Can Dogs Have Panic Attacks?

It’s possible that many don’t know it, but dogs, like us, can suffer from panic attacks. These can be caused by loud noises, a road accident or a fight with another dog. Whatever the situation, we must know what triggers this panic attack and what we can do about it.

Why Dogs Have Panic Attacks

In this aspect, several factors come into play, including race and the circumstances experienced. For example, a dog that has been mistreated will show signs of anxiety and fear in tense moments. Perhaps this occurs when hearing screams in our house or in a neighbor’s house.

However, this is not common. The predominant habitual factors that lead our dog to suffer panic attacks are loud noises. This is the case of gunshots, rockets, thunder and even ambulance sirens.

These panic attacks make them act in different ways. Some act aggressively, others try to hide from the noise, and others struggle to flee their homes. In all situations, the animal could end up being injured by the force that moves it to act with such anxiety.

Indeed, there are many aspects that we cannot avoid, but we can do something about it.

What to do if your dog has panic attacks

To avoid injury and further trauma to our animal, it is important that we know how to act. Reactions to panic attacks will never improve if we don’t act in time, knowing exactly what to do.

The first thing to do is pay attention to how we respond when we see our dog has a panic attack. Normally, we tend to spoil the animal a lot with sweet words and affection, but this does nothing more than reinforce its behavior, as the animal will feel as if we are congratulating it on its attitude.

There is also the other extreme. Owners who fight with the animal for feeling that way. This is not a good thing either, as the animal cannot help but be afraid and fighting will only make it relate its panic to something even more negative and, consequently, make it feel doubly afraid.

It is necessary to find a balance between the extremes, that is, we must make him see and understand that nothing is happening and that we are there. Sometimes he needs to be alone, because if we’re on top of him too much, we won’t be doing anything but reinforcing his demeanor.

There are dogs that suffer an uncontrolled fear and for that there are techniques that can help them to improve. For example, for dogs afraid of loud noises, there is gradual exposure to sound, which consists of emitting the sound that frightens you at a low volume until it reaches a high volume, which can stop at any time.

However, if we feel that our pet’s fear is out of control and that we are not getting better, taking him to the vet is always the best thing to do. He will be able to determine the cause and how to act accordingly.

How to tell if our dog has panic attacks

To know if our dog has panic, we must observe its behavior in various situations. Our pet always gives us signals, which help us to know how he feels at each moment. We have to be aware of these, which are:

• Vocalization. If the dog screams for us to go to where he is
• Do your necessities at home. If you have never done this, it is possible that these “accidents” are caused by a panic attack.
• Destructive conduct. This could occur mainly in windows and doors, looking for a way out to be with its owner and feel its protection.

Physical symptoms would be restless breathing, diarrhea, vomiting, arthritis, anorexia, tremors, depression and others.

Pay attention to your pet and if you notice that he has these signs, and with our advice you cannot calm him down, go to the vet. He will be the one who can best deal with this fear.