Help Your Pup Cope With Firework Phobia
For those dogs that are noise, thunder, or firework phobic, July 4 can be rough. But there are a few things you can do to help them cope and encourage confidence.
Behavior Consultant Leigh Siegfried of Opportunity Barks has the following advice to help your dogs enjoy the holiday.
Imagine having ultra sensitive hearing, being left in charge to guard the house and then there is an invisible invader! Yikes!
Many times a phobic dog will choose avoidance and will hide, burrow under a coffee table or lie in an open closet or a crate. On the other hand, folks can get into serious trouble if their dog is off leash and he chooses to run away (think flight response). In this state of mind, your dog is literally in survival mode.
So, let's talk about what we can do to soothe your dog on the 4th.
- Keep walks to a minimum and make sure your collars/halters are fitted properly with identification.
- Create a safe haven where your dog can squirrel away if he would like.
- Play a radio or white noise to provide relief in the house.
- Give your dog very high value, long lasting chewies (beef marrow bones) in their safe space.
- If you have a severely noise phobic dog that is on anxiety medication, you may want to consult with your veterinarian about something for "acute" situations such as the 4th.
- A tight fitting garment on your dog may help them relax a bit as well (gentle pressure on the body can release endorphins, the "feel good" drug).
Even if your dog isn't totally stressed by sound, you want to keep an eye out for signs that they are stressed. Stress signals include things like the ears or tail plastered to the body, more than normal drooling or salivation, pacing and panting, a foamy beard of drool, whining,excessive yawning, scratching or shaking as if wet, trembling or shaking and lots of "choppy" movement.
If you see your dog displaying multiple stress signals, give him a break from the action. Take them inside and give them a quiet place and a good chewie.
You Might Like
You have 2000 characters left
