Senior Dog Comfort & Care

It’s possible that it’s been a long time since your dog needed to wear the dreaded “cone of shame” —maybe it hasn’t been since their spay/neuter! While we humans can find it entertaining watching our dogs try to maneuver with a lampshade on their heads, it can be pretty stressful for them. And wearing this protective collar while feeling a bit “off” adds to the stress.

Stress makes it harder for your dog’s body to recover after surgery or trauma, so the less stress, the better!

With some simple conditioning, it will be much easier for you to put the cone on and take it off throughout their recovery.

Here’s the gist of it:

Treat them at each step in the process — stopping at any point you feel they’ve had enough. Don’t force anything. Start with the cone on the ground in front of you, followed by the cone in your hand with the wide part facing them, next the narrow part facing them — all while treating as they get comfortable. See the video below for the step-by-step process. You truly can get your dog to feel comfortable wearing it.