Page 7 - Summer 22

Timmy, a 9-year-old Shih Tzu castrated male, was presented for itching and allergy. It had started 2 years before with licking feet and got worse and worse. The local vet had prescribed prednisolone tables which controlled the itching but caused him to pant and pant. When these were replaced by Apoquel ®, the itch was insufficiently controlled.
This is the story as told by the owner.
’Out on walks he became panty and would lie down and went pink all over. This happened mostly walking on the grass. On the road he was much better.
He used to have ear issues, but this is fine now.(In the consult, he examines the room a bit, but soon finishes sitting by the owner and later under the chair).
He is always with me, always on my lap, he has to be touching me all the time, especially when I am sitting down. He is loving but gets protective over me. He does not like children. He is always next to me, always there.
He came from a puppy farm.
He does not like bikes, he goes for the wheels. He will move the other dog of my lap and sit in front of her. He eats very fast. He ran over to us when we went to choose him as a pup. He was like a bouncy sheep. He did not bark
the first weeks. He was good at puppy classes (training classes with other pups). He only pays attention if he wants to. He can be obedient; but if there is something interesting in the garden, he will ignore me. Out on walks he comes back as soon as called every time.
I work from home; he’s always with me.
He was sick the first time in the car and another time he was not strapped in, and he fell in the footwell when we braked. Now he shakes and shivers in the car. He does not like the car. On the way home he is better: he will have forgotten by then that he is in the car. When we go on holiday, I take him out for a walk first: he will be shaking in the car on the way to the walk and when we come back, he will be fine and then we can set off in the car on holiday and he will be fine then.
The other dog can also be stressed in the car which does not help. We put her in the front now which works better. He gets anxious when I am busy and do not sit with him (he will be on my lap) in the afternoon for a break: I have such a strict routine at home in what I do. He will go for some other dogs on the lead, we don’t know why for these dogs. Off the lead he is fine: he goes up to them sniffs and sometimes wants to play. He is never aggressive off the lead.
There is one dog in the village he does not like: it is embarrassing.
He was fine about moving house.’’
When I ask: what does he think of himself, she answers:
he is a mummies’ boy. When I ask her what does that mean: she answers: I don’t know.
‘’They each have a bed in our bedroom. He will go into the other dog’s bed, dig it all up and goes to lie underneath the covers. He looks like a turtle. He always has done this, putting himself under a bed, a towel, and stay there.
He barks at trailers that make a lot of clanging noises.
Sometimes he crouches down when a dog comes up and then jumps up at them when they come close.
(Now he walks around the room and lifts his leg to urinate in the middle of the room)
He will run after wildlife but comes back soon. He will sit with my husband when I am there. He prefers me: I think this is because I am with him all the time. He will always want our other dog’s toys: he will then play a bit but soon gets bored. When the other dog arrived in the house, he accepted her straight away and would lie with her. They love each other. He would be sad if she were to go. They play well together. As a pup, he was often lying in his bed sad, when we got the other dog and the sadness went out of his eyes. He is fine with visitors. He does not mind my husband sitting next to me.
He rubs his head quite a bit, more in the summer. He is not sensitive to variations in temperature.
He is fine with noises etc, he does not like the hoover.
He was tested for allergens and is only allergic to house allergens, not to grass even though he is sensitive to running in the grass. He was really down with the steroids.
His confidence is 8 out of 10. He has this reverse sneezing quite often: it does worry him a little. He will stand there trying to get his breath back.
It’s the dynamic of a case...
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continued on p6