How do you get a blood sample from an elephant living in a zoo? You certainly can’t hold an elephant down for a needle! The blood draw can be done, but it takes training and the cooperation of the animal. Grooming and veterinarian visits are an important part of your canine companion's health and they DO NOT need to be scary for your pet. Cooperative Care is a term used to describe cooperation between the dog and a human during nail trims, grooming, medical examinations, and more. Many practitioners and pet parents are now making routine procedures less stressful and even fun. Forcing an animal to do something is not necessary if we put in a bit of time and training beforehand. We can teach animals to accept or even want handing for a procedure that needs to be done. Lili Chin's infographic below gives you more examples. Our Happy Handling program teaches your canine to accept, or even want handling for medical examinations, grooming or other routine procedures. Our dog, Chobani, readily jumps onto the grooming table for nail trims and getting his hair trimmed! He jumps onto the table himself and does not want to get down (see below). Teaching your canine companion Happy Handling during procedures can decrease the stress for you and your dog for his lifetime, regardless of age! We also have a nail trim recorded webinar where you can learn to do this on your own.
We are available to help you, by collaborating with your team of veterinarians and groomers to make your canine companion's appointments a happy and stress free experience. Contact us, your veterinarian, or groomer to find out more about our Happy Handling program.
