[jlynnroma]

Hi! New here. I have a three year old male that is extremely noise phobic. We live in a very stormy state so that is very bad for all of us, especially him. Short of moving, how can we help him during his panic attacks. He is now at the point that even a little rain will set him off into full on panic mode- meaning fleeing to corners and closets and digging, struggling to get free if held, if put in crate/safe place digging to get out and trying to pry open bars with teeth and crying loudly. I feel terrible for him and the storms have been daily day and night lately. We are all very tired and stressed. He is already on anti-anxiety medications. We have tried all kinds of medications for him, natural and prescribed. It got so bad tonight that I thought I was going to have to drive him to the emergency vet. Has anyone else had a similar experience with a Vizsla? I have had four now and this is the first and only I've had with such extreme phobias.

 

[texasred]

June has storm phobia.
Her meds have changed over the years. Right now she takes a combination of Xanax and Trazodone. Behaviorist have started recommending Sileo. We haven't tried it yet, because my vet does not carry it, but it would be my next step. If/when her current meds stop working.

 

[PhilipL]

I am wondering if it is the sound of the storms bothering both dogs. Having recently viewed the USCG K9 Vizsla I noticed he was wearing ear defenders due to the noise of the helicopter as he is being raised or lowered from/to boats he is searching. Might ear defenders be a possible solution? here is a link to a site that supplies K9sI Love My Job!

 

[Mattie.egg]

I know some people who report using desensitizing techniques to ease sound phobias. We used a sound track to prevent noise reactivity/phobia when our 2yr old gal was a pup. Our breeder had already used it regularly before the babies were 8 weeks old, and we continued when she came home. Apparently people also use this in a gradually increasing stimulation manner. Initially playing it at nearly imperceptible volume and then very gradually increasing over time. Probably weeks of steady exposure before it sounds like anything to human ears... the idea being to play it at a volume the dog hears but barely, and does not react strongly too. I’m not the expert but it might be worth reading about or potentially trying. We used angel dog sound track which has a wide variety of sounds. I’m sure there are other types you could use. Hope you are able to find some help for your pup!