his phobia about cars.
Jamie still hates getting into a car and will tremble and curl into a ball even though 90% of the time, his destination is the park which he loves. The new drug is designed to reduce his anxiety whilst I retrain him using behaviour modification techniques to adapt to the car. This tranquilliser is also supposed to help a variety of situations such as separation anxiety or compulsive disorders such as lick dermatitis (where a dog will continually lick an area raw).
I must say I am always nervous about new drugs whether for my self or my dogs.
But Jamie had to be neutered for the sake of his health and hopefully this new drug will help him relax in the car so we can go to the park more often without all the drama and trauma!
These new drugs should be seriously researched. You do not mention the name but they have mind bending effects and should only be used short term. Often, if the animal is unresponsive the dose is increased ... and increased ... and increased!
ReplyDeleteThe side effects are usually not disclosed, because aggression is often the result.
BM (Behaviour Modification)is the right way to go which should be undertaken by an experienced behaviour consultant.
Do research these drugs yourself by Googling - be assured they might seem like a quick fix but they can have negative, long term results.
Agreed! You seem knowledgeable about these drugs. Please give us more information about what you know because the average owner does not know! Just reading the pamphlet about the "revealed" side effects is disturbing. I am doing this on the recommendation of a qualified and experienced behaviourist who is also helping me with the BM aspect as well. I do not intend to keep Jamie on the drug for long.
ReplyDeleteThe problem is BM is often not a quick fix and requires huge time committment and patience. I have seen situations where well intentioned owners have become disenchanted with the slow progress of BM (even with the guidance of a behaviourist) and give up.
Drugs like antidepressents, tranquillisers and pain killers work in humans so people transfer that thinking to dogs. But of course all these drugs have scary side effects. There is the issue of addiction. If we can get addicted to the above drugs, what happens with dogs?? There is also the argument that one has to consider combining both approaches: "psychological" and "chemical". It is very confusing for the average dog owner out there!