4 Dogs Scared to go to the Vet

No one likes going to the doctor. Dogs, though…some dogs have such a visceral reaction to a trip to the vet it’s easier just to cross your fingers and hope they’re healthy. Good luck with that rotten tooth, Duke! If you have one of these four types of vet-averse dogs, you know that the real miracle of modern medicine is, well, getting your dog to take it.

1. The Worrier

via GIPHY Cats have a reputation for being jumpy, but have you ever met a highly-anxious dog? No, of course you haven’t, because if you approached an anxious dog as a stranger, he probably hid under the couch. The worrier worries. He puts two-and-two together when you clip on his leash and grab your keys and he is…wait, where did he go? By the time you find him, you can rest assured there’s an “accident” to clean up and at least 20 minutes of all-hands-on-deck soothing to do before you even get him loaded in the car. But what if he has to get shots? Or see another dog at the vet’s office? What if the vet puts him in one of those cold, wiry cagey things and OH, THE HUMANITY!

2. The Aggressor

via GIPHY Does your dog turn into The Incredible Hulk at the very mention of the vet’s name? If little Cuddles becomes Kujo the second you step through the vet’s office doors, you might have an aggressor on your hands. This won’t be pretty. She’s nipping at ankles and fiercely barking her territory constraints to every dog within earshot. She’s growling, she’s yapping, she’s going to make it as difficult as humanly possible to get her on that metal examination table. You may have won this round, but she’s going down fighting So Help Her, Dog.

3. The Silent Protester

via GIPHY The silent protester is NOT HERE for the vet. He’ll go, but not without reminding you how desperately you need leg day by making you pick him up and carry him into the office. He’s a bag of russet potatoes, a bowl of limp noodles. If you want him there, you’ll have to drag him. And when the vet comes in? Forget it. Of course he’s not going to cough that weird cough that brought you here in the first place because that’s what The Man wants him to do. His plan? Use his dead weight to drag this one out until you both leave, frustrated and no closer to a resolution.

4. The Tugger

via GIPHY Taking a tugger to the vet is less about “walking her in on a leash” and more about “brushing up on your Tug-of-War skills.” She’s using muscles you’ve never seen her use to pull, yank, and otherwise make it impossible for you to lead her gracefully through the door. You’ll have to pry her freedom out of her cold, dead hands. The Tugger’s tugging doesn’t stop when the vet comes in, either. Want her on her back? NOPE. Need a quick blood sample? NOT TODAY! Twenty minutes later and you’ll be wondering whether there’s an American Ninja Warrior for dogs.