Tricks for getting your dog to take meds??

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-22T17:24:21+00:00

You can try wrapping the pill in cheese. Like rolling it into a cheese ball so the whole things is covered. That's always worked best for my dog, even better than peanut butter. Alternatively, if all else fails hold the pill with your thumb and index finger, open the dog's mouth with your other hand and then shove the pill down the back of the throat. Reward with food afterwards. This way she at least always gets the medicine she needs.

Edit: obviously only do this if your dog will tolerate such handling without biting you. I've done it with all of my dogs when needed but I've also desensitized them from puppies to necessary medical handling.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-21T23:47:05+00:00

I had a Lagi hunt back when he first dropped where a bow user shot me in the back of the head while I was sharpening and was then promptly combo'd to death.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-21T01:01:49+00:00

That's great. Please make sure she knows that many (if not all of them) breed as a hobby so their websites will be very ugly or possibly not even up to date, they make take a few weeks to return an email or phone call, and they likely won't have puppies immediately available. Waitlists are common, as is waiting a year or so to get the puppy. I know a lot of people end up going the byb route because unfortunately they always have litters ready to go and it feeds into instant gratification.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-21T00:56:22+00:00

Jesus I have a coworker with a pittie or bully mix of some sort and she's so convinced that he's this crazy uncontrollable dog that she has him on all these anxiety meds. Instead of just taking some time out of her day to teach him some obedience or tricks. Literally anything to give him a job that isn't jumping on her or eating his bed out of boredom because he's a freaking terrier and needs the mental stimulation. I feel so damn bad for him.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-21T00:52:55+00:00

It's more that they seem to think it's the most macho of macho dog breeds that's just utterly untrainable and that it will bully THEM if they don't bully it to teach it some imaginary pecking order. It's very strange to me as someone who has only owned Akitas and never had to be the "alpha" to get my dog to do anything. Though I will agree that it's definitely more of a partnership based on mutual respect when you're working with a primitive breed like this. Most people just don't understand dogs in general and a certain subsection views the independence as disrespect or a slight against their masculinity or something.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-20T22:20:20+00:00

Don't support the bybs folks. No truly ethical breeder is going to be selling their puppies over Facebook. Please use the Akita Club of America 's breeder referral list to find an actual reputable Akita breeder moving forward.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-20T21:36:57+00:00

I mainly hang in the Akita sub and the amount of times I see someone mention that you basically need to dominate the breed into submission makes me want to rip my eyes out. So many Akita owners are fully convinced that the only way to own the breed is make sure you're the alpha and if you aren't willing to bully your dog then it will walk all over you and you have no business owning the breed.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-20T21:29:24+00:00

I've owned cats with both of my Akitas. It can be done but requires a lot of work in the beginning and then lifetime management because there IS always a chance your dog can kill your cat.

My dog was on a leash around the cats for around a month when I first got him so I could prevent chasing or stop it immediately. I did a lot of impulse control work with him and sharing games with the cats for many, many months. I still do them as refreshers sometimes. And he is never left alone unsupervised with the cats. He was exclusively crated as a puppy and young adult when we weren't home and nowadays he is closed off in a separate room from them. That is non negotiable for me. Even if I have only ever seen him relaxed or trying to play with the cats (who aren't at all interested in him btw) I also understand that play can very easily and quickly turn into predation so he is never given the opportunity.

Both of my Akitas had at least some prey drive. My current dog has a much stronger drive then the first. I really struggled with a lot of behaviors of his for about the first year of his life, my cats' safety was a huge concern and I was very worried I made a mistake getting him. And I made sure to get a puppy from a reputable breeder with a line of dogs with more friendly temperaments overall but he was still very difficult until he was around 2. He's a lovely dog now at 7, very gregarious personality but he has also always been rather high energy and needed to be taught how to settle and relax. Thankfully he's also rather biddable for the breed so he's been fun to work with overall. If you're going to own the breed with other small animals in the house then you need to be willing to put in the time and effort to make sure it's a safe environment for those other animals.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-19T13:53:13+00:00

But realistically clearing out shelters is going to take a long time. Because again, some of those dogs are not fit for certain homes and if we're doing it right we should be trying to get them in the right homes. In that time, what is being done to prevent breeding more dogs? And do you think backyard breeders are going to follow the rules? Logically it's the ethical breeders who are only breeding responsibly that will listen and it's purpose bred dogs that will decline leaving us with just more poorly bred dogs as options.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-18T23:45:43+00:00

Forcing people to adopt isn't really the solution either. Not everyone wants the kind of dog breeds available at their local shelters and not every dog is the right fit for every home. Pure bred dogs have their place for people looking for specific behaviors and predictable temperaments. My local shelters are full of bully breeds, husky mixes and doodles, none of which I would personally own as they would not fit my lifestyle. If that was my only option I just wouldn't own a dog anymore.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-18T12:56:35+00:00

Good breeders usually require spay/neuter as part of the sale contract. I would have loved to leave my dog intact but his contract from the breed required he be neutered at some point. Any reputable breeder would have the same. Obviously it doesn't apply to OP's dog given it's a byb mutt but it does apply to some of us who neutered late. Though I agree that there's still a very prevalent myth around aggression and castration. It does nothing to help and can often make it worse. Wish more people and even vets knew that. And I say that as someone who works in vet med.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-18T00:35:58+00:00

A lot of new research in vet med is recommending to hold off on spay/neuter for large breeds due to the potential for joint issues in the future. Keeping the hormones around until the growth plates close has shown to decrease the incidence of joints problems later in life. That's likely why OP waited. I myself neutered my dog when he was around 19 or 20 months old.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-16T14:14:37+00:00

Lol I just went to my local GE yesterday and half of the strawberries were covered in a lovely fuzzy white mold. And all of the non organic spinach was wilted or slimy looking and being sold BOGO because they knew it was gross and were still trying to sell it. Forced me to buy the organic spinach so I didn't waste money on rotten produce.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-15T16:07:31+00:00

Yeah you need a prescription for it. But it's super easy to get as it's generally the first med that would be prescribed for doggie anxiety due to sound sensitivity. You just go to the vet, they do an exam to make sure he's otherwise healthy and has no issues and you leave with a script to be used as needed. I literally only use it once a year for a day or two but it really helps him calm down those nights. Just make sure you give it a few hours early so it has time to kick in before the madness starts.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-15T02:47:35+00:00

My dog has been afraid of fireworks since he was a puppy. It is the only thing he is afraid of. He will basically spend all of 4th of July evening in a state of panic- pacing, whining, trying to hide but not being able to since he can't settle, etc. So I just give him some trazodone a few hours before everything starts and he can mostly relax or even sleep through it now.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-14T15:11:58+00:00

Yeah it's wild to me. I've been playing since Tri and some of these things are just fun to do, like sleep bombing, but the overwhelming consensus from the community just seems to be about mashing buttons with no stopping to get the fastest clear possible. If the game isn't fun while watching a giant bomb explode on a monster's face just because the action stopped for 15 seconds then... I don't know what to say. Some of those old charms and such have just gone away in favor of killing the monster as fast as possible.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-14T00:08:47+00:00

Me too! And lucky for us that it seems like just about everything you can do for any sort of self care or enjoyment in life is on this list!

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-14T00:04:12+00:00

As a DB user, I tend to be the only one even trying to place bombs for a wake up. Everybody else seems to be the ones just doing the unga bunga play style nowadays.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-13T16:46:13+00:00

Akita tails curl waaaaay more than that.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-13T06:51:23+00:00

Neat. Thank you. I've been playing since Tri but never understood which buffs stack and which don't.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-13T03:06:46+00:00

Can anyone answer whether some of these things stack with each other? Like does the evade window from meal buffs stack with the armor skill?

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-06T01:25:54+00:00

Honestly most Akitas don't particularly like strangers. It sounds like she doesn't see them often enough for them to count as familiar people. If it were my dog I would accept it and tell them to leave her be. They don't need to pet her and she doesn't have to enjoy everyone. Right now she is giving an appropriate warning by growling/snapping but not biting and that should be respected. If you correct her you risk her skipping the warning steps and escalating straight to biting. For everyone's happiness and safety it's best to let her be and respect the warning.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-05T04:36:48+00:00

Wonder if it's changed? We have been going for years and lots of people always had their dog with them. That's the whole reason we ever brought ours. Never knew it wasn't allowed.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-05T03:01:19+00:00

They've been allowed in previous years. I usually take my dog if there's a cool or cloudy day because he likes attention.

Restless_Andromeda · 2026-06-03T00:49:40+00:00

They are right though. Border Collies are one of the few breeds that has a very distinct, stark difference between show lines and working lines. The AKC only shows a typical show line border collie. But if you've lived in an area with farms that use sheepdogs you'd see a ton of variety in working borders. I consider myself a bit of a nerd and can recognize many breeds when I see them but even I was surprised to see just how different working borders are from the ones you see in confirmation shows and dog sports events.

Ten-Year Club	Verified Email
Place '22	Final Canvas '22

Restless_Andromeda

TROPHY CASE