Fun Toys Help Treat Separation Anxiety

If your dog has separation anxiety, these are my dog’s three favorite toys for easing that anxiety. You’ll notice all three toys involve food/treats. That tends to be the only thing that keeps his attention when he’s being left alone. Most dogs with separation anxiety can be pretty inconsolable when left alone and something yummy can definitely keep them a little more distracted.

Buster Cube
This is my least favorite of the three toys but I include it on the list because the dog loves it, it’s very durable, and you can make it harder (or easier) to get the food out. So, why is it my least favorite? It’s noisy on our hardwood floors and it bonks into doors and furniture really loudly. It also rattles in a most noisy way–all because it’s a very hard plastic. That being said, if you’re going to use it when you’re not home, the noise won’t be an issue :-).

Tricky Treat Ball
I love this one! It’s soft, so it’s really quiet. And if he happens to roll it over my foot, or into my ankle, it doesn’t make me wince. It’s also been very durable. It’s impossible to clean, so you’ll probably need to replace it at some point, but our Lab hasn’t yet managed to chew it to pieces.

Kong
If you have a dog with separation anxiety, you must get a Kong (at least one!). Fill it with peanut butter and stick it in the freezer and it’ll last longer. You can also stuff it with yogurt or liver paste or anything that’s healthy for your dog (cheese!) and stuffable. We like the medium size even though we have a big dog (he has a large one, too), because it’s a little harder for him to get everything out of the medium ones. They have smaller holes and they also hold less. So, we typically stuff three medium Kongs with a smear of peanut butter (we don’t fill them–the peanut butter’s a lot harder to get out of the far end, so that’s where we stick it) and then we freeze them over night. The next day, he’s got three challenging Kongs to unstuff and is more than happy for us to leave him to his work. We’ve found this lasts longer for him than stuffing one large Kong fully.

So, there you have it, our dog’s three favorite toys that really help to ease his separation anxiety. We use all three, but if your dog has a milder case of anxiety, I’d start with the Kongs and then add on from there.

That being said, the Buster Cube and Tricky Treat Ball both make a great way to feed your dog actual meals and let him get a workout while he eats–this can help him burn off some energy which makes them a nice option for those days when your walk wasn’t as long as it should have been. So, you really can’t go wrong buying any of the three (or all three).

I’d love to hear if you’ve found any durable toys that have helped with your dog’s separation anxiety!

How to get your dog to love being groomed

We have a Labrador, so his grooming needs aren’t extensive. But, he hates baths which makes bath time messier and more of a challenge than it needs to be. So, I was really happy to find these tips by Kelly about how to groom your dog without so much hassle. Enjoy! And if you have tips for dog grooming at home, please share.

Dog Grooming – How to Get Your Dog to Totally Love Baths, Clippings, & Brushings
By Kelly Marshall

Whether your dog has a short coat (Boxer, Basset Hound, Labrador Retriever), long coat (Lhasa Apso, German Long-haired Pointer, Samoyed) or one that falls somewhere in between, he’ll need to be groomed regularly.

All dogs need to get used to being groomed, and starting as early in its life as possible. Good pet grooming habits will prevent future grooming problems from happening later on in their adult lives.

One Size Does Not Fit All When It Comes To Dogs

There are a variety of coats require different grooming steps, but basic grooming care such as bathing, brushing, ear and teeth cleaning, and nail trimming is needed for all pets. If you own a long-haired dog, grooming will have to be practiced more often and may be a little more challenging. So, it is imperative to introduce your dog to grooming early on in her life. Life will be more pleasant for both you and your dog if she learns to enjoy this experience while he’s still young.

Good Grooming Habits: Groom Your Dog Everyday

To ensure that your dog creates a positive experience with grooming, you must introduce her to the process slowly and often. Get your dog familiar with each piece of equipment by introducing it to her one at a time. Show your dog the brush, let her sniff it for a few seconds and then give her a small treat.

The next step is to gently touch her with the brush and the treat. Once your dog has fully accepted the object, gently brush one stroke and follow with a treat. Do this process about three more times until your dog realizes that being brushed is a great feeling. Break down this method into small steps as this will give your dog the chance to create a positive experience within each step of the way.

Take your dog to the grooming station and let her get to know the area before you begin the grooming process. A few days prior giving your dog a bath, put her in the bathtub while it’s dry and let her play with a toy and throw in a favorite treat. Repeat this technique the next day, adding some water and a sponge. See, it’s not as difficult as you probable thought it would be.

Warning: Don’t allow your dog to simply jump into a tub filled with water out of the blue, allow your dog get used to the water before filling the tub. Dogs are just like children, they have to be handled with care as well. So, before your dog gets in, you may want to dip your elbow into the tub to make sure that it isn’t to cold or hot.

Lastly, repeat this same procedure goes for the nail clipper, toothbrush, and other grooming tools. Take your time when introducing them to your dog and she will enjoy grooming for the rest of your pet’s life.

Kelly Marshall is from Oh My Dog Supplies – the place to go for dog steps in all shapes and sizes.

Note to Drug Companies: Stay Away From Vets!

I recently took my dog into the vet for his annual checkup and to say that I was offended by the sales pitch the vet used for “anti-anxiety” meds for my dog’s separation anxiety treatment… Well, that’s putting it lightly.

Supposedly, this stuff has *no* side effects, no drawbacks, no allergic reactions, and absolutely no reason why every dog on the planet (and not just those with severe separation anxiety) shouldn’t take it. After all, it’s just a dollar a day.

Turns out, he not only misrepresented the price (it comes to $1.75/day, or nearly twice his quoted price), he also misrepresented everything else about the pills. Dogs have had seizures as a result of this medication according to the drug company’s own literature. Dogs have had to be put down because of bad reactions to the drugs. And I only found all of this out after buying the medication and watching the accompanying DVD. Oh, and it’s only been successful with about 60% of separation anxiety cases.

I called my vet immediately to give him a piece of my mind and he was really sheepish and admitted that he had just been telling me what the sales rep had told him. He’d just been so happy to have an option when I described my dog’s separation anxiety issues to him that he didn’t stop to consider that he hadn’t yet read all the materials.

I won’t be taking my dog back. That being said, I can’t say that I’m surprised that he hadn’t taken the time to read all of the literature himself–vets are terribly busy and don’t have oodles of time to pour over drug information.

I don’t think that’s an adequate excuse–the drug the vet prescribed could have KILLED my dog–but I do understand how it happens. (Which is why I’m not calling the vet out here–I do believe he was genuinely sorry and that he is unlikely to sell this particular drug for patient’s separation anxiety issues in the future.)

The real problem is the pharmaceutical company’s marketing. They know we love our dogs and that we’re willing to do what it takes to keep them healthy, and because they’ve been legislated so extensively with people medication, it looks like they’re going to turn their attentions to our dogs. It’s up to me (and you!) to be extra vigilant; until vets start reading very carefully before prescribing all medications, they won’t necessarily be advising you in a way that’s safe for your pet. Instead they may be relying too much on the pharmaceutical company’s marketing copy.

Keeping your dog healthy is your responsibility. Don’t let your vet talk you into medication that’s not right for your dog. Insist on knowing all of the drawbacks and studies before paying for the drugs, and insist that you’re able to bring them back (before giving them to your dog, of course), if when you get them home you just don’t feel right about using them. Sometimes drugs are necessary, for both people and our pets, but the wrong drugs can make a problem worse, so it’s up to each of us to be careful about what we put in both our own bodies and in our dog’s bodies.

And stay tuned to learn how I’m dealing with my dog’s separation anxiety issues in a natural and holistic way.