21/06/2025
🦊 SHARING ON BEHALF OF BASIL'S MUM 🦊
We train with the whole dog in mind, always. Because behaviour 'problems' might stem from other things, and to think your dog is simply being 'naughty' is a narrow-minded, dead-end approach. Please keep Basil in your thoughts with love 🧡
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Today’s reminder: If you think there’s something off with your dog, you’re probably right.
Basil is nearly six, and has been reactive since the day we got him (not that we knew that at the time). In fact, we began working with Estelle from Allsorts Dog Training (thank God!) well before he was one.
We made incredible progress through the Reactive Dog Program and beyond, but at some point Basil kind of plateaued, we lost confidence, and despite our training efforts we were seeing a spike in reactivity with his threshold for ‘triggers’ shortening. In early 2024, we made two big decisions—to remove his a**l glands (which had been giving him ongoing issues) and to start him on anti-anxiety medication. Around this time, I’d also noticed one of his back legs would often shake while weight-bearing, but our vet wasn’t concerned. Regardless, the combination of training, medication, and a lack of a**l glands were genuinely transformative—Basil was still Basil, but seemed much happier and had the newfound ability to think things through before reacting. He even made his first ever canine friend!
Fast forward to a few weeks ago, when we’d started to notice a spike in behavioural issues in the home (odd, given his reactivity is usually in public around other dogs). And then—he bit me over a resource. Had I made handling misteps? Yes. Was I in a bad mood and not acting as cautiously as usual? Yes. BUT, a bite, given the training and progress we’ve made around resource guarding specifically, was a complete surprise.
Naturally, we called Estelle, and her immediate response was: Pain. As Basil needs to be sedated for vet visits (which would make doing pain tests pointless), we asked our vet to prescribe a 6-week course of pain meds to see if this would improve his behaviour. They were (understandably) relucant, and asked us if we’d noticed any signs of discomfort or a potential reason for pain. I’d responded with “Sometimes his ears get itchy, and his back leg still shakes when weight-bearing”. They thought he could have an ear infection, but his shaky leg wasn’t likely a concern since he has no issues jumping up, on or off things. Our compromise was to sedate him, take x-rays, do blood tests, and check for any obvious signs of pain in the first instance (plus a bonus mani-pedi).
The x-ray showed hip displasia, and a very, very low amount of muscle mass (especially concerning considering his diet) with more test results due next week before we decide on the best plan of attack—turns out a shaky leg isn’t normal. Until then, I’m going to avoid dwelling on other signs I may have missed, and enjoy the odd sense of relief knowing Basil’s recent behavioural changes are most definitely linked to pain despite me wishing it never existed in the first place.
Basil is currently enjoy a lovely anaesthetic-feulled nap, and he’ll be getting a very generous dinner tonight!
