Medication matters for your dog and animals can be hard to medicate. They don’t understand why they need medication or the consequences attached to getting better. All they know is that they need to engage in battle as they evade the unpleasantness of the medication. Owners are often not able to adopt the appropriate technique and, in spite of good intentions, dosing may slide and then stop.

So many owners complain about the cost of veterinary visits but it is possible that up to half of owners may not comply with the requirements, especially if the dosing régime is complex.

Whilst he got away with taking a bee into his mouth, Travis (and I) have hay fever. My eyes itch and I am sneezing. He has had two bouts of conjunctivitis and currently looks as if he has been denied sleep for a couple of days as his sclera are red rather than white. He is currently on his second round of eye medication because, although the first worked very well, the conjunctivitis returned as the pollen and dust levels increased.

No one wants to wrestle their puppy to administer medication; it damages the relationship and both parties find it frustrating. It is very easy to waste a great deal of expensive medication which goes anywhere other than where it is needed. I used positive reinforcement to accustom Travis to sitting quietly while I dropped medicine into each eye. By the third day, he was politely turning round and offering the second eye!

The R+Dog Training Puppy Start Right Courses  cover the beginnings of co-operative care so that you can train before you need to medicate.

The R+ Dog Training Happy Vet Visits Course can help you with medicating your dog (or cat) using co-operative care techniques and provide you with management strategies while you train to get that medicine down in the meantime.

Next week: Bad News Good News

Celebrate spring with the new Puppy Social Walk in Chiswick House grounds for help with walking well on the lead and negotiating hazards safely.