Anyone suggest a dog calmer??

ladyluxor

New Member
Apr 11, 2008
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norfolk
Im actually starting to think im the cause of my animals behaviour :-(

My dog normally gets stressed when there is fireworks around, but the last year since last year fireworks its been around any thing loud, including when i call loud to my son or he talks loud etc... she is getting so bad she sit in the corner and pant, whatever u do doesnt work. weve tried ignoring her and weve tried makeing more fuss of her... she is doing it as we speek.
I was just wondering really if any of you have had any dealing with dog calmers and if you had any advice .
 
Fireworks are such a nightmare! My dog is usually prescribed diazapan by vet but they didnt have any on thursday so they gave me acp. He had one on friday evening and i vow never to give him another. I thought he was going to die!! He was almost comatossed for several hours then tried to get up but his legs clearly didnt belong to him, poor thing. Stayed up with him until 3 am until he had settled a little. He was still drowsy all day yesterday. I would rather have him panting on the sofa than like that. I have heard that rescue remedy is good, might give that a go. Goodluck and I will follow this thread for ideas :happy:
 
I agree that ACP is a nightmare, I thought my Springer was going to die the first time we tried her on it.

The best remedy I ever found was a cupboard under the stairs as a refuge, but alas we don't have one now :cry:
 
I have actually now givin her some rescue remedy, dnt seem to hve really done anything yet.
she just wnt settle and keep trying to get under the babies cot Grrrr
 
My mum used to put cotton wool balls in our jrts ears has he used to be terrible and would try and get in the bath tub. She used to turn the tv up and ignore him too which helped as he'd soon realise that he wasn't dead yet and he'd go to sleep.

He's now deaf as a door knob and is very well behaved with fireworks :) (he's 16)
 
There are several products on the market which can help to calm your dog. It's too late to be thinking of a natural calming product for fireworks now as you won't have enough time for it to get into the dog's system properly.

So short term for fireworks your best bet is probably Diazepam as Cassiebird suggested. Personally I hate ACP too!! We gave it to our dog years ago and she looked dead, really dropped her heart rate and poor thing was all red eyed the next day :(

Long term for firework season Skullcap and Vallerian tablets are really good and totally natural. You can get them from a company called Dorwest Herbs and can alter the dose. It's recommended to start them about 2 weeks before the fireworks start and then continue until they're gone. They also do a valerian compound which is a liquid in a dropper bottle a bit like doggy rescue remedy.

Long term for just general stress you could try a DAP difusser or DAP collar. It contains a pheramone with is supposed to help calm the dog. Some dogs it works on and some it doesn't. If you google it you can read up about it and it's cheaper to buy online than from your vets ;)

Also zylkene is a brilliant product for long term use. It tends to work better than DAP but is more expensive. Again cheaper to get online than from your vets. Don't think you need a prescription for it either. Again google it and it should come up with loads of info.

Hope this helps....can you tell I work in a vets?! haha
 
I was also going to suggest dap/zylkene but it maybe too late now as they are best used in the run up to firework season
 
I would also say that if she is trying to hide somewhere, let her. Our younger Springer crawls under our bed and that's fine by us.
 
It would be too late to use this product for fireworks night, but is maybe something to think about for the future.

http://www.csjk9.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=3&idcategory=3#details

A really good product we have used on a dog that stresses over everything!

I second this one. I used to have a very skittish labrador who i couldnt do much with training wise and double dosed her on this as per instructions from the supplier) for a few weeks and she calmed right down, although I had to ease back the quantity as she went far too calm with the amount she got but what a difference it made to her. I've rehomed her to a pet home now and she is a different dog away from the kennel environment.
 
Dap spray will help as will diffuser. However I would be looking for a health cause or a food cause before looking at calmers. Hearing and ears be my first vet check.
 
She had a vet check up not that long ago and was fine. Its really starting to worry me now as to the cause as its not just fireworks, the last 2 days she has been like it a lot.

maybe a trip to the vet like you suggest would be a good idea
 
As to what to do when she panics make sure that you're not comforting her. You said that you've tried doing that but you need to stop it. You're juse reinforcing the behaviour and telling her that it's ok to be scared.

Best thing to do is to ignore her behaviour and I think trying any of the calmers mentioned would be a good idea. There are also a range of cds out called 'Sounds Scary'. They're cds to help desensitise your dog to everyday scary noises. You put the cd on quietly at first giving her rewards and treats only when she's quiet and not scared. Let her have a safe place to hide if she wants it and make sure that you only reward good behaviour.
 
im going to pop to the local pet shop tommorow amd have alook what calmers they do and start her on one straight away.
she wont even come to bed and lay with me anymore :-(
 
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