MINNEHAHA

News and Highlights

SUMMER EVENTS

Minnehaha Animal Hospital will be out and about this summer at several events starting with the Field-Regina Northrup Neighborhood Festival on Saturday, June 7.  We invite you, your family and, of course, your furry canine companion(s) to visit us there and play our Mountain of Bones game.   Your dog will be able to browse through a mountain of different bones and select a bone of his or her liking.  Some of the bones are marked with a number corresponding to a prize.  If your dog picks the right bone from the pile, you could win a gift certificate to Urbanimal, a local pet food store.

Minnehaha Animal Hospital will also be at a new event called Paws in the Park at McRae Park on Wednesday, June 18 from 7-9 p.m.   The event will feature many dog and family friendly activities.

If you don’t happen to be able to make it to either of these events, you can also see us at Picnic in the Park at Pearl Park off Diamond Lake Road.  Here we will be holding a grooming demonstration given by our groomer, Marilyn Rew, and also have a drawing for a free grooming!   Come check out these fun family friendly events this summer and win some fun prizes too!  We look forward to seeing you there!

RYAN AND BRENDA'S PET PROJECT

When Ryan and Brenda Thul got Farrar, a 6 month old black bull terrier puppy, from a local breeder, they were excited to welcome their new puppy to his new home.   What they didn’t realize, is that their home was about to become disrupted by a dog with some serious behavioral issues.   

Everyday tasks like walking the dog and letting him out to the backyard for a potty break would become traumatic for Farrar and for Brenda and Ryan.   Aggressive behavior between Farrar and the neighbor dog has resulted in a chewed up fence.  Even car rides were difficult for Farrar.   The view of passing cars, people or other animals sent Farrar into a panic attack where he would start trembling and also developed an extreme case of dander.   The final straw for Farrar’s owners was when he accidently got outside with the Thul’s other dog, Ruby, and reacted to the neighbor dog’s barking and aggressive behavior by attacking Ruby, biting her in the neck.  Farrar refused to let go of his hold on Ruby even when his owners threw water at him and physically stepped between the dogs to pull them apart.    After weeks of taming Farrar’s aggression by isolating him from stimuli and exercising him as much as possible, the Thul’s knew they had to take stronger action.  

Upon a visit to Minnehaha Animal Hospital, their veterinarian suggested a consultation with Dr. Christopher Pachel, a DVM specializing in behavioral correction.   In late December 2007, Dr. Pachel met with the Thul’s and Farrar and identified Farrar’s main issue as fear-related aggression.   He put Farrar on anxiety medication and recommended behavior modification exercises.   

Now, Ryan and Brenda are working with Farrar every day for several minutes, sometimes longer teaching him multiple relaxation exercises and distraction techniques.   Farrar is getting better everyday, and is now able to sustain a sit and stay position for 15 seconds.   And sometimes, his owners are able to refocus him when he sees new people or animals.  Car rides are no longer threatening for Farrar, he even hangs his head out the window to feel the breeze.  He still has some progress yet to make, but he’s coming along well.

Farrar’s owners have really committed themselves to making a better life for Farrar and also for themselves.   We applaud their dedication and determination and want to commend them for not giving up on a difficult dog!