Feeling like a failure - reactive doggo

[fairydustlady]

@blesseddaughteroflight OP I just want to say - I know this was a vent but the post honestly warmed my heart. It sounds like you are doing AMAZING with a dog who was at best severely neglected and at worst severely abused.

Since you have a yard she can use, I would put things like walks out of your mind right now and focus on some of the most pivotal things like getting her desensitized to a leash and muzzle. Do this slowly with LOTS of high value treats (similar to what I’m sure you did for the paw wipes). Start literally with just putting the leash/collar on the ground and rewarding her for moving towards it or sniffing it. Once she is comfortable with that you can move on to picking it up, giving treat, and then just putting it down. If she moves away when you pick it up, go back a step or try picking up for a shorter amount of time or keeping it low to the ground (not lifting it up towards her head but just off the ground). Eventually you can work up to wrapping it around her neck but not buckling it, treat, and remove, then put it on for a couple of seconds, treat, and remove, etc. I also agree with other comments that getting her seen by a vet should be the #1 priority! Some will come to your home and/or prescribe a sedative for use before the appointment. Anxiety medications like Prozac may be a huge help here as it sounds like your poor baby is afraid of everything, so seeing a vet soon could be a huge help to her progress if you can get her on anxiety meds to help lower her baseline arousal level.

 

[blesseddaughteroflight]

@fairydustlady Thank you for your feedback. I also agree that she most likely needs a daily anxiety medication. I currently reside in NYC and finding a vet that comes to houses is hard here. I found one and she is in high demand so we will see what she can do. I have given her medications before: benadryl, trazodone, gabapentin, and Acepromazine. The best was trazodone and gaba but she still was aroused enough to nip me hence I had a few failed attempts to the vet

 

[fairydustlady]

@blesseddaughteroflight I live in an urban area outside of DC but couldn't imagine managing my reactive dog in NYC! Kudos to you, friend. It sounds like you are on the right track. With time, love, and training things WILL continue to improve. Please keep us updated on her progress.

Can I ask what breed/mix she is since you mentioned she gets matted? I know you also specifically mentioned her nails need attention. I recommend looking into getting a Scratch Pad, which will at least allow her to file her own front nails in a consent-based way once you teach her how to use it. My dog hates having her nails cut but loves her Scratch Pad. Someone craftier than me could also DIY one of these with sandpaper but I opted to just buy one.

 

[blesseddaughteroflight]

@fairydustlady Omg! I’m gonna get a scratch pad! She’s a pure bred Australian shepherd. I adopted her when she was 4 and she turned 5 shortly after. She’s 6 now. As we speak she’s doing zoomies with my other dog her hind nails aren’t as long because she loves to kick after doing her business or just randomly