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Alternative Therapies For Anxiety


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Ive finally had a bit of a breakthrough with my JRT and her car anxiety, I can now take her on small trips without her stressing too much, its made me wonder about alternative ways of relieving her anxiety as she is a very stressy dog in general, not just in the car (sniffing when she is stressed, which is affecting training)

Ive tried rescue remedy and a relaxation spray (not DAP) but they have had little effect on her, infact spraying her stresses her a little lol, which is why Ive started thinking about massage or T-touch, Ive never really looked into T-touch, I was busy the weekend we had a seminar here in Brissy, I think one or both of them might help her, but I dont really know enough to know what might be the best option for her

Anyone have any advice? and does anyone know of a practitioner preferably on Brisbanes northside? Google has failed me this time round lol, so now its time for word of mouth :p

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You can get a book on T-touch - which is all I used. I recommend it.

And yes, my OTT crazy Dobe is chilled out now. :(

IMO There is a difference between hyperactivity and anxiety. Although, no doubt, they could both be there.

Only you can tell I guess.

It was only in the last few months that she displayed anxiety. The vet could not find a reason, so I tried the Good as Gold (plus Brewer's yeast and Calcium Ascorbate) and that certainly helped calm her. She was doing a lot of wandering around and whining. I still don't know why, but it only took a few doses and she's been fine ever since. :)

But even so, the vet commented on how relaxed she was before that.

Diet could be a factor too. When I got Kaisie I received no information on what she'd been fed. In answer to my question, all I got was "dog food". So, I guess I fed her differently. And soon after I got her I found DOL and Barf etc. It's not alwaysy been totally natural/raw, but predominently so.

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so I tried the Good as Gold (plus Brewer's yeast and Calcium Ascorbate)

What is Good As Gold?? :)

I missed the T-Touch workshop as well which was a shame as apparently it was EXCELLENT :(

Noisymina - what is the name of the T-Touch book you are using?

Another suggestion for you Goldengirl, is to ensure your dog is all in alignment before you start doing massage, T-touch ect.

I would recommend taking your girl to see Gary Pitt (dog chiro) at Morayfield and just check if there is anything "out". He's a lovely guy, very reasonably priced and he's worked wonders with my dogs. :(

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Yes Noisy which book did you use?

I think there is anxiety and hyperactivity there, but she is mostly affected by anxiety, especially at agility, I know when she gets sniffy its because she is getting nervous (thankyou Control Unleashed, until I read this I thought she was just being naughty)

t-time, roughly how much am I looking at? Are dog chiros as 'looked down on' as human chiros? (causing problems to keep you coming back)

Last night I got curious and youtubed some massage for dogs, nothing serious that could do harm just light massage, anyway I found a video that said to make slow circles with the palm of your hand on their chest and belly...omg the change was amazing, Ive never seen her so relaxed!!

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I have had success with using "Aspen + Mimulus + Rescue remedy"

Aspen is for unknown fears & Mimulus is the fear of every day life, it has helped one of my worry warts so much that she is really starting to enjoy life in general.

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i missed a recent t touch seminar (the one huski went to) but will attend next year. I def believe in its properties.

I currently use a tonic from a natropath that you can get from certain shops (vet n pet direct stock it). Its called calm. I called the natropath who makes it and talked to her over the phone and was very impressed with her. It has helped my beagle Mia alot. There are alot of similar things on the market, find one you feel confident with if thats what you want to look at doing.

Cheers

jac

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"Getting in touch with Your Dog"

Linda Tellington-Jones

http://www.amazon.com/Getting-TTouch-Your-...r/dp/1570762066

Cost of book, whatever it is now - $25-$30 maybe?

Do it yourself. :laugh:

Good as Gold from Produce stores or on line eg Vet-N-Pet Direct

$8-$9 for a sachet. Several doses for dog. One for horse. :D

Aiden, I think recommended this a while ago. Add Brewer's Yeast and VitC (I use Calcium Ascorbate powder)

About 1/2 to3/4 of a teaspoon of the first two, a bit kess of the C for my Dobe over a few days and she calmed well.

I still am giving her the latter two. The B vits being good for the nervous system and the C might be helping the arthritis anyway.

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Gary Pitt = approx. just under $30 per visit and I can't recommend him highly enough! :eek:

Thanks for the book link but still, do you know what *is* Good As Gold?? Just curious as I have 3 great produce stores but I've never noticed it! :)

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Gary Pitt = approx. just under $30 per visit and I can't recommend him highly enough! :eek:

Thanks for the book link but still, do you know what *is* Good As Gold?? Just curious as I have 3 great produce stores but I've never noticed it! :)

GG is a tryptophan based calmative. Do a Google and you will get the details.

Ask the produce. It's only in small packs, so probably easliy missed or kept under counter or they have another brand of the same thing. There are others that are similar.

Check out this thread, too.

http://www.dolforums.com.au/index.php?showtopic=207920

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You could consider a T-touch wrap or the equifleece t-shirts are also recommended if they are a snug fit.

DAP is not to be sprayed on the dog, it should be sprayed onto bedding or into the room/car. You can spray it onto a bandana or t-shirt and then put that onto the dog before they get into the stressed situation.

With ttouch, the key thing is keeping the touch very light, most people who learn about it from books are to heavy handed, the fingers should only just move the skin of the dog and the movements should be really slow.

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I would give ttouch a go, it sounds good but maybe go to someone who actually knows what they are doing. you have to be real careful with these therapists. I will not say my experiences publically though.

Hope you get ontop of the anxiety issues, they are a real pain to deal with but hoping you get it sorted real soon.

Edited by LucyCharzie
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Ill give Garry a call next week

Do they have to 'rest' at all after having chiropractic work done? she is already entered for another competition next weekend so should I wait until the following week before getting her looked at?

He doesn't only do chiro work - he also does magnetic therapy, and not sure of the other things he does. People often take their dog to him just before trials/shows etc to give them a boost. He worked on one of the dogs that won one of the events at the World Dog Games :cheer:

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Well, according to Garry Tess is completely sound except her patellas are a bit loose, it did take a lot of effort for him to get them out so they cant be that bad lol

Anywhoo Im about to place an order for the T-touch book, see how that goes, Garry also suggested vit B1 shots as a relaxant so Ill look into that

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Cool! That's not too bad at all!!

If he went over her and has said she is sound, then she is! - bottom line, so I hope you are pleased with that. :bolt:

Do take his advice or else you can look at getting tablets for the same ie. Vit B12 for humans. :eek:

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