LeaMac

Hi all - I'm Hershey's owner. Thank you for your comments. I agree that the physical discomfort of the short cut was probably a major factor in causing so much distress this time round, so the idea of being able to clip him at home in short bursts is one I'd like to try. It will be a fairly lengthy process to try to desensitise him but there are lots of good suggestions here that will help us. Hershey's rough life really comes in to play whenever he feels fear and pain which is both sad and frustrating for us. I wish we could just erase all his memories of his earlier life. Fortunately he is slowly recovering from his grooming trauma. He is still showing some anxiety induced behaviours but at least he seems to love us again!

Hi all - I'm Hershey's owner. Thank you for your comments. I like the idea of trying a gradual desensitising process, hopefully leading up to a point where we can clip Hershey at home in short bursts. He actually loves to be held and patted but becomes very stressed when he feels "handled" and any sort of discomfort is involved, so it may be a long process to overcome that. His coat is too thick to let grow long over summer so we'll need to start working with him soon. He is slowly recovering from his trauma, still showing some anxiety induced behaviours but at least he seems to love us again!