Post # 1
Member
237 posts
Helper bee
We take our pup to the university vet, we love the attention he gets from the students, that its open 24hrs 7 days a week for emergencies and we have always seen the same vet who we love. I took him in to get a vaccine (he needs benedryl because he always has an allergic reaction to vaccines so he needs a whole appt). Since it was supposed to be an in and out appt they put us with a different vet…he was a butt face and i refuse to see him again.
Frankie has gone through petsmart training but he loves the vet so he often forgets to mind his manners. So he jumped on this new vet. Who immediately kneed my dog in the chest. Um excuse me, how would you like it if I kicked you in the brestbone?! I called my dog back to me and he listened. But when he jumped on him again he did it again! And so I said “he knows the command off”and he continued to do it!
The man then had the nerve to say to me “maybe you should take him to obedience classes, I think he might benefit from it” I wanted to punch him in the face.
We have purposefully trained our dog to love the vet and get excited, I would rather have him jump in excitement than bite in fear, especially since jumping is his only bad habit and he only does it away from home (and yes we are working on it). Jerk.
*deep breath*
Post # 3
Member
1940 posts
Buzzing bee
I’ll be honest… I can understand both sides. Yes, how the vet treated your dog wasn’t the best. However, I also wonder why you didn’t have your dog on a short leash and not allow him to jump after the 1st time. I have a dog too, and if she jumps, I make sure it doesn’t happen again by shortening her leash, giving commands, etc and then apologizing to the person she jumped on.
Post # 4
Member
7430 posts
Busy Beekeeper
That is my personal reaction to dogs who jump that i don’t want to jump on me. If its not done with a lot of force, you aren’t hurting the dog. If the dog didn’t yelp, then it probably didn’t hurt him. You have to think about it from the vets point of view, he sees x amount of dogs a day, most of which who jump and don’t have any training, so he just generalizes that all dogs who jump don’t have training. maybe you should have told him that he does this to the normal vet, so its his normal reaction. And next time you go to the vet, request to only see the normal vet
Post # 5
Member
2867 posts
Sugar bee
Jumping on vets is a no-no. Maybe that’s the way the vet was trained to handle dogs? I still think it’s mean, did the dog yelp or cry when it happened? Also, harness/leash your dog to keep him down. I grew up with German Shepherds, very jumpy and bouncy and we have to restrain them b/c they get too excited as well.
Post # 6
Member
3762 posts
Honey bee
Calm down a bit. This vet doesn’t know you or your dog. If you really feel uncomfortable then ask to see another vet and its not that big of a deal.
Maybe once your dog has a bit more training take him back to this vet and show the vet how much Frankie has improved!
Post # 7
Member
1641 posts
Bumble bee
It’s one thing to put your leg up so a dog can’t jump and another thing entirely for someone to knee a dog.
While it doesn’t sound like he was hurting him, I agree with you. And I would definitely make sure that you don’t see that vet again. Just the fact that you disagree about how to handle something means that you should keep from giving him money, IMO.
I do agree though that it is up to you to handle/correct the dog and TRY to not let him jump…at least work with him, and keep him on a leash until you have to take him off. My dog has learned “NO JUMP”, but she still does it occasionally if she gets excited. Last time it was at the dog park, and she jumped right on a pregnant woman. 🙁
Post # 8
Member
2561 posts
Sugar bee
I agree with the other posters. I am a dog lover, but when a dog jumps on me my immediate reaction is to bring my knee up. When a dog jumps up on me I assume it is untrained, letting it jump on anyone, including the vet is just plain rude.
My dog loves the vet, but knows his manners, and doesn’t get over-excited. Being well behaved doesn’t make the vet a negative experience.
Post # 9
Member
1801 posts
Buzzing bee
Our dog does the same thing! She’s very well trained, but when we go to the vet or to get her nails trimmed, the jumping begins. It’s odd, and we’re not quite sure how to train her not to do it because she never jumps any other time.
Our vet does put her knee up into Daisy’s chest, but not in an aggressive or kicking manner. It works wonders in getting her to stop it and I know it’s not hurting her, so it’s not such a big deal to us. The more our vet has gotten to know Daisy, the less she needs to do it and is able to command her down.
I think the key for you is consistency. Your dog doesn’t know the actual vet person, so he’s more likely to jump. If he gets to know the vet and can have some sort of recognition, the frequency of jumping should reduce.
Post # 10
Member
237 posts
Helper bee
I understand that it’s a natural response to do that when a dog jumps on you. Which is why I didnt say anything to him the first time. But the way he did it seemed IMO aggressive and was not defensively bringing his leg up but thrusting his knee cap directly in my dog’s breastbone. And the look on Frankie’s face was either startle or pain. We discussed this in detail with our trainer and she said it is extremely painful for dogs and often is used to break their will or spirit. What really irritated me was that he did it even after I asked him to use the command “off” which my dog will listen to.
After that one jump I did put him on a leash. But the other jumps were due to the vaccine and taking an ear culture, Because I was trying to hold him still rather than hold the leash because that’s what the vet instructed me to do.
I think another reason I was so upset was the way this guy treated me. He was really condescending and short with me even when the dog was calmly sitting next to me ignoring him completely.
@soonerpsych: It’s true about not knowing this new vet. Because with the regular vet we often see she can tell him “no” when she sees him starting to jump and he will stop and we don’t have to leash him in the room.
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