Medicate A Spooky/nervous Dog?

[Guest 4dogscrazy]

Well, let me start on the defense here, I am not the kind of person who thinks everyone and everything needs to be medicated to solve problems! I am 40 years old (tomorrow!) and I take nothing more than birth control, my 13 year old has never taken anything more than the occaisional antibiotic for strep, and my 42 year old fiance is only on gout medication, when he needs it. BUT, my SA dog has had so much success on anti-anxiety medication that I am wondering if nervous nellie wouldn't benefit also. Piper is getting worse with thunder. I do put a t-shirt on her, but that barely helps now. I am considering getting the coat. The biggest problem with both of them? I am not always home when a storm flares up. Any loud noise makes her teeth rattle so loud I'm afraid they are going to chip. Fireworks? She hasn't been outside after dark for weeks. I tried to take her for a walk by herself the other day, she turned around and took me home. Don't get me wrong, she is perfectly happy sitting on her pillow in my living room while I watch tv. On a sunny day. But any kind of commotion, change, wind, new people, new environment, flag flapping in the wind, and it sends her into the trembles. And for the medical people: she was just at the vet last month, and got the all clear. The vet spends extra time with her because she is on the thin side, no matter what I feed her (probably all the darn shivering). I have had her for 3 years, next month, and she just doesn't seem to be getting any more confidant. She goes through bouts where she refuses to go outside, seemingly for no reason, and I have to carry her down my 3 steps and put her on the porch, then she is fine. She really is a weird little bird.

 

I have to kennel her next month, at my grey rescue (so they know what they are doing) and I am not looking forward to it. I'm envisioning a skinnier dog when I pick her up, as I can't see her eating without my reassuring presence watching over her from the couch. One other note, she is not a true spook, when I brought her home she did not hide in her cage for weeks or anything. She loves being part of a pack, and the walk showed me that she can never be an "only". She seemed to settle in quickly in the beginning and loves her life as long as nothing loud happens, no new people come over, I don't run the sweeper, we never leave the property, and the sun shines down on her while she lays in the quiet yard. Has anyone ever tried anti-anxiety drugs for a spooky/nervous dog?

[PatricksMom]

I haven't, but you sound like you've made up your mind about what's best for Piper. And I don't mean anything at all negative by that--some dogs, like some of us people, need anxiety meds, there's absolutely nothing wrong with that, imo. Whatever you try, I'd do it as far in advance of boarding her as possible, to give you time to monitor her reaction and her time to adjust.

[NeylasMom]

Sounds like the definition of a spook to me.

 

Did your vet run a full thyroid panel (not just a T4)? It seems incredibly unlikely that she's hypothyroid given your description of her weight, but it's the one medical thing I would suggest doing if you haven't to rule out an underlying medical issue. This type of fearfulness has been linked to thyroid disease in the past.

 

Otherwise, I think you should trust your gut and try meds for her. I would definitely recommend Xanax or Valium for thunderstorms and other times when you can anticipate she'll be terrified (4th of July, vet visits if appropriate, etc.). You might also consider a longer acting medication like Reconcile (doggy prozac). I will tell you that I was very anti-medication when I first got involved in dog stuff, and now, in hindsight I feel I have a more balanced approach. It shouldn't be your first choice, and it should be considered a tool so that you can do the behavioral training needed to help the dog adjust (in most cases), but when you have a dog that is so fearful or anxious that it affects his/her quality of life, I think it's actually wrong not to try it. I only wish that I had used medication for Neyla earlier on, even if it was just Xanax for certain situations.

 

In our case, we got to a really good place and generally you wouldn't have known she was formerly a spook, but she was still scared of thunder and terrified of fireworks, gunshots, and the vet. She could have really benefited from meds for those things, and to have helped along our training early on, which was painstaking and slow.

[Guest 4dogscrazy]

Thanks for the replies so far! She has not had her thyroid tested, I thought there were more symptoms that would be obvious, like hair loss? That didn't occur to me. She did have a full blood panel last year when I had her teeth done, everything looked greyhound normal. She has been this way since we got her, she only liked my daughter (then 10) and still likes her and her friends. We had trouble when then fiance came in the beginning too, she would block him from going down the hall. She's been a lot of work, and we've had many successes, except the nerves!

 

I honestly don't have my mind made up, lol. The thought just occurred to me tonight for some reason. I like to get the gurus opinions before I bring it up to my vet I don't think she needs Valium yet, she does respond to my voice, comes to me or rick for comfort, and will run to the door if she's outside, instead of over the fence. And again with the Valium, I am not always home.

[greysmom]

Anti-anxiety meds, along with behavior modification training, can definitely help a spooky greyhound. As Jen stated above though, they aren't a cure all. All they accomplish is to help her mind be in a more relaxed state so training can get through.

 

There are fast-acting meds like xanax and valium that can really help for things like thunderstorms and fireworks. many people also use them in conjunction with a longer acting med like prozac. Xanax and valium do not need a long build-up time to create a clinical dosage in th bloodstream like prozac, which needs a good two weeks or so.

 

Just like with people, not all meds will work or work the same for all dogs. You may need to try several dosages and/or several drugs and/or drug combinations to find one that works for you. Each drug needs a build up time and a build-dwn time as they are very physically addicting.

 

What is your SA dog on?

 

One other thought: A complete thyroid panel is in order if you haven;t done one. Incorrect levels have been linked to "spooky" behavior. That, coupled with her inability to gain weight, might say to me she is hyPERthyroid (too much) rater than hyPOthyroid (too little). Do a search here for thyroid values that are normal for greyhounds. There is also a vet that does consulting for this problem and her name should be in that thread.

[Guest 4dogscrazy]

Hmm another hit on the thyroid, definitely on the table now. Tempe is on the lowest dose of clomipramine, twice a day.

[krissn333]

If you rule out medical causes for her behavior, we have had good results with Composure chewables (search for them on Amazon). They're given twice a day and have made a difference for some of our more anxious/spooky kennel pups. Being on them also helped with storm phobia in Ace and Fritz's littermate sister-and since they're given daily, you don't have to worry about being home to dose her in time for a storm like you do with the fast-acting anti-anxiety meds like Xanax and Valium.

 

Can't guarantee that what works for some will work for all of course, but might be something to try. I do know like other maintenance medications, it does take a couple weeks to really see if they are helping or not.