Monsoons are here!

During the summer months, the dry heat sometimes turns to monsoons. These storms are dangerous to humans and our furry friends.
Many of our furry's have separation anxiety and problems with thunderstorms. Here are some great ideas from another Golden Rescue Group.

Please remember to ALWAYS talk with your vet before using these remedies. They may interact with other medications/treatments your pet is using. 

Melatonin – Available at most stores in the vitamin aisle. Give 3 milligrams which is usually one tablet on days a storm is forecasted.

Pheromones – A DAPS (Dog Appeasing Pheromone) collar looks like an old fashion flea collar, but gives off the pheromones a mother dog gives off to soothe her puppies. The collar lasts for a month and can be worn continuously. Use with plug in diffusers for extra support. www.entirelypets.com has them at a reasonable price.

Wrapping – Like swaddling a baby to soothe and calm. A couple of companies that make shirts just for dogs are http://www.thundershirt.com/ ( which is now available at PETCO)
and www.anxietywrap.com. Both offer a money back guarantee so you can’t go wrong.

Homeopathy – Aconitum Nappellus (Aconite) or Phosphorous PHUS 30C which is available in health food stores or online, is a natural compound used for fear of thunder or loud noises. Drop 3 to 5 pellets down the back of your dog’s throat (do not touch the pellets with your hand) every fifteen minutes until you start to see results. Then stop. You can resume giving the pellets if your dog starts to get agitated again. Practitioners of homeopathy point out that a remedy either will work or not, but it will not harm the dog or cause side effects.

Flower Essences – Rescue Remedy, Calming Essence or Five Flower Formula often help and certainly won’t hurt. If these combo essences don’t work, try Mimulus, which works for “fear of known things” and Rock Rose, which works for terror and panic.

If you’re home when a storm is approaching, administer a dose before and during the storm. If you see that your golden is still agitated or depressed after the storm, give the remedy again. If you try the Mimulus, for example, and notice a slight improvement, for the next storm try Mimulus again along with Rescue Remedy or Calming Essence. If you don’t see results with these two remedies, try Aspen or Star of Bethlehem.

Give one drop every five pounds of body weight; 20 lbs. and over – 4 drops for the first twenty pounds plus one drop for every additional ten pounds (example: 75 lb. Dog = 10 drops each dosage).
Put drops in your pets water all summer long or give drops in the mouth before or during a storm. I buy my flower essences from http://www.greenhopeessences.com

Safe Place – Create a safe place for your dog to go when it storms – a closet, a bathroom with no windows, a crate covered with a quilt. However, DO NOT close your dog in a crate or room as they may injure themselves trying to get out. When they are afraid they are not thinking clearly.

Music Therapy – Play harp music. Research shows it slows the heart rate, lowers blood pressure and decreases the level of stress hormones in the blood. Apparently the vibrations are soothing as even deaf dogs can benefit. You should play for at least 20 minutes, but not continuously.

Nutraceuticals -are products isolated or purified from foods that is demonstrated to have a physiological benefit or provide protection against chronic disease. Two FDA approved ones for dogs are Anxitane (L-theanine) and Zylkene (casein) available from most vets, but cheaper if purchased on Amazon.

Pharmacological Medications – if all else fails talk with your vet. There are drugs that can help dogs with severe fear. Clomipramine (Clomicalm) has been approved by the FDA to treat separation anxiety in dogs and may help. This is closely related to amitriptyline, a drug that has had beneficial results on thunder-phobic dogs. Both drugs work to correct the balance of the level of chemicals called neurotransmitters in the brain. Unfortunately, some drugs do have side effects and to get the fullest benefit, thunder-phobic dogs must take anti-anxiety medications from the beginning of the stormy season and extending through the season’s Bear in mind that most drugs do not help a dog recover from his or her fear of the storm.

Please share what works best for your pets!!