How does your dog do at the vet?

All the dogs are good at the vet except Chance.  Even though the other 3 are a little nervous, our vet is able to perform any exam or x-ray needed with good cooperation from the dogs.

And then there is Chance...

Siberians are known for being hyper, anxious dogs, but Chance takes it to a new height.  He screams when the vet just starts to come close.  Hubby, Mark and I always have to take him together to hold him down for blood work and shots.  Forget any kind of physical exam, it's fight or flight for this boy!  He has to wear a muzzle, because he'll nip.  He just doesn't like being touched or messed with in general, so a vet visit pushes his limits.

I avoid taking him to the vet until it is absolutely necessary.  This last visit had been one of those occasions.  He had been limping on what seemed to be his left front leg, holding it in the air even and I couldn't tell if there was also a problem with his back leg as well.  It had been going on for a while and seemed to be on and off thing.  So I broke down and made an appointment.

Well, we lost Chance's muzzle over the summer so Mark picked up one the day before the appointment.  It was called a "Comfort Fit" muzzle which meant the mouth opening was bigger than the narrow one I'd had before.  Chance needed a refresher course for the muzzle while I fitted it to him and for the most part he was fine with everything.

The whole appointment was our vet massaging up and down Chance's back and legs, searching for the point of pain.  Chance was doing fantastic.  He was so relaxed and actually enjoying this visit!

She located the source of pain, in his toe and his super long nails.  I knew they were bad.  I've never had to trim them before with walks and dog sledding, his nails stayed manicured.  The thought of me clipping his nails was intimidating to say the least, but for the vet to do it right then and there with no problem was another OMG moment for me and Chance!  bol

I was so blown away by how cooperative Chance was, how relaxed and easy he was, it was encouraging. Not to mention the fact that we didn't have to pin him down to do the exam was a HUGE bonus and made a big difference on Chance.

Now I don't know if this was a one time thing, or just the fact there were no needles being stuck in him, but it was the happiest I'd ever seen Chance at the vet's office in 11 years.

And that made for a very happy mommy and daddy!!

How was your dog's last exam??