Want a stress free dog?

Is your Westie calm and relaxed or does he have a restless stressed side that causes you concern? Try these ideas to help your Westie be a stress free dog!

Westies are renowned for their typical terrier like behaviour (as you would expect!). Quick to bark, love to dig, will chase anything and everything and firmly believe that they are the boss but take away the attitude and you may find your Westie is stressed.

Our Experience

We have a Westie girl who has a fantastic pedigree and is beautiful, but she can be a stressy, edgy little lady. After losing the battle with barking we were at our wits end with her and had tried everything when we were advised to try a Thunder shirt. At first we were sceptical – how could a shirt (more like a tight fitting sweatshirt!) settle a dog? To our surprise it worked. She is a very petite dog and is definitely more settled when wearing her Thunder Shirt. The style and fit applies gentle pressure which appears to reassure her. The company boast an 80%+ success rate. After the success of the coat we invested in a small draws worth of jumpers and T-shirts. The best few pounds we have ever spent!

Calming options

There are plenty of candles, plug in devices and medication you can also try to help relieve stress or to keep your Westie calm. Bonfire night can be extremely frightening to dogs, the same experience is often replicated in the days before and after, and again on New Year Eve.

KalmAid tablets also help to reduce stress. KalmAid contains L-Tryptophan which is an essential amino acid that increases production of calming serotonin.

You can try using pheromones. Adaptil make a plug in or a spray that may help to settle your dog. Pheromones are produced by mother dogs a few days after having pups. Adaptil is a synthetic version which has been successful in combating dog stress in both puppies and adult dogs. Adaptil also make a dog collars.

Aromatherapy candles may also help. Try Ylang-Ylang or Chamomile. Light the candle in the same area as the dog. Atomisers can be used to diffuse aromatherapy oils into the atmosphere.

Another suggestion is to use music or sound. Our dogs respond well to the radio. When we go out or when our epileptic dog is unsettled we put the radio on, or if they are wandering in and out of the lounge we may put the TV on, (particularly sport!). You can also purchase ‘dog music CD’s’ that can be bought online.