Effectvie Natural Remedies for Anxiety in Dogs

If you have a dog with anxiety, this can really impact their daily life and take away from their enjoyment of normal doggie activities.

Things that should be relaxing for your dog, like going for a walk for instance, or playing in the park can be affected by dog anxiety, to the point where doing these things can make your dog more stressed.

But how do you calm your dog down and break the negative cycle of dog anxiety?

We look into this below and outline natural remedies you can use to help calm your dog without the sometimes negative side effects of pharmaceutical medications.

What about the pharmaceutical option?

If you go to a conventional vet with a dog suffering from anxiety, the chances are that you may leave with a bottle of anti-anxiety medication.

These include a lot of meds that you may have heard of for human use.

Most dogs need to take these medications for several weeks for them to start taking effect and whilst for some this treatment can stop, for others, it can be life-long.

While some of these medications may be effective to help calm anxious dogs, your dog may experience some of the below side effects.

• Skin conditions
  
• Difficulty sleeping
• Upset stomach
• Increased or decreased appetite
  
• Drowsiness or lethargy
• Seizures
• Liver damage

The use of such drugs can result in withdrawal symptoms if stopped suddenly.

Thankfully there are nowadays lots of natural remedies to treat your dog's anxiety.

Seven Natural Remedies For Dog Anxiety

Homeopathic Remedies

These remedies are generally good for specific causes of pet anxiety and are very safe.

Mix three little pellets into your dog's water bowl.

• Phosphorus 30C. Given up to twice daily this is great for all noise phobias.
• Borax 6C. Offers effective relief from fear of thunderstorms.
• Aconite 30C. Great for fear in general. Can be given frequently during a time of great anxiety.
• Gelsemium 6C or 30C. Good for the treatment of separation anxiety
• Rescue Remedy. Can be effective in the treatment of noise phobias
• L-Theanine is an amino acid found most commonly in tea leaves. It is said to promote relaxation without drowsiness.

Herbs

There are a number of herbs that can be used to remedy your dog's anxiousness.

Used as a tea, or tincture, you can add to your dog's food or water dish.

• Valerian. will help your dog to physically relax, a very well-known herbal sedative.
• Chamomile. It Will help to relax and soothe a nervous dog.
• St John's Wort. The natural alternative to anti-depressants.

Essential Oils

Use Essential oil in a diffuser for effective natural relief and calming of the pet's nervous system.

• For fear of loud noises- Rose otto, Hops, Cornflour, Frankincense.
• To treat Separation anxiety- Violet Leaf, Vetiver, Lavender, Rose Hydrosol.
• For general anxiety- Hemp, Roman Chamomile, Linden Leaf, Violet Leaf.

When using essential oils be aware that your dog's sense of smell is so much more powerful than your own, therefore always dilute the essential oil.

Make sure your pet dog has a clear path of exit if the smell of the essential oils makes them uncomfortable.

Also never apply these oils directly to the skin or fur. Don't allow your dog to ingest this essential oil.

Music Therapy

Just as certain types of music can calm a human, different types of music can have a positive effect on an anxious dog.

Dogs respond well to classical music, playing music is a great way to make your home more relaxing for your pet.

It can soothe them during times when loud noises are stressing them out, like during thunderstorms.

Indeed playing white noise is also a great way to take away the fear of loud noises as it works to mask these noises for your dog.

Hemp Oil

Hemp oil has been getting great press recently for its benefits to humans. Many of these benefits to apply to our dogs.

Research has shown that hemp oil interacts with the nervous system to relieve anxiety and stimulate serotonin production.

Hemp as it works very quickly it is great for situational anxiety as it can be applied as the stimuli of fear arises and quickly works to alleviate the stress.

Hemp can also be used in the case of travel anxiety too.

If you are planning a journey a dose of Hemp can be an effective means to calm your dog.

Comfort Cuddler Toys for Dogs

Get your dog a comfort cuddler toy as an effective way to relieve separation anxiety. Introducing a soft toy that your dog can cuddle up to offers them comfort.

This toy can also be taken on extended car journeys to help with the stress of the journey.

A Comfy Calming Dog Bed to Sleep In

A comfy calming dog bed will work in a similar way to the comfort cuddler solution. The soft materials used to offer relief to stress.

In the case of these clever dog beds, the plush covering mimics mommy dog's fur from the time your dog was a pup.

The ingenious donut shape allows dogs to nestle and burrow right into the crevices, offering an enclosed and safe feeling as if getting a cuddle from their doggy mom or indeed you as their owner.

Highly effective for separation anxiety, you may also find when your dog experiences anxiety that they will gravitate towards the bed.

For instance, when fearful of a new person in the home or indeed during times of loud external noises, you will find that your dog defaults to their safe haven.

Final thought

Dogs all respond differently to different types of treatment.

Depending on how advanced the anxiety has become it may be the case that they would benefit from prescription pharmaceutical medication.

This tends to be the case when dogs' anxiety is so acute that they can no longer learn or be conditioned out of the stressed state of mind.

These medications can simply mask the problem, however, rather than get to the cause of anxiety.

Natural solutions such as essential oils like rescue remedy are obviously preferred where appropriate as they generally have very little negative effects.

Milder than the pharmaceuticals on offer, these treatments can work to just take the edge off of the fear and stress enough so that your dog can still learn and eventually overcome the problem in itself.

Your dog's well being must be taken seriously at all times, anxiety is a real problem that affects many dogs nowadays.

It can start out as mild, but left untreated can snowball and escalate to the point where your dog's behavior may seem unmanageable.

On the first sign that your dog is experiencing anxiety, it is always best to see your veterinarian professional to seek advice.

With modern-day living, so many dogs are experiencing symptoms of anxiety at some point in their life.

Preventative measures such as the use of a calming dog bed can work to fend off the development of any issues and preemptively calm an anxious pooch.

Therefore, investment in one of these beds seems like a no-brainer.It may negate the need for future treatment of your dog.

Remember that a happy dog is generally a healthy dog. Increase your dog's exercise as an effective preventative method too.

The exercise helps to tire your dog out reducing nervous energy.

Physical activity also helps to get the brain's chemical balance aligned.

A recent study showed that a lack of the correct amount of exercise is very detrimental in terms of the mental health of dogs.

The saying healthy body healthy mind rings true for humans as well as our canine counterparts.

One more thing before you leave, why not take a look at this post looking at how to deal with a dog anxious at night?