Life In Quarantine With An Anxious Dog - 5 Things I am Doing
My dog Foxxy is an anxious dog. Life in quarantine with her has not been easy.
At the best of times, Foxxy is extremely sound sensitive and pretty clingy. Her sound sensitivity showed up at about 2 years old, which is not uncommon. Sound sensitivity often has a genetic component, but not all dogs who are set up for it, develop it; Foxxy did, suddenly and in spades. Sound sensitivity can also be and indicator of undetected pain issues in dogs.
It started with gun shots, when we were out on hikes. At the time I didn’t know a lot about behavior, and nothing at all about sound sensitivity.
I didn’t know that dogs generalize fear so easily.
When we heard gun shots she would start to strain to go back to the car, panting, shaking, and clinging to me. I kept her close, and fed her snacks but it never seemed to make a difference. This is in no small part because of the nature of this type of training, which requires that you have control over the timing of the scary thing, as well as the timing of the treats. I always had treats with me, because I was always working on recalls, stays and such on the trail, but I didn’t understand then that working with fear requires a very specific order of how everything happens, and I definitely had no control over when and how long, gun fire happened.
Some days it ended our walks prematurely.
WHAT IS DESENSITIZATION AND COUNTER-CONDITIONING IN DOG TRAINING?
Our first 4th of July together was a nightmare. I had no idea it would go so badly and while I was prepared to hunker down with her, I was unprepared for the intensity of both the fireworks and her reaction to them.
Over the years her sound sensitivity has grown and generalized. The sound of the refrigerator motor turning on or off is a common trigger, but there are many that I can’t identify nor anticipate.
Foxxy is on anxiety meds, and has been for years. Even so, we have not yet found that perfect combination for her. But I won’t give up, and she is much, much better most of the time. I wish I had known sooner that meds would bring us both so much relief; I would have started sooner, and who knows, maybe she would be less reactive to sounds. I will never know that for sure, but I wish I had known to try.
THIS ARTICLE WON’T CHANGE YOUR MIND ON ANTI-ANXIETY MEDICATION
Life with Foxxy means that most days either my TV or music is on all day, and I have two white noise machines running at all times just to try to pad the sounds that might set her off.
A rough day for her, is a rough day for me, as she presses herself against me all day long, is unable to settle anywhere, and requires my full attention no matter what I have on my personal or work agenda.
Fast forward to a pandemic lockdown.
Her anxiety has increased daily, her sound sensitivity is at full volume, so to speak. Add to that the arrival of warmer days and the sounds of the house settling as the mornings warm up. Today she has spent most of the day in the car, her choice, as it is her safe place. It is one of the strategies I use to get her through a day like today; every day lately.
Here are 5 strategies that I am integrating into our day to help both of us cope:
NEW MORNING ROUTINE:
Up in the morning, take meds, and go out for a pee and poop walk. It seems that needing to eliminate makes her more sensitive and she feels some relief, in more ways than one, afterwards.
· MORE FOOD ENRICHEMENT:
GOAL - EASY, AMAZING, AND FREQUENT
Breakfast puzzles, as her anxiety seems worse in the morning and day time, than in the dark hours. I have used food puzzles with Foxxy for a long time now, and I have increased their frequency and interest during this time - smaller meals in Kongs, Kong type stuffables, and Tracheas, more often and of higher interest to her, flavor-wise. Normally these would be frozen to increase both the time it takes to finish (benefits me) and the enrichment level (benefits her), but right now she has no tolerance for difficult puzzles.
Quarantine Enrichment with Foxxy and kibble in a box
· MORE LOVING TIME.
I am spending more time massaging her sweet, senior body and loving on her, playing with toys and goofing around, then I did before the pandemic. This is in part because I have more time now that I am not helping clients and students with their dogs, and in part because it makes her feel better. Makes me feel better too actually.
Please remember that it is not only okay, but important to give comfort and solace to an anxious or scared dog. Comforting a scared dog does NOT reinforce the fear
· SAFETY ZONE.
The car has always been Foxxy’s safe place. So now after our morning elimination walk, she goes to the car to work on her food puzzle and let her meds kick in. This also gives me a quiet time to drink my coffee and set a goal for the day. I am trying to have one small goal a day to help me with my own anxiety. Some days are better than others for me too.
You could use a crate if your dog loves their crate, or a gated room, and a yummy chew for this too, Foxxy just loves the car most of all.
· DRIVING,
WHEN SHE IS DRIVING ME CRAZY
When she is having a bad stretch or a bad day and the anxiety is more than I can deal with, we get in the car and go somewhere else. It can just be a block away, and we just sit in our car, out of the range of any humans, and relax/think/watch the world go by. Sometimes we drive to a beautiful wide open vista and just sit and breathe in the space. This change in view and location brings us both enormous relief. I know that not everyone can drive somewhere right now, depending on the lockdown regulations for your area. I think that we would still get the same feeling even if we were sitting in the driveway, so if we get to that point we will give it a try.
Lastly, but maybe most importantly, let yourself off the hook. Nothing about any of this is easy.
You are not alone if you are having a hard time being at your best with your anxious dog.
Some days, many days, I want to scream.
The car is good for that too!