Can You Recognize These 5 Signs Your Dog Is Stressed?

Do you love a furry friend who is chronically stressed and often gets upset, or a quiet guy who only stresses when it's really justified?

Everyone experiences stress. Stress helped our human ancestors and our canine ancestors survive, the wolves. In fact, stress is just a part of life.

Each of us and each of our dogs experiences stress differently.

Some of us - and some of our dogs - seem to be able to handle whatever comes our way, while others panic at every little thing.

And that's probably the case with you too.
It is not healthy for our four-legged friends to be under constant stress. Acute stress, that is, stress felt at the moment something is really stressful, is good. He gives us security. Chronic stress, that is, constantly felt stress, is not good.

And why?
Well, chronic stress has some pretty serious consequences for our dogs. And also for us. Stress affects literally every aspect of our well-being, including sleep, cardiovascular health, the immune system and digestion, and studies show that chronic stress even accelerates the aging process.

If you're a chronically stressed individual, please don't stress yourself out any more...but research has shown that "long-term stress levels in dogs and their owners are synchronized" and "long-term stress in dogs is synchronized with the human-canine bond and related to personality traits."

As a dog owner, it's your job to recognize the signs of a stressed dog and take action before your dog goes completely nuts.
We all know the main signs: diarrhea, increased barking or growling, tremors and so on.

Here are 5 signs your dog is stressed that you may not recognize:

1. hair . Sure, most dogs shed, but at times of heightened stress, you'll find that your dog's tufts of hair will fall out in great swaths.
   
   
2. yawn . Of course we all yawn when we're tired, but did you know that your dog will yawn - often accompanied by a squeak or whine - when stressed? This is how your dog tries to calm down when he's feeling stressed.
   
   
3. walking up and down . A stressed dog often paces back and forth. Imagine the familiar sitcom depiction of the father-to-be pacing the waiting room. It's the same thing: your dog is trying to let off steam and release his nervous energy.
   
4. Hide. If your dog hides behind you, crawls under the bed, or crouches behind the couch, he doesn't feel safe. If your dog hides behind you in these instances, you should comfort them as best you can, but if they hide in a closet or under the bed, it's okay to leave them alone and wait.
   
5. drooling or panting. Unless the two of you have just walked a few miles and your dog is still drooling or panting, he's stressed. It's like when you're stressed and your breathing becomes shallow.

Watch out for these signs and then take action before your dog collapses!

Here are 3 ways you can help your stressed dog:

1. Remove the stressor or remove your dog. If something (such as fireworks, bicycles, crowded sidewalks, hot air balloons) is causing your dog acute stress, either remove the item or your dog. This is not about permanent avoidance; you should attend a training course that will help your dog in the long term. Avoiding it is only a short-term option that will help your dog get through the moment.
   
   
2. Offer consolation. Some dog owners don't want to "pamper" their dog when he's hiding in fear. Imagine saying something like that about a baby or a child. Nobody would think of saying something like, "Oh, your child is afraid of thunderstorms? Well, you should never comfort a frightened child! It only increases their fear!".
   When your dog, friend, partner, child, whoever is scared, comfort them!
   
   
3. carry out interventions. For daily anxiety management, you can administer a dose of CBD . For unexpected or particularly acute stressors - like fireworks, thunderstorms, visitors, whatever is stressful for your dog - there are other options your vet can help you with.
   For stress factors that you can influence, such as vacuum cleaning, visitors, you can take a number of measures in advance, such as B. the combination of a dose of CBD or you set up your dog a cozy corner filled with his favorite things or a sniffing mat to get him thinking otherwise.

Of course, there is no substitute for training, but for dogs that are prone to stress, training alone will not alleviate all of the stress your dog will experience in life.