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Just like people, pets suffer from stress and anxiety, although it can be quite hard to notice their symptoms. It may be due to phobias or fears caused by different reasons based on situation or personality.
In such a case, your pet can try to communicate the anxiety through behaviors like pushing ears back, drooling, yawning, licking their muzzle, or even tucking their tail. Additionally, some pets like dogs may bark constantly, lift their front paw, cower, panting, hide, and many others.
Like humans, there are various ways to help calm, soothe, and relax pets. And while you can treat unhealthy behaviors in pets, anxiety can also be managed and treated. If your pet suffers from anxiety, then you are surfing into the right website. This article explores the best ways you can apply to calm your anxious pet.
Does your pet have separation anxiety? It is a bad idea to leave them alone. Instead, exercise with them to help ease their mind and get rid of the energy and tension that may intensify anxiety. Take the pet out for a hike, run, walk or play ball, as this can be helpful in eliminating nervous tension or separation anxiety.
Also, exercises help to bond with your pet, making them feel loved and cared for. Be sure to talk to them during these exercises as this may help in the secretion of useful endorphins that help relieve stress.
Concentrating on physical contact with your pet can be quite helpful in soothing an anxious pet. Watch out for any symptoms of stress in your pet and get rid of them early enough before their tension worsens. Cuddle with them on your couch, carry them on your lap, or give them an excellent long petting session. Let them feel your warmth on contact. This helps keep them comfortable and relaxed, thereby relieving stress and tension.
(Image Credit: K9 of Mine)
Another good and recommended way to calm pets is to use distractions. In other words, try to engage your pet's mind, let them focus on you and the lovely things they know. Don't ever introduce strange things as this may frighten them and cause more tension. Therefore, let the pet practice different tricks and moves as you reward them.
For instance, you can give them treats for easy commands such as stand, sit, lie down, roll over, among other styles they enjoy. Additionally, use puzzle toys like a tug jug, an Kong toy full of peanut butter, or even treat balls. This may significantly help them link frightening situations such as loud noises or incoming strangers with tremendous rewards. Therefore, they may not get scared or anxious when an event occurs, but tolerable.
Everybody likes a relaxing massage, and this can apply to our pets. Essentially, massage can help relieve pet anxiety, especially in dogs. Often, stress causes muscle tension, and thus, massage therapy can be the best option to eliminate such tension. Apply slow strokes starting from the neck region and continue downwards with long strokes. This ultimately soothes and relaxes their nerves, making them feel at ease and calm.
What's more, keep one hand on your pet as the other one does the massaging. After some time, you can quickly identify regions where the pet holds its stress and then work on that specific area. With your fingers and hands, you can also see circular movements all over your pet's body. This technique helps stimulate their cell's functioning and alert cellular intelligence, making the pet calm.
Music therapy helps humans relieve their anxiety and works well with our feline and canine friends. Interestingly, music tends to be quite calming and super relaxing whether you are at home, in the car, or far from your pet. Also, it can increase sensitive noise by blocking scary or street noise that may cause pet anxiety.
According to research, many dog pets love classical, reggae, and soft rock music. So, be sure to use this therapy to calm pets at home whenever they feel anxious.
(Image Credit: The Spruce Pets)
If you are not aware, calming t-shirts and coats tend to apply mild yet constant pressure to the pet's chest region. This gives a more comforting feeling like how a swaddling cloth does on a baby's body. Such compression wraps are more recommended for pets suffering from any anxiety hastened by noise, separation, stranger, or travel anxiety.
There are plenty of models and brands you can consider buying, which depend much on your pet's size. Are you looking for one? The Comfort Zone Calming Vest, ThurnderShirt Anxiety Jacket, and the American Kennel Club Stress Relief Coat can be the perfect choices.
Typically, there is no sufficient evidence supporting the use of alternative products to treat pet anxiety. But if none of the above techniques fail to work, you can try non-invasive products and therapies to help your pet. However, it is essential to do adequate research before using or implementing optional treatments. Be sure to visit your veterinarian before trying any products like supplements that may affect your pet’s well-being. Some of these alternative therapies include:
That said, controlling anxiety in pets should not be a hard nut to crack. The thing is, try as much as you can to understand your pet and learn factors that cause or increase their anxiety levels. After that, you can use any of the above ways to relieve your pets' stress and anxiety with ultimate ease.
