Is there anywhere I can learn?

[loong]

The local guy that comes to give injections for the dogs does not change needles between dogs. The dogs are scared now, they recognise his scent and will run away and hide.

Can I get the necessary drugs in small enough quantities and learn how to inject the dogs myself so it doesn't hurt them?

Necessary injections are for rabies,fleas,ticks and mange as well as contraceptive for the bitch.

The bitch is a really good natured doberman cross, always pleased to see everyone.

As soon as she heard the "vet"'s voice she was cowering.

My BIL, who was here at the time, tried to pick her up to take her to get the injection. Luckily, he has fast reactions, otherwise he would have been bitten.

I had to hold her while she had the injection and I could see in her eyes that she felt a sense of betrayal.

Is there a way that I can

a) learn to give an injection without pain

get hold of the drug in small quantities?

[loong]

In the previous post I wrote

a)

b+) unfortunately ended up as a smiley, it was not intended

[Dr Robert]

try changing vets, much simpler and less bother

[wayned]

Unfortunately giving an injection without pain is next to impossible. Injections that only require that the vaccine be put under the skin are easy and do not cause pain, But injections that require that you inject the vaccine into the muscle can be painful. It's not because of the needle, it's caused by the serum itself and some vaccines really burn when they are injected, the pregnancy injection is one. The needles are very sharp and inserting them is relatively painless, it's what's in it that hurts., they actually run and hide when they see the needle coming. I give all of my dogs, now down to ten, their shots and only have to have help with two.

[loong]

try changing vets, much simpler and less bother

Unfortunately, there only seems to be one guy around here and I am not so sure that he is an actual "vet".

Unfortunately giving an injection without pain is next to impossible. Injections that only require that the vaccine be put under the skin are easy and do not cause pain, But injections that require that you inject the vaccine into the muscle can be painful. It's not because of the needle, it's caused by the serum itself and some vaccines really burn when they are injected, the pregnancy injection is one. The needles are very sharp and inserting them is relatively painless, it's what's in it that hurts., they actually run and hide when they see the needle coming. I give all of my dogs, now down to ten, their shots and only have to have help with two.

So how did you learn to give injections?

I have never seen the guy change needles, so they may not be as sharp as they once were.

As you have knowledge of this subject, can you please tell me how often shots to prevent rabies and contraceptive shots should be given?

[wayned]

You never use the same needle over again! Always throw it away once it is used as it can transfer disease to your next "victim".. It's okay to use the syringe over again as longs as it is properly sterilized, I clean mine with boiling water.The needles and syringes are cheap and are available at most pharmacies. Use a 24 gauge needles for the rabies and pregnancy shots, rabies under the skin, no pain, pregnancy shot in the muscle, hurts as the vaccine burns. Rabies are require once a year, pregnancy every three months.

If you use Ivermectin injections for heart worm you will have to use a bigger needle. I use 18 gauge under the skin. IMHO the required dosage levels of Ivermectin to control ticks and mites is excessive and can have dangerous side effects and even death in some breeds of dogs.

I raised Golden Retrievers and cattle in the past so injections were a common thing. Emasculation calves is another whole story. Easy to do but made me cringe every time I did it!

[loong]

Thank you Wayned

[Patsycat]

If the dogs are scared of the nasty man with the needles, would they not also get scared of you if you started to inject them, especially as you haven't done it before and may hurt them more?

[Mosha]

If it's like round here the :vet" is just someone sent by the orbortor/anamai.

[wayned]

My dogs are not afraid of the "nasty man with needles", they are afraid of the strange man that is doing things to them that they are not used to. When I don't have the proper medication and call the local vet -actually a vet nurse - he gives me the medication and I do the injections myself. I only have trouble with 2, but they are the same ones that think that I am killing them when I bathe them or cut their toenails.

My neighbor has a golden Retriever, rottweiler mix. He's a big, black, furry baby with a mouth like an alligator. When the vet comes he won't let him anywhere near him so the vet gives me the needles and he sits there like a baby as I inject him. He also gives me the free rabies vaccine for all for the dogs in my village, over 30 last year. What's amazing is how afraid some of the Thais are of their own animals. It all boils down to trust!

Now when it comes to giving an injection to a cat, that's a different story! No matter how hard I try, I'm "the nasty man with needles" and it usually takes a big towel and someone to hold him/her.

[loong]

The rabies vaccine is free?

I've always wondered why it is so cheap. We get charged 20 Baht per dog, I suppose that is the vet's payment

[wayned]

The vaccine is free, but the needles and syringes aren't. Most likely that why the OP's "vet" is using the same needles over and over again on different dogs - not good!

Edited November 2, 2013 by wayned

[Cuban]

Vets are well versed in injecting in the scruff of the neck, as it's the easiest place to inject and avoid being bitten.

With some inoculations there is the suggestion that this is the worst place to inject as any tumorous growth is close to lungs and heart and will result in an inoperable problem = dead dog.

Injecting in the leg means worst case an amputation and limping dog.

We inject on the leg, but in a simple pinched fold of skin. It feels like a flea bite...

...so we set up the dogs for grooming and inject while doing this, most of the time the jab is ignored, but I have made up a fabric strap muzzle that can quickly be applied for the jab and then removed. I've also made the same motions that I do when killing a tick or flea so as far as the dog is concerned (I hope) an imaginary flea gets the blame not me.

But like ANYTHING to do with dogs and medication it comes down to training them to accept what is happening is normal.

If the ONLY TIME that you appear with a syringe in your hand is moments before a sharp pain in their skin it will be a stupid dog that does not establish a connection between the two events. So keep an old syringe (destroy and safely discard the needle) fill with water and use it to associate with giving a lump of grilled pig's ear as a treat.

Like taking their temperature rectally or other task that you will only have to do in times of stress or would only do infrequently, if you establish that it is a normal part of grooming and there is a treat reward coming doing "difficult" things is soon not difficult and you can watch others having a terrible fuss at what is really very easily achieved, you just have to think about the situation from the dog's point of view for a while.

[LeCharivari]

try changing vets, much simpler and less bother

Unfortunately, there only seems to be one guy around here and I am not so sure that he is an actual "vet".

Then find one who IS "an actual "vet" " rather than try to do a job you are not trained or qualified to do - particularly if you have to ask here for advice from others who are similarly unqualified rather than "an actual "vet" ". There is a reason why a vet's training takes 6 years plus, and that includes knowing how and where to properly inject animals, how much to inject and how often injections are required. Frequency of contraceptive injections, for example, depends entirely on the drug used and most are every SIX months with some no longer being required after 4 injections, while some also cause breast cancer.

If your dog doesn't like being given a contraceptive injection, particularly if its been every 3 months, then why not do the obvious and have her spayed?