Our sweet puppy, Stella, has a big problem. She is terrified to go to the vet, and she
needs to go get a heartworm test and some vaccinations. The anxiety can be traced back to when she
was neutered, about a year ago. Before that, a visit to the vet was a great
happy treat and Stella loved everyone there.
Last year, when we went for her annual check-up, she didn’t like it
much. She was uncharacteristically
nervous. The vet gave me some Ace (acepromazine) pills and suggested that the
next time we come, I should give her a couple to calm her. I’m not a fan of tranquilizers, so I chose to
believe that Stella would simply get over this aversion.
This winter, I took Stella off the
heartworm medication and the Frontline for a couple of months when there were
no bugs. So, this Spring, I made an appointment for her to have a heartworm
test before I put her back on the pills.
We went to the vet, without any tranquilizers, and Stella had a total
meltdown. I’ve never seen her like this,
hiding under me, shaking, panting, refusing dog treats. The vet techs were very
sympathetic and gentle, and we decided not to do anything that day. We
re-scheduled, and I gave her the two tabs of Ace an hour and a half before we
went back to the vet. The drugs seemed to rev Stella up instead of calm her.
She was trying to play with the cat and racing around, and the closer we got to
the vet’s office, the more upset she was. Once again, we went in, Stella
freaked out and we did nothing but try to hang out until she calmed down. She
never did. So, after talking to the vet, we tried it again with 3 pills. Stella was very disoriented from the drugs,
and she still panicked and we did not do the blood test and later, she was
wobbling around like a drunk. I felt
awful that I had done this to her. The vet told me that some dogs will have
that reaction to Ace, so we should try Xanax.
By now, I was really upset.
We love our vet and don’t want to find another one. We’ve been going
there for almost 10 years, and we really believe that they are the best ones
around. I googled around and found out that Ace is a sedative, which can
sometimes not work because it is not “calming” but merely sedating – like a
blanket that slows down the dog but doesn’t address the underlying anxiety. And
Xanax is supposed to actually calm anxiety-ridden dogs. Did I mention that I
don’t like these kind of drugs? But I
took Stella to the vet – a desensitization visit – and picked up the pills. I
brought my husband along for moral support. Stella wigged out again and
scratched him really hard on the arm as she was trying to jump on him to get
away. He agreed with me: it’s official that Stella has a problem with the vet.
The Xanax didn’t work either. It seemed to have no effect on her at all. When
we got to the vet, she was panting and freaking out. They don’t want to
restrain her, so we agreed that we would have to come up with some other plan,
but their only suggestion was that I call an animal behaviorist. So, I am waiting to hear from a vet who is a
behaviorist that they recommended.
I’m wondering if somehow, since Stella seems to have this
reverse reaction to the medications, maybe she wasn’t actually sedated enough
when they neutered her. Of course, no one will ever admit that happened, and
only Stella would be able to tell me. She’s definitely telling me something,
and I am listening. I just need to figure out the best thing to do for her. She
really needs to be on the heartworm medication since there are lots of
mosquitos around right now. And I want her to be okay at the vet. I’ve always
believed that my animals need to be calm enough to be handled by vets and
technicians. They don’t have to love it,
but they need to be able to get medical treatment. I may just try a new vet and
see how she reacts. Or see what the behaviorist says. Or schedule a house call
with some vet.
What I don’t want to do is
further traumatize my good, sweet pup.
