My dog has cuts. How will the vet safely restrain him if he's in pain?

With cats is quite difficult to describe a ''standard'' as it is normally up to the patient. Some of them do not need any particular form of restrain other than being held gently. For feral cats sedation and crush cage, blanket/towel/cat sack, cat trap (for feral cats) may be used. Please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation (where you can post pictures ) if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

Hi! Sounds like Max really needs to see someone. What we usually do at our clinic is this: as long as a pet comes in with a well fitted muzzle, we can usually help. Max will need to be sedated, to be treated. So, call ahead to your vet clinic, and let them know that Max needs help. They are under no obligation to treat him if he is truly dangerous. But, if he is able to wear a muzzle, that should be a big help to the staff.

Injectable sedation or general anesthesia might be in Hercules’s best interest, and neutering could make a big difference in his behavior. Each ‘scary’ experience at the vet builds on the next, so if he is getting worked up on oral sedatives alone he needs more sedation. You could ask your vet about trying an oral sedative in addition to the gabapentin and you could also work on training him to use a basket muzzle for safety. You could also look for a hospital that specializes in ‘Fear Free’ handling techniques but I will tell you that these hospitals are usually pretty liberal with their use of injectable sedative because the outcomes are so much better fo the pets. At his age I would worry that if you don’t work on this now Hercules will be a dog that cannot be handled at the vet. https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/training/dog-muzzles-about-when-why-and-how-to-use-one/

Unfortunately it sounds like she need some sort of sedation in order for you to clean that wound properly. A veterinarian is needed to administer the sedation and clean the wound for you. There isn't anything safe that's over the counter for you to give your dog to sedate her at home.

Poor thing. My two top would be that he was really sore before and/or after the surgery and remembers that being traumatic. Fear-based aggression is very common in dogs. Your comment that he seems worse than before the surgery makes me think perhaps he never loved having his feet touched, and if that's the cause, having an injury could have caused him to think "see, I was right! awful things happen when people touch my feet!" even though I'm assuming the injury itself was unrelated to a person. Since he's gotten to the point of biting, I would recommend talking with his vet about some medications (such a prozac and/or trazodone and gabapentin) to help him calm and then working with a very qualified trainer on desensitizing him to having people touch him. I would also recommend never letting kids interact with him until he's more comfortable, so that no one is in danger. Good luck with this very difficult problem.

It sounds like he needs to be examined by a vet to determine the cause. He could have an infection (Lyme disease, etc.), immune mediated polyarthritis, panosteitis , etc. Your vet can run lab-work and take an x-ray to help diagnose. You could try to find a mobile vet to come to your house or call your vet and see if he/she could prescribe a sedative to make the visit easier. You definitely want to make the experience positive to try and change his aggressive behavior. He will need medical care throughout his life and it makes it very difficult for both the dog and vet. Hope he feels better soon and the visit goes smoothly!

There are lots of possible causes, but the most important one could be pain. I would consult with your vet and make sure her pain medications are all at the best doses for her currently. Alternatively, she could be developing some resource guarding. She has gone through a stressful procedure and she may be feeling more sensitive and protective of herself and her spaces. For now, I would keep the puppy away so he doesn’t get hurt. This article may provide more insight: https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&catId=102897&id=10464193