I took Tucker to the vet on Friday. He needed a regular exam and vaccines but I mainly wanted to go to ask about potentially getting him on meds for his fear aggression and reactivity. This was the first time we had seen this vet and I loved her. Tucker was a very good boy, he always makes us seem like fools at the vets because he never shows any aggression at all, though I am thankful because that makes it very easy to get things done quickly. By the end he was taking treats from and giving hi fives to the tech. Meanwhile we're trying to convince them he's aggressive (not really, they did believe us).
The vet talked with us (my mom was with me also) for a long time about his behavior. In the end she said she has no problem putting him on meds as long as we understand it's not magic and that it's not going to change his underlying temperament. She believes (as I do) that his behavior is mainly driven by his genes so, while the meds may help, Tucker will never be "cured". Of course I already knew this, I just think we could use all the help we can get. However, she'd really like us to talk to a vet behaviorist first. Partly because she'd like their advice on which medication to prescribe and partly because she'd like us to have the training advice to go along with it. Her main concern was that some meds have the ability to cause disinhibition of aggression which can lead a fearful dog who wouldn't normally bite to start biting. This is probably my main concern as well, though he's already more than willing to bite strangers so I don't know how much less inhibited he could get. I'm actually more worried it could cause him to bite us or the cats more rather than making his stranger aggression worse. There are instances where he growls at us that I worry could turn into biting on meds, and I'm afraid his reactivity towards the cat could turn more serious. I suppose we could always just take him off the meds if that happens.
So anyway, the vet suggested we go to the Tufts behavior clinic. If we couldn't actually go there then they have something called Pet Fax that one of her techs used with good success. I guess you fill out a bunch of forms on your dog's behavior and fax it to them then they respond with training and management suggestions plus med suggestions if they feel it's warranted. She wasn't sure what the cost was, she said maybe $300-400 but I'm not sure if she was referring to Pet Fax or to the in person consult. Hopefully that's for in person because there is no way I can afford that especially since I'm really only doing it for the med recommendation. I don't know how much training wise they're going to tell me that I don't already know. I'd rather spend the money on a reactive dog class or a trainer who can come to our house and work with us. The vet said if we really don't feel we can afford Tufts she is willing to prescribe us meds anyway, though she'd still like us to see a trainer. She just would really like the vet behaviorist's opinion on meds. She would likely give us prozac or Buspar, she's not 100% sure yet.
I've looked on the Tufts behavior website in the past but looking at it now it looks like they have changed their services a bit. They no longer list phone consults or Pet Fax. They have in person consults at Tufts or VetFax. Honestly I see no benefit to bringing Tucker in, his behavior will not present itself there like it does at home. He'll be too scared and shut down from being somewhere new to be reactive. Plus I'm better at explaining myself through writing than speaking so I'll likely give a better description of his behavior through the forms. So I'm interested in the Vet Fax. It's different from what the vet was talking about though. This service is a vet-to-vet thing, they fax the forms to the vet and you and the vet both fill them out then the vet faxes them back to Tufts. Your own vet determines the cost. Hopefully my vet will be willing to do this. I'm planning on calling Tufts in the next few days to learn more about how to do it.
Has anyone done a pet fax type thing before or have experience with Tufts specifically? I'll keep you all updated.
The vet talked with us (my mom was with me also) for a long time about his behavior. In the end she said she has no problem putting him on meds as long as we understand it's not magic and that it's not going to change his underlying temperament. She believes (as I do) that his behavior is mainly driven by his genes so, while the meds may help, Tucker will never be "cured". Of course I already knew this, I just think we could use all the help we can get. However, she'd really like us to talk to a vet behaviorist first. Partly because she'd like their advice on which medication to prescribe and partly because she'd like us to have the training advice to go along with it. Her main concern was that some meds have the ability to cause disinhibition of aggression which can lead a fearful dog who wouldn't normally bite to start biting. This is probably my main concern as well, though he's already more than willing to bite strangers so I don't know how much less inhibited he could get. I'm actually more worried it could cause him to bite us or the cats more rather than making his stranger aggression worse. There are instances where he growls at us that I worry could turn into biting on meds, and I'm afraid his reactivity towards the cat could turn more serious. I suppose we could always just take him off the meds if that happens.
So anyway, the vet suggested we go to the Tufts behavior clinic. If we couldn't actually go there then they have something called Pet Fax that one of her techs used with good success. I guess you fill out a bunch of forms on your dog's behavior and fax it to them then they respond with training and management suggestions plus med suggestions if they feel it's warranted. She wasn't sure what the cost was, she said maybe $300-400 but I'm not sure if she was referring to Pet Fax or to the in person consult. Hopefully that's for in person because there is no way I can afford that especially since I'm really only doing it for the med recommendation. I don't know how much training wise they're going to tell me that I don't already know. I'd rather spend the money on a reactive dog class or a trainer who can come to our house and work with us. The vet said if we really don't feel we can afford Tufts she is willing to prescribe us meds anyway, though she'd still like us to see a trainer. She just would really like the vet behaviorist's opinion on meds. She would likely give us prozac or Buspar, she's not 100% sure yet.
I've looked on the Tufts behavior website in the past but looking at it now it looks like they have changed their services a bit. They no longer list phone consults or Pet Fax. They have in person consults at Tufts or VetFax. Honestly I see no benefit to bringing Tucker in, his behavior will not present itself there like it does at home. He'll be too scared and shut down from being somewhere new to be reactive. Plus I'm better at explaining myself through writing than speaking so I'll likely give a better description of his behavior through the forms. So I'm interested in the Vet Fax. It's different from what the vet was talking about though. This service is a vet-to-vet thing, they fax the forms to the vet and you and the vet both fill them out then the vet faxes them back to Tufts. Your own vet determines the cost. Hopefully my vet will be willing to do this. I'm planning on calling Tufts in the next few days to learn more about how to do it.
Has anyone done a pet fax type thing before or have experience with Tufts specifically? I'll keep you all updated.
