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2003/07/01, 10:24 AM
Last Thursday, June 26, we took our doggie to get a hair cut. She is half husky and half golden retriever who is very calm, never barks, very affectionate and loving, stubborn, but still minds me. She always goes to bed when we do. She has her own little bed at the foot of ours.
This is what she looks like with long hair...
http://www.gwindalyn.com/Baby2.jpg
Typically, when we get her hair cut, she looks like this...
http://www.gwindalyn.com/Baby.jpg
Yes, that is the same doggie. Cutie pie isn't she?
Anyway, this time, they cut her hair REALLLLLY short. They used a #7 blade (which is 1/4 inch) AND they used it over her entire tail too! I was not at all happy, but I guess it will grow back.
Ever since then, she has been a bit spastic. She will be just normal then all of a sudden she will jump like she is spooked or like someone hit her and she will curl her tail up under her legs and immediately plop down into a sitting position.
Also, since Sunday night, she has kept us awake all night long. Typically, she will whine or sort of growl to get our attention if we are asleep and she needs out. Since Sunday night, she has been doing this non-stop. She won't go out, she has water, she has food, no one has touched her bed, we haven't changed any of our "routines". We tell her to cool it and she stops. Then a few minutes later, when we JUST fall back asleep, she does it again. I don't think hubby and I have had more than 1 hour continuous sleep since Saturday night.
During the day time she acts just fine other than the ocassional "spook" that I described above. But she doesn't whine or growl or anything like that. She basically acts like she always has. She is only doing this at night. It starts as soon as we go to bed and doesn't stop until we get up around 5 - 6am, THEN she goes to sleep on her bed.
Any ideas? Getting rid of her or locking her up in a room is NOT an option. She's my baby. I can't do that to her.
If she doesn't stop this, hubby and I are going to go insane....not to mention the severe lack of sleep interfering with work and work outs, etc.
P.S. Sorry for the large pictures...was the best I could do while here at work.
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~Jennifer
http://www.gwindalyn.com
If you dont stand for something, you will fall for anything.
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2003/07/01, 11:25 AM
How long was it there? I am not a specialist, maybe check her for fleas/ticks? What is the reputation of the groomer? How was the dog treated? These are questions I would be asking, and if it keeps up, take her to the vet.
Cute doggy!
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2003/07/01, 11:41 AM
She was only there for about 4-1/2 hours. As soon as she was done, they called and we picked her up. She has been there before and we've never had problems like this. It's the nicest place around here to have a dog groomed or boarded.
Didn't think about fleas. I know she doesn't have ticks...her hair is so short, I'd see them easily. I'll have to check for fleas tonight and see what I find.
I have to do something before I become a psychopath from the lack of sleep.
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~Jennifer
http://www.gwindalyn.com
If you dont stand for something, you will fall for anything.
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2003/07/01, 05:01 PM
My wife works in a aniaml hosiptal and knows a lot of this stuff I will ask her tonight for you.
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Squats are really a very good thing, but in my world, Deadlifts are King!!!!!!!!
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2003/07/01, 07:15 PM
Same thing happens to my boyfriend's dog. But it happens every time and they have taken the dog to several different places with the same end result. Wonder if it could just be itchy? Could he have gotten a sunburn because of the short hair? In my boyfriend's dog's case, it stops after a week or so.
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2003/07/02, 03:46 AM
I'm tending to agree with RW and Tara. If she isn't used to it that short, maybe she is cold. Her hair could feel prickly to her and a draft might make her jumpy. The sunburn idea is good too. My dogs get their noses sunburned sometimes. When I was a kid we had an Old English Sheepdog. One summer my folks had her sheared, just because she seemed so hot and miserable and it was easier grooming. When they got her home, she wouldn't go outside. She would look out the door and then run back in. All we could figure was that she was embarassed and didn't feel like herself. I know....call the pet psychic. I love that show!
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~Victoria~
...There are no shortcuts to any place worth going.--Beverly Sills
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2003/07/02, 09:46 PM
Hey Jennifer, this is mutt's wife..
I work at an animal hospital for 8 years now and have seen this happen numerous times. These are a few of the things I have seen happen:
If the dog's anal glands were emptied by your groomer, the dog could be itchy down by its anus. Also, having the tail hair cut and the area around the anus cut shorter than normal can cause irritation and it takes longer for that hair to grow back for some reason. If she scoots on the floor or the craziness seems to get worse after she has a bowel movement call the vet and ask if there is something they can do. The anal glands may need to be emptied again or she may have an infection that can be treated easily with meds. Itchy anal glands can cause a dog to spook as you describe it and keep their tail between their legs. You usually notice a dog having problems after they had a bowel movement.
The second thing that we see often is what one of the others here said in that the hair being cut shorter than normal can make her itch, just like a guy who gets his hair trimmed to short around his neck is itchy. You could try to use a shampoo such as Epi-soothe to calm down her skin and not dry it out in doing so.
Third, the groomer could have used a different shampoo that has caused irritation.
Fourth, watch for a hot spot which is an area on the skin that is really itchy, it can become sticky to the touch because of licking or sucking on it..If it becomes a big problem, you need to go to the vet. Spread the hair and make sure the areas around her bottom are not pink and inflammed.
I hope this helped some..We have 7 dogs and it seems like someone always has something wrong.
Good Luck..Let my husband know how it works out!
Chris
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2003/07/03, 05:50 PM
Thanks so much Chris! I'll try the things you've suggested!
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~Jennifer
http://www.gwindalyn.com
If you dont stand for something, you will fall for anything.
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2003/07/07, 04:53 PM
I am a veterinary technician (7 years) What Chris had said was much what I would say....Re-bathing her may help for sure.
Good luck!
PAt
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2003/07/07, 05:16 PM
Tea tree oil lotion and a LOOOOOOTTTTTT of attention calmed her down. I still think she was mistreated, which upsets me a lot. She did not do this when we took her last time (same place). Someone different did her this time, and I don't think they knew what they were doing, or even cared.
She used to LOVE car rides. Now she is terrified to get in the car. I think she thinks we are taking her back there.
Poor thing. All I can do is love on her more than usual.
Thanks for suggestions everyone.
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~Jennifer
http://www.gwindalyn.com
If you dont stand for something, you will fall for anything.
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2003/07/08, 08:49 AM
I hope that isn't true. So many people automatically think that their dog has been mistreated when they start acting that way after going to the vets or groomers....in most cases they haven't been mistreated...just not coddled like at home. The best thing to do is talk to your groomer...if you have gone their before without problems....then make sure everything was ok this time. Often the dogs get a little crazy so you need to just double check that everything went ok there. Then re introduce the car trip and the groomers/vets as fun. I always suggest people bring their pets in for social visits with nothing being done but maybe given a cookie or 2. This works wonders. It is unfortunate that there are a lot of inexperienced people working out there but that doesn't mean for sure that is what happened. You can't reason with a dog or cat.
I love them to death and have tonnes of patience, but everyone has bad days and if you have a day where every 2nd dog is bad then it gets frustrating. It's like having a classroom of kids and most are great but then you have those bad apples who ruin it for everyone.
Anyways...I hope all goes well for you and your girl.
PAT
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2003/07/08, 10:24 AM
Next time you go, take the afternoon off and insist on being in there when they do the grooming.
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