FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM JULY 20, 2017 • PETS • THE QUEENS COURIER 47
pets
Improve your dog’s emotional life
For millions of pet parents, their
beloved dog is more than just a fourlegged
friend - he’s a member of the family.
When looking at products for their
pet they are willing to explore all options
to ensure they provide the very best items
like organic foods, therapeutic bedding,
unique and innovative toys, on-trend
collars and leashes, electronic feeding
and watering items and more. Although
our pets are treated as family members
there is one issue that is oft en overlooked
and undertreated in dogs - anxiety.
Aft er all, we can’t ask our animals how
they’re doing. Nonetheless, 75 million
dogs in the U.S. experience anxiety, stress
or fear at some point in their lives, and
about 24 million of them regularly suff er
from these potentially debilitating issues.
In some instances it’s genetics. But for
many dogs, anxiety oft en arises as a result
of a change in routine such as a thunderstorm,
fi reworks, encounters with strangers,
travel and other loud noises. Any of
these can trigger an anxiety event.
Dogs show signs of anxiety or fear in
many diff erent ways. Sudden barking,
hiding, inappropriate urination, digging,
chewing, panting and excessive lip licking
are the most common signs of emotional
stress.
While it may be challenging to identify
the triggers, it’s important to understand
the science of anxiety in order to
best alleviate it.
Physical eff ects
Stress does more than just make for
an unpleasant few hours; it can have
long-lasting physiological eff ects that can
be extremely detrimental.
During periods of anxiety, stress or
fear, a dog’s brain releases an increased
amount of adrenaline and cortisol, which
decreases the amount of blood fl ow to the
frontal cortex of the brain. Th is means
less oxygen is fl owing to the frontal cortex.
With prolonged anxiety or fear, the
increase in cortisol levels can weaken
the dog’s immune system, leading to
increased incidence of sickness or stress.
To avoid long-term health problems, it
is important to be aware of the common
signs and symptoms and to treat anxiety
when it occurs in companion animals.
Solutions
Some drugs, like sedatives, mood modifi
ers and anxiety medications have been
recommended in extreme cases, but the
results have been mixed. Wishing to
avoid pharmaceuticals, some owners opt
for more natural solutions containing
chamomile, passion fl ower, valerian root,
poppy or hops.
One of the most eff ective treatments
doesn’t involve drugs at all, but rather,
focuses on behavior modifi cation to
soothe dogs and calm their senses.
At the forefront of this innovative
approach is the new Calmz(R) Anxiety
Relief System for dogs that combines
high-tech innovation with acupressure
in a revolutionary non-invasive, drugfree
treatment that soothes anxiety. Th e
innovative system comes complete with
an adjustable Comfort Fit Vest that cradles
a device over specifi c acupressure
points on the dog’s spine. When the
device is activated, the clinically proven
NeuroSync Technology(R) takes over.
Th e dog will hear and feel a therapeutic
blend of classical music, tones and
vibration.
Th is cuts to the physiological root
of the stress, reducing adrenaline and
increasing blood fl ow to key areas of the
brain.
Because anxiety, stress and fear are so
common in dogs and can cause so much
harm, it’s important to visit a veterinarian
or a pet behaviorist to rule out any
underlying medical conditions and to
utilize the experts to help create a plan to
treat the issue at hand. Anxiety is a serious
disorder and it is best to get it under
control early on. Treatment will improve
quality of life for not only the dog but for
the pet parent as well.
Courtesy BPT