Dealing with Canine Anxiety

Keeping Your Anxious Dog Calm

Having an anxious dog can be very stressful for a dog owner. I’ve had two: a neurotic Border Collie, and a Beagle/Boston Terrier mix that just never stopped going. Anxious dogs get their anxiety from a variety of reasons, and they can act out in surprising and destructive ways. What do you need to know about keeping your anxious dog calm?

Causes for Canine Anxiety

My Border Collie paces the floors when he’s feeling anxious, barks at the neighbors every time they walk by, and every little thing startles him when we’re out for a walk. What causes this anxiety? Some canine anxiety has its root in a medical issue. Anything from hyperthyroidism, encephalitis, thyrotoxicosis or even pre-diabetes can cause symptoms of anxiety in your dogs. Consult your veterinarian to rule out medical causes for anxiety.

If the cause isn’t medical, there are still a number of reasons your dog could suffer anxiety . Some of the most popular causes of anxiety include: thunderstorms, loud noises, fireworks and separation anxiety. My Border Collie is a rescue, and he was poorly socialized as a puppy. A poorly socialized dog reacts to all new stimuli with anxiety, as the dog hasn’t been given the tools to understand how to process new experiences. De-conditioning is one of the most popular tools to treat canine anxiety caused by thunderstorms, loud noises and fireworks – stimuli that a dog may not understand or may not have been exposed to as a puppy.

How to Treat Canine Anxiety

Depending on the root, you can treat canine anxiety in different ways. If it’s caused by an underlying medical problem, treating the medical problem often reduces or ends the anxiety. In the case of poor socialization, building your dog’s confidence and working with a trainer to help improve your dog’s coping skills can help reduce his anxiety levels.

In the case of a phobia, such as thunderstorms or fireworks, gradually introducing your dog to the stimuli at a distance or in small doses and then increasing his tolerance level can go a long way toward eliminating his anxiety. For separation anxiety, you can practice leaving your dog alone in the next room for small periods of time and slowly build up his tolerance.

Herbal Products Help Reduce Anxiety

Some herbal products, such as Sleepytime Tonic , can help calm your dog. You can use Sleepytime Tonic as a supplement to help reduce your dog’s anxiety while you address the underlying causes for it, or you can use it as part of a long-term management system when you haven’t had any luck reducing anxiety through training or de-conditioning scenarios.

Herbal products make a great supplement to any anxiety-reduction program because they contain non-toxic ingredients and aren’t at all harmful for your dog. Sleepytime Tonic is great to help your dog calm down if confronted with a typically frightening stimulus, including general anxiety-boosters such as thunderstorms or fireworks, or phobias unique to your dog.

You can Manage Canine Anxiety!

Your dog’s anxiety doesn’t have to rule your life. By embarking on a routine of management and training, you can eliminate destructive separation anxiety , reduce the need to clean up anxious potty accidents and help you and your dog live a better life! Say NO to destroyed remote controls and a dog that climbs the walls at the first sign of thunder, and say “yes” to your new future living in harmony with your well-adjusted dog!