From the moment she returned home, Bella kept rubbing her backside on the bedspread, couch, chaise, grass, and leaves. When she would walk, she would suddenly stop and look to her right backside as if something had bit her, or, something had touched her. I checked her thoroughly and didn't see anything. I thought perhaps it's her tail touching her and she doesn't realize it. Could she be that oblivious?
The groomers seemed to have had a heavy hand with the razor. Rather than comb out the matty hair on her hindquarters, they opted to give a poodle shave, right down to the bare skin. I had asked for the "puppy cut" but I doubt a scissor was used anywhere on her. Other than being shaved on her belly for her operation, this is the first time she has no fur, in a couple of places, especially on her backside. She doesn't seem to like it.
She has been laying around and not her usual self. When I crinkle a paper wrapping, she doesn't come running to see what I have. When I eat, she's not at my feet hoping I'll drop something. Her dog food sat all morning without even being sniffed. Very unusual.
The more I watched her, the more I thought, "I think it is her tail hitting her bare flesh and tickling her." I tried to stop the tail from grazing her backside by first braiding the extra fur and then securing it with the rubber band bow she had on top of her head. I think it would have worked had she not ripped it out immediately. I tried three times. After the third time when she tried to eat the bow, I gave up.
Worried about her not eating, dog food that is, I carried her to her dish. As she stood there, I held her tail off of her, and she finally began to eat. This is what you have to do when you have a special dog. As soon as I dropped it, she'd stop and begin acting skittishly again. As she was eating I noticed a black dot on her. I thought I saw it move, so with my left hand holding the tail up, I took my right hand and moved the little bit of fur left on her back to see if I did indeed see something. Sure enough, there was a teeny tiny tick! Luckily it hadn't attached to her, so I grabbed it with my nails and crushed it in the garbage disposal.
The weird thing is that today is the first time I have ever put a flea and tick collar on her. She has been on the very expensive monthly Trelexis, which does not even repel or kill ticks. I found that out a couple of months ago when she had to have a tick removed by the vet. Although I had one pill left, something told me to put the collar on her instead. It was probably the warm weather and the possum, squirrel, chipmunk, cat, and skunk that have visited her yard lately. I'm sure they all carry fleas and ticks. I even argued with my husband this morning because he was against me using the collar, saying she was too young. I told him not to worry as it was a puppy flea collar and she was well above the weight requirements. I think the tick didn't attach to her because of the collar. Guess who was right again?
Anyway, I thought maybe that's why she was acting weird...she had a tick stuck to her. But, after removal of the tick and a thorough examination to make sure there are no others on her, she is still acting weird. I hope nothing too traumatic happened yesterday, and that it's just her not realizing it's her tail touching her.
Malcolm used to act strange for a few days after going to the groomer. It took about four or five different groomers to find the perfect one. We found one that takes her time with him and she's right up the street from us, too.
ReplyDeleteI have to use a combination of Frontline and Heartgard for Malcolm even throughout the winter. The ticks here are so bad. The white fur makes it easier to see them, though. We tried Advantix, but he had an allergic reaction.
Try not to baby her when she comes back from the groomer. They will think you're doing that for a valid reason - ie. bad, bad groomer! :)
Also, try to brush her at least once a day, so she doesn't get matted. There's nothing else the groomer can do except to shave them down to the skin when the matting gets bad. It's too painful to brush the matted areas out.
Her fur will grow fast, so no worries, Elena.
Best wishes,
Barb
Her matted problem arose from when she had the reaction to the inside stitches from her spaying. She had to wear the cone and we couldn't bathe her for two weeks. She hates to be brushed but after this experience she's gonna learn to like it! Thanks for your response Barb! I hope her fur will grow fast...that darn tail is driving the poor baby crazy.
ReplyDeleteWhen I had a dog, a very long time ago, she would grow very listless and act like she didn't feel well when we changed her flea and tick collar, or when she'd been to the vet and they used some kind of spray on her. I wonder if it might be something like that. I hope she is feeling better, poor baby.
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