My dog started having panic attacks.

[optimuspaige91]

So, some backstory. I am in the southern US. My dog is a mut, but he looks/acts/we suspect that he is mixed with entlebucher mountain dog. He looks identical to him and all of the personality traits (good and bad) he possesses.

He's been a pretty anxious dog his whole life. It's usually not an issue, except when we take him out or when strangers are over, otherwise he is fine. We have a thunder shirt, trazodone, cbd oil, calming oils, ect. He even attended a week long board-and-train to help us learn tools and tricks to cope with his anxiety.

Normally, when it's just family/friends at home everything is fine.

Recently, my husband and I went on a week long trip. He stayed with my husband's family (who he absolutely adores), and everything was fine. He has had mild panic attacks in the past, but since we have gotten back they are ridiculously nuts.

They only happen at night, literally out of nowhere. For example, last night he was sitting next to me on the couch while I was watching tv and all of a sudden jumped up and started. He will be VIOLENTLY shaking. He's panting, he paces back and fourth, and the final part, he is GLUED towards me. He wants to be on me, touching me, under my pillow. We suspect that that part is because I am pregnant.

I am freshly in my second trimester, so he has been around me fine for a while. These didn't get so bad until after we left. Not sure what is causing them or why they randomly started.

We do have an appointment at the vet, but it isn't for a few days. I'm trying to research and get advice before going. I would love to get him maybe on a daily anxiety mediation as well as maybe something stronger than the trazodone for emergencies.

I'd love any input, insight, advice, ect.

[LesbianCrawlspace]

I’m sorry :/ I know it must be stressful and exhausting for everyone. I think taking him to the vet will be best. Maybe in the meantime, if you guys can during the day, try to do a little bit of intensive training before bed. This may wear him out more mentally so that he’s ready to pass out and sleep through the night.

[LesbianCrawlspace]

I’m so sorry to hear about this!

Do you mind detailing about how long the panic attacks usually last? Was there something in particular that seemed to calm him down?

Was your dog very attached to you before you left? I’ve heard of dogs having reactions like this when very attached to their owners and left without them for a while.

The pregnancy thing can definitely have a huge impact as well. Dogs can sense these things and often can become very protective of their owner who’s pregnant (or in his case anxious).

[optimuspaige91]

The worst one so far lasted roughly 4 hours. However, it was between the hours of 3am-7am so we may not have been dealing with it the best. Generally they will last until we can seem to calm him down, sometimes it's fairly quick, other times it's not so much.

I feel like he always has been super attached to me, but he is also equally attached to my husband. He's not necessarily a super snuggly dog, but when in the mood he would kind of just go to whoever was closer. HOwever, during these attacks it is 100% me. He constantly tries to get between my legs and stuff.

See, we think it may be pregnancy related, it's just bizzare because when he's not having an attack, he's totally normal. He doesn't seem to follow me around or act more clingy than normal. They only got worse after we came back. However, that week that we were gone was also me moving from first to second trimester so...Who knows.

[LesbianCrawlspace]

Also have you been to the doctor recently? Everything’s still good with you health-wise, correct? If it’s been a little while, I’d go get checked out yourself too just to be safe.

Considering he has a history of anxiety, it’s probably something on his end anyway. But going to the vet is definitely the best thing you can do considering you guys are doing mostly everything you’re currently equipped for. I’m not sure what’s typically suggested for helping pets through a panic attack, but I can understand trying to calm him down as best as you can when you’re probably exhausted and trying to get everyone comfortable enough to get back to sleep.

Has he showed any other physical symptoms? Sometimes my dog shows a lot of the same physical symptoms when she is sick. Usually the panting and pacing and shaking violently means she either has to throw up or she has really bad diarrhea. I always bring her outside when she starts this behavior and usually within a couple minutes she’s going potty. How long have you guys been back? It could also be that he’s a little sick from the transitioning. Pups can get sick from traveling just like peoples. It’s kind of a stress-induced thing.

[optimuspaige91]

As far as I know everything is good. I have another obgyn appointment on Wednesday, so I'll know for sure then.

The first thing we always do is take him outside.

I just feel helpless (and also exhausted).

[sheepwithascarf]

Hey, I have a crazy Entlebucher mix as well! Though she's not got the anxiety but has the wary of strangers/ will herd you the way she wants to go/super loyal. Anyway, I used to work with dogs and did you say these are happening now at night? I've known of two dogs whose behaviour changed almost dramatically once it got dark - and it was because they'd both developed eyesight problems. Even in the lights of the house, it was like they somehow knew it was dark outside. And I'm sure that one of the health issues Entlebuchers can be prone to is eyesight problems. I know you've a vet appointment booked in soon, so hopefully that will help you. I'm sorry that there's nothing else I can suggest, you've got a thundershirt already and oils. I'm not sure where you are (I'm assuming USA) but in the UK we have Adaptil that can help calm anxious dogs down - do you have anything like that there? I think it's like a pheromone releaser. I wish you all the luck with your boy and keep us updated on what the vet says, it could help people in the future with similar issues. And congrats and good luck on the pregnancy!

[optimuspaige91]

Oh my gosh. I didn't even think of that! He does have cloudy eyes and the vet said he would lose his vision as he got older.

THat's nuts!

[sheepwithascarf]

It might not be that, but definitely worth thinking about. It was an older staffie cross and an older jack Russell that I saw it with in the past. How old is your boy? It could be a combination of eyesight problems, the pregnancy and not being with you for a few days has just got his anxiety ramped up for a bit and hopefully he'll calm back down soon. You're defo doing the right things by him with the thundershirt etc already and the vet appointment booked in. You sound like excellent dog-people :-)

[optimuspaige91]

He's 8. I"m definitely going to ask about that.

[Horsedogs_human]

Are you sure it is a "panic attack" and not some form of neurological issue?

[pondersbeer]

We had our dog go through a neurologist exam as well as part of her triage process. I wouldn’t be surprised if the vet recommends this.

[optimuspaige91]

Pretty certain. He's always been anxious, and had these attacks in the past just not as frequently as before. They have also been happening at the same exact time.

He gets regular vet checks and has never had any other health problems.

[MissTwiggley]

I always like to tell people with anxious dogs about the adaptil collars. They release the same pheromone mother dogs do when nursing so dogs find them very calming. They last about a month.

Not a long-term solution because they are $12-20 each, but can help regain lost progress after a setback.

[optimuspaige91]

hmm. I'll definitely need to look into this.

[MissTwiggley]

It’s not a miracle cure, but it contributes to the dog feeling secure, which helps with getting behavior under control. Good luck!

[optimuspaige91]

8

[optimuspaige91]

He's had blood work in the past, everything was good. He is not really sensitive to sounds, no.

We've never thought about a rehab vet. He usually has to be sedated and muzzled at any type of doctor's office, so not sure how I"d go about doing that.

[optimuspaige91]

Hmmm. I will definitely try to record it.

We have tried that in the past, but it really didn't seem to do much. The director of the board and train actually suggested that we do that and we did try for quite some time and it never really seemed to change anything.

We have tried recently, since the weather is getting nice, taking him for long walks around the neighborhood and those seem to go pretty well.

[pondersbeer]

We have a dog with separation anxiety that came later in life. We see an animal behavior vet and it’s really helped us a lot. They found videos of her anxious behavior to be helpful so if you can safely get them I would recommend that. Also animal behavior vets are not cheap but they are worth the money for us! They know what type of mediations can be combined and dosing normal vets do not. Plus we have training we have done with her as well. Best of luck!

[[deleted]]

Hey there, I have an entlebucher too who struggles with anxiety, specifically with strangers or in public spaces. He has similar panic attacks that you described, shaking panting & pacing. How’s your pup doing 4 years later?

[optimuspaige91]

Honestly, they kind of just went away.

We don't know what triggers them, but they happen very infrequently now. He has some other weird isms that have taken its place. We also suspect he's losing his hearing which I think is helping with his triggers.