Cinder's Journey

By afales
  • Rover Night

    Rover Night
    After a promising meeting, we decided to take Cinder home for a trial night.
  • Adoption Day

    Adoption Day
    We welcomed Cinder into our family!
  • First Sign of Inter-Dog Aggression

    Level 3: Random Fight Seemed like Penny was the aggressor; Penny punctured Cinder's left arm.
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    Holiday Trip

    A string of events occurred during this trip. This was when Cinder first showed signs of reactivity and fear aggression.
  • Began Using a Muzzle

    One of our top priorities and biggest training accomplishments has been making sure Cinder is muzzle trained and enjoys wearing it.
  • Meeting with NHA

    Meeting with NHA
    We met with NHA, the shelter we adopted Cinder from, as soon as we could to discuss next steps. They provided us with support and free resources.
  • Bite Incident

    Level 1: Met unfamiliar dog, sniffed, then bit Cinder and the dog sniffed each other and then with no warning, cinder bit the other dog's face.
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    Goodpup Training

    We tried two virtual trainers for basic manners training for Cinder. They discontinued our membership because of her behavioral issues, regardless of her positive progress in basic training.
  • Inter-Dog Aggressive Event

    Level 2: Fight Over Toy Cinder snapped at a toy and took it from Penny, which caused Penny to bite and puncture Cinder's arm.
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    Behaviorist Training

    Our behaviorist was unable to help us improve any of her behaviors. Even with numerous in-home visits, Cinder never was able to be calmed down to be trained.
  • Inter-Dog Aggressive Event

    Level 2: Random Fight Unsure of the events. Penny punctured Cinder's back leg.
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    Fluoxetine

    Our behaviorist recommended this medication. We got it filled by our vet. There was no improvement with this medicine.
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    Behavior Webinar

    We attended a webinar specializing in reactivity, anxiety, and animal behavior featuring dog behavior specialists from around the world.
  • Inter-Dog Aggressive Event

    Level 3: Anxiety Induced Fight, Resulted in Vet Visit
    Level 4: Broke Ari's Finger, accident, resulted in Medical Visits
    Cinder got triggered by a person in the dark (Penny got startled as well), Penny tried to correct Cinder's behavior. Penny grabbed a hold of Cinder's neck and punctured her left ear. Penny accidently bit my finger and broke it.
  • Vet Visit

    Vet Visit
    We discussed our concerns with our vet and they gave us Gabapentin and Trazedone to try situationally. There was no improvement in her behaviors with either medication.
  • Inter-Dog Aggressive Event

    Level 2: Fight Over Toy Cinder snapped at a toy and took it from Penny, which caused Penny to bite and puncture cinder's right paw and neck.
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    Vet Behaviorist

    We began meeting with a vet behaviorist at UTCVM.
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    Clonidine

    We are currently trying this medication. We saw a big improvement initially, but she seems back to her normal behaviors.
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    Sertraline

    Currently trying this medication. We have seen little to no changes in her behavior. The Vet Behaviorist recently increased her dosage.
  • Inter-Dog Aggressive Event

    Level 2: Stress Induced Fight Penny was frustrated and barking at the window, Alex flipped her over onto her back, which further stressed her out. When Cinder approached, to see what was happening, Penny grabbed Cinder's head.
  • Enrichment Calendar

    Enrichment Calendar
    We began an enrichment calendar to try and stimulate both Cinder and Penny more mentally. We also began implementing slow feeders for every meal.
  • Inter-Dog Aggressive Event

    Level 4: Random fight, resulted in vet visit Seemed like Penny was the aggressor. Penny tore open Cinder's inner thigh. Both girls had been hyper and playful prior to the fight.
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    Behaviorist Training

    We had an initial consultation with Instinct Dog Training. We have our kickoff consultation with a behaviorist for both girls on 8/7.