[Rosie]

Strange dog behavior-need help!

9year old mix black and tan coon hound. Excellent health, great temperament.

We are having a heat wave in NYC but have air conditioning in the bedroom where our dog hangs out. Three nights ago, she refused her night time walk. It was over 90 degrees outside, so we let it be. She went out fine the next morning and afternoon. Two nights ago, same thing but day time was fine. Last night it cooled down but she did it again. Then today--day time she refused until I picked her up and walked 5 feet and then ran into a neighbor who said hello to her and she seemed to have forgotten whatever was bothering her. Again tonight she refused and when we took the elevator back up-she refused to get out of the elevator to go home. After coaxing with a treat-got her out-but walk was stilted paced with a quickened trot and then refusing to move until we crossed the street.

Hypotheses: The heat is making her strange, the heat started with fourth of july idiots and fireworks which she is afraid, but haven't heard any booms since then. Any other ideas? How to handle?

Thanks!
R

[reeskujo]

Hi fellow New Yorker...It is possible but it's the heat but at your dogs age even though he's in good health it could be that he's experiencing some hip pain...That will make him want to refuse to walk...Dogs are very good at hiding their pain...The only way I used to know when my Akita's hip was bothering him was by his gait and how slowly he would go down the stairs to get outside...If it's not better in a few days I would suggest a vet visit or at least give them a call..

[Rosie]

Hmm. I can look into that and definitely plan to call the vet tomorrow. Though, if it were a hip problem I'd imagine there would be issues with morning walk too, which has not been the case (yet!)

[reeskujo]

Not always...It depends on how bad it is..My Akita even if he was hurting in the morning never gave me a problem going outside as he had held it all night so he had to potty so bad he didn't fight it but then the rest of the day it was a struggle.

[Rotties_Rule]

Originally Posted by Rosie

Strange dog behavior-need help!


Hypotheses: The heat is making her strange, the heat started with fourth of july idiots and fireworks which she is afraid, but haven't heard any booms since then. Any other ideas? How to handle?

Thanks!
R

The noise is a problem at this time of year for dogs of all breeds.
She should settle down after a while and get back to normal.
Today, I still had firecrackers going off in our neighborhood, but hopefully they will taper off.
Don't worry, I think she will be fine with a lot of soothing words and a confident approach during the night walks that will let her know everything is safe. Good Luck.

[reeskujo]

Originally Posted by Rotties_Rule

The noise is a problem at this time of year for dogs of all breeds.
She should settle down after a while and get back to normal.
Today, I still had firecrackers going off in our neighborhood, but hopefully they will taper off.
Don't worry, I think she will be fine with a lot of soothing words and a confident approach during the night walks that will let her know everything is safe. Good Luck.

This to is possible but I would still consult the vet...Dogs have poor short term memory so she's most likely already forgotten about the fireworks...If she hears anymore and shows fear do not pet her or tell her it's ok etc..this is only giving her positive reinforcement which will in turn tell her that her fear is justified...The best thing to do is ignore the behavior.

[Rotties_Rule]

Good advice.
My initial reaction to soothe the dog was wrong.
Thank you...I will learn a lot from this forum!!!:smile:

[reeskujo]

Originally Posted by Rotties_Rule

Good advice.
My initial reaction to soothe the dog was wrong.
Thank you...I will learn a lot from this forum!!!:smile:

Thanks..wasn't trying to be a wise guy I've just been a trainer for so long it's instinct and don't worry soothing our babies when their stressed is a natural instinct...Trust me even as a trainer I find myself having a hard time not doing it when my fur kids are scared or nervous to..

[Rosie]

UPDATE:

I spoke to our vet who does not believe there is anything medically wrong with our pup, but believes it is emotional. She suggested DAP (dog appeasing pheromone) which we ordered via amazon and expect by the end of the week. She also suggested Xanax for short term and prozac for long term. We have not tried the xanax yet as my husband is very against this but will if the behavior continues. She refused the night walk again last night, refusing to even exit the elevator. We immediately turned around, went back up the apartment with zero reinforcement (positive/negative) and acted normal-getting ready for bed etc. We decided to not even offer night walk for a few nights to take the pressure off. Then we might try the xanax when we reintroduce it. Any other ideas?

Thanks so much. We are at our wits end!