Hi again all, it's been a while since i posted. Bailey is now just over 19 months and has turned into a wonderful dog. However, 2 months ago we had him chemically castrated via Suprelorin (6 months) and the change in him has been unbelievable He's far more anxious, reactive and on edge than I've ever seen him. We're assuming this is implant related but possibly this also coincides with more adolescence (his recall has also dipped)? Any thoughts on this?
He's always struggled with leash reactivity but we have been DS/CC training for months and had got to a really good place with him, but now it's been a gigantic backwards step and he's hugely reactive to all sorts of things, including the door and people, but also some inanimate objects he sees on walks.
Thankfully we opted for chemical, not surgical, castration as we knew there was a risk it could impact his reactivity, but i wasn't expecting this reaction. It should wear off in ~4 months and in the meantime we're going back to basics with DS/CC and training calm, as we don't want these behaviours to become habitual.
Has anyone else been through this? Any advice on how to help his anxiety and confidence? I love him dearly but it has been very hard and stressful on all of us.