5 Signs Your Dog Is Stressed and How to Relieve It

Canines, like humans, can experience stress when subjected to unpleasant environments, people, or events. At most times, we think that their mild reactions to stress are part of their normal behavior that we don’t see often — until they do something extremely worrying.

As a responsible dog owner, one must know the symptoms of canine stress and ways to relieve it quickly. These will allow your pet or assistance animal to live a happy life and perform their duties at maximum efficiency. Here are 5 signs of dog stress and ways to calm them down.

1. Panting

Dogs pant when they’re excited or their bodies are hot. They’ll also pant when they feel stressed. The first thing to do is to give them water. If they still pant after drinking, identify the probable stressor in the area and remove it. Otherwise, move your dog to a calming location.

2. Excessive shedding

Fur shedding is normal for dogs, especially in between warm and cold seasons. But if they shed excessively in the middle of a season, that could mean they’re stressed. Because this symptom is subtle, you can’t easily identify the stressor.

You might want to observe your dog and see which places, objects, or sounds they actively avoid or are running away from. And just like #1, remove that stressor.

3. Aggression

Canine aggression is often caused by the presence or action of another living being. Your confusing commands, staring, or harsh punishment can be the reason why your dog is growling or being aggressive towards you. If your dog is aggressive towards somebody else, that person may have done something that traumatized your dog without your knowledge.

To deal with an aggressive dog, give them space. Yes. Even if you are its master, stay away from them until they have calmed down because you might get bitten. Identify what you might’ve done wrong and try to make amends. They will forgive and forget your shortcomings. But don’t do it again.

In a scenario where your dog is aggressive towards somebody else, you should keep that person out of sight from your companion. Dogs are distrustful of people they are hostile to at first meeting and are likely to not change their view.

4. Incessant barking or whining

Like babies, dogs will express their pain or stress by making noises. In this case, either barking or whining. If your dog keeps on making noises without the postman, neighbor’s cat, or bird outside the window, they might be feeling discomfort within.

You should take them to the veterinarian for a thorough examination. The vet will prescribe a medicine to ease their symptoms.

5. Destroying household objects

We’ve seen videos of puppies and adult dogs tearing up couches or strewing toilet rolls all over the house. This might seem like normal canine behavior but it’s not. Property destruction is a huge sign of stress born from separation anxiety, boredom, or a feeling of superiority over the owner.

The best way to ease the stress of a destructive mutt is to train them. Leave your home for a few minutes. Let your dog get used to being alone for a while. Then be absent for an hour. Increase your absence duration until your dog is used to being left in the house.

Teach them to gnaw on the right chewing toy by giving them one. Show them that you’re in charge. A dog may not be in a pack as wolves normally operate. But they still understand the concept of “Hooman is alpha. Hooman is master. I must obey hooman.”

There are other symptoms of canine stress such as incontinence, restlessness, ignoring you, seeking isolation, loss of appetite, constant licking, and drooling. And to relieve these signs follow the same formulas mentioned. Remove the stressor, give them space, make amends, veterinarian’s visit, and training.

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