Take a quick break from your internet search and do a little thought experiment with us…
Imagine the walls around you caving in. Your heart begins to race and your adrenaline starts pumping.
You feel a tingling sensation in your legs and feet. Your hands get all clammy and your breathing becomes increasingly shallow. No matter how much you try, you can’t stop the chaotic thoughts flooding your mind.
This is just one example of what anxiety feels like, and it’s how your canine companion may feel when they become anxious, too.
Pretty scary, right?
As dog parents, we never want to see our helpless canine friends suffer from such a debilitating condition like dog anxiety.
But the reality is, anxiety in dogs is perhaps the most common mental disorder pet owners report to their veterinarians.
If you’re experiencing this, you’re probably at your wit’s end as you’ve probably tried traditional dog anxiety treatments. And we don’t blame you!
The common medications for dogs with anxiety often cause additional unwanted side effects. Before you know it, your dog is on various medications all addressing different symptoms, but never getting to the root cause of their canine anxiety.
So what do you do?
Anxiety has a way of gripping every fiber of your dog’s being, and before it fades, it persistently feeds on their mind and emotions until it leaves them feeling wrecked.
In other words, think of dog anxiety as a panic attack at its worst.
Now, it may be easy for you to recognize when your dog is anxious. But before you dive into how to calm your dog down, you need to determine why your dog might be anxious in the first place. Because treating dog anxiety is no walk in the park.
First let’s look at the different types of dog anxiety:
- Separation anxiety–– This is the most common type of dog anxiety. It’s the fear of being alone. In severe cases, some dogs become anxious even if their owner is still at home but out of sight in another room.
- Generalized anxiety –– Some dogs are just prone to being Nervous Nellies. In fact, a few studies show that certain dog breeds suffer more from various types of anxiety.
- Illness-induced dog anxiety –– Illness, injury, and past trauma can easily throw a dog into an anxious state. Arthritic pain and inflammation is often a contributor to anxiety in dogs.
- Noise anxiety –– This is another common type of dog anxiety, especially during thunderstorms and firework season. In extreme cases, some dogs are fearful of loud music, construction work, vacuum cleaners, dishwashers, ice makers, and other loud noises.
- Rescue/shelter dog anxiety –– Shelter dogs that have been rescued to a new home often come with their own set of issues. And getting them acclimated to their new environment and routine can be a whole other stressful bag of bones.
Now that we know the different types of dog anxiety, we can finally adopt a plan that best suits your anxious dog.
One very easy and effective way to calm your dog down is by using calming supplements for anxious dogs.
So…
We’re so glad you asked! You see, dog calming supplements are packed with therapeutic ingredients that promote total relaxation and calmness.
In fact, calming supplements are carefully formulated and designed to take the edge off for your anxious dog in a gentle but effective way. What’s more, the ingredients found in dog calming supplements are usually 100% natural (depending on how reputable the brand is).
Now then, let’s look at some of these calming ingredients…
Chamomile
Chamomile is one of those ancient medicinal herbs that’s been around for hundreds of years. Scientists have studied it for its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and sedative-like properties.
But there’s one particular study that caught our eye… It was a study involving patients with Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). After consuming extracts of chamomile, the patients had a reduction of their moderate-to-severe GAD symptoms. That’s pretty cool!
While no studies have been conducted on our canine friends, chamomile is considered a safe calming ingredient for dog anxiety.
Tryptophan
Tryptophan, or L-tryptophan, is an essential dietary amino acid that helps create serotonin, a neurotransmitter that naturally stabilizes your dog’s mood.
