Tips for managing different forms of pet anxiety

Anxiety in pets is a very real thing. Mild anxiety in most dogs is common when it comes to day to day living, but when the anxiety starts to manifest itself into destructive or dangerous behavior to your dog or its surroundings, it becomes a problematic issue.

Anxiety in dogs comes in various forms. A survey in Finland received about 13,700 responses and from that survey showed that about 72.5% of all dogs showed at least one anxiety-related behavior. The most common forms of anxiety were found to be:

Noise related sensitivity (such as thunder or fireworks)

Anxiety of fear or aggression to other dogs

Fear of strangers

Separation anxiety

Fear of new situations

The following are signs of possible anxiety:

Excessive panting and drooling

Shivering and shaking

Tucked tail

Pacing and inability to rest

Hiding

Excessive barking of vocalization

Loss of control of urine or bowel movement

Continuous tail chasing

The AKC recommends the following tips for managing your dog’s anxiety:

Dealing with canine anxiety. In dogs, different anxieties can be triggered by different factors. Some things, such as proper socialization and basic obedience training, help a dog with their confidence. Although those are easier to accomplish when the dog is younger, it doesn’t mean that older dogs cannot benefit from them.

Noise aversion. Many dogs (and cats!) suffer from a term called “noise aversion” or noise phobia. Noise phobia is a fear and anxiety exhibited upon hearing loud noises (like fireworks and thunder). This leads to stress, suffering and potentially destructive behavior to the environment or even to the dog itself. It is serious enough to be considered a medical condition if it worsens the quality of life for the pet. For many pets,...