Won’t somebody please think of the language!
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Does that mean I can’t adopt a language, a life style, or a highway?
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Jason - I commend and admire you for what you have done for Nemo.
BUT - I just can’t get past the homeopathy thing. You note that it is indeed useless, and there is no evidence that it works, but then buy it and use it. (at this point I will say that all of us including me are not entirely rational in our choices).
The anti-science and non-science voices in this society threaten to kill us all (see- global warming). It is time all rational people simply act on what they know to be correct, and call out those who sell mystical remedies that have no effect. Truly, if you feel that you have to spend money on the issue, why not donate it to the shelter? It would have been put to good use then.
To me it is clear that your loving care of him is the intervention that is helping him. Keep up the good work.
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If a blend of “various plant extracts” is so diluted that there’s no measurable trace of the extracts, is it still a blend of “various plant extracts”? 
Sorry, couldn’t resist. Glad you (and your dog) found a solution to your problem.
It’s funny you say that. When I grew up it was always “adopt” and now I find it really odd how everyone’s talking “rescue, rescue, rescue.”
More than anything, I take issue with rescue being a loaded word, like the owners want to be patted on the back for their “heroic” actions. I’m sure few consciously believe as such, but that’s where my thoughts always end up.
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Even though I use the word “rescue” I kind of feel the same way. It’s not as if I jumped into a raging river to rescue Lassie. That said it might not be hyperbolic when you consider the only option that was available to my rescue/adoptee. A beautiful, intelligent hound (she plays the piano and knows a little French =), playful, though fearful, dog didn’t end up tossed in an incinerator at the back of an animal shelter in Stanislaus County, Ca. Uh oh, now someone’s going to call me a care troll.
Prozac is the thing to do in these situations.
My Lady Sadie (border collie rescue) literally chewed the scenery from separation anxiety. Prozac beat it down long enough for her to settle in and get comfortable and realize that her life is now stable and she’s not going to have to learn a new pack every couple of months.
Soon, we’ll start tapering her off and see how she can do on her own.
Homeopathy is bullshit. The rule of thumb in rescue societies is that dogs need about a year to realize it is permanent and they don’t have to worry any more.
He is, by the way, a beautiful boy.
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If tapering her off makes her revert to her anxious behavior don’t worry about her taking it long term. If the dosage is right it won’t have an effect on her energy level or mental sharpness but it will make her life less of a trial. Check out The Fearful Dog blog for positive re-enforcement for yourself. I know you’ll keep your vet informed and don’t feel guilty if Sadie needs the meds. You threw her a life line. Sorry if I’m getting on my high horse.
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I’ve never met a Pyrenees who liked to crate. They’re supposed to be on a hillside with the sheep. All night. Then sleep all day on the couch.
I’d love to hear BoingBoingers’ opinions on the Thundershirt.
I have a dog with a thunder problem. The shirts cost about $40 on amazon so I’m a little hesitant to try it.
My mom recently “got” three wild kittens and we are still working on convincing two of them to let us pet them. The first one literally walked through a tiny hole in the fence surrounding our back porch, through an open sliding glass door (the hole was small enough that the older cats could not get out), and started eating from the cat food dish in the kitchen. It was crazy timing because we unfortunately had to put one of our 15-year-old tuxedo cats to sleep and this kitten, also a tuxedo cat, showed up two weeks later. The next two we caught with cat traps. One had been hanging around the first kitten whenever it was outside so we think it was a littermate, although it appears to be a tabby/Siamese mix (never saw the mama cat). The last one is another tuxedo cat and showed up a few weeks later completely by itself and is smaller, so we are not sure if it is related. We were able to pet the last one when it was distracted by food, but then it would notice you and bolt. After a week it decided that it really liked being petted and will race over if you hold out your hand.
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Then you’ve not met many Pyrs. Most of ours are crate-trained and Nemo’s brother was started on it before he was adopted out.
As both a human and Pyr rescuer, I see no real problem with the usage. It may not be super-heroic but it’s still a good deed and a good use of the word.
It’s darned near magic. We’ve used it on a dog with “sundowners” syndrome and know many people who have used it for various anxieties, usually with great success. If you don’t like it, return it.
Good luck.
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The Thundershirt doesn’t work for every dog but if it does, it pays for itself in the long run. You could try putting a t-shirt on your dog and wrapping it around its body. You could probably find better directions online.
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First, about the homeopathy: I understand why he tried, we all know it doesn’t work but the combination of lack of sleep + seeing you’re dog being very unhappy creates the ideal situation that you will try almost anything.
Second, we had the same problem with our dog when we adopted/rescued him. We solved it by letting him sleep on a pillow next to the bed and gradually moved the pillow a few centimeters away every night. At the end of the week he was sleeping just outside the room (doors open) and by a month he was sleeping in another room. It took some encouragement the first few nights (meaning: getting up and lead the dog away from the bed to the pillow) but he did not cry/howl anymore.
I just came to this thread to read about people being nice to their dogs. I wasn’t let down. 
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You’re going to have a lot of concern once you realize there are so many other uses for the word adopt! I guess we will have to stop adopting new ideas and technologies too. No more policy adoption either! We must find a new word. Some one started using the old one to refer to children, and children are too special to share words!
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I’m going to suggest it to my friend. Their dog is so terrified of storms it actually is painful to see. Poor thing.
Yes. If not, you should be.
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