Using Nutrition to Treat Dog Anxiety
Living with a dog that often has anxiety issues can be both stressful and dangerous. When dogs feel anxious, their actions can be unpredictable at times. It is common to find the dog chewing on things around the house or even urinating. On the flip side, some dogs will become violent and aggravated when anxious, which can be bad for your family, especially if you have kids at home.
Simply put, dog anxiety is a situation where your dog will anticipate future dangers which can be both real and unreal. Among the most common types of dog anxiety is separation anxiety where a dog will overreact in the absence of the owner. Whichever type of anxiety your dog is going through, finding ways to treat this mental condition is wise. KarmaPets.com sells hemp-infused treats that can help, but we will discuss the possible causes and how to deal with your dog’s anxiety or irritability.
Here are a few dietary ideas to help you calm your dog’s anxiety tendencies:
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What Causes Anxiety in Dogs?
Other than separation anxiety, your dog might feel anxious from noises that it considers foreign. In most cases, it might relate the noises from a vacuum or a thunderstorm to a situation in their lifetime that left them traumatized. As a result, such noises will either make them timid or violent depending on the dominant behavior of your hound.
Social anxiety also has a leading role to play in the lives of most dogs. They will feel intimidated in social situations that they are not used to such as being around too many people or animals – this especially holds true to puppies that haven’t had a lot of social interactions in their young age. Luckily, the right nutrition will work in preventing anxiety from creeping up on your lovely pet, and simple guides like the guide on what German Shepherds like to eat by Pawster.com can help give you great diet ideas.
Reduce Proteins and Boost Vitamins
For dogs that are aggressive, reducing proteins in their diet will affect their serotonin production, which often results in a calming effect. Additionally, certain proteins like alpha casozepine that will have a sedating effect will help in calming your dog. As a result, look to supplement them in your dog’s diet.
Vitamin deficiencies can also lead to poor mental health in dogs, and finding a way to boost the presence of certain vitamins in its diet will help in calming them down. For instance, both vitamin E and A are great in ensuring the mental health and serenity of your pooch. Additionally, vitamins B16, B6 and B1 will all help to bring some calm and harmony into your home and the life of your hound.
Use Calming Herbs and Medication
Herbs that have ingredients like chamomile and tryptophan are great when it comes to treating anxiety in pets. While a good number of human anti-anxiety medication might not be great for the health of your pooch, there are a few options that have been known to work wonders without exposing the pets to any health issues. These include valerian, chamomile, passionflower, and kava.
In case adding them directly into the diet will be tough, you can still leverage common treats that contain the ingredients. For instance, feeding your rover on cookies that contain chamomile will help calm it down. This can be beneficial in situations where you will be exposing your dog to anxiety stimuli such as a long car ride.
Use a Low Carbonate Diet
Just like in kids, dogs will often experience a sugar rush when exposed to too many carbohydrates over a short period. This situation results in the dogs experiencing excessive bouts of energy that can last for more than two hours after digestion. Instead, look to shift from high-carbohydrate diets to a low carbohydrate diet to help in calming your dog whenever you will be exposing it to anxiety stimuli.
Conclusion
Dietary methods for calming your dog are only but temporary solutions. Combining a great training technique and the right diet will help to eliminate the anxiety tendencies of your pooch. Consult your vet on the best training strategies to help your dog deal with their mental fears.
