Dogs, like humans, can experience anxiety, and this can occur from a wide variety of fears and phobias. Anxiety is considered to be normal behaviour in almost any pet. However, if it becomes excessive, it can turn detrimental to your relationship with your dog, and ultimately, your life as a pet owner.
Pet anxiety can be helped through conditioning and training. For instance, if your pet suffers from separation anxiety, you can improve his behaviour by providing his ‘alone time’ with positive reinforcement. However, if anxiousness is your dog’s natural disposition, trusted vets in Surrey recommend that you a try the following solutions.
Exercise
Exercise can be an effective anxiety reliever. Just as it is in humans, exercising for dogs helps increase the production of the feel-good chemical serotonin, which can help your pet feel relaxed and more at ease. Likewise, it also allows him to expend any pent-up energy and tension that he may feel, both of which can worsen anxiety levels.
Massage
Every dog loves a good massage. With long, slow strokes from the head to the back, a good massage can soothe a dog’s nerves and calm his anxiety. It’s worth noting that massaging your dog has calming effect on you, the pet owner, as well, so giving your dog a massage can be beneficial to the health and wellbeing of both you and your pet.
Distraction tactics
If your dog’s anxiousness is situational, meaning he acts out during stressful instances such as when he’s around loud noises, then distracting him away from the cause of his anxiety might to do the trick. Give your dog something to preoccupy himself with so he won’t have time to focus on what’s frightening him. Try rewarding your dog with treats whenever a stressful situation pops up. If he associates frightening instances with good things, he may learn to tolerate such moments and feel less scared about them.
If these tips fail to help, you may need to take your pet to one of the trusted vets in Sutton, Surrey, such as Anne Nelson Vets. Your veterinarian can help you identify the cause of your furry friend’s negative behaviour and provide recommendations and even medication that can alleviate his fears and anxieties.
Sources:
(Extreme Fear and Anxiety in Dogs, PetMD.com)
