My Experience With Dog Anxiety

My Experience With Dog Anxiety

By: Kylee Bush

    If you weren't here for my introduction post, this is Alfie. Alfie is a Yorkie Poo, and is currently 8 years old. When I was 12 years old my mom surprised me with him. He came to us in a really sad condition. His hair was overgrown, he was covered in matts, his tears covered his eyes, and he was terrified of people. We had no idea what he had been through just that he preferred being around dogs more than humans. We had a yellow lab at the time who easily became his best friend and defender. Alfie would run into his kennel and cuddle with him, would only go outside with him, and wouldn't eat without his big brother. It was a natural bonding between them, and it made me so sad that he couldn't trust me. I made it my goal to get him to come to me. I would spend hours in front of the cage trying to lure him out with treats and toys, I fed him so he'd associate me with food, I'd go outside with him and his brother, I tried to make my presence known and natural to him. It took months before he finally warmed up to me, but he is now attached to my hip. I can't leave a room without hearing the tags on his collar jingling behind me.

    While he came to us with a sad background his anxiety did not become clear until we moved to a new house, and I had to leave him for the first time. He began to get aggressive around strangers, find ways to run away, and have panic attacks. His panic attacks consisted of him shaking, pacing, and sometimes even limping or walking weird. At first we thought it was because of an injury until he showed no signs of pain upon touching it, and would go back to normal. His aggressiveness occurred anytime someone came in the door. He would try and bite, and chase them. We began to have to lock him up, or hold him while people came in, and introduce him slowly. Introducing him helped a lot. We would wait till he calmed down before we would bring him back out. Since he is so tiny he began to find ways to escape the backyard. He would squeeze under the fence and go on strolls. When I would go after him he would act like it was a game and get in the play position, and make me chase him for a few minutes. It took a while before we understood that running away was a symptom of dog anxiety. It didn't make sense, but the new atmosphere freaked him out, and he wanted to find ways out of it no matter the cost.    

When I went away for an overnight gymnastics meet, the first real anxiety sign became apparent. My older brother stayed home with the dogs, and it was only for a weekend, so we thought he'd be fine. The truth was he wasn't. His response to being separated from me, was anorexia. clearly he had felt abandonment at some point in his life, and associated me being gone with that feeling. He didn't eat or drink for three days, he would not use the bathroom, and would not leave his bed. It was a full blown depressive episode. Three days might not seem like a lot, but for a five pound dog it is. We got home on a Sunday night. He usually ran to the door to greet me, but he didn't. I had to go to him, and he finally ambled over for a quick hello. He drank a little chicken broth for me that night before immediately vomiting it up. We made the correct choice to take him into the emergency vet that night. He stayed over night on an I.V. The vet told us had he not come in he may have passed from severe dehydration over night. That was when he was diagnosed with severe anxiety, and when the previous behaviors finally made sense, and it all clicked together. 

    We now had a diagnoses that allowed us to make changes to better accommodate his needs, as he is a member of our family. Following that scenario we were able to make positive changes in his life, because we now understood him. We had owned may dogs, but none with anxiety, especially not as severe as Alfies'. I hope anyone else who notices odd behavioral changes in their pets can act on it sooner than I did. I regret not taking him to the vet when the odd behavior began, and waiting till it was obvious something was wrong. I know my dog better than anyone, and I know what is normal and what isn't. Any decent vet will understand a concern over the pets behavior, because they understand that you know your pet. I'm hoping this story can help open the eyes of others that may have similar symptoms in their dogs. My boys doing much better now, and nobody would guess that he ever went through this. The positive changes, and an understanding of how anxiety works in dogs helped so much. If anyone would like to hear some of my tips for helping anxious dogs, comment below. Don't forget to follow if you want to hear more pet stories, or tips, and to check out @hedgehog_namednewt on ig.