Shaking, panting, anxiety - YorkieTalk.com Forums

Grammy1 · 02-14-2017, 03:06 PM

My 3yr. Old healthy girl is experiencing severe anxiety since our last storm. She has always had storm phobia but has always subsided right after storm. I've had her to the vet & she checks out fine. She's just not herself and very clingy, even uneasy around her doggy friends all @ once. HELP!

Silver Lace · 02-14-2017, 04:47 PM

Hi,
I don't have much advice on this topic but I have heard about these Thunder Shirts that dogs wear to help with anxiety in situations like you are talking about for one thing. Hopefully some more experienced person will come on here to advise you with much better solutions. I hope for the best for you and your little one.

lillymae · 02-14-2017, 06:04 PM

You say she checked out fine at the vet ? Did the vet check her anal glands ? as full anals can cause this as they can be painfull & when nervous the anals can fill fast.

Grammy1 · 02-15-2017, 07:27 AM

Silver Lace ... My girl DOES have and uses a Thunder Shirt, they are great! Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to be helping much with her right now ��. Lilly Mae, I just tt the vet, they advised that she would be scooting and/or licking that area if the anal glands were an issue. No problems there. Thanks for your input!

Silver Lace · 02-15-2017, 10:03 AM

Grammy1,
Thank you for your reply. That is a good thing the Thunder Shirt has helped so well in the past. I am just sorry it does not help now. Maybe you could google how to help my yorkie overcome her fears or the like. Maybe you could find some help that way. I sure wish I knew what to do to help out.

ladyjane · 02-15-2017, 06:26 PM

I didn't have any luck with this, but I know people who have. Certainly worth trying:

Rescue Remedy Drops and Spray - Original Rescue Remedy

lillymae · 02-15-2017, 11:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grammy1

Silver Lace ... My girl DOES have and uses a Thunder Shirt, they are great! Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to be helping much with her right now ��. Lilly Mae, I just tt the vet, they advised that she would be scooting and/or licking that area if the anal glands were an issue. No problems there. Thanks for your input!

This is not always true. I have had many dogs in my life, some my own & some rescues & many dogs will not do either of those things with full anals so IF they didn't check or are not sure if they did then I would take her back & make them check. Also when I was a vet tech, we had dogs come in with ruptured anal glands that showed NO signs of problems till after the rupture & is how the owner knew something was wrong. I have a ShihTzu that will NOT scoot OR lick the area & he has chronic gland issues.

Buddylove86 · 02-18-2017, 04:55 AM

I would go back to your vet and ask for Trazadone (anti-anxiety) to keep her calm for a few weeks or there is a really new great drug got Sileo a sedative gel to use before storms. I would use the thunder shirt and some behavior modification as well. If your vet knows nothings about these then see someone else.

yorkietalkjilly · 03-01-2017, 10:56 PM

Sounds like she got badly scared that time. I'd have a vet check her just in case she's not got some underlying medical problem if the fear came on suddenly with just that storm. Thundershirt worked wonders for Tibbe when he was symptomatic from his MVD/tummy issues, itching from allergies and during that time he suddenly had fearful reactions during T-storms for about a year after years of not fearing storms except for barking at the thunder, a bit of big eyes when the thunder sounded very loudly, during which distraction techniques worked wonders.

Following his medical issues being successfully treated, he's gone back to not fearing T-storms now but during that time he had full on panic attacks twice, drooling, shaking, looking frantically for cover. Distraction techniques didn't work that well that year but helped some. Asked vet, who gave permission for 1/8 - 1/4 of a 5 mg. Valium if the drooling type fear ever returned and I gave him about 1/5 of one on the occasion of one other bad storm reaction. Really calmed him down, put him to sleep, but he'd always go to sleep when I put his Thundershirt on him anyway. But since that time, once we got his medical issues dealt with, he stopped the fear and returned to barking at thunderstorms or sleeping through them sans the Thundershirt.

Trying to play pretty roughly with your dog, chasing him, bouncing a ball, having him retrieve it, trying to get it from him, playing a roundhouse game of tug o war, have him go through his obedience training, tossing treats across the room to keep him running around - if the dog will be distracted, might help and certainly used to work for Tibbe B4 that year or so of fear when he was sick. Try NOT to console the dog during that time with soothing 'It's okay' and petting, cuddling them as I'm told it could convey to the dog that you are essentially underwriting the fear reaction rather than actually soothing them. Distraction techniques involving a lot of running, roundhouse playing, action and movement during the storm, getting them thinking about performing their obedience training or getting the dog mad at the thunder and barking at it can help dissipate some of the fear reaction if the dog is not dealing with medical problems, too.

02-14-2017, 03:06 PM	#1
Grammy1 YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Largo,Fl Posts: 8	Shaking, panting, anxiety My 3yr. Old healthy girl is experiencing severe anxiety since our last storm. She has always had storm phobia but has always subsided right after storm. I've had her to the vet & she checks out fine. She's just not herself and very clingy, even uneasy around her doggy friends all @ once. HELP!

02-14-2017, 04:47 PM	#2
Silver Lace YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Hampton,Virginia Posts: 683	Hi, I don't have much advice on this topic but I have heard about these Thunder Shirts that dogs wear to help with anxiety in situations like you are talking about for one thing. Hopefully some more experienced person will come on here to advise you with much better solutions. I hope for the best for you and your little one. __________________ Gone but never forgotten,my Joey. 06/24/2018

02-15-2017, 10:03 AM	#5
Silver Lace YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Hampton,Virginia Posts: 683	Grammy1, Thank you for your reply. That is a good thing the Thunder Shirt has helped so well in the past. I am just sorry it does not help now. Maybe you could google how to help my yorkie overcome her fears or the like. Maybe you could find some help that way. I sure wish I knew what to do to help out. __________________ Gone but never forgotten,my Joey. 06/24/2018

02-15-2017, 06:26 PM	#6
ladyjane Resident Yorkie Nut Donating YT 20K Club Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Texas Posts: 27,466	I didn't have any luck with this, but I know people who have. Certainly worth trying: Rescue Remedy Drops and Spray - Original Rescue Remedy __________________ CLOUD NINE BEDS--YORKIE HAVEN RESCUE MY ETSY SHOP

03-01-2017, 10:56 PM	#9
yorkietalkjilly ♥ Love My Tibbe! ♥ Donating Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: D/FW, Texas Posts: 22,140	Sounds like she got badly scared that time. I'd have a vet check her just in case she's not got some underlying medical problem if the fear came on suddenly with just that storm. Thundershirt worked wonders for Tibbe when he was symptomatic from his MVD/tummy issues, itching from allergies and during that time he suddenly had fearful reactions during T-storms for about a year after years of not fearing storms except for barking at the thunder, a bit of big eyes when the thunder sounded very loudly, during which distraction techniques worked wonders. Following his medical issues being successfully treated, he's gone back to not fearing T-storms now but during that time he had full on panic attacks twice, drooling, shaking, looking frantically for cover. Distraction techniques didn't work that well that year but helped some. Asked vet, who gave permission for 1/8 - 1/4 of a 5 mg. Valium if the drooling type fear ever returned and I gave him about 1/5 of one on the occasion of one other bad storm reaction. Really calmed him down, put him to sleep, but he'd always go to sleep when I put his Thundershirt on him anyway. But since that time, once we got his medical issues dealt with, he stopped the fear and returned to barking at thunderstorms or sleeping through them sans the Thundershirt. Trying to play pretty roughly with your dog, chasing him, bouncing a ball, having him retrieve it, trying to get it from him, playing a roundhouse game of tug o war, have him go through his obedience training, tossing treats across the room to keep him running around - if the dog will be distracted, might help and certainly used to work for Tibbe B4 that year or so of fear when he was sick. Try NOT to console the dog during that time with soothing 'It's okay' and petting, cuddling them as I'm told it could convey to the dog that you are essentially underwriting the fear reaction rather than actually soothing them. Distraction techniques involving a lot of running, roundhouse playing, action and movement during the storm, getting them thinking about performing their obedience training or getting the dog mad at the thunder and barking at it can help dissipate some of the fear reaction if the dog is not dealing with medical problems, too. __________________ Jeanie and Tibbe One must do the best one can. You may get some marks for a very imperfect answer: you will certainly get none for leaving the question alone. C. S. Lewis Last edited by yorkietalkjilly; 03-01-2017 at 10:57 PM.

02-14-2017, 06:04 PM	#3
lillymae YT 3000 Club Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Idaho Posts: 4,544	You say she checked out fine at the vet ? Did the vet check her anal glands ? as full anals can cause this as they can be painfull & when nervous the anals can fill fast.

02-15-2017, 07:27 AM	#4
Grammy1 YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Largo,Fl Posts: 8	Silver Lace ... My girl DOES have and uses a Thunder Shirt, they are great! Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to be helping much with her right now ��. Lilly Mae, I just tt the vet, they advised that she would be scooting and/or licking that area if the anal glands were an issue. No problems there. Thanks for your input!

02-18-2017, 04:55 AM	#8
Buddylove86 Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: ME Posts: 48	I would go back to your vet and ask for Trazadone (anti-anxiety) to keep her calm for a few weeks or there is a really new great drug got Sileo a sedative gel to use before storms. I would use the thunder shirt and some behavior modification as well. If your vet knows nothings about these then see someone else.