Comments on: Got a Stressed Dog? Try These Tips!

By: Holly Nash, DVM

Holly Nash, DVM — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 14:33:48 +0000

Hi Emily: To help answer your question, could you tell us what signs your dog is showing that he is stressed? When do these occur – when you are gone, when you are home, or both? What is your dog’s usual routine? Do you have any other pets? etc.

By: Emily Frye

Emily Frye — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 04:08:46 +0000

My dog is a 5 year old dachshund and he is new to our home. At first he seemed happy and excited, but it’s been a couple weeks and he’s starting to seem stressed. Any advice?

By: kevin beadle

kevin beadle — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 13:08:34 +0000

Just a note on the cutting nails issue. I had this problem with my Jack Russel, he just wouldnt let me or the vet cut them. He started crying before i even touched him…. I have found that taking him for a 1 hour walk twice a week along pavement/sidewalk or anything hard grinds them down without stress or expense. Not as much fun as a run in the park but he is a lot happier for it !

By: Ellen B.

Ellen B. — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 13:58:24 +0000

Jo, I asked Dr. Holly Nash to offer you advice. Below is her reply. I wish you luck. Please come back and leave us an update with how she’s doing.

Ellen

From Dr. Holly:
Jo, I’m sorry to hear your dog is having this problem. You did not say if your dog is spayed or not. This behavior can be due to hormonal changes if she has not been spayed. If she is not spayed, the usual recommendation is to have her spayed as soon as possible. If she has been spayed, it is most likely an anxiety-related behavior. The first thing I would do is have her examined by a veterinarian to be sure there is not a medical condition contributing to the behavior. I would try to engage your dog in more social interactions with you, such as play and training. Use really fantastic treats (e.g., cooked chicken) for rewards during the interactions. Provide some new toys, including those that you can put treats inside of. I would not reinforce the behavior she is displaying, but instead try to redirect the behavior to something more positive. In addition to these behavior modification exercises, your veterinarian may recommend that your dog be placed on a prescription anti-anxiety medication for a while to help break the cycle. Best wishes to you and your dog! I hope this can be resolved soon.

By: Jo

Jo — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 06:05:06 +0000

Hi Everyone, my 12mth old pom/maltese is what we believe to be highly stressed. I took all the kids away for a 4 day break during school holidays while my husband stayed to work. He was gone early morning until returning home early evening. After a week of being home, she is continuing to show signs of stress. Her appetite is almost non-existent, she only plays with my daughters two toys which are as small as a newborn pup and which move and make animal sounds when touched. It’s as though they have become her pups / babies and she takes them into all sorts of corners in the house from under my bed, to behind the laundy basket, to her bed in which she places them and almost ‘nurtures’ them. I have tried taking them away, walking her every morning, we play during the day and especially in the afternoon when we are all home together but she is not getting any better. She is a beautiful girl but cries when I take them away – I believe these little toys may have made her feel secure when we were away but its like nothing else matters now. Even taking her for a car ride (which she normally loved) has become an anxious time for her, shaking and appearing very anxious until we get home – to her babies! Please, if you have any advice I’m open to it all – she cannot continue this way and the love, kindness and understanding we are giving her (alone time also) is not working and I’m worried.

By: Bonnie Ramba

Bonnie Ramba — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 15:19:42 +0000

My greyhounds really don’t have stress issues EXCEPT when there is a thunderstorm! I am a real fan of Bach’s Rescue Remedy. I first started using it when I worked at a large pet store where we had multiple pet issues – especially foul tempered hamsters (which I love, by the way). By calming them with the Bach’s it gave me a chance to work with them with the result of a people friendly hamster – often even friendlier that the ones that were “good” when they came in. I’ve used the Bach’s with my greyhounds with much success during a thunderstorm. They make a storm away coat which if used before a storm gets bad, is supposed to help. I bought one recently but have not had an opportunity to “put it to the test” !

By: Ellen B.

Ellen B. — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 14:50:54 +0000

Ginger,

First, congratulations on your new family addition!

That is a great question because I think a lot of dogs stress during storms. Dr. Holly Nash wrote a really helpful article on our http://www.PetEducation.com site called Fear of Thunderstorms and Noise Phobias. Take a look at it here: http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=2+2085&aid=2545

One of her many good points is that you should “Project a calm attitude: Pets are very aware of the mental state of their owners. If you are worried or nervous, this will add to the pet’s fear.” I find that to be true with my dog in a few situations.

I’ve also recently discovered that LOTS of fun exercise makes my dog so tired that he simply doesn’t care what happens! Dr. Holly’s point… “Increase vigorous exercise: The pet should receive vigorous exercise daily, and more so on a day when the fear-producing noise is likely to occur.”

There are many other helpful tips, so take a look at the article. Please let us know if you find any other them are particularly helpful for your dog.

By: Ginger Spitzmiller

Ginger Spitzmiller — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 11:44:48 +0000

We have a 2yr. old male Golden Retriever that we recently adopted from another loving family. He typically stays outside and has a nice bed on our covered porch. We were warned that he does not like storms and would fuss outside. We quickly found that to be true, so we started letting him sleep inside in his crate during storms and in really cold weather. Lately he has started fussing like crazy in his crate-whining, yipping, banging around. He did that tonight during a storm and managed to move the crate enough that he got the door opened. Any ideas on what we can do to calm him?

By: Ellen B.

Ellen B. — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 16:52:35 +0000

Thank you all for your input. Dog behavior can sometimes be very puzzling to us owners, so your comments are very valuable and appreciated. Keep the tips coming!

By: Kathleen

Kathleen — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 05:54:40 +0000

Hmmn Balto ? Jumping up on you or guests is not a good thing. I handled my dogs excitement upon returning home with a training tool we found to be most helpful. We placed some change in an empty plastic bottle kept it right outside my front door. Upon entering house as dogs excitedly approached us I shook the bottle ( makes a startling noise) and gave the command I use as “No” in a stern tone. We practiced this with them on and off through the day. It is important you be calm and assertive when doing this. Your dog will catch on and when he reacts correctly then go to where you have his treats and reward him with one . We are greeted by our dogs with great joy that we are back home, they come to us they get rubs and then they follow me to kitchen and sit by the treat jar knowing they did a good job and will be rewarded. It can’t hurt to try it ; )