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Post by gazza56 on Sept 26, 2014 13:55:17 GMT
well its quickly approaching that time of year .I relise that this question has been asked a million times before but does anyone out there in greyhound land have any good "cures" for a dog that really freaks when the rockets and roman candles start !
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greyhoundgran
Full Member
Location Bulmer Tye, Sudbury, Suffolk
Posts: 194
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Post by greyhoundgran on Sept 26, 2014 15:27:46 GMT
Hi Gazza!, my Lily is much better now but I - close curtains all lights on , tv louder than normal, tinned sausage cut up into loads of small pieces , any signs of stress hand out sausage. This works well with Lily so good luck. Fred.
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Post by gazza56 on Sept 26, 2014 15:51:49 GMT
I m afraid jo has simply got worse with age we are now at the stage where rain on the conservatory roof has started her to make her panic .when she was younger it did nt really affect her but now she goes into panic mode .Our other grey(molly alice) just lays on her back with legs in the air while jo is panting and crying.
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greyhoundgran
Full Member
Location Bulmer Tye, Sudbury, Suffolk
Posts: 194
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Post by greyhoundgran on Sept 27, 2014 15:59:32 GMT
Oh poor girl, I googled about fireworks and nervous greys and people suggest DAP defuser or/and DAP collar, or medication from the vets. Fred
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Post by sallyannh on Sept 28, 2014 18:15:19 GMT
Darcy has been a bit unsettled with the thunderstorms this summer, which isn't like him at all. A couple of drops of rescue remedy seems to help, plus a noisy film on to camoflage the noise.
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Post by yvonned on Sept 29, 2014 7:29:10 GMT
If you click on the "search" facility in the green bit at the top of the page you will find lots of posts re fireworks. I am a great fan of Bach Rescue Remedy and this cured Cass's fear of them when I first got her. The knack is to start using it early enough and not just on the night and don't be frightened of it. I've only ever used the human version as they didn't make a pet one when we first started using it on rescued Doberman. It's about £7 from good chemists and Boots. Cass isn't bothered by fireworks now. Thunderstorms are a different story, I think that's to do with air pressure and she is a quivering, pacing, salivating, panting wreck even before the storm reaches us. She even started when there was just rain, I suppose associating it with storms, but we've overcome that one now. I read somewhere that storm phobia can click in as the dog ages but Cass has always been like it. Rescue Remedy doesn't seem to help her with storms. Awful to see a dog in such a state, perhaps it's the time we should take a few drops of Rescue Remedy ourselves !!For fireworks I'd start putting 3 drops in drinking water as soon as the morons start letting them off, usually in the middle of October round here. Don't forget to to make sure Collar is fitted right as lots of dogs go missing due to fireworks.
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Post by gazza56 on Sept 29, 2014 15:37:44 GMT
We have tried rescue remedy but I think we are doing it wrong by only giving it to her when we start hearing the firewlorks iThink it have to start mid oct , problem is she gets in such a state that she must be close to a heart attack .She has always been the sort of dog that can t be bought with treats so food as a distraction is not an option
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Post by suethejam on Sept 29, 2014 20:18:10 GMT
When we first had Ty he was traumatised and extremely afraid of fireworks - he still doesn't like them, but now we have a strategy and he's much calmer than he was.
In the first year, we had "campaign Ty" where we started a month before fireworks night with convention anti-anxiety medicines (propranolol in advance and alprazolam on the night). This really helped him through the first time. We've not had to have "campaign Ty" since (that's almost 4 years) - the anti-anxiety medicines, in theory, help to modify their memories of unpleasant events.
Other practical strategies include:
- try to get their walks done before dark so that they're not likely to be spooked by fireworks when they're out - feed them a high carb meal around an hour before you anticipate the fireworks (pasta is good) - this tends to calm them down and makes them sleepy while they're digesting it - make them a safe place - preferably in an enclosed space - small room, under a table that's been tented with blankets, open crate (if you have one). Ty likes our smallest bedroom and has a dog bed with high sides and a duvet and blankets that he can burrow into. - play loud music in the room - something with a strong beat works best (Ty has Florence and the Machine but that's just his taste!) - you are allowed to reassure them when they ask for it, but don't make too much of a fuss
We've tried a range of complemetary therapies - we didn't think they worked for Ty but they're worth a try as they do work for some hounds.
Hope that helps - some hounds will always be terrified of fireworks (and other loud noises) but it's worth trying and trying again to ease their fear.
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Post by yvonned on Sept 30, 2014 7:47:42 GMT
What I would do is 3 drops in drinking water starting mid October. When you start hearing the morons letting odd ones off I'd then start adding 3 drops into meals. Around the 5th November week I'd also be dropping directly onto tongue starting at about 4.30 in the afternoon. I used to take Cass out in garden on her lead when I heard them going off in the distance I think this helped with her fear. You may find that if your girl is nervous of other things like traffic say, it may help her with that. A lady over our park is going to speak to her vet about Rescue Remedy and get his thoughts on it, she has taken it herself and her Border Collie is a nervous dog. She has used tranquillisers on him before but doesn't like using them, I'll find out what vet says but most vets don't know about "alternatives". It may be that your girls fear is deeply embedded and it won't work but you can only try.
Caz can you and anybody else that tries Rescue Remedy keep us informed on this thread as to how you get on, because there's a lot of dogs that hate the damn things.
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Post by sueb on Sept 30, 2014 14:35:39 GMT
Sorry to hear about Jo, I do sympathise. I know what it's like when you think they're almost having a heart attack, Brennan gets like that with fireworks. I've never seen a dog like it before.
It helps a bit for him to have a safe den (we make a sort of tent in the kitchen), with lights off, bind down and Classic FM blaring out! But we tried Rescue Remedy (which does help with storms) and various herbal dog remedies, but with no significant effect. A couple of years ago, I gave up on these and visited the vet, as it was pitiful to see a dog so very distressed. So valium it was, and despite me not being a fan of such things, I have to say it's helped him enormously! As long as we give him a tablet 20-30 minutes before dark, he seems much less distressed, although we go down to Kent (as we have a huge display near us and it's so incredibly loud).
It also seems to make him less distressed with odd fireworks going off after big events, too, even when he hasn't had any tablets!
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Post by gazza56 on Oct 15, 2014 18:40:03 GMT
someone at work was taking about dogs and fireworks and they said that they had brought a thunder coat and had worked in calming their dog down .i was just wondering if anyone else had heared or tried them
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Post by sallyannh on Oct 15, 2014 19:59:24 GMT
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