Calming Dog Treats: Most Effective Way to Calm Anxious Pups
Calming dog treats have been on the pet market for quite some time to tackle stress and anxiety. In most pet stores, you’ll be able to see a full row or two of all-natural pet treats, oils or sprays that are meant to help calm your pup and improve their anxiety. However, do they really work when it comes to calming your dog? If so, in what way do they work? Let’s take a look at what calming dog treats are, and why they can be so effective in calming your anxious pup.
What are calming dog treats for?
Calming dog treats are generally
marketed toward pets that suffer from anxiety (well, actually you, the pet
owners). This can be an ongoing, everyday issue, such as separation anxiety
from their owner or it can be an event that occurs much less frequently (traveling,
loud noises like fireworks, meeting many new people at once). It can also be
for pups that are in discomfort because of an ongoing health issue that has
painful side effects or dogs that suffer from insomnia. They can be for dogs of
all ages, as you are never too young or too old to have anxiety.
How do I know my dog has anxiety?
Dogs can present anxiety in all
sorts of ways that can be both quite obvious and very subtle. Your dog actually
may be exhibiting signs of anxiety that you haven’t picked up on, such as
excessive or heavy panting. You may not have noticed, because you have seen
your pup pant in normal situations. If they are doing so out of character, or
in a situation where you don’t think there’s any need for them to be panting,
that’s when you may want to observe them further and investigate why this
behavior may be happening.
Other symptoms of anxiety in dogs can include
hiding, whining, barking, excessive licking or chewing, aggression or having
one too many accidents. Your pup may also be having a full-blown panic attack
(yes, dogs can have them too), which could involve a combination of any number
of symptoms.
Do calming dog treats work?
Not only do calming treats for
dogs have the potential of working to lower your dog’s anxiety, but they are a
two in one—both a reward, and a possible solution to calming down your anxious
pup, and hopefully providing some sort of a “zen” feeling. While calming dog
treats have been known to provide wonderful benefits to help lower dogs
anxiety, it is important to be particular in the dog treats that you are
selecting, to make sure that they have the highest chance of working.
So, what should I be looking for?
While looking for the best
calming dog treat to suit your pup’s needs, you want to look at the
ingredients. When you select a dog food for your pup, you generally are looking
for a food that has the least amount of unnecessary fillers. For example, when
I am looking for dog food, I seek out the highest quality ingredients, with the
least amount of fillers—I am also looking for the highest concentration of the
best ingredients, the real “meat and potatoes” of what good food should be.
This is also what you are going to want to be looking for in your calming dog
treats.
Okay. What are the most calming ingredients?
As with humans, different dogs
may react differently to different ingredients, as no two pups are exactly the
same. However, some of the most commonly effective ingredients in calming dog
treats have been known to be chamomile, passion flower, ginger root, valerian,
L-Tryptophan, and CBD (including hemp), a natural compound found in cannabis. A
combination of these ingredients can often be quite effective.
FOMO Bones CBD Dog Treats for anxiety actually combine five out of six of these powerful
natural ingredients, and have no additional, unnecessary fillers in their dog
treats. When every ingredient in your calming dog treat has a purpose, that is
when you have the highest chance of success in using these treats to lower your
pup’s anxiety. All of the ingredients mentioned above have a natural, calming
properties, which have been proven as a whole to be able to relax not only your
pup but humans too. You will see many, if not all, of these ingredients in
natural supplements and oils for humans suffering from anxiety as well.
How long will these calming dog treats take to work?
Well, that depends on the treat
that you’ve selected. Some calming dog treats recommend that you give them to
your dog anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours before an event that may stress
them out or cause them anxiety—which may not be ideal if there has been an
unexpected event that has already caused your dog anxiety.
Some calming dog
treats have the most optimal effect when given to your pup every day, and have
built up in their system. This is generally the most effective way of treating
a dog who has an ongoing issue. In the case of FOMO Bones CBD Dog Treats for
Anxiety, they do work instantly but have the best results once they have built
up in your pup’s system from anywhere from five to seven days.
Will calming dog treats cure my dog of their anxiety?
Keep in mind that, as with
humans, anxiety in pups is more than likely part of an underlying issue. If
their anxiety is more of a one-off problem, such as they are afraid of
fireworks, and it is unavoidable having them hear the fireworks going off, then
this is most definitely one of the only solutions in that scenario. However, if
this is not the case, you should work with your vet or with a trainer to get
some advice on how to work toward fixing the underlying issue.
Calming dog
treats are most certainly an effective way to help calm your pup while you are
addressing this issue, but you want to set your dog up for the best possible
chance at success. Using calming dog treats while hopefully finding a
long-lasting solution to your dog’s needs is the best way to set your dog up
for a happy, healthy life.
This article by Jennifer is
originally published at FOMO Bones.
Author bio: Jennifer is the voice
behind the FOMO Bones blog. She's pretty sure in her past life, she was a Great
Dane. However, we peg her as more of a labrador. Regardless of her breed, she's
a dog enthusiast who has 15 years experience training dogs and owners.