[lgslgs]

Different handling can get very different results.

My first rescue was a 2 year old boy that I named Guinness., I was able to call the vet's office that his first owner took him to. They told me he was dangerous, had to be held down, should never be in a vet's office without a muzzle, and all sorts of horror stories. He apparently had such a bad reputation that even the receptionist was quick to label him a dangerous dog.

I made an appointment with my own vet, disclosing what I had been told, and told them we'd start with socialization only visits until we had him trained to be cooperative. I really expected we'd need half a dozen visits until we were ready for an actual full vet exam.

Well, on visit one he was good natured and cooperative. He also "aggressively" tried to climb on every bench, scale and exam table like a total goon. As we got to know him better, we realized that Guinness thought his job was to get on an exam table, and he'd try to climb onto every similar surface until the exam was over. After the exam he never tried to jump on things. So this "aggressive" and "disobedient" behavior was just eagerness to please and not knowing what was expected of him.

He was also clueless about his mouth and would wave his head around, open mouthed, when excited. We had to specifically teach him how to behave in a relaxed manner and be careful with his mouth. Again - that was him not understanding, not him being dangerous. Certainly not biting, though with clueless open mouthed head waving it was very easy to get bumped by a high speed tooth or mouth.

Throughout his life I handled him at the vet, taking the head position. His vet experience before I got him was just so incredibly bad that I was never going to take a chance that he'd be in a situation where he'd feel threatened and bite. If there was going to be a bite, he'd have to bite me - and in his entire life he never did.

That includes the time the vet cauterized a skin tag off his elbow with local anesthesia only, needle biopsies while conscious, and vet removal of a stuck puzzle ball that wedged his mouth open and pinched his gums and tongue. All of our vets would shake their heads in disbelief when told that he had previously been labeled a dangerous dog by first owner and first veterinarian's office.

Toggle may very well need some special training to learn to enjoy the vet's office and accept handling. A good vet and good office staff should be helpful in accommodating socialization visits, scale practice visits, nail clipping and temp taking practice and the like for minimal cost - if any., If I had a vet that wasn't willing to support that level of socialization training I'd find another vet.

You don't want to keep Toggle a victim of her past by promoting an "oh, the poor dear" attitude - but she may very well needs some time and focused practice in learning that her new world is full of people she can trust and rely on.

After Guinness's first vet experience during his first two years, I'm not sure he would ever have done very well being handled away from me, out of site, without first having a few visits to make friends with the vet and the assistants. At age 7, we moved and he had a new vet - and even though he was easy for me to handle and properly cooperative with her, it took about 4 or 5 visits with her before he'd accept a dog treat from her. Eventually he progressed from aloof cooperation to being Dr. Cindy's number one fan and best pal in the world. :) But it took time and relationship building.


I wouldn't be surprised if Toggle has a ghost or two in her past that will drop in from time to time and remind her of times past when she may have felt threatened, unsupported, or afraid. Stuff like that fades and rescues build the ability to trust quite easily.


There is one other thing you might want to consider if there is any evidence that she may have been in an abusive situation in the past. Guinness was definitely mistreated before we got him - and showed very clear signs of having been hit. Because we knew he had been harshly treated in the past we felt that we needed to make sure that he never again hear his old name (Rommel). There was just too much indication that his former name had been used in situations where he had every right to feel frightened and threatened.

I don't recall what you've written about Toggle's past and whether you know what sort of life she had prior to rescue. If there was possible hitting or other harsh treatment, you may want to assess whether strangers using her name triggers any fear or uncertainty in her. If it does and you want to keep he lovely name, I'd add name usage to the positive socialization training as well so that she learns that when strangers say "Toggle", it's a good thing.


Lynda