I have a springer spaniel who's lovely and almost four years old. Just over two years ago, she got a grass seed embedded under her ear. She often gets small mats in her fur (as is normal for the breed) so we brush and trim them as needed. The grass seed was in one of the mats and then dug under her skin - which was obviously causing her pain. We ended up having to have multiple trips to the vets because they would open it up, flush it out, remove the seeds and then, a few days later, another seed would resurface because they hadn't uncovered them all so the whole cycle would start again. It took months for her to heal properly and she had to have multiple surgeries.
During that time, and especially when first discovering the seeds, we used the torch on our phone to get a better look. She was obviously nervous and in pain but we were (obviously) very gentle and kept her calm etc. However, it's now been two years and she still freaks out every time we pick up a phone. She yelps, runs away and hides. She won't come out for ages afterwards. If we're in public (like a pub garden or something) and someone near us has their phone then she cowers under the table and whimpers or tries to pull out of her harness and run away.
We have tried absolutely everything. We've tried cuddling her, offering treats, offering her the phone, we've spoken to the vet and a behaviourist. We've tried completely ignoring her when she reacts like this, we've tried making the phone seem like a fun toy we're playing with so she might join in. We've tried every tip and trick we've seen online or had recommended to us.
Does anyone have any experience with this? How do we fix it?