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Originally Posted by Rosy1013  Max is generally such a sweet, loving dog. I just don't know how to make him behave better at the vet and groomer's. Today we went to get his yearly rabies shot. He panicked and tried to bite the vet so many times she had to put a muzzle on him! Every single vet, groomer, or boarder who has handled Max has described him to us as "feisty." This is was the worst though.
Any suggestions on what I should do? How can I train him to not bite when his biting is only an issue during extreme stress? |
Our pup is just two and is a one-and-only although we've had 2 dogs before. Somehow she knows when we are blocks from the vet's office and begins her little quiver. I found that she really disliked the slick vet table so I take her little dog bed with us to put on the table so she doesn't slip around and has her home-smell near. I tried her blanket first but that was still too slippery. Also, the vet comes into the room and talks to me and pets her and basically socializes her before beginning any exam. The thing she dislikes most is when the tech takes her temperature, so I adopted a reverse football hold so her head is nestled between my elbow and side so she can't see it coming! Our pup is not a nipper or biter so we have not had to deal with that but we had a previous dog who would and it turned out she had an eye-sight issue so it was defensive. I would recommend a few visits where nothing happens - just a walk through the office - and a treat here and there from a tech or vet and muzzling before any "invasive" treatment so it becomes routine. Letting him nip and then muzzling can become positive reinforcement. For grooming, we used an electric kids toothbrush to "pet" our pup so she got used to the buzzing without feeling threatened. She's not perfect, but she lets me groom her. Nail trimming is our little issue so I put her in an Outward Bound front pack and get it over with. She's slowly improving.