# Suggestions please for anxious dog



## JLO (Sep 27, 2006)

We have an 8 year old black lab Zak, he is an extremely well behaved and intelligent dog, he does things like bringing the shopping in from the car and gets the washing out of the tumble dryer, it really pleases him to do these kind of things BUT he is becoming anxious about more and more things. He has always been afraid of thunder and fireworks, if a thunderstorm happened we always ignored his scared behaviour and carried on as normal, but he is not gun shy, however we do give him Bachs Rescue Remedy to help calm him down, but during the past year he has become more worried about everyday things. We can't even open the mail now without him scurrying off and hiding in a corner, he dosn't like the envelopes, he is terrified of my spectacle case because it makes a noise when I clip it shut, we still try and ignore his behaviour but it is getting harder. 

Sometimes if he is asleep near your feet and you move even slightly he shoots up and is halfway across the room in fear and panic before he is properly awake. We have had him since he was 11 weeks old, he is well socialised and friendly, the only thing that we can think has changed during the past year is our 14 year old cat died, the cat was 7 years old when we got Zak, the vet thought that Zak might not be happy being the only pet in the house, so we recently got another cat Dylan from the RSPCA, he is very friendly and likes to sleep with the dog.

The vet said something about a DAP diffuser which apparently gives of a hormonal smell which a dogs mother gives off and it reassures the puppies, but they are not cheap and I wondered if anyone else had tried them before I splash out and buy one. Someone else I spoke to said the vet had given their dog valium, but I am not sure I want to go down that route with him. 

Any suggestions welcome.


----------



## locovan (Oct 17, 2007)

I wonder if he is going blind so he isnt seeing things so well so noise is a suprise to him.
I use Simply Suppliments Calming Formula to calm my nervouse dog and Yeast Tablets.
I wouldnt like to use Valium surely that really dopes a dog.


----------



## JLO (Sep 27, 2006)

No he is not going blind because he scurries away if he sees you opening an envelope, we think he might be frightened of the envelopes because we got one with bubble wrap in it and my husband accidentally stood on the bubble wrap. The list of what he is scared of is a long one but includes the:

hosepipe
ironing board
hair dryer
opening a can of drink 
hoover
moving the dustbin 
opening or closing my specs case
heavy rain (because he has worked out that this usually accompanies thunder)

He will happily guard the house and gives a good warning bark to anyone who comes near, he guards against other dogs coming near the house (if the gate is closed) If the gate is open he ignores other dogs. I have never had such a complex dog before, my previous two dogs who were both yellow labs were very laid back and bothered about nothing.

I am very reluctant to go down the drug route because normally he is a happy dog and I don't want to drug him.


----------



## ktesis (May 11, 2005)

We used a DAP diffuser when we first got our dog as a puppy. We were close to giving him back to the breeders because he would spend the whole night in an agitated state so much so we couldnt get to sleep. From the first night we used the DAP he settled down. We used it for about 6 weeks then stopped.
As for adult dogs from what little research I did at the time it would seem that it is used in circumstances you describe. You can buy on the internet - perhaps cheaper than the vet?


----------



## JLO (Sep 27, 2006)

thank you for that, I hate to see the dog unhappy for no reason which I can see. I will look into getting one again.


----------



## greenasthegrass (Oct 27, 2007)

We had a black lab Max who sadly got squished by a landrover 5 years ago this year - I miss that daft mutt every day.

He was a big fairy - he hated fireworks, thunder and lightning, cats, loud noises he didn't understand and was like that from day one. He was only 5 when he went so don't know if he would have got any worse.

Perhaps its cos he was black and the blonde ones are tougher? He got spooked by a noise we were in middle of a field and flight not fight took hold and he ran half mile to a road and the landrover won.

I still fill up at the thought of him ....  

Greenie 

PS sorry not much help but perhaps its a breed thing?


----------



## JLO (Sep 27, 2006)

I have been wondering if it is a breed thing, because even though my two previous dogs were labs they were blonde, brave and just a bit stupid. 

This one is a Drakeshead breedline and is from working stock, he has been much easier to train and actually does listen to what is said to him, he dosn't eat every piece of rubbish he comes across and he stays out of the river if I tell him to. 

If something scares him whilst he is out he comes straight back and sits by my side - when I take him to the woods he always has to keep an eye on me and if he loses sight of me he panics, having said all this I would still go for another from the same breedlines.

He could be worse I suppose because the breeder told me that his sister from the same litter, was a bit of a renegade and despite being a trained gun dog actually killed his neighbours chickens.

The breeder tried my dog with retrieving but he didn't like the feathers in his mouth.

I have been looking on another doggy forum and it seems the DAP diffusers/spray/collars work quite well, they are not as dear as I thought £24.99 so will give it a go.


----------



## patp (Apr 30, 2007)

Noise phobia is fairly common and not a breed related thing.

DAP diffusers do work but it sounds as if your dog may be beyond the low level of help they give.

I would recommend that you contact a qualified Pet Behaviour Therapist. The two professional organisations are COAPE and APBC. They will require a referal from your vet but that is usually no problem. Do not use any other kind of dog trainer who may or may not call themselves behaviourists.

The COAPE and APBC practioners are well trained in lots of different ways to treat noise phobia. Each dog is assessed individually and you are given a treatment plan tailored to your needs. I must warn you that it can take a very long time to cure and you will need lots of time and patience but it is worth it in the long run.

In the meantime you are doing all the right things by ignoring (don't even look at him) the behaviour. Your dog may have found your old cat comforting because the cat completely ignored the noises. Noise phobias often start with one thing, like thunder, and generalise to others.

Good Luck


----------



## Rapide561 (Oct 1, 2005)

*Anxious*

Hi

Many breeds are prone to (see google) separation anxiety. This can be sorted out with patience.

Jenny is unusual in that she will stay on her own for as long as necessary without fuss, yet when we are together, we have to be together, as in a five stone dog sat on my knee!

Various things can cause anxiety. I had major problems one Christmas when Oscar started to tiddle in the house. The removal of the Christmas tree in January solved this.

Russell


----------



## locovan (Oct 17, 2007)

JLO
I was put off because you said --and I quote
but during the past year he has become more worried about everyday things

So something must have happened a year ago to make him worse.
Can you think what that might be?
Thats why i wondered if it was eyesight getting worse.
But something has spooked him and Pat's suggestion of a Pet Behaviour Therapist is a very good one.


----------



## JLO (Sep 27, 2006)

Thanks. I am going to try the DAP anyway the vet recommended it. Bachs Rescue Remedy helps him as well, so it probably is something which can be controlled. 

I walk him twice a day in the week 20 minutes each (when I am at work) but I think I may try and increase that because my theory is that if he is tired enough he won't worry about things so much. 

His fears are weird and sometimes go beyond what you would expect from a dog. When we travel in the motorhome he wears a harness and is strapped into a seatbelt holder just behind the passenger seat, he knows that when the harness is on he needs to lay between the seats and be clipped in, when we went to Scotland last Easter we couldn't find the harness but we needed to get going so decided this once to set off without it on, he just would not settle and after 2 hours and actually travelling only 20 miles (roadworks and traffic) we decided to stop for lunch, we found his harness put it on and he settled down.


----------



## JLO (Sep 27, 2006)

I have spoken to a pet behaviour therapist who trained with Jan Fennell and he told me I was doing all the correct things. I am very much of the Cesar Milan way of bringing up a dog (before I had even heard of him) 

A dog is a pack animal and I am the pack leader as far a my dog is concerned, occasionally I still have to remind him of that, usually with him it is as simple as making him do a bit of heel work, sit stay etc, I never let him go through a door before me, he dosn't eat until I give the command. 

I looked after my nieces mini schnauzer and he and I had a bit of a stand off when he first arrived and started trying to assert his authority, all I did with him was block his path into the house until he realised who was boss and then he was fine, he still did his other schnauzer things like emptying the greenhouse of anything he could find and keeping all the birds out of the garden but I can live with that.


----------



## zulurita (May 9, 2005)

Zylkene tablets are good and a natural product.

We bought ours from Vet UK online and it came with a CD to help de stress dogs.


----------



## raynipper (Aug 4, 2008)

We had a Lab/Dane cross for 12 years. Got him from Battersea Dogs Home. I assumed he would make a good gun dog but at the first bang he returned to me put his head between my legs and shook.

All his life he was afraid of bangs and thunder. Would try and bury himself before a storm. Nov.5th. he had to sit on the settee between us both. 

Beautiful pet/companion for 12 years. Sadly missed.

Ray.


----------



## riverboat2001 (Apr 2, 2009)

Hiya, 
When we first got our rescue dog she had loads of "issues" with, amongst other things included having her feet touched, being brushed, being toweled, and having her collar touched.

She would turn her teeth up and it was quite scary. It was all fear based and not aggresive as such.
However we got past all of this by putting the brush on the floor and bribing her with copious amounts of cheese or chicken or some other REALLY tasty morsel, and then the next step had us hold the brush in one hand and feeding her from the other, then touching the brush (non bristle side) against her fur, then running it along her fur.

Any way i'm sure you get the picture. we carried out each "excercise" every hour or so for weeks on end.

Eventually we got there, and now all of these issues have gone away. She is still a nervous/panicky dog, but she is so much better her previous foster owners would recognise the change in her.

She is still very nervous of any new situation, but we introduce her gently and the next time she does the same thing she is much better. 

We also use a dap diffuser and buy it off of fleabay, not relly sure how much it helps, but at least it can't hurt.


----------



## littlenell (Aug 1, 2008)

HI there,

We have two dobes and have fostered three more. Our girl dobe used to get in real state with fireworks, the screeching high pitched ones, and hates tannoys too. This led me to try something called tellington touch. It is a very gentle way of working with an animal to increase confidence and calmness in situations...the impact can be amazing.

A simple method to calm anxious animals is to put a tshirt on them- acts like a portable hug. If there is a practitioner near you it might be worth booking a session, they can give you advice on how you can keep working with your dog to improve things...

Nice link to Sarah Fisher (TTouch UK) working with a Westie on This morning...

 click here


----------



## patp (Apr 30, 2007)

Fantastic link Littlenell    

Should be compulsory viewing for all the "teach him who's boss" brigade out there at the moment.

An anxious dog cannot learn because the "fight/flight" response is so strong it overrides everything else.


----------



## littlenell (Aug 1, 2008)

Another video, quite a fast run through!

 LINK


----------



## patp (Apr 30, 2007)

As you say a very fast run through which can give the impression that we should get quick results. Which we will, of course, if we use it correctly.

Would have liked her to have shown how to introduce the clicker as some people will use it like a remote control and point it at the dog :? Much better to hold it behind your back at first until the dog understands that when he hears a click he will get a treat.
Also an explanation that if you click you must treat even if you didn't mean to click :roll: 
Sarah's explanation, with the Westie in the previous clip, that you use a clicker like a camera was an excellent analogy. You are taking a mental "picture" of the behaviour you are wanting from the dog when you press the clicker.

Great stuff!


----------



## JLO (Sep 27, 2006)

Hi all

thanks for all your suggestions. The DAP diffuser seems to be working, the dog seems a bit braver than he was. 

The vet suggested that the dog might be missing our cat (who died Jan 09 at age 14) so at the vets suggestion we rehomed another cat from RSPCA (Jan 10) sadly just as the dog was getting to know him and trust him (not to scratch) our neighbour came to tell us he was dead at the side of the road (Monday) so instead of washing the motorhome as planned we had the sad job of burying our cat in the garden. Don't know whether to get another or not, I did ring the RSPCA up to let them know what had happened and they said they had 30 cats come in over the last 2 weeks and are desperate for homes for them. 

Dylan is now under the Azalea in the corner of the garden.

Jacqui


----------



## Lesleykh (Apr 13, 2009)

Sorry to hear about the cat. It's never easy losing a pet.

Or dog is very nervous. We have had him since 8 weeks old and he was bossed around by by our other dog, a calm lab x, who was loving to all except the new dog.

Charlie (new dog - well, new 11 years ago) started to get very nervous of strangers and would growl. Since old dog died 5 years ago Charlie has calmed down a lot a tolerates strangers nearby now, but has grown more and more nervous of other things. 

He runs and hides if a man coughs or sneezes (even muffled into the pillow), but I could be choking to death and he wouldn't bat an eye-lid! That started after he stayed with my parents and boy can my dad sneeze.

His fear of fireworks makes him clamber up to try and cling around my shoulders. He's a collie cross, so this is no light burden.

Now he's getting a bit deaf it's all easing a bit, but some of the things he dislikes are strange like your dog.

Lesley


----------



## JLO (Sep 27, 2006)

Hi

I know they are weird aren't they. My previous two labs were practically bomb proof so this one has come as a bit of a shock to us. One of our labs developed an aversion to walking over bridges, if we were out for a walk and we came to a bridge we used to cross the bridge and then sit and wait at the other side because he used to come over the bridge on his belly and it took him ages. Sometimes at the beach where we lived in Lossiemouth he would rather swim across the river than cross the bridge. 

The DAP diffuser is working, but I have come to the conclusion that we have to live with the dogs "little ways" 

We are all sad about the cat, but not surprised - he used to lay in the middle of the road and wouldn't move when a car came, so the way his life ended was inevitable really. 

J


----------



## littlenell (Aug 1, 2008)

We have a couple of thundershirts- check out the website...but a snug fitting dog t-shirt should have same effect. A "portable" hug for dogs - makes them calmer especially for noises etc. 

Am heading off tomorrow on my third course for ttouch and can really recommend it -having seen the difference it has made to our dobes and fosters...


----------



## BLF (Feb 23, 2010)

Hi, we also have a very nervous dog especially when it comes to travelling in a vehicle. She gets so stressed out that she can't hear us. 
Since we have had the motorhome my wife has had to hold her on her lap most of the time. We have tried all sorts of things but have finally found that Zylkene tabs work the best. We have being buying them from the vet at £1 a tab. Now she relaxes quite quickly but still whimpers a hell of a lot at the start of the trip.
We have tried using DAP but Zylkene certainly works best.

Good luck with Zak.


----------

