At the end of the day, Oscar is one tired little dude.
Here he is at 7:00 p.m.
Last night he was tired so I grabbed the emery board and worked on the second nail from the end.
He didn’t squirm. He didn’t fight. He didn’t put up any resistance. He was awake and he knew what I was doing but he didn’t care. I did give him a treat after I was finished. I think I’m going to try one nail a night and see what I can do. I only have to do the front nails so I should be able to get them all filed down within two weeks and then maybe every other day, hit each nail with just a bit of filing. I bought some heavier nail files today so I think it will be a little quicker.
If he gets used to this and doesn’t mind me doing it, this is going to be a game changer for us. He really puts up such a fight at the vet and, as I’ve mentioned, they want me to pick up meds and give them to him before I bring him in and, while I will do it for Oscar’s safety and the safety of the vet and the staff, I don’t like it and if I only have to do it for his annual visit, that will make me happy.
I’ll keep you posted on how this goes. I’m going to wait til about 8 or 9, when he’s really sleepy and he doesn’t mind me filing his nails. If he gets too testy, I’ll stop. We did get doggie CBD and it shows how much to give to a dog under 15 pounds. I haven’t used it and prefer not to use it but I’d rather do that than give him hard core meds to knock him out before he goes to the vet.
Wish me luck . . it’s going to be hard to type or cross stitch if I lose a few fingers. 🙂
Nelle Coursey says
Our dog gets CBD every day. She begs for them!! It is liquid and I give it to her by the dropperful.
judy.blog@gmail.com says
I prefer not to do it if I don’t have to but, you know I’m one who almost will never take anything myself either.
Helen Glover says
sorry but I had to laugh at “hard core” drugs!! What do you think CBD is? Bt if it helps him be calm I would use it also. Just my opinion. Love your blog!
judy.blog@gmail.com says
I don’t consider CBD to be hard core. We’re all entitled to our opinions though. Supposedly, it isn’t addictive and you don’t get high from it. Not sure what it does but you’re right, if it helps calm him, it may be worth it. I don’t mind him being crazy until I need for him not to be crazy so maybe some day I’ll give him a dose of it but for now, I’m not quite ready to take that step.
As a side note, when Chad started kindergarten in public school, the teacher was so sure he needed to be on medication. Our pediatrician knew I was against it and he agreed. We ended up putting Chad in a private school where discipline was a little stronger and challenges were a little greater and he did great. I’m thankful we took that route, let Chad be Chad and didn’t use meds. Each parent, with advice from their pediatrician must decide what’s right for their own child . . just like we all must decide what’s right for our pets.
Rebecca L says
.That worked out well! (Chad) I don’t have a child, but I wonder how many of the ADHD diagnoses are just kids being kids, and adults being overwhelmed. Sounds like what happened with Chad.
judy.blog@gmail.com says
That’s exactly how I felt. Chad was energetic, smart and determined. I understand that when there are 25 – 30 (or more) of those same personalities in a kindergarten classroom, things can get wild but he made it just fine without medication. When I volunteered at Chad’s schools, I was shocked at the number of kids who came to the nurse for their meds. It was pretty unbelievable.
I feel the same about Oscar. It may be a bit more challenging to keep him out of trouble but he needs exercise, challenges and lots of love. It’s hard for me to go out a dozen times a day and play ball with him but that’s what he needs and that’s the job I accepted when I got a puppy. He deserves to be able to live and enjoy the best life possible too.
Just my opinion. I’m sure lots of people will not agree.