# Training to handle medical condition



## Thistle (Mar 22, 2012)

I just got back from a two-week vacation in which I left my dog with my parents (for the first time), as where I went didn't allow anything except service animals. She's always had bad anxiety with storms, but while I was gone my parents said she didn't have any trouble whatsoever, even with some really wild storms that came through. We're wondering if her anxiety isn't for storms, but rather for my movement disorder (looks kind of like a seizure), which is triggered by the pressure changes that come with storms. I already know she is stressed out by my disorder, but I didn't think she was sensitive enough to know if it's bothering me before it manifests physical symptoms. I'd like to try and teach her to behave in a certain way when she starts getting anxious and see if she can be taught to help rather than hide in the closet and throw my shoes around. How would I do this? Watch her to see when she gets anxious and then step her through some commands instead of letting her hide..?

I'd really like her to be able to lay next to me when I'm having a fit, as I had someone else's seizure dog do that while I was on vacation and it was a bigger help than my medication.


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## MikaTallulah (Jul 19, 2006)

I hope your find the resources you are looking for


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## Buddy's mom forever (Jun 23, 2011)

Bumping up.


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## Charliethree (Jul 18, 2010)

You want to train a 'default' behavior. If you want her to lay beside you when you are having a 'seizure', you need to start by teaching/training her to lay beside you when you are okay. Lay on your bed, call her up, reward her for coming up, encourage her to lay down beside you reward (pet, praise,treat) her for that. Repeat until she 'automatically' comes and lays beside you when you are laying on the bed and is comfortable/relaxed doing it. Praise and reward (big time) every time she does. You want to build it up so that her 'cue' to come lay beside you, is you laying down. Also practice this with you laying on the couch, floor or anywhere else, so that she can learn that regardless where you lay down, she is to come and lay beside you. You can put this on a verbal cue if you don't want her sleeping with you all the time, but I would use a verbal cue, only IF you are going to be able to say the 'cue' word when you need her to be there for you. 
Also work on building a rock solid recall, and make it the best party ever when she comes, then practice calling her to you when she starts showing signs that she is stressed, and reward her for coming big time (you want to call her to you before the stress level is too intense, once she is in the closet it is too late - she is over threshold and can't think). You want to teach her to default to you, not move away from you, when she is anxious.
It will take some time, practice and patience but with enough repetitions, I bet you can do it. 
Something that may help to keep her calm and thinking, if you know a when a storm is coming, is to give her Rescue Remedy, dosing a few drops, every couple of hours prior to the storm hitting.


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## Thistle (Mar 22, 2012)

Thank you Charliethree, I appreciate the advice. This is the first time I've ever had a dog, so there's a lot I don't know about interacting with them still. I've got her up on the bed with me right now, she's a bit nervous and keeps trying to shove her head onto the laptop keyboard, but she seems to already know a verbal cue for getting up on the bed. She must have learned it at her previous home. Is there something I can do to calm her down while she's on the bed? I'm not even having a fit right now and she's got her ears pulled back, is breathing heavy, and is almost whining. She's not used to being on the furniture, that's typically the domain of the cats, and I think it's freaking her out a bit.

Okay, one of the cats just came tearing down the hallway and she tried to burrow into my lap. I think she's scared of the cats right now.


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## Charliethree (Jul 18, 2010)

If she is willingly getting up on the bed, great! Right now she is just not sure she should be there. Make a point of having some treats handy, where you can reach them from the bed. Everytime she gets up there, reward her for it,pet her slowly and calmly. If she chooses to leave, let her ( dont 'force' her to stay), for a bit, then encourage her back up. Over time she will get comfortable with the idea, and settle right in. Practice frequently for short periods. Rewards and quiet praise/petting over time should help.


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## Claudia M (Aug 8, 2012)

How old is your dog? How long have you had her? What breed?


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## Thistle (Mar 22, 2012)

Charliethree said:


> If she is willingly getting up on the bed, great! Right now she is just not sure she should be there. Make a point of having some treats handy, where you can reach them from the bed. Everytime she gets up there, reward her for it,pet her slowly and calmly. If she chooses to leave, let her ( dont 'force' her to stay), for a bit, then encourage her back up. Over time she will get comfortable with the idea, and settle right in. Practice frequently for short periods. Rewards and quiet praise/petting over time should help.


Got it. I will do that.



Claudia M said:


> How old is your dog? How long have you had her? What breed?


She's a shelter dog, so I'm not certain, but I think she's about six years old now and if she's not a full golden retriever, then she's at least mostly golden. I got her about two years ago and it's taken a while to get her past being scared of everything. I don't think she was treated well, when I got her she didn't know how to play, didn't know how to interact with other dogs, and ran and hid if anyone was carrying anything near her. She's doing much better now.


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## Charliethree (Jul 18, 2010)

She's a shelter dog, so I'm not certain, but I think she's about six years old now and if she's not a full golden retriever, then she's at least mostly golden. I got her about two years ago and it's taken a while to get her past being scared of everything. I don't think she was treated well, when I got her she didn't know how to play, didn't know how to interact with other dogs, and ran and hid if anyone was carrying anything near her. She's doing much better now.

Bless your heart for rescuing and helping her through her difficulties! Focus on teaching her that being on the bed is a good thing, she may have gotten into 'trouble' for it in the past, so it might take some time for her to believe that she is 'supposed' to be there. Keep it positive and relaxed for her, feed some treats, play with her, rub her belly or cuddle (if she likes it).


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## Thistle (Mar 22, 2012)

Charliethree said:


> Bless your heart for rescuing and helping her through her difficulties! Focus on teaching her that being on the bed is a good thing, she may have gotten into 'trouble' for it in the past, so it might take some time for her to believe that she is 'supposed' to be there. Keep it positive and relaxed for her, feed some treats, play with her, rub her belly or cuddle (if she likes it).


It's the least I can do, she's helped me through my difficulties. When I got her I was in a real bad place. My first job out of college was also right when I got this disorder and it got real ugly there. By the time I left I was terrified to be seen by other people, as I felt like a cripple that didn't deserve respect or dignity. I'd sit and cry for about an hour before doing something a simple as getting groceries because I was so scared. I decided to get a dog because I'd had other dogs react to my disorder and it always seemed to help when they came over to me. I think they help more than medication - no side-effects other than a bit of slobber and fur. When I went to the shelter, I got Thistle (that's her name) out of her cage and she walked out and sat down and put her head against my leg and I knew she was the one for me.

I started meeting people while walking her and having her there helped me feel more confident and since she was the first thing people looked at, I didn't feel so vulnerable. It took about a year for me, but I've got a great job, just bought my own house, don't suffer from that anxiety anymore, and even got off the worst of the medications I was on. She gets mistaken for a service dog on a regular basis, I always have parents pulling their kids away saying they can't see the doggy while she's working.

Sorry, I totally went off on a tangent there, but she's just such a wonderful dog and I love telling people about her. I'm glad I'll never meet her previous owners, because she's so scared when she does something 'bad'. I don't know if she was abused, but I think she was over-disciplined. She had one accident - just once! - and when I got home she had rubbed all the skin off her nose from anxiety and there was blood on her and the carpet. Hopefully the bed won't be nearly as difficult as some of her other fears have been. I'll make a point of having her in the bed with me every day, I can make time before bedtime.


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## Charliethree (Jul 18, 2010)

Sounds like Thistle needed you as much as you needed her. A 'meant to be' match up! I have a 'special needs' rescue, who was abused, physically scarred and emotionally damaged, he taught me a lot about patience, love and compassion. They are amazing animals if you give them half a chance!


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## Thistle (Mar 22, 2012)

Thistle just had her first go at the real thing last night and she did pretty good! It helps that my fits are far less severe right now due to starting a new medication that finally, finally actually works. But I woke up in the middle of the night to one so I called her over and told her to get up, and she did and lay down next to me the whole time. She was really nervous, but she didn't try and run or hide, just got up a couple times to move around a bit and then lay back down. Once the fit was done I let her lay there with me until she was calm and wanted to get down, then I went and got her some treats. I am so proud of her for doing so well!


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## Buddy's mom forever (Jun 23, 2011)

Thistle said:


> Thistle just had her first go at the real thing last night and she did pretty good! It helps that my fits are far less severe right now due to starting a new medication that finally, finally actually works. But I woke up in the middle of the night to one so I called her over and told her to get up, and she did and lay down next to me the whole time. She was really nervous, but she didn't try and run or hide, just got up a couple times to move around a bit and then lay back down. Once the fit was done I let her lay there with me until she was calm and wanted to get down, then I went and got her some treats. I am so proud of her for doing so well!


I am so happy for you and your girl. Wish you life full of happiness.


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## Charliethree (Jul 18, 2010)

Thistle said:


> Thistle just had her first go at the real thing last night and she did pretty good! It helps that my fits are far less severe right now due to starting a new medication that finally, finally actually works. But I woke up in the middle of the night to one so I called her over and told her to get up, and she did and lay down next to me the whole time. She was really nervous, but she didn't try and run or hide, just got up a couple times to move around a bit and then lay back down. Once the fit was done I let her lay there with me until she was calm and wanted to get down, then I went and got her some treats. I am so proud of her for doing so well!


Wonderful!! Good job!! Both of you!! Try to keep a container of treats nearby, so that you can reward her while she is staying with you. Then release her, with 'all done' or 'okay' to get down, when you are ready. You can use a treat to lure her off, to start with, until she learns that she is free to go, (but doesn't have to go) when you give the cue. Keep sessions short to start with then gradually build the time you want her to stay with you after the fit has passed. You can certainly reward her when she gets off, but if you hold off rewarding until she does, she will associate the reward with getting off not with staying with you.


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