How do we help our dog get through panic attacks?
Our new puppy came from a shelter and has obviously been hurt. She is maybe two, a corgi mix, and spayed. She woke up last night breathing hard, almost snorting. We went in and gave her some love and she calmed down. She slept in the bed the rest of the night and she finally went to sleep. How can we help her feel safe and stop having panic attacks?
She has been abused because she has scars on her body. The vet seemed to think so. She has been sleeping in the bathroom in a crate. We are not overly "poor baby" with her and stay calm, but thought last night she was pretty freaked out.
Tagged with: calm • corgi mix • love • panic attacks • poor baby • puppy • rest of the night • scars • sleep • vet
Filed under: panic attacks help
sorry to hear your new dog has had a bad start before you got her.
however be careful how you calm her, if you go in and do the ‘oh you poor thing and really make a fuss she will actually think whatever frightened her is something really bad to be feared and get worse. if you go in calm make sure that she isn’t hurt, or badly injured herself anywhere, distract her with something and not make a lot of whatever it was.
I notice the same occurs to frightened dogs as it does with children, those children that get lots of cuddles and ‘mummies poor little….’ ‘oh dear, mummies here to comfort you… etc. cause they are crying over a very minor injury, will cry and make a bigger thing of even minor injuries than before, however those children that are upset over a little pin prick of a cut, whose mother comes in and has a look and says ‘oh never mind, mummy kiss it better, there all better’ and then go off making little issue over a minor thing, then the child learns that actually its not worth getting all upset over a little cut like that, might as well get on and enjoy myself playing again. and dogs need the same, regardless of what past they had.
its not a problem to give the dog a quick hug and then distract it to a toy, or something it isn’t frightened of and if its only a quick yowl at passing motorbike say and then its over, its often not worth doing anything, obviously if its going loopy, crying and screaming even in terror, then you do need to comfort it, but do it without fussing or using that ‘poor baby’ voice, as the dog will assume you are frightened of it too and think also that it needs to try to look after you as well and it ends up an unhappy dog, that agitated all the time.
If she really is getting herself into a right state and you can’t clm her down or distract her, see if you vet has something that will help calm her down and make her less terrified of whatever it is that frightens her, while she gets used to you and her new home. also if she isn’t to end up sleeping in your bed for the rest of her life, don’t start now, it can be hard to reverse it. some people say that buying a cheap jumper from a jumble sale/table top sale or charity shop, wear it and then place it in her bed when your away from her, it can help her to be calmer, cause she can smell you.
I know one person that did it and left the jumper on the other side of the door, so when the dog woke up and couldn’t find her owner and would howl the place down and try to wreak the place to find her owner, the jumper under the door, smelt of her owner and she just assumed her owner was on the other side and returned to bed.
if you are still really worried about the breathing and state she gets into have a chat with you vet, if possible take a short film clip of her acting in that way, on a digital camera that takes video too, so he/she can see it, as seeingexactly how she reacts to the problem and other every day things, can help a vet form a tailored treatment plan that should work for her, obviously we here can’t see exactly what she does and can only offer general advice.
but hope it helps a bit
First off, I would say you need to ignore the behavior. Or if I can better phrase it not encourage it. By cuddling, hugging, etc you are reinforcing the negative behavior by telling her it is ok to feel afraid(this is how she will get love).
Instead, when she behaves this way, make sure she’s in a safe place and can’t hurt herself, then ignore her. When she calms down and comes back out, give her lots of praise and affection. Do this for several months consistently. If you still see no change in her behavior, you may want to consult with a behavior specialist.
This is how people deal with it(I know). She needs to go through the fear and realize it is not going to hurt her.
Has she been vet checked? She could be having mild seizures, muscle cramps, or stomach or intestinal pains. Your veterinarian can investigate with a physical exam, blood test, and urinalysis.
It will just take time. Once she adjusts to her surroundings and trusts you and your family she will calm down and relax. It may take some time but be patient and calm and I bet within a few weeks she’ll be a normal puppy again. Does she sleep in your room? If not, get her some toys and a secure kennel (I love crate training). The kennel helps them feel secure and safe and keeps them from messing up the house!
When you go in and comfort her you’re actually reinforcing her fear and panic attacks. Obviously you love her and want to do the best for her but by doing that she learns that if she has a panic attack you’ll always come running so she can kick up a bigger fuss and get into your bed!
Unless her panic attacks are life threatening or cause her pain let her calm down by herself and talk to a vet about anythin that might be able to calm her down or make things easier for her.
You never know she might be having nightmares.
Talk to the vet though, they’ll know the best thing to do and can give you some advice on how to make things better.
Your vet could give you something to help calm her down. I know they have various medications for panic attacks.
Or, you could try one of the various herbal combinations they sell in pet stores to relax and calm dogs. I use one called Herbal Ease for my old dog who stresses for various reasons. It works great for him. Seems to make him sleepy or maybe it’s just so relaxing he falls asleep.
I order it online from http://www.onlynauralpet.com
Well.. Just cause a dog acts nervous, doesn’t always mean that they have been abused.. Lack of socialization also makes for a skittish, and nervous dog, and sometimes it can be hard to tell the difference just seeing them being afraid.
What you should do is allow her to be part of her life without overwhelming her. Let her see that you are worthy of respect, you are reliable and consistent, that you take care of things. When she is acting scared.. One nice long pat from head to tail without saying anything is fine. It lets her know you are there and you are calm and she should be calm, but you aren’t feeding into hear fear and sucking her up.
You don’t want to treat her like ‘ oh you poor baby ‘ cause she will use that and feed off it and turn into even more of a scared dog because that is what she will think that you expect of her.
When she is upset, don’t you be upset. Be the calm person she would expect alpha to be.. They look to us for how they should act and react to things, if you are calm, she’ll learn to be calm.