George had a bath and tidy at a new groomer this week.
I'd done quite a lot of research and raised my concerns around his anxiety with the new fear-free certified groomer.
I was very impressed with their responses to my concerns. They advised that they are used to handling anxious and sensitive dogs and do their best to meet their needs. A couple of examples they gave were that clients can call to make sure the coast is clear before going in and they can lay down towels for dogs that are uncomfortable with the surface.
I decided to book a bath and tidy for the first visit and a full groom in a couple of weeks. An extra visit for George unfortunately but given they are strangers (he has stranger danger), I thought a slower introduction was best.
They were also happy with us doing 'happy visits' where we could just look around reception.
We went for a happy visit at the weekend. Ideally, I'd have liked to do more but we were pushed for time unfortunately.
It went OK. I gave George Sileo on top of his normal medication. It had seemed to work really well on a walk the week before.
Unfortunately as soon as we arrived he was on very high alert. There were quite a few people around but we kept as much distance as possible and he did OK at 1,2,3. His reactions were perhaps slightly delayed and slightly muted in comparison to normal.
He did OK inside the groomers although was very anxious. He barked at the receptionist when she moved away. We kept the visit short.
On the walk back to the car, with lots of sniffing, and lots of zig-zagging to avoid people, he seemed to do better.
I was disappointed though that he was still obviously very frightened, despite the Sileo.
I explained the situation to the VB and how worried I was about his bath and tidy in a few days. She advised to do a test run of additional medication the evening before (3 x his Gabapentin in addition to his normal meds), and 4 x his Gabapentin in addition to his normal meds plus the Sileo on the morning of the groom.
It felt like an awful lot. I felt really guilty. He is so happy and playful at home at the moment and I have to give him the meds.
The Sileo in particular is unpleasant (the gel needs to go between his gum and cheek and he's not allowed to eat or drink for 15 minutes) but he tolerates it well. We have done some desensitisation work to the alarming black gloves.
He was pretty drowsy in the house after taking the meds. He didn't look very happy but that might have been me projecting…I felt really guilty. Even though I know it is to try and support him better.
The day of the groom I was pretty nervous. It was difficult for me to fathom leaving him with strangers and them handling him. But I tried to project calm and collected.
We arrived early with the intention of a sniff around and it was really busy unfortunately. There were lots of construction workers (George's nemesis!).
Again his reactions were perhaps a little muted, and there was a split second delay before reacting, but he was still obviously pretty anxious. Despite the concoction of medication floating around in his system. He might be a medical miracle!
He barked a little at the receptionist and growled at another dog in the waiting room. Much more muted than I would normally expect though.
He was so curious to get around the corner, he didn't look back to see where I was. And I had been so worried about leaving him with strangers!
They said it would be about an hour. A bath and tidy in the past has taken about 2 hours so I was a little surprised. As the time ticked on, I felt more nervous. At just after 2 hours, I got a text to say he was ready.
Luckily it was much quieter at pick up. I nervously asked how he got on. They said he did "very well" and is "so sweet". It's been a while since a stranger has described George as sweet 😆
He was wild with excitement when he heard my voice and came around the corner. He was then described as having "so much energy" which seemed more accurate 😆
It's wasn't quiet time in a daycare (like at his previous groomer) so nobody got upset about his excited barking. The staff were all lovely and made it as low stress as possible (for both of us).
On the walk back to the car, he reacted to a couple of people in the distance but his excitement levels were high at that point so it would have been difficult for him. I'd parked further away so it was quieter and we could have a sniffy walk back to the car.
Although it made me feel guilty, the medication undoubtedly helped and supported him to have a successful visit.
Going to a new groomer is a very big deal for George. All in all, I was absolutely thrilled and very, very proud of him. Both of us were exhausted for the rest of the day!