fear?

[KingTut]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

is anyone scared of certain animals...i myself am scared of pitbulls, they scare the crap out of me, am i the only one that has an animal fear or am i not alone?

 

[wi girl]

I get freaked out by cats that are in their carriers and hissing and have their back up ... but then again, I'm more a dog person. Planning on having technicians to help me with those cats ... and I will pay them very well for it too 🙂

 

[CBRGrl]

I used to be afraid of those angry cats too, but working at a clinic you learn the proper way to hold and restrain them. Once I realized I could control the animal safely (they weren't hurting me and I wasn't hurting them), it really put me at ease. Pit bulls are a bit different, but I think with time and exposure, your fear will lessen. Just my $0.02 🙂

 

[VelcroSky]

I find it a little easier to fear the big dogs since the threat is potentially mortal. Cats, yeah they can make you have a bad day, but it's unlikely that a cat is going to kill you. But I would say either way, experience is the best way to get over the fear. Also, if you are unsure of a dog, there is nothing wrong with asking the owner to put a muzzle on them. They are a lot less scary when they can't bite you.

 

[david594]

IOnce I realized I could control the animal safely (they weren't hurting me and I wasn't hurting them),

Huh? So thats how its supposed to work?🙄

I don't like Shar-pei's. Only dog I have ever had come remotely close to getting me. Actually also the only dog I've seen in the 8 months I've been at my clinic that required sedation for an exam. Pitbulls are a dime a dozen out here and are big enough that they can be easily controlled.

 

[athenaparthenos]

In our area the majority of pit bulls are more likely to jump on you and try and lick you to death than they are to snap at you! I didn't have any experience with them before I started working at the vet clinic so didn't know quite what to expect, and then to my surprise they've become one of my favorite types of dog. 🙂 Even after someone abandoned a pit on our property that tried to attack me they're still one of my favs, because the mean ones are so rare. Normally they are very friendly towards people in our area (Portland, OR), and the ones that aren't let you know it so there are no surprises.

There isn't a breed I'm afraid of. There are breeds I don't trust to do procedures on and will usually muzzle once I have to start poking them (Shar-Peis, Chows, Rotties, lots of Chihuahuas, lots of cattle dogs) but even those can often be quite friendly until you have to do stuff to them, and I'm not afraid of them, just on my guard. I did get bit in the ear by a Rottie when holding for a vaccine because he was sooooooo friendly to everyone that we didn't think he needed a muzzle. After that little trip to the urgent care clinic I go ahead and put a muzzle on Rotties once we have to do procedures. And most of the dogs that are truly dangerous and require sedation -- that we see here, anyway -- are Rotties. But I still think with the right people that Rottweilers can be excellent pets, just probably not with me, haha.

(In two interviews -- one in an essay, one with my interviewers -- I brought up how much I loathe breed bans, can you tell? haha.)

KingTut, have you worked with pit bulls much? They get such a bad rap I'm not surprised you're leery. But a properly bred pit bull, while it often is dog-aggressive, should always, always be affectionate towards people, it's one of the hallmarks of the breed. After you meet some of the kind that are trying to crawl in your lap and demanding that you scratch their ears or let them lick you, I'm pretty sure you won't be so concerned about them anymore. They may never be your favorites but working with some non-backyard-bred, raised-in-a-loving-home ones will help dispel that fear. Also, that whole thing about their jaws being supernaturally strong and locking in place and never being able to open again? Total myth. They're tenacious, yes, but not supercanine. 😉

 

[dpcdoc]

Iguanas, I was bitten by one many years ago and now they give me the heebie geebies.

 

[CalpardNY]

While I try not to be afraid, and especially not to show fear, there are always those moments with a certain animal of any kind that you don't quite trust.

Last summer I worked at a zoo and it was my job to care for the quarantined animals. While they were all birds, i had no problems with the macaws, etc.

However, the hornbill gave me some trouble. He was so smart and if you've ever stared down the beak of a hornbill... He had been there a few days when i started working and had flown out on everyone in a space above the door when it opens about 8 inches high and maybe 5 wide. He was so smart - every time id take off the lock to go feed him or clean the cage hed hop down to the perch RIGHT by the door. He loved to dive right for you and when youd duck try to go for the door. The worst was when id go in with pinkys or fuzzy's for snack. It took me a while but after going in every day i began to get more comfortable - and I was the only person he never flew out on!!!😀. Eventually he got put in the aviary and i swear he still looks at me funny and flys right for me!

 

[wi girl]

I used to be afraid of those angry cats too, but working at a clinic you learn the proper way to hold and restrain them.

I do know how to get them out, and have done it a lot -- it still takes me a second or two to get my nerve up and stick my hand in. God bless those owners who know they have **nervous** cats and get top loading carriers. 🙂

 

[RockStarKDub]

I was mauled by an akita when I was 8, so I'd say they make me a little uneasy! But as a small animal tech, I've had to work with them fairly regularly so it's something I've had to get over.

 

[msmrtrthnyllb]

Venemous snakes.

 

[Biomajir]

What I find interesting now, is that if there is a fractious cat or really mean nasty dog, there is always a doctor around and they always seem to know what to do. And then I realize, someday I will be that doctor and be expected to get the animal under control. Does anyone ever think about that?

 

[BigGreenVet]

Venomous snakes.

I second that.

 

[lailanni]

What I find interesting now, is that if there is a fractious cat or really mean nasty dog, there is always a doctor around and they always seem to know what to do. And then I realize, someday I will be that doctor and be expected to get the animal under control. Does anyone ever think about that?

I sure do. I have a long way to go before I'm that doctor.

I'm much better with dogs, restraining cats isn't something I've quite gotten the hang of yet. Tips anyone?

 

[carrbear21]

I sure do. I have a long way to go before I'm that doctor.

I'm much better with dogs, restraining cats isn't something I've quite gotten the hang of yet. Tips anyone?

Scruff hard, keep your face away from them, and squeeze! 😀 Keep all your other appendages out of the way as well.

 

[wi girl]

A firm grip -- and if a feral happens to be brought in to get spayed by a farmer (happens a lot in WI, we have a discounted spay for feral cats) and you need to clean its cage, and it gets out, WEAR GLOVES (the thick electrical kind) when you try to catch it. I have 10 nicely spaced scars on my arm from a not so nice kitty who thought my arm = ladder to freedom.

 

[Cornish]

I sure do. I have a long way to go before I'm that doctor.

I'm much better with dogs, restraining cats isn't something I've quite gotten the hang of yet. Tips anyone?

Large towels are the best way to handle a cat. If all you have is a scruff, cats are so flexible they can reach around sometimes with front or back claws if they really want to. I throw a towl over the cat, making sure to cover all body parts including the head, and then grab their body.

But, there is a tool called the "E-Z nabber" and its like a special animal net that you can restrain cats in. Its the best thing ever...and as soon as the cats are in the net they calm down (since there is no one holding them super hard or pushing them down onto a table or whatever) and you can do whatever is it you need to do...without the fear of them biting, clawing, or worst of all, biting or clawing and THEN getting away and hiding under something. Check it out:

http://www.campbellpet.com/product.aspx?func=view&prodID=42

With that being said, handling them is scary as heck. They can SCREAM so load sometimes it makes my skin crawl, and when all 4 legs are going crazy it gets my blood pumping. I have handled cats so bad that after I move them or whatever it is I need to do, I've found my hands shaking like a leaf.

 

[athenaparthenos]

In addition to scruffing, you can, while wearing gloves or using a thick towel, do the squash technique -- one hand partially on top of their head and covering their neck, the other on the back near their hips, and then squish them like mad! This works really well on cats that are too fat to have a good scruff, or who are very good at turning into whirling dervishes with all four limbs going everywhere. This also leaves their shoulders free so it works really well for vaccines (and you can do it in top-opening carriers without having to remove the cat). Not so much for blood draws though 😛 Pretty much all you can do with a mean cat for blood draws is scruff like mad, hold the back legs as firmly as you can, brace the cat's back against your forearm, and drape the towel over the cat's head/forelimbs. It also helps to have another person standing by in those cases...

For getting a mean, lunging cat out of a hospital cage, closing off all points of escape, wearing gloves, and throwing a big towel in over the cat as soon as you open the doors are the way to do it.

One of our vets is also fond of making cat muzzles out of Dixie cups and gauze, which allow the pet to breathe better than with a traditional cat mask but still save your hands if you tie it tightly enough.

I've met some mean cats, but generally I find them invigorating -- worthy adversaries!

 

[david594]

Large towels are the best way to handle a cat. If all you have is a scruff, cats are so flexible they can reach around sometimes with front or back claws if they really want to. I throw a towl over the cat, making sure to cover all body parts including the head, and then grab their body.

Definitely agree. If the cat is so bad that you cant get a hand on it, then just toss a big towel over him. Then once you are sure you know where he is, quickly try to grab him by the scruff through the towel. You have the element of surprise once he is under the towel😀, but just make sure you grab him. If you miss there is a good chance he will attack you through the towel.

If the cat is that bad though, its easier and less stressful for everyone to just dump the cat in the fishtank and iso them down.

athenaparthenos I love your avatar! I do rather enjoy going at it with a cat.

 

[wi girl]

We do that often enough; I should put out there that we see a lot of the bad cats in my area, as the vet i was working for is the only boarded feline specialist in our area -- she gets all the **fun** ones. 🙂 Luckily, I never had to handle the mean ones; but i have seen a cat hanging from her arm by its teeth because it decided not to allow us to draw blood.

 

[lailanni]

Thanks for the tips! 🙂

I'm fine with holding for vaccines and nail trims, getting a urine sample is easy, but blood draws on an angry wiggly cat ....not something I'm good at.

That EZ nabber is neat! I saw a video about that at our clinic, but we didn't end up getting it. Which is too bad, because it seems like a really useful thing to have.

 

[HeartSong]

I worked at a clinic where we had these big welding gloves to grab cats! Man that was so awesome. You could stick your hand in there and let them go to town on your hand without feeling a thing. When they wear themselves out and get all freaked out that you aren't even flinching from their wild attacks, they're pretty easy to pick up.

There was a guy in my class who was terrified of horses. We had a lab where we had to pick up a horse's feet, reach in it's mouth and stuff like that, he handled that really well. I'm not sure if he did it through his fear or got over it that quickly, but I was impressed.

 

[vegetablesoup]

Snakes in general...I mean, they don't have any limbs and they don't blink! creepy.

....and lions. Luckily, I've never had to scruff a lion!

I'm doing an internship right now at a zoo. One day after cleaning the big cat cages, I had to walk past the holding cages where the cats were locked in in order to get to the kitchen area to grab the enrichment materials. The last cage at the end of the line was the lioness - and every time I got near, she roared her little head off, scratched the concrete floor, and batted at the metal grates. I just waited about 20 minutes until I saw a keeper walk by to help me GET OUT ALIVE!

 

[chyactnate]

I am really afraid of birds...

 

[TrocarKarin]

Don't laugh, but I've got a mild phobia of cows.

 

[Angelo84]

I am really afraid of birds...

Birds and rabbits--I'm always afraid they're going to die on me!

Holding bad cats for blood the medial saphenous is your friend! Scruff the cat in one hand and stretch the legs our with your other hand. The cat can now do nothing.

 

[Pandacinny]

I'm much better with dogs, restraining cats isn't something I've quite gotten the hang of yet. Tips anyone?

Distraction! If you're holding, try talking in a really annoying voice to the cat, have someone blow on him, tap a pen (gently!) on or near his forehead, clap, etc. With really nice cats, giving nice hard scratches under the chin/wherever can be a good distraction.

 

[Pandacinny]

Oh and nets- we use nets and large towels for handling/moving feral cats. It's quick, safe, and easy.

 

[rexosaurus]

I am really afraid of birds...

Me too! I get made fun of all the time for it, but I just can't help it. I had a bat stuck in my hair (on the 4th of July) when I was nine, and since then anything bigger than my fist that can fly freaks me out; especially birds! 😱

 

[Hopeful07]

Distraction! If you're holding, try talking in a really annoying voice to the cat, have someone blow on him, tap a pen (gently!) on or near his forehead, clap, etc. With really nice cats, giving nice hard scratches under the chin/wherever can be a good distraction.

We use the pen idea in my clinic too -- along with many other ideas mentioned above. The distraction method seems to work pretty well. And if they are really fractious, they get the kitty burrito using a towel method.

 

[RaptorRehaber]

is anyone scared of certain animals...i myself am scared of pitbulls, they scare the crap out of me, am i the only one that has an animal fear or am i not alone?

So..are you asking if we have irrational fears like yours which is probably a result of misguided information? Or true fears?

If we're going the irrational way, I have a phobia of dead fish.

 

[wi girl]

Ah, irrational fear of fish in lakes. So i get freaked out by seaweed. ironically, the brightly colored tropical ones don't bother me at all. but this is COMPLETELY off the thread topic, just was replying to raptor's post.

 

[DaNNo]

In general, I would say that I am not afraid of any particular animal that I deal with in a clinical setting. Of course, there are a few breeds that throw up a warning flag for me... surprisingly not Pit Bulls. I'm more weary of Akitas, Chow Chows, Cocker Spaniels, and Saint Bernards. Surprisingly, I've never been bit by any of those... but maybe that's because I've taken greater precaution with them. On the other hand, I have been bitten by a Dauschund (hand) and a Springer Spaniel (face), though, for the most part, most have been fairly good.

But, of course, I've learned to not fully trust any animal (especially dogs). If it needs to be taken to the back for bloodwork, an x-ray, etc.... it's getting muzzled, no if's, and's, or but's.

And I get some sick sort of enjoyment out of restraining fractious cats... weird, I know...
I'm also afriad that rabbits will kick and break their backs while I'm restraining. Just afraid of that happening... not the animal itself...


Deer freak me out though... it's something about their eyes. If I see one in the wild, my hearts start racing and I want to run in the other direction... CREEPY!

 

[KingTut]

So..are you asking if we have irrational fears like yours which is probably a result of misguided information? Or true fears?

If we're going the irrational way, I have a phobia of dead fish.

technically im not scared of them due to misguided info....i was attacked savagley by one when i was ten and since then the fear just grips my spine and chills come over me......

 

[bovine]

I nearly terrified of snakes, which is kinda funny considering I am a 21 y/o male that has lived on a farm my whole life😛

 

[Electrophile]

I HATE catfish. Hate hate hate! Yes, they taste delicious, but they creep me out. Back in middle school, me and a friend went fishing at a pond and this guy comes over and asks us if we want to see the really big fish he caught. We walked over and he pulls this massive 40 lbs catfish out of the water. It's squeaking as it's trying to breath and bleeding from having the stringer run through its gills. I was so revolted, even though I had caught them numerous times before. Then I had heard stories that there were gigantic 6-7 foot long catfish in one of the big lakes here in Missouri with eyes as big as dinner plates. *shudders* I can't hardly walk by an aquarium that has a set up to look like American streams from the South if it has a big catfish in it. That being said, if someone had a pet catfish (?) that they brought in needing help, I would do my best. 😀 Sometimes ya just gotta get over it.

 

[zpinkpanther]

So, this might be irrational, but whenever I'm holding something small (little dog/puppy or frail old cat) for a jugular blood draw, I'm always afraid they'll jerk and tear the vein and bleed everywhere and die. Hasn't happened yet, but scary as hell.

For the most part, I'm okay with mean cats. If all else fails, I throw a towel over 'em and tell them to chill out. I used to be afraid of holding a mean cat for a jugular blood draw, but I've got a good technique now. It is, however, a bit frightening when you've got a mean, fat cat by the scruff and it's slipping out of your hand!

 

[zpinkpanther]

Oh, also, snapping turtles! I was swimming in a lake near my aunt's house when I was 7 and one latched onto me... broke my foot in 5 places and the damn thing wouldn't let go! They carried me into the ambulance with the turtle still clamped onto my foot.

 

[HopefulAg]

Always been afraid of cows and horses just because they're larger than me and can cave my chest in.

Small animals don't bother me up until you get to Macaws and the like that can take off fingers.

 

[SillyFilly]

I'm scared of birds too!

Cats get to me sometimes - I'd rather have a biting, striking stallion any day of the week...

 

[BostonLvr]

I believe Pit Bulls to be one of the friendliest breeds out there. I don't believe that any one breed is inherently bad, but I have had the most problems with Dachshunds, Chihuahuas, Corgis, and German Shepherds.

I am not really afraid of any animal, but large birds raise my blood pressure a little bit. Those beaks are powerful. I have a few beak-shaped scars on my forearms.

 

[bnicolec]

Rabbits -- soo scared they are going to try to kick and break their back

Other than that, not really too afraid of any animal. Cats, maybe, but through my experience I have gotten a lot better with them.

Some of the breeds I don't trust (meaning they always get a muzzle) - chihuahuas, shelties, rotts, chows, shar peis.