Any ideas/advice for teaching respect to a difficult dog?

11-27-12 | Vanity

[needmorePaine]

My wife and I have a 3.5-year-old female English Springer Spaniel. We got her as a puppy from a breeder, and for the first two years of her life, we were happy with her. She's a beautiful dog bred for the field, not the show line of the breed.

[Titan Magroyne]

Ah, thanks for answering me on the walking issue. Not familiar w/ ESS traits, I hadn’t even considered her instincts.

This conversation has me rethinking how I handled my epi dog’s appetite on the phenobarb, tho it’s nine years too late for her. I did treat her sudden garbage raids as a disciplinary issue. By that time, she’d been on the pheno for 4, 5 years. The vet had recommended I switch her from hi protein to a maintenance diet, plus I began feeding in spurts rather than continued browsing at her pace. At seven or so, she was past her prime and began to resemble a log on four legs as senior labs often do. Major regrets right now.

I couldn’t help chuckling at your dog’s cleverness as a “bread winner.” Too smart by half!

The current lab will not try that at home but at my best friend’s house it’s another story. There, the kitchen is on a different floor from where we dine. We’ve learned to stash cookery in the oven or back of the stove & blocked w/ tall pots, before retiring upstairs with our meals. Fresh cornbread and the remainder of a roll of sausage have disappeared down her gullet (also the tastiests spots of papertowel on which it drained), & she hasn’t even the brains to be ashamed later!

Your dog’s pacing, I dunno. Sounds like OCD or maybe just a need to stretch large muscle groups, could be either. With the kids so small yet, she might need a fellow canine playmate to thump around with. Not that doggie thumping is what you want after the kiddos have been tucked neatly into bed...

[greyhoundlady]

You're in a tough situation: three active youngsters and a hyperactive dog with epilepsy. A couple more thoughts -epi dogs are always very hungry. Seizures require a lot of energy. Even if not seizing, the seizure meds make them hungry. Try adding bulk to the regular diet. Low sodium string beans is a classic. Next, see if any calming meds can be used with seizure meds. Plenty of dogs are on fluoxetine for behavioral issues because in reality, they are anxious and they act out by being loud and obnoxious. We have one now who was that way; she's now on fluoxetine and is a totally different dog. See your vet about this.

[needmorePaine]

Thanks. We did add the green beans, and it seemed to calm her hunger for a little.

Just doing a quick search on fluoxetine, I found that it shouldn’t be used on dogs with a history of seizures, which is probably why one of the vets we use said she couldn’t really prescribe anything for the behavior issues. Also, she is already on phenobarbital for the seizures and needs liver checks periodically because of that. Fluoxetine requires the same checks, so I am guessing that the two combined could damage the liver.