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You might find yourself in a situation where there is no time for training, and instant measures have to be taken to decrease the possibility of your dog becoming afraid when they hear the scary sound. This could be if your neighbour decides to have a spontaneous party with fireworks or a big thunderstorm is rolling in fast or you are frantically reading this on the day before new years eve or 4th of July.
It is hard to know exactly what our dog is afraid of. Yes, we know that our dog is afraid of fireworks, thunder or a certain noise in our home, but what exactly is it that makes it scary? Is it just the sound or maybe also the flashes or the smell, or a combination of it all. For thunder it could be the sound, lightning flashes, the lower barometric pressure, the smell of ozone, electrostatic charges, the boom of thunder with possible vibrations or everything combined. When we are trying to help our dog be less afraid we can therefor try to remove some of the triggers to decrease the fear. We want to keep the dog under threshold as best as we can.
This is also why, when helping your dog with their noise sensitivity or noise phobia there is a bit of trial and error. Below you will find many different methods on how to help your dog. Some methods might work and some might not on your particular dog. Try the ones you find most plausible to work for your dog, or that you believe might work.
Studies has found that a combination of different methods will give the best results.
It is important to note that if your dog suddenly starts to be fearful of noises or react in any way that is outside of his/her normal behaviour, then it might be due to undiscovered pain or illness and a visit to the vet is recommended to rule out any physical ailments.
Setting up the environment
When the outside world is scary it is good to have a safe, predictable and comfortable environment. One of the first things you should therefor do is set up a calm and safe environment.
Do not ever leave your dog alone when they are afraid, this could escalate the fear rapidly and your dog could go into full panic.
- Go to the room that blocks the sound the best. Basements and bathrooms often have good sound insulation. Keep in mind not to confine your dog, but let him/her move around as (s)he wants, maybe (s)he feels safer in another room. Let your dog chose.
- Make a spot or a cave for your dog, depending on their likes. Then fill that spot with thick blankets and also put some of your clothes with your scent on it to make your dog feel safe. The dog should be able to move around as (s)he pleases and have a choice about where to be. If your dog would like to hide somewhere that is also totally ok, as it will help your dog cope better with the scary sounds.
- Mask the incoming sounds as best as possible by putting pillows or thick blankets on the windows and around the doors. You can also turn on other devices like the TV, dishwasher, laundry machine, dryer, fan or robot vacuum cleaner to mask the noise.
- Play calming music. It has been found that certain tones in classical music has a calming effect on dogs. Click here to go to a full playlist of calming music for dogs.
- Put on white noise such as sounds of the ocean, waterfalls, generators, planes and winter snowstorms.
- Use scent to create a calm atmosphere. There are Adaptil difusers, collars and sprays that has proven efficient. Even chamomile and lavender scents has shown to have calming effects, specially for dogs that bark.
- Mask potential incoming flashes by drawing the curtains and make the room as bright as possible by turning on as many lights as you can.
- Other pets might also provide some comfort and safety.
- Have your dog’s favourite treats ready so that you can toss a treat after every scary sound. If your dog is not taking the treat then have a look at the list again and see if there is anything more you can do to make the environment more sound proof and safe.
Play & Enrichment
Now that we have set up a safe environment, that hopefully will keep your dog under threshold, we can introduce something fun and challenging for your dog to do while the scary sounds are there. Play and enrichment will help your dog into a more positive mood as well as working as a distraction which will decrease the fear. These activities are also good to do along the day before any fireworks or other scary sounds has ocurred.
- Have different types of enrichment toys ready, a puzzle for your dog to solve and get the treats out, a Kong to lick or a chew bone to munch on. Use your dog’s favourite treats for this.
- Do a training session to keep your dog distracted and moving.
- Have fun throwing a toy or do a nice tug game.
Exercise
If possible take your dog out on a nice explorative walk or run, or have a good long play session in your yard or in the field or forest. Exercise increase the serotonin levels in your dog’s brain, and serotonin is good at keeping anxiety at bay and helps your dog cope better with potential stress.
How are you?
How you feel and act will influence your dog, so it is important to be aware of how you behave and keep potential stress or anxiety at bay. In other words stay as calm as you possibly can. If you find it hard to be calm, try taking deep breaths and just stay with your dog without doing anything else. Using a happy voice might come of to your dog as you being nervous, instead try and keep your voice calm and deep or don’t speak at all.
Some dogs seek closeness to their human by maybe pressing up against their human while others prefer not to be touched. Petting is an individual flavour, and it might not help your dog get calmer. Try to pet for some seconds and then see if your dog will ask for more – by getting consent your dog gets a feeling of more control over the situation and that might help him/her calm down more. However, being petted when all you want to do is hide, will not help your dog and might even create a feeling of being trapped and trigger other escape behaviours.
Also think about your own state of mind before reaching out to pet. Are you calm or a bit stressed or anxious? if the lather then refrain from petting your dog.
Finally, if your dog do allow you to pet, think about how you give your dog pets, find their favourite places and give a good scratch, or make the petting a little heavier, maybe giving a little pressure to give your dog the feeling of pressure – never press on the head or on the bag, or lean back if your dog leans on you. Here you might also want to try TTouch or acupuncture, if familiar with that. Both have proven to have a very good effect on anxious or scared dogs. Most importantly listen to your dog’s body language – Which part is your dog showing you to pet and how would they like to be petted?
Tools
IMPORTANT! Before using any of these suggested tools, your dog and you should go through the training on how to gradually introduce new tools to your dog, otherwise they might just make your dog even more scared. Any tool used on your dog needs a proper slow training introduction.
There are different tools that might help your dog stay calmer:
- One of these is the Thundershirt, that can be used to provide calming deep pressure and has been found to have a good effect.
- Another tool is The Anxiety Wrap, which is also providing calming deep pressure. In a study it was found that it reduced anxiety when compared to measurements done before the use of the wrap.
Diets, Supplements & Medicine
There are still little research done in the area of diets and supplements in dogs, specially when it comes to calming diets and supplements. However, some diets that contain tryptophan, may have a calming effect on anxious dogs. In a study from 2012, it was found that the Calm Canine Diet reduced anxiety-related behaviour and increased the ability to cope with stress in dogs. Another study found that the supplement Calmex, a nutraceutical, reduced stress related responses in dogs being afraid of fireworks and thunderstorms.
Before trying one of these supplements or diets it is always good to speak to your vet or a dog nutritionist to make sure that your dog gets the right diet for his/her specific needs.
If you do have the time for a vet consultation, it might be good to ask for a calming medicine during those heavy hours where the scary noise peaks.
The above steps are to help your dog in an urgent situation to decrease your dog’s fear as best as possible, however it does not take the fear away. If your dog is fearful of noises you should always seek help from a professional dog ethologist or trainer.
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