Addressing Anxiety in Dogs

By far the most common concern owners have shared with us about their dogs is anxiety. Anxiety in dogs can have any number of possible roots – trauma, claustrophobia, significant lifestyle changes, grief, aging, separation, etc. In order to address your dog’s anxiety in the healthiest, most effective way, it is important to pinpoint what kind of anxiety they suffer from.

Separation anxiety is an extremely common form. The recent COVID pandemic brought this to the forefront. Take a look at our post for tips about separation anxiety techniques.

Symptoms of anxiety can include:

Aggression

Urinating or defecating in the house

Drooling

Panting

Destructive behavior

Depression

Excessive barking, crying, whining, and/or howling

Pacing

Restlessness

Repetitive or compulsive behaviors

Keep in mind that anxiety might not be the root cause of behaviors such as these. There is a chance your dog’s anxiety is a symptom of another medical condition. Always consult with your veterinarian about the symptoms and behaviors you observe in your dog and rule out any serious medical issue that could be causing anxious habits. Your veterinarian should be able to suggest therapies, medication, or training techniques to address your particular dog’s needs.

For mild anxiety, you might find these simple strategies helpful.

Incorporate more exercise into their routine, especially right before an anxiety trigger. For example, if your dog gets anxious when being put into their crate, go for a walk or have play time before crating them. Exhaust some of the physical and mental energy they would otherwise channel into heightening their anxiety. The more positive associations you can make between your dog and their trigger, the less anxious they should become over time.

Have fun, safe activities they can do unsupervised. This is especially helpful for dogs suffering from separation anxiety. Puzzle toys that reward treats, chew toys, special beds, etc. they get to have only when you are away are a great distraction as you leave. That said, it is important not to make a big deal about coming and going as that reinforces the idea that your being gone is traumatic. You want to train your dog’s brain to be calm and feel secure while you are not present.

The two most common training techniques used to address anxiety in dogs are desensitization and counterconditioning. Desensitization is the idea of getting your dog used to the source of their anxiety until it no longer triggers them. With this technique, the dog is rewarded to displaying positive behavior around and toward the stimuli.

Counterconditioning trains a dog to replace their anxious behavior with a rewarding behavior such as sitting and staying. Over time the dog’s response to the trigger is no longer anxiety, but a display of positive behavior they associate with reward.

Does your dog suffer from anxiety? What have you found helpful?