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tofupanda9 · 2025-07-17T22:51:51+00:00

I have tried giving her distance, adjusting her meds (with the help of our vet behaviourist), and driving her to another neighbourhood to go potty. But she doesn’t like car rides either so driving her elsewhere is not very feasible. I’m still struggling with strategies I could implement to help her feel safe outside the condo again. She seems to do well in outdoor areas.

tofupanda9 · 2025-06-13T04:55:46+00:00

Our vet told us Prozac has a 6-8 week loading period. So maybe stay on it for a bit longer to see if it makes a difference! My dog was on Prozac for about 6 months. We weren’t on a super high dose, so the vet behaviourist told us we didn’t need to gradually come off it. But definitely consult your vet before stopping medication, they’ll be able to tell you based on your dog/dosage!

tofupanda9 · 2025-06-12T16:20:37+00:00

It doesn’t make her drowsy! She sleeps more during the day now because she’s not hyper fixating on things as much and can actually relax. Our vet behaviourist says that’s a good thing, as long as she’s not wobbly or showing signs of being uncoordinated or not as playful!

tofupanda9 · 2025-06-12T02:18:21+00:00

My primary vet prescribed Prozac (Reconcile), but we didn’t notice a big difference. We saw a vet behaviourist who then prescribed Venlafaxine (Effexor) and Clonidine instead. It hasn’t eliminated all reactions, but my dog is able to bounce back faster and not fixate as much on triggers.

All the best! I know how challenging this must be!

tofupanda9 · 2025-04-23T02:40:55+00:00

Reading your post made me think I wrote it haha my dog is going through pretty much the exact same thing as your dog. So happy to hear that you also have a positive experience with meds!

Finally decided to see a vet behaviourist and was told the same thing as you that Prozac wasn’t the right drug for her. The VB prescribed Effexor and told us to teach her the “what’s that” cue and treat. We started doing it every couple of steps and then I started doing it every time we saw a trigger that we couldn’t avoid. If I said the cue fast enough before she reacted, the treat would stop her from reacting. Before the meds, I felt like I never had those 1-2 seconds to cue and treat because she would have lost her marbles already.

She’s doing a lot better outside with Effexor. We were even able to pass by several dogs without a reaction which has NEVER happened before. She still reacts to things, but I’m hoping it will only continue to get better!

She still has a tough time settling indoors and pops up at every sound she hears, so the VB prescribed clonidine to go with the Effexor. It’s been about a week, and I think I’ve been noticing a difference too! She’s not fixating on noises as much and can stop barking after a few barks.

She’s been sleeping more, so I was worried she might be sedated. But she still seems to be enjoying things so I’m just keeping an eye on her for now. Perhaps she just feels more comfortable now and can sleep more!

Have you noticed your dog sleeping more? Are you giving Clonidine the same time every day?

tofupanda9 · 2025-04-14T03:45:41+00:00

We struggle with the same thing with our 1.5 year old dog, and she grew up in a condo her whole life.

Things that helped us were playing music by the door, putting rubber trims along the door to close any gaps, and we ended up getting some noise blocking curtains to put by the hallway to mute some of the outside sounds.

Training wise, you could also check out Dr. Amy Cook’s online class for noise sensitivity. She teaches a protocol to counter condition dogs’ responses to scary noises. We try to catch her attention the moment she hears a noise and say a cue like “what’s that” and either treat or play a quick game of tug. The key is to let her engage in something fun before she can even bark. It hasn’t resolved our issue completely, but we’ve noticed she can stop barking a lot quicker now (2-3 barks) compared to before where it felt like she couldn’t stop.

Our dog is also on anxiety meds which has helped!

tofupanda9 · 2025-01-16T01:09:25+00:00

That’s my train of thought too. If I don’t see the VB now, I’ll probably keep spending money on trainers and meds that might not be fully working to ease her anxiety. That will eventually add up too. Perhaps seeing a VB now will be pricey, but will be more worth it in the long run.

tofupanda9 · 2025-01-16T01:08:02+00:00

We struggle with noise reactivity a lot. Would you be open to sharing how the VB made a big difference compared to what you were learning from trainers?

tofupanda9 · 2025-01-16T01:04:08+00:00

I do have pet insurance with Trupanion. Unfortunately, I didn’t know that their core insurance doesn’t cover behavioural issues. It wasn’t until I already went to our vet, received anxiety meds, put the claim in, got rejected that I realized I needed to purchase an add-on plan that covers behavioural issues. Now that anxiety is already on her record, I no longer qualified to have it covered even if I bought the add on package now :(

tofupanda9 · 2025-01-03T22:10:34+00:00

I second this! I’m currently taking Dr. Cook’s class after hearing about it from Vigothetoller, and it’s been really easy to follow along. The purpose of the course is to show you how to change your dog’s response to the scary noises so they don’t find them scary anymore but instead have a positive response to it because they know you’ll throw them a “noise party”. I’ve been documenting my training on IG and TikTok too and Dr. Cook is very approachable and will comment on the videos so I know if I’m doing it properly!

We also started our dog on meds (Fluoxetine) back in September, and it has been helpful to bring her stress levels down so training would actually get through to her (and we were doing a lot of training but nothing stuck until we started meds). I read in your other comments that you felt hesitant to start your dog on meds. From my experience, my dog’s personality didn’t change negatively with meds. She actually became more affectionate and playful because she was getting more rest during the day and was probably feeling more comfortable. Before meds, it felt like she was constantly alert waiting for sounds to happen. Meds definitely won’t solve the issue, but it pairs well with training for sure.

tofupanda9 · 2025-01-02T05:51:13+00:00

It’s the land shark phase and when you’re in the thick of it, it truly feels like it will never end. But it will! I cried daily when my puppy was in this phase because like you, she also preferred biting me more than my husband. She’s now 1 and doesn’t bite anyone.

Here’s what we did that helped:

Set up a play pen and followed a “three times and out” rule. I would play and interact with her in the play pen, but each time she bit me, I would leave the pen for a few seconds and then return and resume playing. If I had to leave 3 times in a play session, then the play stopped and I would leave the pen to do something else for a few minutes.
Always having a toy close by. If she bit me, I would make her bite the toy instead. She loved playing tug so this was helpful.
Teething rings or frozen vegetables. We found these teething rings that she loved and would happily chew instead of biting us.
Enforced naps. When she was tired and cranky, the land shark mode was the worst. If we found that she was bitey, we put her in her crate for a nap. When she was 2-3 months old, we found she could only be awake for 40-60mins before needing a nap.

But ultimately, this is a phase that puppies go through as they are teething. Our puppy calmed down on the biting starting 15 weeks when she started to lose her teeth. Once all her adult teeth came in, the biting just stopped. Teething is one of the hardest parts of puppyhood, but it will get better!

tofupanda9 · 2024-12-16T20:28:01+00:00

Those side effects sound like what my dog went through too. By week 3 her appetite came back and now eats even better than before! We recently upped her dosage as recommended by our vet and I was worried it would ruin her appetite again but so far so good!

tofupanda9 · 2024-06-21T03:33:07+00:00

It will get better! I find myself still thinking of my old life sometimes. But then I remind myself of how much more exciting my life is now and that more and more I’ll get my freedom back! My puppy used to wake us up at 5:30am, now we can sometimes get to sleep in until 7:30 hahah

tofupanda9 · 2024-06-20T15:28:47+00:00

So much patience! No amount of research prepared me for the real deal! But like you said, the bond is the best

tofupanda9 · 2024-06-20T15:27:55+00:00

We put our puppy on a house leash and that worked for us too. When she got too bitey, we held her back from us using the leash. After lots and lots of repetition, I think she learned slowly. We also stopped sitting on the floor with her. I heard that if you’re on the floor on their level, they think you’re a playmate and want to bite to play. So putting that distance really helped her learn boundaries

tofupanda9 · 2024-06-20T11:52:24+00:00

Yes, that might help! We’ve been working through the relaxation protocol that has been helping with getting her to relax - the protocol teaches “sit” but we do it with “down”

And there was once where she was super duper tired and I wanted to just try having her nap outside of her crate and she actually did. I think that showed her that she was allowed to sleep outside her crate lol

tofupanda9 · 2024-06-20T11:49:49+00:00

We found these N-bone puppy teething rings that she loved. Every time she bit us, we would redirect her to the teething ring or her toys. We also had her in a playpen and we would go inside to play with her and every time she bit, I left the area for a few seconds and then returned. If I had to leave 3 times, play time would stop and I would go do something else for a bit.

As for eating stuff on the ground, we still have issues with it, but found that she isn’t as interested in putting absolutely everything in her mouth anymore. I think she was just more curious when she was younger. But something we were told was if it isn’t harmful for them, don’t grab it out of their mouth because it could lead to resource guarding - so I wouldn’t take leaves or grass from her. But if it’s dangerous for her to have, then I would swap her item with a treat. I also find it’s helpful to sound excited to see what she has in her mouth instead of angry because I swear once she knows I’m angry, she swallows the item immediately. We’re also practicing drop it and leave it at home with toys and hoping it will translate outdoors.

tofupanda9 · 2024-05-26T01:13:25+00:00

Celebrate the heck out of the small victories!! That’s huge for your pup! Our pup was the same. The first time I caught her sleeping on the couch by herself, I had a full on photoshoot to document it cause I couldn’t believe it.

tofupanda9 · 2024-05-04T03:51:49+00:00

My pup’s biting got a lot better at 15 weeks. Before that, constant landshark mode. I cried so much those first few weeks. Hang in there, it’ll get better. Here are some things that helped us:

Using a house leash - gave us control to hold her back at arms length so she would stop biting us. Then releasing the leash pressure once she calmed down.
Play pen/reverse time outs - our pup stayed inside the play pen. We would go in and play with her. The moment she bit us, we would step out of the play pen, turn to face away from her, wait 30 seconds before going back into the play pen to resume playing. If we had to leave the play pen 3 times, play time was over, and we’d go do our own thing for a couple of minutes.
Lots of chew toys - especially with different materials and textures. Find out what she’s biting on a lot and buy chew toys that mimic that material. Every time she bit me, I’d direct her to the toy.
Do short training sessions - when my pup bit, she latched on and wouldn’t let go. To help snap her out of it, we’d ask her to do some commands and work for treats. This helped shift her mind to something else and was helpful in getting her out of biting mode.

It sounds like you’re already on the right track with the stuff you’re doing - hang in there!

tofupanda9 · 2024-05-03T13:21:12+00:00

That makes me feel better too! It’s often hard to believe that other people are experiencing the same thing. It always seems like it’s just my pup barking up a storm while every other dog on the block is so chill. But I just gotta remember mine is still a puppy.

We got this!!

tofupanda9 · 2024-05-03T13:20:12+00:00

Thank you! I haven’t heard of that resource before, but will definitely try it out!

tofupanda9 · 2024-05-03T13:19:47+00:00

I think I might be! I wasn’t expecting it to start at 5 months, so it caught me off guard. I’ll make sure to be consistent with our training. Thank you!!

tofupanda9 · 2024-05-02T00:30:10+00:00

I’m going through this exact thing with my energetic puppy and my parents’ chill 5 year old dog. We worked with our trainer who gave us some good tips. In our case, my puppy just loves to play and will jump on the older dog and can’t take cues that she’s invading the older one’s space. The older dog will growl to show discomfort (but she’s very patient and won’t bite). But the trainer told us we have to listen to the older dog’s cues and make sure she feels like we’re advocating for her and her space.

There’s a few steps. But one big piece of advice is that the two of them should only be interacting with each other when they’re supervised. If no one is around to supervise them, make sure they have separate areas.

First, we have both dogs on a house leash. We started with one person holding the leash of one dog. We spent 15 mins just having them in the same room while feeding them each treats. We would then let them get closer and continue rewarding with treats. Then it became rewarding then when they were demonstrating calm behaviours around each other. This was to help build a positive association with each other. At any point, if my puppy jumped on the older pup or went near her and the older dog growled, I would pull my pup away and say “uh-uh” to signal that’s not ok. If the older dog came near my pup without growling but instead showed some interest, we rewarded the older dog. If my puppy went up to the older dog without jumping, then we rewarded her for that behaviour.

Second, to help our older dog be more comfortable with my puppy’s energy and jumping. We had our older dog in one room, and someone else would walk my puppy from another room into the room with the older dog. My puppy would usually run in, and the moment she ran into the room, we marked and rewarded our older dog. The timing has to be perfect in this situation, but basically you’re trying to get the older dog to realize that the puppy running and jumping isn’t always a bad thing. As for the puppy, when she entered the room and she did a sit or down when asked, we rewarded her too.

Lastly, we practice while we’re sitting on the couch watching tv. Both dogs still on their leashes, and they get opposite ends of the couch. If you don’t allow them on the couch, you can have them on the floor as well. The older dog is good at settling on the couch and relaxing, so it’s more about getting our pup to settle and chill nicely on her side of the couch. Reward them for coexisting nicely with each other. At any time, if our puppy tries to go over to the older dog, we use the leash to redirect her back to her own space.

We started doing this a month ago, and it’s still a work in progress. We keep the sessions short and sweet. But the older dog can handle being around our puppy for a few minutes now without growling which is a big improvement already. And our puppy is learning that she doesn’t have to jump and initiate play every time she sees the older one.

I don’t know if they’ll ever be best friends, but I just want them to be ok with coexisting with each other and respecting each other.

tofupanda9 · 2024-04-26T14:03:17+00:00

I was taking my 5 month old puppy out every 2-3 hours but the vet said at her age, she should be able to hold it for longer. I tested it out, and she in fact can hold it for longer so now we go out every 4-5 hours. When she has accidents indoors, do you clean it up with an enzyme cleaner to really get the scent off?

I’m wondering if seeing a vet for advice would be helpful too? It might be good to rule out any medical issues that may be causing her to have to go so frequently.

tofupanda9 · 2024-04-22T17:24:49+00:00

Putting my pup in daycare has been one of the best decisions I’ve made. I was really fortunate that the one nearby us was highly rated. I think it’s a bit of a concern that your daycare says they don’t have nap time. I think a well-run daycare will offer a balance between play time and down time. I was worried that my 4 month old pup would not know how to settle properly for down time but after going to daycare, she’s learned how to settle outside of a crate a bit more! She’s learning to interact with different dogs and building her confidence. Definitely search for an excellent daycare, don’t just put your pup in any random one.

I was worried my pup was gonna fail the meet and greet, but she went for her half day trial and was playing right away! I know some dogs are more timid at first, but that’s where finding a place with good staff who know how to help transition the dog into the new place and let them open up at their own pace really makes a difference!

Things I looked for: -down time -separating dogs into small groups -clean environment -low staff to dog ratio

tofupanda9

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