Any pointers on introducing a puppy to wearing a muzzle? And at what age to start? Not for muzzle bite training, just to protect the vet. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />
I meant that to be a joke. But, my wife took the pup(7 1/2 months, 70 lbs) to the vet. He had an eye that had got scratched by the cat. When the vet tried to look at it and do a swab, he resisted even on a prong collar. The vet tried to put on a muzzle, he still resisted. They had to sedate him just to do the swab. Cost $50 just for that.
Anyways, I figured I could get him used to wearing a muzzle when needed on any occasion. But the above is what prompted me to look into a muzzle.
Well it's better to be safe than sorry in many cases. I don't think I would want to mess with Flink's dog Itor in the rectal area during a procedure. Now I know most people have their dog under control and people who work with dogs for a living should know how to treat them but I can't help but believe that there's some aggression displayed during certain situations.
If you think your dog might do something it shouldn't then I would do it, period. Even if you didn't train it properly, make sure you correct it on your time would be my motto, not at a Vet's exspense, lol.
I'm interested to hear the replys to this one, not just in this case but with the exception dogs. Are there some dogs that are so sharp that regardless of handler it's a concern, or is this a handler control issue? I know this is a puppy scenerio but in general I'd like to hear some views.
He was not being aggressive towards the vet. They did not try to keep him still with the leash/prong. He was just avoiding the vet, and they could not keep him still. When I say "they", I mean vet and asst. My wife was just watching. He maybe would resist as much even with a muzzle, good point. How could he be trained to be still and not resist a person messing with his eyes? Was sedation the solution? His eye is much better now though, after 2 shots and some drops. He was just so out of it for the evening. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />
You put a young dog under a lot of stress by having two people he hardly knows, have to "control" him for the exam. He should spend lots of time "being handled" by lots of people unless he is going to be a sport dog. He still needs to learn that he must tolerate vet exams. Even if you use a muzzle, you can't have a fight every time he goes to the vet.
If all you are worried about is keeping him quiet a muzzle is not needed. I have to muzzle my dog which only prevents him from biting (which he will), but he will not hold still and has to be sedated for any work that might cause injury in the process. He started this at 7 months too and well he is 5 years now and never did get better. For general exams this might not be an issue for you anyway. The only time they really need to hold still is for eye and ear exam. I might be wrong here, but if a dog shows avoidance at this age, is it not genetic? Will obedience cure this? My dog goes in on a prong and muzzle and to this day will not hold still, period. He doesn't care what you do to him.
Oldearthdog has it right... I took it one step further to avoid this problem at the vet.. I stopped in every week for 5 months just to say hello and let the staff there feed him treats and we would play in the office and just hang out for about 10 min "Plus I could use the nice digitial scale for weight checks for free" heheh so now he thinks the vet's office is the S*** and loves to go there. Even when we stick stuff in his ears and feel him all up.. he thinks it's all fun...
Leute mögen Hunde, aber Leute LIEBEN ausgebildete Hunde!
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