Thundershirt
A Shirt wrapped around your dog can help. One product called Thundershirt claims that the gentle, constant pressure has a dramatic calming effect for most dogs if they are anxious, fearful or over-excited. The pressure has a calming effect on the nervous system. Using pressure to relieve anxiety has been a common practice for years. You can make your own “Thundershirt’ by using a small shirt that is wrapped tightly around your dog’s chest and over his back.
Pheromone Products
Pheromone products can help dogs with noise and storm anxiety. Adaptil contains a synthetic analogue of dog appeasing pheromone (DAP), which reportedly helps provide reassurance and comfort to puppies and dogs of all ages. One study showed that desensitization (using a sound CD) in combination with DAP helped dogs handle their fear of fireworks.
Magnesium
Magnesium is an amazing supplement for stress and sleep. It’s an essential mineral that regulates GABA activation across most of the brain. It’s also involved in hundreds of other biological processes. Many dogs seem calmer while on Magnesium.
Magnesium source: Magnesium citrate or magnesium glycinate. Citrate is more bioavailable, but it may upset your stomach; glycinate is slightly less bioavailable and causes less stomach upset.
Magnesium dose: 2mg-5mg/lb twice daily as needed
Music
Recent studies show that music can be an effective therapy to help soothe our pets' fears. Sounds amazing, doesn't it? But how does it work?
Music, especially classical, creates a calming environment for dogs. The soothing tunes can mask the scary noises and reduce stress responses in our furry friends.
So next time when the sky roars, don't just cover your pup's ears. Play some Mozart instead! 🎹 But remember, every dog is different. What works for one might not work for another. It's all about finding the right tune for your pooch.
Valerian is a herb that acts on the neuroreceptors in the brain. It may decrease anxiety in your pet, but it must be given for 2 weeks. The dose is 50 mg per lb of the dried herb or 1 drop per lb of body weight twice daily of the extract. When using the tincture a standard dose is 1/2ml per 20lbs of body weight given every 4 hours.
L-theanine. This is an amino acid from Green Tea that is helpful, but more meant as a long term solution. We used this often in veterinary practice. Dog doses of 50-100mg/10lbs once-twice daily.
Melatonin. Yes the sleep hormone can also be very effective for some dogs. It does help my dog Tula when she has bouts of anxiety. A typical dog dose is 2mg/20lbs up to a maximum of 6mg twice daily. Give it 1 hour prior to the anxiety inducing event.
CBD (Cannabidiol). This has anti-anxiety properties, and is a great idea to give to your dog prior to all the loud noises. I would use the dose of 3mg-6mg/10lbs every 4-6 hours.
