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Post by critter015 on Aug 28, 2017 12:04:40 GMT -6
Our dog, W, got attacked by coyotes over the weekend and is going to be pretty much stuck in our laundry room for a few weeks of recovery with a cone on his head. He doesn't really have any toys besides balls and frisbees to fetch and I don't normally give him things to chew on because so many things aren't safe. I guess I'm just looking for ideas of what you guys have had good luck with for your dogs, because really he normally just hangs out outside and keeps himself busy patrolling the property.
He's an 18 month old schnauzer, so like 35-40 pounds. I'm trying to get things kind of set up for him before I go pick him up from the vet later this afternoon. He's not real high energy, but I want to give him some things to entertain himself so he doesn't become destructive. I'm hoping in a few days when he's feeling more like himself I'll be able to let him come into the rest of the house, and he can just hang out with us, but I think he'll need to be separated for a while. Any other ideas or anecdotes are welcome - I am so not a dog person, but I'm trying!
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piccyami
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Post by piccyami on Aug 28, 2017 12:12:30 GMT -6
I'm sorry he's hurt. Our go-to entertainment for Lucy is either a Kong stuffed with peanut butter and then frozen (lasts longer) or a benebone. She's crazy destructive with toys, so she only gets things that last.
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Post by Dramaphile on Aug 28, 2017 12:34:38 GMT -6
I second a frozen Kong with peanut butter. They also make other shaped kongs, my dog loves the bone shaped one. There's a cool toy called a Buster cube that you can put kibble or tiny treats in and the dog has to roll it around to get the food out.
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rugger
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Post by rugger on Aug 28, 2017 13:26:22 GMT -6
How mobile is he going to be? Like, will he be able to get up and down easily?
If you want him to entertain himself, a Kong with frozen PB will last a while. You can also just work on basic obedience and tricks with him to keep his brain active.
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Post by charlotte on Aug 28, 2017 13:57:31 GMT -6
Poor guy! I hope he heals quickly.
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Post by critter015 on Aug 28, 2017 14:50:19 GMT -6
Thanks guys. I'll get him a Kong. He's seems like he's pretty mobile but his big wound is on his hind end, so sitting may be an issue for a while. Unfortunately they ended up not sending him home today due to infection. I'm hoping the antibiotics work quickly because we really can't afford for them to do anything else to him. I feel bad about my attitude, but I honestly wish we would have just put him down as soon as we found him because this is ridiculous, and because I can't stand this dog and have zero desire to spend time messing with him. My husband and kids love him though, so I'll keep sucking it up for them.
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snowmoon
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Post by snowmoon on Aug 28, 2017 17:20:10 GMT -6
Our dogs love kongs too and it can keep them busy for a long time. They're big chewers too and love Nylabones.
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Post by brandiewine11 on Aug 28, 2017 18:21:02 GMT -6
Antlers! They last forever and are safe. Dog puzzles are good too. You're going to need to tire him out by working his brand. You can make your own puzzles by having him find a treat under a cup, etc.
Teaching "touch" and making it a game works as well when he's not super mobile.
I'm so sorry that happened but glad he's ok!
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Post by critter015 on Aug 30, 2017 6:58:01 GMT -6
Update on W. He's still at the vet - waiting on lab results about his infection (which is doing better), waiting to see if part of his wound needs another surgery, waiting for him to poop. We went to visit him yesterday afternoon and he was so happy to see us. They were wanting to put him on stronger pain meds. I asked about bringing in the Kong to give him something to do to take his mind off of the pain and they said I can bring it and he can have whatever treats I bring for him to have in it, so I'm going to take him that this morning. Are the actual Kong treats any good? I thought I'd try to send a couple of different things.
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Post by Dramaphile on Aug 30, 2017 7:07:14 GMT -6
Update on W. He's still at the vet - waiting on lab results about his infection (which is doing better), waiting to see if part of his wound needs another surgery, waiting for him to poop. We went to visit him yesterday afternoon and he was so happy to see us. They were wanting to put him on stronger pain meds. I asked about bringing in the Kong to give him something to do to take his mind off of the pain and they said I can bring it and he can have whatever treats I bring for him to have in it, so I'm going to take him that this morning. Are the actual Kong treats any good? I thought I'd try to send a couple of different things. They have a can of Kong brand filler you can buy (kind of like spray cheese) that's probably easier for filling and maybe lower calorie than peanut butter (?), but not really necessary. You can do just plain peanut butter (not the sugar free/low sugar kind), or mix PB and banana. You can also mix some PB and small dog treats or kibble and stuff it in there. Really anything you can mash up and stuff inside works well. Freeze them so they take longer to chew. More ideas: www.awlqld.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/28-Get-Stuffed-Kong-filling-ideas-March-2011.pdf
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Post by niko8083 on Aug 30, 2017 7:12:13 GMT -6
Update on W. He's still at the vet - waiting on lab results about his infection (which is doing better), waiting to see if part of his wound needs another surgery, waiting for him to poop. We went to visit him yesterday afternoon and he was so happy to see us. They were wanting to put him on stronger pain meds. I asked about bringing in the Kong to give him something to do to take his mind off of the pain and they said I can bring it and he can have whatever treats I bring for him to have in it, so I'm going to take him that this morning. Are the actual Kong treats any good? I thought I'd try to send a couple of different things. We've stuffed ours with plain animal crackers/cookies before. Inexpensive and our lab loves them.
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Post by brandiewine11 on Aug 30, 2017 12:27:50 GMT -6
We use kibble and pb. Double check that your peanut butter is free of xylitol.
If you're trying to get him to eat, treats are good. But remember as he heals and is less active you should cut his calories to avoid unwanted weight gain.
No matter what, a kong lasts about 10 minutes max in this house then she's done. But she will chew an antler for hours off and on.
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Post by critter015 on Aug 30, 2017 13:58:53 GMT -6
TW....
Well eff! After W's initial evaluation the vet gave a range of what treatment would cost, with the upper number supposedly being the absolute worst case scenario. We were comfortable with spending up to that amount, had we not been we would not have proceeded with treatment. After the initial surgery and everything they called and let us know that we were on the worse end of the spectrum and said the total cost could potentially be a few hundred more, which we decided we could stretch our budget to handle because they kept acting so confident about how well he was doing. Today they called and said that his wounds are not following the best case scenario and are presenting us with a potential cost 6 times the original amount. We just can't spend any more on him. I feel like this has been a huge bait and switch situation, that the original "worst case" quote should have included this extra stuff they are saying he needs now. It makes me feel so guilty that we put him through all of this and spent all this money and now we're going to have to put him down because the vet wasn't honest with us about the cost. I'm going to take the kids to see him and give them a chance to say goodbye after we pick up C from school. I am so so sad.
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Post by charlotte on Aug 30, 2017 14:02:32 GMT -6
critter015 ugh! That is sad, especially after you guys stretched your budget to pay for treatment already
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Post by Dramaphile on Aug 30, 2017 14:03:34 GMT -6
TW.... Well eff! After W's initial evaluation the vet gave a range of what treatment would cost, with the upper number supposedly being the absolute worst case scenario. We were comfortable with spending up to that amount, had we not been we would not have proceeded with treatment. After the initial surgery and everything they called and let us know that we were on the worse end of the spectrum and said the total cost could potentially be a few hundred more, which we decided we could stretch our budget to handle because they kept acting so confident about how well he was doing. Today they called and said that his wounds are not following the best case scenario and are presenting us with a potential cost 6 times the original amount. We just can't spend any more on him. I feel like this has been a huge bait and switch situation, that the original "worst case" quote should have included this extra stuff they are saying he needs now. It makes me feel so guilty that we put him through all of this and spent all this money and now we're going to have to put him down because the vet wasn't honest with us about the cost. I'm going to take the kids to see him and give them a chance to say goodbye after we pick up C from school. I am so so sad. Oh critter015 that is so crappy. I'm really sorry you're going through this and your vet was not up front (but acted they were, ugh).
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Post by niko8083 on Aug 30, 2017 14:10:25 GMT -6
I'm sorry his treatment didn't go as planned. That's hard.
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piccyami
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Post by piccyami on Aug 30, 2017 14:40:51 GMT -6
Oh, critter015, that's so awful. I'm sorry things were so much worse than expected.
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rugger
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Post by rugger on Aug 30, 2017 15:02:27 GMT -6
I'm so sorry that happened to you and your dog. What a crappy thing to do to a family
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mc13
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Post by mc13 on Aug 30, 2017 16:46:54 GMT -6
Ugh, that's so horrible. I'm sorry you have to go through this.
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nikkipal
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Post by nikkipal on Aug 30, 2017 18:11:02 GMT -6
I'm sorry. That really sucks.
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DGM
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Post by DGM on Aug 30, 2017 22:50:01 GMT -6
I'm sorry your family has to go through this.
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Post by brandiewine11 on Aug 31, 2017 4:48:52 GMT -6
I'm so sorry. That's awful
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tj
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Post by tj on Aug 31, 2017 7:00:22 GMT -6
I'm sorry.
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milano
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Post by milano on Aug 31, 2017 19:30:37 GMT -6
I'm sorry to hear that critter.
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snowmoon
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Post by snowmoon on Aug 31, 2017 19:59:46 GMT -6
Sorry to hear that critter.
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sassyq
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Post by sassyq on Sept 1, 2017 6:22:02 GMT -6
Oh I'm so sorry!
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