Anxiety Reduction - LONG

As requested, here's what I’ve learned, done, do, and recommend(ed) with great success to reduce anxiety related to just about anything. Some things take much longer than others to work through. I was able to get Sheila over her fear of fireworks in one evening (may have to repeat next year, though). However, we’re still working with Charlie to reduce his fear of men with sticks (canes or any other forms of a “stick”). It can take a LONG time (years) if the fear is deeply ingrained at a young age. Note: You CAN feel free to comfort your animal. It will NOT make the fear worse, but probably won’t actually help either. Two new studies were fairly conclusive for both statements (I can find the links if you're interested).

Find the dog’s favorite reward. This is the dog’s decision. Typical choices include, but are not limited to: pot roast, pork, hot dogs, squeeze cheese, regular cheese, chicken, beef, Zukes, Wellness treats, goldfish crackers, green tripe (my least favorite), Evo, liverwurst (my second least favorite), tug games, throwing the ball, doing tricks, etc. To test which the dog likes best, offer two options at the same time, and see what the dog chooses. Charlie ALWAYS chooses the tug toy. Sheila always takes the pork.

Now for the details – we’ll use storms as an example, but this applies to anything producing anxiety.

Now that you have your reward figured out. Be prepared. When you hear that there will be a chance of a storm, have your animal’s favorite reward at hand, and start feeding/playing EARLY, at the first signs of stress. Signs of stress can include scratching, lip licking, looking away from you when called, ignoring you, walking around aimlessly, etc. Feed/play as fast as the animal will eat/play. The point here is to associate the thunder and lightening with really good stuff. When working with Sheila on fireworks this last 4th of July, I went through 16 ozs of TOTS (Treats of Trainers made by Kong) in one evening. These are tiny. She ate hundreds, if not a thousand, treats that night. However, she’s never reacted to fireworks since. We may have to do this again next year, but I wouldn’t expect to have to work this hard with her.

Cheap resources:
Food items – Big Lots and Dollar Stores sell discounted squeeze cheese, canned meats, hotdogs, and other yummy stuff.
Tug toys – make out of old jeans by cutting strips, tying into longer strips, braiding, and knotting the ends together.

You may also want to try several other homeopathic things to try in conjunction with the above items. You will need to do both. Melatonin has been known to help anxiety. 1 milligrams per 20 pounds up to three times a day. You can NOT overdose them on Melatonin. You can also try several of the “calming” options sold at the pet stores and on-line.

If you want more help (or this just doesn’t make any sense), please feel free to contact me.

Wishing the best to you and your furry friend(s).

Marci