Question:
Rock our 3 yrs old boxer has always been highly strung..since he was terrified at 3 mnths by a firework going off.. this left him with a real fear of loud noises..other than that he matured really well,, friendly,socialble, playful & very healthy..3 days ago a house across the street was being cleared by new owners..suddenly there was a very loud bang ..it was the people throwing things into a metal horsebox..very noisy.. poor Rock about hit the roof... since then he has not settled down..barking at everything..people walking by. the wind...cars.. anything really.. he is on alert all the time....what can we do? should we wait for him to settle or should we get the vet to prescribe him sedatives.. this is the worse he has been.. is there any herbal medicines anyone can suggest to help him. he is eating, drinking ok but less interested in play..not like him at all.. he is such a sweetheart it is horrible to see him so nervous..

Answer:
One of my dogs developed a really horrible fear of thunderstorm and fireworks after we got caught out in a storm last summer. In the week following this initial storm, he became completely petrified of even going outside and in the year since then will get really nervous about going out at night after there has been a storm. I'm explaining this not because it's exactly the same, but it seems to be similar in that one fear can seem to lead to more generalized anxiety.

So, in the last year, these are some of the things I"ve figured out, hopefully they'll help you out:

-one scary incident needs to be countered with about a dozen positive ones. For example, if we have a storm and Streets get freaked out about going outside, we need to get him out and have a pleasant experience a bunch of times before he's relaxed about it again. If we go outside and some idiot lets off a firecracker, we're set back a bunch because that's just re-enforced his fear, so we start again and try to set it up, as much as id possible, for him to have a good time.

-there are herbal products on the market that totally have an effect, in my experience, but they need to be used consistantly, always be paired with behavior modification and positive re-enforcement (ie they won't solve the problem alone) and aren't usually strong enough if a dog has a really intense fear. The one's I've used or have gotten good reviews about are Quiet Moments, Holistic Blend Herbal Calmer for Pets, Bach Flower Remedy Mimulus and Rock Rose and HP Natural Homeopathic Remedy: Anxiety.

-Work to distract your dog is stressful situations. For example, Streets has pretty wicked prey drive, so when he freaks out and doesn't want to leave the front door, we tell him to "go find the squirrles". Because he knows what squirrles are, and loves to chase them, that's often enough to override his fear and he'll go charging ahead tring to find squirrles. Alternatively, we bring a squeak toy with us as he can't resist going after it.
He's also calmed by running through some obedience commands, it seems to take his mind off getting freaked out. When we're inside during a storm, we make him find treats that have been hidden around the house. Basically we're always looking for things that keep him distracted and occupied so that he can't start down the road of a total panic attack.

-If it's a particular area that freaks him out, try bringing him there, using the distractions that I mentionned above if needed, and let him explore. Praise and reward for getting up close and investigating the "scary" objects or areas, but be careful never to coddle or re-enforce a fearful reaction.

-When the dog is freaking out, DO NOT console, coddle, cuddle, baby talk etc. Just act like absolutely nothing out of the ordinary is going on.

-Try more excersise, this goes a long way in helping anxious dogs stay calmer.

-If all else fails, talk to your vet about prescription anti-anxiety medications. Because Streets has such an intense fear of storms (panting, shaking, hiding, drooling) we did end up getting him Xanax to use only when there is actually a storm. We still do everything I mentionned above, but the meds take enough of an edge off the anxiety for him to actually be able to engage with us and re-direct his attention to other things, where as before that was impossible.
Here's a good article of thunderstorm phobias, but it's also useful in explaining why some of the drugs previously used for this type of thing might not be as helpful as newer options:
http://www.dvmnewsmagazine.com/dvm/a...36493&pageID=1

I apologize for the extremely long winded post. I just spent the better part of the summer dealing with an extremely stressed out dog and I wish I'd had the info to get a grip on it earlier. If anything doesn't make sense, please let me know.

Answer:
Thanks for the advice...we never make a fuss when he freaks out we try to act as normal as possible ..I believe making a fuss only reinforces the fear.... distraction was easy till the other day....usually Rock will do anything for his ball /toys/rocks but not this week .... Bonnie & Rock have 5 walks/playtimes a day, two long walks about 1-2 hrs & 3 short ones 1/2 hour..plenty of exercise ..plus they have the run of the house & gardens... I will see about getting some form of herbal sedatives..see how he goes..will let you know if he calms down any over the next couple of days.. thanks for your advice it really helps

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