Dog born with mental issues?

[ruckusluvr]

Isnt it possible to be born with issues? Before I got Ruckus (sheltie) the breeder did tell me that he wasnt one for snuggling, and he was a shy puppy.

I got Ruckus at 4 months old. He wouldnt move for the first two days I got him. wouldnt play, eat, or even walk around. he just laid in the corner. I pretty well left him alone to give him time to adjust.

I socialized the snot out of this puppy to try to get him out of his shell. And you couldnt tell he had been socialized!

Fast forward two years. Ruckus had aggression issues, NEVER once wagged his tail, and was scared of many many things. After a few vet visits we put him on Amitriptyline, and he is now a different dog. He plays, comes up to strangers in the dog park for attention, wags his tail, etc.

Has anyone else ever heard of a similar case? I am wondering that something didnt happen when he was a puppy! Or if its possible to just be born like that? How common is it for a puppy to be born with a chemical imbalance or the like?

Is it genetic?

[Nettle]

Yes and yes. It is perfectly possible for dogs to be born with mental issues, and some of these are genetic.


And you know, many owners don't even notice, so *bunchofflowers* to you for all the work you have done with your dog.

[mselisabs]

I think certainly dogs/cats/animals can be born with "imbalances" just like people. We had a cat that lived across the street from us and would bully OUR cats, curse at us when we walked by (in our own yard), pee into our windows, the list goes on... he lived in a house with other cats, with his own brother and sister (perfectly happy cats) And would bully them too. The family swore up and down they had him on kitty prozac, but the cat was quickly nick-named "hellcat" and my step-mother had such fun things as air horns and sticks to drive hellcat away. Needless to say, 10 years later they put him down because he was having "issues." This coincided with a rather large bandage on the wife's leg....
His story is not quite as nice as yours, I'm glad you guys found something to help him. If you still talk to the breeder you could always let her know... nothing accusatory, for all you know she's had pups like this before and might like to know.

[MaiasMom]

I first met Kai when he was 4 weeks old. I know the breeder very well. Kai is insecure, always has been, nothing the breeder did or I did to cause this. He is 3 years old now and still shows some insecure behavior. It's just him. His son was born butt first, I think he might has suffered some brain damage. He is slow and does not play much with people. He is afraid of most everything. His mother is the most secure dog, nothing bothers her. She was a great mother. She seemed to know that he has doggie CP and when people would come to look at her puppies to make a selection she would hide Tre under the bed. I took this to mean she wanted to keep him so I did. Tre is happy enough, good disposition with dogs and people, just big and slow.

We all know that dogs can become depressed so why not chemicle issues like us humans. It is really nice to know that they can get help.

[monib1969]

Yes it is 100% possible to have genetic issues. And they mostly come from breeders breeding dogs with unsuitable temperments, or overbreeding a female, and the majority are dogs that come from puppy mills. It is a shame that his breeder be allowed to breed dogs of such poor temperment.

With that being said you need to realize that this dog may not have as long of a life as you may wish. Not only because of the aggressive issues but because of the medication. Amitriptyline is a psychoactive active TCA drug, and another that has crossed over from the human world into the dog world and is used in the human world to treat those with SEVERE depression. It also has a bunch of side effects that with long term use can be detrimental to the health of your pet. Some include heart block, mania or OCD in some dogs,repetative licking, muscle stiffness, blurred vision, ulcers and others. Once he becomes immuned or the current dosage becomes ineffective naturally it will be increased, and eventually will get to the point where it can no longer be increased because of risk of death.

With a dog such as this, one that is fearful of basically life, and has many ghosts in his head I would definitely marker train him. I wouldn't put him in stressful or fearful situations, like meeting other dogs or people, as this could lead to many aggression issues later, and those you had experienced. Even though he is fine on the drugs, he still needs the confidence that is built through marker training. This will help with some of the ghosts but not all. Google marker training and good luck.

With any luck if you do this correctly and keep him away from the fearful situations you may be able to get him off the meds completely someday.

[MaiasMom]

With so much over breeding is it any wonder that your going to get dogs with "issues" Just look at the explosion of Collie breeding when Lassie came out. Some of the were so over bred you had to teach them to even eat. Even the most well bred dog can have quirks, some funny and good, some not so good. I wish you well with this little dog and good on you for getting him/her help.

[ruckusluvr]

thank you! this dog has been a battle from day one.
professional recommend him being PTS. I found meds, made his an almost normal dog. now the meds are not working nearly as good as they did in the past. I imagine we will have to adjust the dose and switch to something else. i am not giving up on this boy

[Mattie]

Fast forward two years. Ruckus had aggression issues,

I have a brain damaged dog, his was because his previous owner's son gave him drugs, change your thinking about him being aggressive, he isn't, he is just a very frightened little boy. Think about when we are frightened and how we react, this is only what your dog is doing but he can't swear at someone to go away, showing aggression is the only way he can express himself. When we change our thinking to what is really happening, it also helps us to cope and deal with the problems much better.

Have you tried TTouch or EFT? I found with my little boy these helped a lot.

[ruckusluvr]

we have done TTouch, but not regularly. maybe i should make a daily thing of it.

[MaiasMom]

I just watched an episode on Touch and treat. I have done this for many years. I like to use Moist and Meaty bits that I get from my local grocery store. You get alot of them for really cheap money, It has a really strong smell and they will stand on their heads to get it. I keep a handfull in my pocket at all times so I can reward good behavior as it happens. There is a dog in the neighbor hood that the owners don't do more than feed, he likes to come to our house for company. He needed brushing really bad but would not let me touch him. So I did use the touch and treat method to gain his trust, I never ever come up over his head with my hand and I am usually down at his level so I don't loom over him. It's taken about 6 months to get this dog comfortable with my hand on him and then the brush. He allows brushing for about 10 min at a time and I don't push it. He is treated all through the process. It takes time with a scared dog to gain trust, no quick moves, consistant behavior on your part and praise and treat good behavior.