An Edinburgh dog owner has told how her huge 80kg dog will run into walls because he is so afraid of vets after a bad experience.
Lucy Wells, 23, first took her St Bernard to the vet last year when he was struggling breathe because of suspected allergies. But due to Covid she was not allowed in the room which only extended the dogs anxiety and when the vet went to clean his ears he freaked out.
READ MORE - Edinburgh Spaces for People measures to remain for another 18 months
The experience has left Kingston the 15-month-old shaken and now whenever he goes to vets and sees he runs at walls in an attempt to escape and smacks into tables. The poor pooch's allergies are only getting worse and now owner Lucy is desperate to find a solution or vet that can handle the bear sized dog.
Speaking to Edinburgh Live Lucy Wells said: "Kingston has bad allergies I’m not sure of what exactly, but his ears are almost constantly infected and his skin is red, itchy and irritated.
"They haven’t always been bad, when I got him when the vets still weren’t allowing owners into the rooms due to Covid so I never got to see what was happening, I just had to wait outside.
"I took him when he was around eight months old, he had absolutely no issue with me touching his ears prior to the appointment, the vet said he had a yeast infection and gave me an ear cleaning solution and steroid ear drops but they also cleaned his ears out without me being in attendance and from that moment on he won’t let a vet touch him.
"I’m not sure if they just accidentally hurt him but he completely freaks out, he’ll go into the vet practice without a blink but when we get into the room and the vet moves towards him it’s a struggle to keep him calm enough to the point that he isn’t able to be touched."
She continued: "Before his ears were cleaned by them he would happily go with them into the room, but now if the vet takes his lead he will do anything in his power to stop himself from going which is why I’m looking into finding a vet that would form a bond with him and gain his trust to make the whole thing less stressful, he really needs his allergies sorted."
Sign up for Edinburgh Live newsletters for more headlines straight to your inbox
When in the vets the 80kg dog runs at walls to try and get away. Lucy explained: "I usually have his head collar on as he weight 78kg and he’s hard to hold back when he is panicking when just on a collar.
"He will throw himself from side to side, smacking into the walls, tables and try to run backwards to get away from the vet trying to touch him.
"It’s very stressful for him and for me, because of his size the last vet I went to didn’t want to touch him, she got me to open his eyes and ears in the hope to see what the problem was."
READ NEXT:
Edinburgh to apologise for slave trade suffering - but statues won't be removed
- Edinburgh bin strikes to continue next week after unions reject latest pay offer
Edinburgh couple who turned garden into vegetable patch told to return land
Victims of sex pest former Edinburgh councillor feel 'badly let down'
Edinburgh Council to wipe school meal debt owed by low income families
