Learn some relaxation techniques at how to calm an anxious dog to be able to live better with your faithful friend.

Having a pet is not such a simple thing, sometimes we don't understand what they want to communicate to us and this leaves us stressed and worried.

In fact many times we take dogs from shelters, so they have had traumatic experiences and are still anxious.

Or our dog simply has a more fickle and anxious character.

Or again, we fail to understand why some situations leave our canine friend nervous and alert.

And what can we do to calm him down?

Here are some tips on how to calm an anxious dog.

1 Understand the reason

The first thing we can do is try to understand the reason for our dog's anxiety.

There can be many of them and identifying it helps to cure it or prevent it from happening again.

For example, your dog may be afraid of: loud noises, unfamiliar people, other dogs, changing environment, traveling by car, being alone, and many other things.

So in some cases the solution would be to avoid situations that leave him anxious, as in the case of fear of noise.

But it's not always that simple.

If it is a puppy who is afraid of other dogs, this is normal and we are the ones who have to help him learn to socialize.

For this reason, to prevent discomfort to your dog, it is strongly recommended that you take him for training when he is young.

So that the dog professionals can help you understand how to calm an anxious dog.

And therefore having a dog that can be serene both as a young person and as an adult.

2 Contact a professional

When the problem persists and/or it is not possible to understand the reason for our furry friend's illness, then we should contact a professional.

The veterinarian is the first professional to contact to rule out the hypothesis of health problems.

Then the dog behavior professional will explain it to you how to calm an anxious dog.

3 Relaxation techniques

There are some relaxation techniques that we can try.

• Magic blanket technique: In this case we have to take a blanket, show it to him and make him lie down on it.

Then start petting him until he is totally relaxed. In this way the dog will associate with the magic blanket a state of relaxation.

• Music therapy: also this technique known for men, can be used with our furry friends.

Then we choose a relaxing and low volume music and pet our dog.

We start with short sessions of 5 minutes to see how the dog reacts.

• Create a routine: Creating a routine of meals, walks and games can help your dog control their anxiety.
• Don't leave him alone: Avoiding leaving him alone can help. But when we really have to go out, it's better to leave games to distract him.
• Pharmacological therapy: there are also drugs, called tranquilizer pheromones, which are prescribed by the vet in case he finds that your dog suffers from anxiety.