Advice for Socializing a Stressed, Frightened Dog

Your dog may have gone through negatives experiences that affect his personality and quality of life and most likely you’re wondering what you can do to help. Remaining calm and not blaming your pet is the best way to deal with these type of situations.

Perhaps you just adopted a dog that has experienced abuse and abandonment, and your desire is to have him feel comfortable in his new home. Either way, these tips might improve your relationship with him.

The behavior of a frightened dog

There are several signs that worry owners when their dog isn’t feeling well. When your dog feels fear, he cannot control it because it’s an involuntary reaction of the autonomic nervous system. However, this behavior is completely normal in any animal, and in humans as well.

• If your dog feels fear or stress, he will likely put his tail between his legs, shake, lack energy and his behavior will give you the impression that he wants to leave the house. 
• When panicking, the dog will run for safety and develop self-destructive behaviors. 
• In extreme cases, the sympathetic nervous system reacts. It is also part of the autonomic nervous system that was mentioned earlier. Diarrhea or urinary incontinence are usually the most typical external signs. 

If you ever start noticing any of these changes in your dog’s behavior, then you should try to separate him from what’s causing him to feel fear or anxiety. Try to pet him and give him a toy to calm him down.

In severe cases, you may need to run a veternairian check up on your dog and have the vet provide a prescribition for his anxiety. 

How to help your frightened dog at home

Every mind, regardless of the species, is different. Therefore, this means the emotional needs of every dog vary greatly. there are plenty of useful methods to calm your dog down when he is experiencing fear or stress.

The following list to has some easy methods that can help you read your pet and attend to his needs.

• Believe it or not, dogs respond to music. Some songs are even designed for animals. This method can be especially effective if your dog has separation anxiety because you can leave music on while you are out of the house.
• Aromatherapy and essential oils. At the store, you can find several sprays and aromas that contain essential oils and you can use them to soothe your pet. Use these products by rubbing the solution on their backs and only on unreachable areas to prevent him from scratching it off.
• Physical contact calms animals and people. Sit near your dog, put him on your lap, or pet him the way he likes. Dogs don’t like hugs, but they never say no when their owners pet them.
• Exercising can help your pet release tension and sleep better at night. If you’ve noticed that he has nightmares or poor sleeping patterns, then increase the amount and intensity of his daily exercises to improve his sleep at night.
• Sometimes taking an animal to an isolated room is useful to calm him down. This option works with dogs that don’t like to meet new people or be in crowds.