Stress in Dogs

     Recognising the Causes and How to Deal with Them

What is stress? Stress is described as a psychological and physiological response to events that upset our personal balance in some way. It is a state in which an organism reacts to an endogenous (interior) or exogenous (exterior) threat and focuses its energy on coping with the situation.

When faced with a threat to our personal safety or to our emotional state of mind the body's defence system kicks into a process that is known as the 'fight or flight' response. This in turn leads to increased heart rate, muscles tensing up and accelerated breathing and this puts our system on red alert.

Do dogs feel the effects of stress? Yes they do and it is also important to note that just like humans, stress can show itself differently from dog to dog as multiple dogs experiencing the same situation will deal and cope with it differently. Some will be able to cope well with the situation while others will show that they are clearly distressed showing completely different symptoms and coping strategies.

There are both positive and negative consequences of stress. A certain amount of stress is absolutely necessary and every dog's system can compensate for it without suffering any real harm. This kind of positive coping is called Eustress but this all depends on the amount of stress suffered by the individual dog. If a dog becomes accustomed to a certain level of stress then this is what we mean by the dog being able to cope with the situation. If however the dog cannot cope then it will suffer what we know as Distress and this can ultimately cause real harm and danger to the dog. Some researchers claim that dogs who are frequently exposed to long durations of stress or frequent dozes of it can have raised sex hormones in the blood and hence a lower threshold of aggressive behaviour. This is not to say that every dog when stressed out will behave in an aggressive manner but the dog may react more strongly than usual when encountering certain things.

Various symptoms or behaviours are directly linked to the effects of stress. Just as with us, when dogs are exposed to sudden fright or a very fearful situation the release of adrenalin and the activation of the brain's sympathetic nervous system gives the rush of blood effect that gives us the feel of needing to defecate. This is an involuntary reaction and something that the dog has no control over. This can often be seen at dog shows and training classes if the dog is over stressed by crowds of people and many strange and unfamiliar dogs. The bladder and the kidneys are also affected meaning that there is an increased need to urinate. Prolonged exposure to stressful situations can make the dog ill and cause the immune system to function poorly, this causes allergies and makes the dog more prone to infections, in the same way we can get a cold caused initially by long periods of stress.

What Are The Symptoms of Stress?

There are many symptoms a dog may show indicating that it may be suffering from stress and many of them can occur at the same time but it is important to try and see the whole picture. Is the dog really suffering from stress or is it exhibiting the behaviour for another reason? You also need to look at how often the behaviour happens and whether it is stress induced or not.

Symptoms

Nervousness- If a dog is jumpy or irritable and acting nervously in a particular way towards something or in a certain environment it would be wise to take a look around and try to see what is triggering the behaviour. Dogs may become very restless and have difficulty in settling down even where they normally sleep, they may over-react to people, things or situations that the dog may normally be calm and confident in. Closely related to nervousness is constant restlessness. Dogs in this state will not be able to settle down and relax, they may walk around in circles or pace up and down regardless of how tired they are. This can commonly be seen in dogs that find themselves in rescue shelters or kennel environments.

Defecation & Urination- As we said previously these can be examples of stress symptoms, something the dog has absolutely no control over at all as has the overwhelming need to empty itself.

Mounting- This kind of behaviour is not necessarily sexually motivated but can be stress induced. This does not have to be directed at other dogs but can be directed at people or objects like cushions or cuddly toys. It can also be stress created by overexcitement.

HyperHsexuality / Disrupted Sexual Cycle- Dogs can have a massive push in sexual drive or on the other hand a complete loss of sexual drive. In bitches it can disrupt the sexual cycle so that the times between the seasons they have can be too short or too long. Sometimes a bitch in heat can bleed for much longer than is usual, this may also be linked to stress.

Excessive Grooming- This can be excessive licking which is normally directed at the tail or genital area and can lead to open wounds or loss of hair. As painful as it may be this behaviour can be self gratifying and compensate for the level of stress that the dog feels.

Destructive Behaviour- This can be a common symptom of separation anxiety that is so often misunderstood that the owner punishes the dog for the behaviour thus intensifying the stress which leads to even more destructive traits.

Digestive Disorders- Vomiting and diarrhoea are both common symptoms of stress as are loss of appetite and allergic reactions. Gradually over time long periods of stress will weaken the immune system leaving the dog prone to illness. This can show up as skin rashes and heavy dandruff.

Body Odours- Bad breath is common because dogs pant more and the stress intensifies the secretion of gastrointestinal acids which become more noticeable through unpleasant odours.

Tense Muscles- This can be seen in training sessions where after a while the dog starts to feel stressed. Repeated commands of Sit, Down or Stay prove very difficult as the dog needs to move around so that it can free some of the tension from the muscles. If the dog is denied this it may resort to what we might call aggressive displays, biting on the leash or heavy panting. Short training sessions are best so that their bodies and minds are not too heavily taxed. Over crowded classes are also triggers of stress for dogs who find themselves helpless, agitated and unable to settle down or focus on anything.

These are only some of the most commonly seen symptoms of stress in dogs. Some of the factors responsible for releasing stress can be attributed to age, naturally as the dog gets older and the senses deteriorate a little they may become agitated or moody or less tolerant of things they may have had a previously sound temperament towards. Often these things can go unnoticed by owners for some time. Many dogs can be very sensitive to the weather and if bad weather can be persistent some dogs can become withdrawn and depressed. On the home front too many demands on the dog like very long walks, overworked, long bouts of agility and lots of rules along with lack of rest can have serious stressful consequences for the dog. Harsh and punishing training schedules will very often make dogs resort to aggressive and agitated behaviours. There are also the physical aspects to consider for instance thirst, hunger, extreme temperatures and lack of toilet provisions.

Unfortunately there are no quick fix cures that we can offer owners to wipe away a dog's stress but there are measures that we can take to minimize the stress and reduce the frequency of it. This takes a lot of observation, time and commitment. Often if a dog is suffering from severe stress it will show many symptoms in many different places. It is important to look around and take everything in, watch the dog and try to figure out what is the trigger, the factor or factors responsible for making the dog react. this could often be something completely oblivious to most of us such as a man with a hat or something noisy nearby.

Once any of the stress releasing factors have been identified action must be taken to reduce or take that factor away. The key is to find as many as these stress bombs as possible and systematically reduce the amount of stress the dog is regularly exposed to. Delicate care must be taken not to rush things as the change of too many things at once could have a backfiring effect, one should look to improve over the longer term as opposed to short and sudden change. it is a fact that animals that have suffered stress over a long period of time usually require a long period also to be able to shed off all the stress.

The golden rule when dealing with stress is this-take away the possibility for the dog to react. This is absolutely of paramount importance. Obedience exercises are utterly of no value in cases like this, when adrenalin is already pumping through the muscles the dog simply has to move. asking for a sit or a Down is too much of a demand to be put on the dog. Dogs can also become stressed if we are over protective towards them, they need exposed to different places and situations so that they can learn to cope with life, we all have a tendency to over protect at times. The dog's daily routine has to be looked at taking into consideration things like exercise, how much and how often, what type of exercise, too many commands placed on the dog and diet.

If the dog is extremely stressed it may be a good idea to visit a vet, physiotherapist or an osteopath to check for stiffness in the vertebrae or other areas, if there is pain then medication can be applied. Stress cannot be trained away, obedience or exercising will only make matters worse, the stressful stimulus must be recognised and taken away. If you take your dog's pulse from the inside of the thigh the normal beats for one full minute should be somewhere between 40-65, if it is over 70 then action must be taken or the circulation system will get in trouble and this can cause heart attacks and strokes.

Stress causes us to get sick, this is why as previously stated that it is pointless to try and train a dog when in this condition. When adrenalin goes up blood sugars are pumped to the muscles instead of the brain and if chronically stressed the brain is not active and it will close down and the dog will be unable to concentrate or focus on anything. Most biting incidents will undoubtedly be linked to stress which causes the dog to overreact, we are the same way.

Dr.Bach is famous for his flower and herbal remedies which were originally intended for people and he came up with remedies that treated specific states of mind, this included fear, terror, anxiety, worry and boredom. Although there are no scientific studies to support their use pet owners have observed positive changes in their pets with use of these non toxic and gentle remedies. The difficulty in using these remedies is that we cannot ask our pet how it is feeling and so we have to rely on our judgement and observation to find the appropriate remedies.

If we remember that dogs have the same emotions as us then we will be in a much better position to understand and help them when they over react to things, getting to know your dog will help you to see all these things.

Suggested Reading:

Stress in Dogs - Scholtz & Reinhardt

Minimizing Stress for Kennel Dogs - Gwen Bailey

On Talking Terms with Dogs - Turid Rugaas

Barking: The Sound of a Language - Turid Rugaas

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