Worried owner [emoji26]

[laurenmoore04]

Hi everyone

I am the proudest owner of dave my 6 year old husky cross german shepherd. He's my baby in every sense of the word and has been since the day we got him at 11 monthd old. The problem is he has developed a sore in his right paw. I obviously took him to the vets which did general checks and said it was an anxiety sore caused by excessive licking...he asked at the time which was 4 months ago if any big changes had occurred which they hadn't untill I found out a week later I'm pregnant wot h our first child. So this is what I'm assuming has caused him to feel anxious...we gave him a month of antibiotics and he had to wear a cone and the sore healed lovely...untill the cone came off and the licking began immediately to the point the sore is back. Do you think he's going to continue this till I give birth in 4 months time? Will he even stop once baby is born or do you think I need behavioural classes for him? Please any advice will be appreciated because he has be beside my self with worry

Many thanks one worried fur mama

 

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[wolfpup]

I am sorry I really don't know the answer to your question.    My older dog has dementia and began licking constantly at one front paw  - to the extent that one toe pad split apart.    I tried stuff that tasted nasty - made no difference,  I was constantly bandaging the paw, then he was taking it off and I would find him trailing the bandage behind him.   This went on for months   -  then I found a doggie boot that he could not get off and the pad finally healed.     When I removed the boot  he started licking it again   - so I put the boot back on.   I did this every time he licked his paw  -   and eventually the obsession lessened.    Now I enly have to show him the boot to stop him licking.

It really does depend on the root cause,  whether it is boredom, a hot  spot,  an allergy etc.

 

[Rachael_Astro]

Hi there if it is anxiety then I don’t think classes will be any good, I would definitely recommend getting a behaviourist round though to see what he is doing and make some suggestions, and also help you to help him prepare for the baby. I really wish I had done that before my baby was born, I had to rehome one of my huskies because he wasn’t coping


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[laurenmoore04]

That's what I'm frightened of because rehoming just isnt an option for us. He's my world literally. The vet just seems to want to keep giving him antibiotics and the cone but that's not dealing with the issue at hand. I know it sounds daft but he is clearly worked up about something for him to constantly be doing it. The things that spring to mind are the fact that this isn't my 1st pregnancy I've had multiple miscarriages previously to the point me and my husband had to seek fertility advice and during those miscarriages dave was my rock he never left my side for the weeks it took me to recover from each one. He was there through all the tears and the hurt and now I'm guessing he's associating there hormonal changes in myself with the negative experiences from before I.e seeing his owner in distress and crying which in turn makes me feel like the worst dog owner on the planet and like I've failed him. It's also hard trying to speak to his vet about this because his vets attitude is 'it's a dog get over it' sort if thing I just dint know where to turn xx

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[Rachael_Astro]

Sorry to hear that, I lost a baby last year too before I had the baby I have now. I think that’s what started it off with Astro, he could sense me and my boyfriend were grieving, he was a very sensitive dog and I think it affected him more than I realised at the time. Then I got pregnant again and I was very anxious throughout my whole pregnancy, again I think he picked up on this because I noticed he wasn’t his usual self at all. I never thought rehoming would be an option for me, he was my world too! But when he started to go for my other dog right next to the baby, and a few other things, I had to do what was best for him and from what I’ve heard he’s loving his new foster home and I’m just happy that he’s happy again. I would sack the vet off and look for a good behaviourist, antibiotics aren’t going to help the underlying issues


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[chelseafan]

I’d recommend a behaviourist every time, I saw one for Luka blue last year and it really helped, she was able to explain his behaviour in a way that made sense and I applied it to all situations, vets are more medical related rather than emotional. Dave will be able to smell your hormone changes and maybe it gives him anxiety, but it maybe something unrelated to your pregnancy, dogs like their routine and there will be changes when your baby arrives, it might help to prepare him. As an example of how sensitive they can be, Cai, my red kept sniffing and pawing at my stomach for the last 2-3 months and he’d pace around after he’d sniff my tummy and was unsettled. I’m taking morphine and codeine for pain relief for my hip and I went to the doctors last week with stomach pain, turns out my pain meds are causing other issues and Cai was onto it before I knew it but I couldn’t work out what was causing his change in behaviour, now I know. I hope you get it sorted, he sounds amazing.


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[laurenmoore04]

Thank you very much. I've contacted one woman close by who is highly recommended so fingers crossed she can shine some light on this odd behaviour. The thing with dave is he's a very attached dog, has been since I brought him home his old owners were another young couple who seemed to love him her much till...they had a baby. Their son was 3 weeks old which seems to point even more to his bad experiences surrounding pregnancy and babies etc. Because of this he has always had separation anxiety with my self. In the 5 years I've been his mama I've left him twice for trips away and both times he has stayed at home wot h my husband and put 2 other dogs but all he's done is pine for me, even when I go to work he lies by the door waiting for me to come home. He's gotten a lot better and we have really had to put a lot of work in with him because at 1st I couldn't go to the shop with out him tearing up the floor trying to get out after me so he has come along way and just hope this behavourist can help us understand this final hurdle with him because he really is my best friend. I couldn't imagine coming home with this little girl and him not being the 1st face greeting the both of us as we walk through the door. Also like yourself I have had a lot of anxiety during this pregnancy and infact I think I will continue to till she's in my arms so this carnt be helping him either...Thank you very much for the advice I would never of though about a behavourist infact didn't know they existed lol but now hopefully I'm on my way to making my Davey happy again xx

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[2Huskyfun]

Hopefully she will be able to help.

Keep us posted and good luck.