Today is J-Day!

@artiesmom I'll second the suggestion to try zylkene It's been a help at the shelter when pets (especially dogs) have had a hard time adjusting, though usually the vet prescribes a daily dose for a couple of weeks. It can take a few days to see positive results, but it makes a difference. We usually grind it and add it to food, though dogs easily take it in pill pockets or chewy treats.

Winchester Pam, you probably recall me talking about Sky, the Bulgarian street dog afraid of her own shadow. The zylkene really helped with her anxiety.

This is a vet product, right? So I'll have to take her in for a check-up probably before they prescribe it for her. I'll call her vet again and see if we can set something up for her.

Our vet sells Thundershirts, but I've also seen them at Amazon and Rick told me to order one for Miss J. I'll call her vet this morning, too.

But I do have a rather nice update on things. Yesterday I went home at lunch and, while she was spazzing out, she wasn't as bad. We actually ran around our yard three times; it was all I could do to keep up with her. I really do think she needs some serious exercise; that would help. When we came back into the house, she ate her apple pieces. I prepared lunch for the cat gang and when I put plates down, Jackie checked things out, but didn't even try to take food. We walked over to her dish, I put some Jibble (Jackie's kibble....we call it Jibble . We have Kibble for the cats and Jibble for Jackie)  in her dish and she ate. When Muffin wanted a bit more dry, I gave her her kibble. Jackie was back in the kitchen by then, but she turned around, went into the living room, and flopped in her bed while Muffin ate.

We had to run down to Target last night to pick up a couple prescriptions. I wanted to take Jackie along and then she and I could go into PetSmart while Rick hit Target. Rick wants to wait a while before we subject her to the store, so she stayed home. I think we caught her sleeping. We came home to a quiet house. Came into the house and up the stairs. She met us at the top of the stairs and she was so excited to see us her whole body was wiggling.  But she didn't really bark or carry on. She and Rick went out to the kitchen, Rick slipped the collar on, and they went outside. No barking. Nothing. She came back inside, gobbled her apple pieces and cuddled with Rick and me on the couch. Like I said, I think we caught her in a snooze and we got in the house before she had time to work herself into her frenzy. 

This morning, they went outside. I fed all six cats. Everybody ate breakfast; Miss J came back into the house, ate her breakfast, and when I left for work, she was snoring on the couch, Amber was snoozing on the back of the couch, and the other five cats were back in bed. 

Oh, I have a cute story....last night, Jackie had been lying in her bed. I came out to the kitchen and she got up to follow me. Well, BooBoo had his eye on her bed and he started over to get in. Jackie saw him try and she turned right around and got back in her bed. Boo looked at her, sat down, looked at Rick, and meowed. Rick told him it wasn't his bed, it's for Miss J and he needs to learn to deal (not that Boo heard a word). But Boo got on the other end of the bed and sat down. They were almost nose to nose. Jackie reached out with her tongue and....slurp! All over the side of Boo's face. He was not amused. He got up, walked off the bed, shook himself off, and got up on Rick's lap on the couch. I wanted to get a picture, but it happened so fast.

So there are good things happening, too. It's not all bad.

Wonderful to hear there are positives too Jackie sounds like a real sweetie :heart3:

I have a theory about Jackie's separation anxiety: it may well subside as she and the cats bond and get used to each other. Our dogs definitely see our cats as part of their pack. It's very possible that Jackie will see your cats in the same way. If that happens, she'll no longer see herself as being left alone. End of problem :cross:

Zylkene is similar to Composure. Neither are prescription only, but can be got from the vets as well as elsewhere.

More mega that things improve soon.

So glad yesterday was a good day! That is such good news!

I have seen Thundershirts at Petsmart;  but none at Petco. 

Zyklene I had to get thru my Vet. 

Fingers crossed that this works out. I think Jackie is, hopefully, starting to settle into his new 'home', his 'new friends' and his new routine. 

He is comparable to a child who did not have any discipline in their life, and always had some human company. A spoiled baby...and you know how much kids crave some kind of structure, activity and love...

I just checked Amazon. They have Composure and it's a little cheaper than the Zyklene. We're going to order her a Thundershirt tonight, so I'll get Composure, too, and see if it helps. I have to get some Dasuquin for BooBoo, too, while I'm at it.

Thank you, thank you, thank you! And Miss J thanks you, too! 

Came home today at lunch and she was standing in the bay window….her claws ruined the wood at the window sill; there are some terrible gouges in the wood. Not scratches. Gouges. I suppose we can try to sand them out, but really, why bother? Just why even bother?

Came inside to the yipping, barking…..and at least a five-foot long trail of urine on the living room carpet, where she was so excited she peed and then dribbled. I cleaned it as best I could, but the cats are already sniffing. This is not good.

She really isn't making life easy for you

It's crazy how much damage dog claws can do - our windowsills downstairs are a state from Pixie climbing on them in his younger days.

I've no idea if this will be the case with you, but we've never had issues with cats peeing where the dogs have had accidents. They're always curious, but it seems to end there. I really hope you find the same.

I think you definitely need to look into some type of medication.  I know you said your MIL had tried it in the past but there are probably other options available now.  It sounds like she gets into such a state she will need medication along with training or other things you may try like the Thundershirt or crating.  

Winchester said:

 
Came home today at lunch and she was standing in the bay window….her claws ruined the wood at the window sill; there are some terrible gouges in the wood. Not scratches. Gouges. I suppose we can try to sand them out, but really, why bother? Just why even bother?

Came inside to the yipping, barking…..and at least a five-foot long trail of urine on the living room carpet, where she was so excited she peed and then dribbled. I cleaned it as best I could, but the cats are already sniffing. This is not good.

Click to expand...

I'm sorry that you're having such a hard time with her. I agree with @Columbine. With as many accidents as my dog has had over the years, it's a wonder that the cats have never added to them but they haven't. They have yet to go outside of the box. 

You might have to crate her when no one is home at least for the time being. That's what I have to do. My dog is 13. She has to be crated during the day. Do I like it? No. Unfortunately that's the way it needs to be. Fortunately, she doesn't mind her crate. She sees it as her safe place. I made it comfortable for her by putting a crate pad in there for her. It's actually quite soft.

I think the idea of a Thundershirt is a good one. Petsmart sells them also and you can get 4% cashback on Petsmart online purchases through Ebates. I love Ebates. It's a very easy way to get cash back from SO many stores. Especially if you were going to buy from them anyway. It's easy to set up an account You just go to ebates first then look for the store you want and go to the site from there. You get a percentage of your purchase amount back (the % amount fluctuates) and that goes onto your account and that goes into your Paypal.  This is very nice for holiday shopping if you do it online. http://www.ebates.com/index.htm?logout=true

Petsmart also has calming treats, supplements and plug ins for dogs, too.

http://www.petsmart.com/gsi/webstor...=Dog&PageSize=24&SearchTerm=calming&_t=Pets01

Other thoughts....

Have your tried Rescue Remedy? You can get that at Whole Foods or at Amazon.

You can add it to her water or to her food..

Or Jackson Galaxy's stuff. Some people swear by them.

Those you can rub on Jackie. 

I am thinking that unless you get overnight delivery from Amazon, it may take too long for you. You need something fairly quick. 

That is why I am suggesting stores vs Amazon delivery. 

I the never had a dog, but I have dealt with lots of stress issues with Artie. Nothing like yours though. 

And pick up some Nature's Miracle enzymatic cleaner also. Gets rid of the urine, vomit smell and junk really good. 

It is going to take time....a long time to get Jackie into a routine and used to his new home. 

Artiemom said:

 
Other thoughts....

Have your tried Rescue Remedy? You can get that at Whole Foods or at Amazon.

You can add it to her water or to her food..

Or Jackson Galaxy's stuff. Some people swear by them.

Those you can rub on Jackie. 

I am thinking that unless you get overnight delivery from Amazon, it may take too long for you. You need something fairly quick. 

That is why I am suggesting stores vs Amazon delivery. 

I the never had a dog, but I have dealt with lots of stress issues with Artie. Nothing like yours though. 

And pick up some Nature's Miracle enzymatic cleaner also. Gets rid of the urine, vomit smell and junk really good. 

It is going to take time....a long time to get Jackie into a routine and used to his new home. 

Click to expand...

That's a good point. You can order online from Petsmart and pick it up at the store too. Not everything is available for that but a lot of stuff is

Winchester said:

 
Came home today at lunch and she was standing in the bay window….her claws ruined the wood at the window sill; there are some terrible gouges in the wood. Not scratches. Gouges. I suppose we can try to sand them out, but really, why bother? Just why even bother?

Came inside to the yipping, barking…..and at least a five-foot long trail of urine on the living room carpet, where she was so excited she peed and then dribbled. I cleaned it as best I could, but the cats are already sniffing. This is not good.

Click to expand...

It's really a b---- that you're going thru all this.  I just hope one of the things you are trying with Jackie helps and she can stay where she is, I can see you're trying everything.

Called the vet.....Jackie's appt is Monday at 4:00, check-up, probably some blood work, a good nail trimming.

Ordered her a thundershirt and some Composure from Amazon

Evelyn came down yesterday for Thanksgiving. Jackie went over to her and said Hello, but she really wasn't all that excited to see her. When Evelyn left, I took Jackie out for a walk. She didn't even care that Evelyn was leaving. She didn't think she was going along; she didn't get excited. Rick helped his mother into the car and Jackie did nothing. There was really no reaction. She and I walked around the yard, she peed, we walked around again for a bit and came back in the house. Jackie jumped up on the couch and promptly fell asleep.

This morning, Rick had her outside. I walked out to put something in the trash can. Jackie came bounding over to see me, I bent down and she gave me a big kiss. We are now her people. She knows it. She wags that tail of her so much that her whole body just wriggles.

She's getting a bath this afternoon. 

Yep, she's your dog now! As far as the gouging is concerned, we used Plexiglass on doors and sills to protect them from the dogs. Having her claws clipped will help, of course.

Winchester said:

 
Called the vet.....Jackie's appt is Monday at 4:00, check-up, probably some blood work, a good nail trimming.

Ordered her a thundershirt and some Composure from Amazon

Evelyn came down yesterday for Thanksgiving. Jackie went over to her and said Hello, but she really wasn't all that excited to see her. When Evelyn left, I took Jackie out for a walk. She didn't even care that Evelyn was leaving. She didn't think she was going along; she didn't get excited. Rick helped his mother into the car and Jackie did nothing. There was really no reaction. She and I walked around the yard, she peed, we walked around again for a bit and came back in the house. Jackie jumped up on the couch and promptly fell asleep.

This morning, Rick had her outside. I walked out to put something in the trash can. Jackie came bounding over to see me, I bent down and she gave me a big kiss. We are now her people. She knows it. She wags that tail of her so much that her whole body just wriggles.

She's getting a bath this afternoon. 

Click to expand...

Sweet!  

I just love the full body wag. Sooo cute :heart3: Great to hear that Jackie wasn't bothered by your MIL going after her visit. Jackie's clearly made her choice

Yes, I think she has. We are hers now.

Winchester said:

 

Click to expand...

I am so glad that you made a vet appt. for Jackie.  Her peeing has to be for some medical reason since you take her out often enough.  I hope the vet can give her something to solve this problem. 

I love the excited head to toe tail wag.  They always look so happy when they do that, can't help but lift someone's spirits if they are feeling a little down.

I had to go over to my sister's house to take care of her cats tonight as they're out of town. So we decided to try to crate Miss J. Well, when we came home, Miss J met us at the front door. 

Memo to self: When I open the end of the crate, I have to make sure that the side door is securely latched!