Terrified of the lampshade!

Cherry Blossom

My dog is booked in to be spayed on the 2nd November and while I was in the pet shop today I saw this and thought it looked like a great idea.

http://www.amazon.com/Comfy-Cone-PetE-Collar-Small-Tan/dp/B002MVURV2

So I put it on her to see how it would fit etc. and she went beserk! :eek: Took it off straight away (not sure if I should have) and let her play with it for a while. Then I tried just opening it up and draping it over her back and rubbing it on her head etc and she was backing away from it. I forsee this is going to be a big problem . How should I go forward from this to try to get her used to it. It's flexible so I can basically just fold it in half and I'm tempted to do this then put it on her and wait for her to calm down and then take it off and give her a pigs ear or something and progress form there. Does anyone have any better idea's to get her used to it? Have been trying to get her used to being groomed in the last 4 months since I've had her and she still won't let me do her tummy and chest, so I think this is going to be a similar battle. :rolleyes:

ppink

Those collars are a nightmare! Our poor girl nearly wiped out the whole house with it on her......and she was just miserable!
After i did see these ones

http://www.bitenot.com/

which look like they are easier on the dog. Not sure if they are as effective as the elizabethan one though.

Did you try giving her some really nice food bits when she had it on, like from a tin?

portgirl123

why do u need one. my 3 dogs and cats are all done and never needed to use one. My mates and families never needed to use 1 either apart from one, her jrt kept licking at the stitches and then she only used one at night and when dog would be alone.
I would wait and see. all dogs will lick at stitches to keep it clean but the chances are u wont need one.

tk123

OP our guy will be getting an op on his leg soon so I got one of these last week - http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/dogs/dog_grooming_care/first_aid/184161 tried it on him and he didn't even seem to notice it was on lol. He knows his leave it command but he's going to have pins etc in so I wanted to have the collar in case we need it. He cut his paw a few months ago and we had no problems after we told him to leave it a few times (the same when he was neutered)..but there was one day when it was wet outside and he wouldn't leave the plastic cover over the bandage alone so we used the cone for a few hours - he was terrified and wouldn't move.

Cherry Blossom

I read the low rated review on it on Amazon and the issue with them seems to be that they can't see anything except in front of them. Maybe she would be fine with the old style plastic ones. She sleeps in my bed and someone is home all day so maybe she can do without one under 100% supervision :rolleyes:

Casey_81

My dog was spayed last week, we got one of the plastic ones from the vet a few days before hand to get her used to it... she didn't seem to mind it too much. we put it on her for an hour the first day and then took it off, and put it on again in the evening for a while... and so on.

In the end she didn't need to wear it at all because she was more interested in licking her paw where they had the drip than anything else.

Discodog

portgirl123 wrote: »

why do u need one. my 3 dogs and cats are all done and never needed to use one. My mates and families never needed to use 1 either apart from one, her jrt kept licking at the stitches and then she only used one at night and when dog would be alone.
I would wait and see. all dogs will lick at stitches to keep it clean but the chances are u wont need one.

I have seen a few cases where an owner is sure that the dog won't touch stitches & it does with horrible consequences. My own Vet had a dog in that had ruined her perfect stitching & left a jagged messy wound.

Keep the ideas coming. One of mine will be spayed soon.

theghost

adrenalinjunkie wrote: »

I read the low rated review on it on Amazon and the issue with them seems to be that they can't see anything except in front of them.

That answers a question I've often asked myself - why some dogs hate plastic lampshades and some don't mind them at all. One of my JRT crosses was so terrified when she had to wear one that she literally wouldn't move, whilst the lab/collie cross seem to notice she had one on when she had to wear it a few years ago. She could see more or less what was happening, whilst my poor Daisy was so small that all she could see was straight in front of her.

lisasimps

My dog was neutered in http://www.gooldsvetclinic.com in cork.She's quite nervous so i went to get the cone in advance to get her used to it but was told he doesnt use them.

When she was done she never once went at the stitches, i think he put some sort of glue or film over them so she had no interest in them.

I recommend them to everyone i know, and know a lot of clients that are very happy with them. If you cant get to cork, perhaps ring them and ask what they do differently then ring around your local vets and see if anyone operates similarly.

Alternatively ive heard good stuff about 'puppy bumpers' too

lrushe

Think I have posted this before but when I had my Chihuahua as spayed last year instead of the cone I just put her coat on upside down, in other words the straps of the coat where over her back an the the coat itself was covering her stomach (and stitches), she was used to wearing her coat so she thought nothing of it.
Others have used doggy jumpers to cover the stitches and stop the dogs from licking the wound.

Casey_81

lrushe wrote: »

Think I have posted this before but when I had my Chihuahua as spayed last year instead of the cone I just put her coat on upside down, in other words the straps of the coat where over her back an the the coat itself was covering her stomach (and stitches), she was used to wearing her coat so she thought nothing of it.
Others have used doggy jumpers to cover the stitches and stop the dogs from licking the wound.

Thats a great idea! Especially if she had long hair, she'd be cold where she was shaved.

Cherry Blossom

lrushe wrote: »

Think I have posted this before but when I had my Chihuahua as spayed last year instead of the cone I just put her coat on upside down, in other words the straps of the coat where over her back an the the coat itself was covering her stomach (and stitches), she was used to wearing her coat so she thought nothing of it.
Others have used doggy jumpers to cover the stitches and stop the dogs from licking the wound.

Where exactly are the stitches? I thought of this but was told she'd eat through the coat to get at them. She has a coat with a splash guard because she hates getting her tummy brushed and it minimalises the need for it.

lrushe

In the case of my Chi they were about an inch or so below her rib cage, though it would depend on the size of the dog, a bigger dogs stitches would be further down.
I think it would have to be a v.determined dog to chew through their coat to get to their stitches, though of course it is not impossible but it is just another alternative to a cone.

Cherry Blossom

She's only a 6 mth old Westie and the splash guard does go quite far back so it may well work the right way up, should I put it on inside out? The inside has a kind of fleece lining, I wouldn't want it sticking to her.

lrushe

No I had the fleece side against her wound and it was fine. The wound itself if not moist or anything, it is vey clean and dry and much smaller than you might imagine.