Designer Dog Blogs

by sands904 on 1/26/2010 at 8:52 PM in Logan

So, I have finally decided to take Logan in to have his thyroid tested. I have been contemplating it for about a year now and probably should have done it long ago. After working with him for over a year now for his aggressive and reactive behavior, I am finally going to have him tested. I called our vet this morning and set up an appointment to take him in tomorrow to have his blood drawn. I am then going to send it in to Hemopet and have Dr. Jean Dodds analyze it. I know it may sound bad but I am really hoping it comes back low.

From the research I have been doing low thyroid function is directly related to behavior as well as other issues. Specifically aggression, fear, hyperactivity, a dull coat, hair loss and other symptoms. Logan's behavior really changed around 1.5 to 2 years of age a prime time for developing hypothyroidism I now know. He is very fearful of new people and surroundings as well as aggressive toward other dogs. All of the work I have put in over the past year plus have not gone unrewarded. Logan's behavior and fear of things has been decreasing slowly but he still has issues at times. I have joked many times that he has Doggie ADHD and now I have found out that similar symptoms can also be linked to hypothyroidism (low-thyroid).

If he indeed does have hypothyroidism there is medication we can put him on which can help him and his behavior. I am not one for needlessly medicating my dog but the undue stress he experiences on a daily basis cannot be healthy for him either. Once I send the sample in tomorrow the results should only take a couple of days to get back...
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by sands904 on 1/9/2010 at 5:40 PM in Logan

Logan had his first agility class today! He did better than I thought he would. Having just gone through the reactive dog class I wasn't sure just how he would do. At first we practiced the obstacles one at a time and he was a little over-excited being that close to the other dogs and barked and lunged a few times but I was able to get his attention off of them and back on me very quickly. After we went through each of the 5 obstacles one at a time we started combining them and one dog ran the entire course at a time with the other behind a fence. Logan really settled down at this time and did excellent when it was his turn to run the course. I could tell he was really having fun!!! When we left there were a few dogs waiting for the next class right outside the door and Logan sniffed them nicely and continued walking. HE DID GREAT!!!!!!
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