I have partnered with Purina to attend the Better with Pets Summit, but all opinions are my own.
Do you believe pets have the power to change our lives? Of course you know I already believe this, but last week I attended the 3rd annual Better with Pets Summit, hosted by Purina, to learn about the latest in pet research and development. We heard from Arleigh Reynolds, who has researched the bond between dogs and humans and now works on a program aimed to foster community in rural Alaska, Real Housewives of New York star Carole Radziwill who shared stories of her pets from childhood through today, and listened to panelists who helped us understand how to alleviate pet stress levels and raising children and pets together. The afternoon was spent in immersion activities which helped us learn more about how nutrition impacts cognition and emotional wellness and how to create mental and physical stimulation for pets. With panelists ranging from Dr. Marty Becker to Dr. Tony Buffington, a cat stress expert, I’m sharing five tips I learned to help reduce stress in pets.
You could be wondering, “How do I know if my pet is stressed?” While some signs, like hiding, are obvious, other signs may not be, including extreme licking, shaking, sleeping or yawning when the pet is not tired and refusal to play. While some stress in pets can be good, just like in people, here’s five tips to help your pet feel less anxious.
1. Exercise, exercise, exercise! All pets need exercise and they are much more likely to enjoy that exercise if you do it with them! I know I certainly prefer exercising with friends and pets are the same. Provide indoor pets with toys and try to set a schedule of playing with them for a few minutes a day. Rotate the toys so your pet thinks he has something new and interesting to try.
2. Try food puzzles. Food puzzles are a fun way to stimulate the cognitive abilities of our pets while providing them with a mild stressor. When they have the “aha” moment of discovery, it’s rewarding and helps them cope with future challenges.
3. Keep a routine. Pets, like people, thrive with routines. If they realize you will be home at a certain time each day or they will have a playtime each day, they are much less likely to be stressed than pets without routines.
4. Allow the pet to have time to itself. Do you like downtime to relax and take a few minutes for yourself? So do pets! Don’t force them to interact when they are stressed or anxious.
Not only did Purina provide us with valuable information, they also announced they will donate $75,000 to The Frank Attla Youth Program, developed to help at-risk youth in rural Alaska gain confidence and self-esteem by adding dogs into the school curriculum and giving them an opportunity to create a unique bond with dogs, and teaching students how to care for them. The donation is part of Purina’s broader support of more than 900 pet welfare organizations each year, including the Urban Resource Institute in New York City.
As usual I arrived home from the summit armed with new information and tips to care for my pets. What is your best tip for dealing with a stressed or anxious pet?
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I’m going to have to look at this. My pup is exhibiting some of this behavior so I’m going to check this out.
These are great tips! My mom’s dogs get stressed out when they leave for out of town and I take care of them!
This is such an informative post. I have to be more sensitive to when our dog might be exhibiting signs of being stressed.
Pets have stress?? Thats so hard to believe seeing they dont have bills or a job lol…this is good info learned something new.
Great tips for people who have anxious pets. It is so true that we like space when we are anxious and we need to provide space to our pets as well.
My older dog hasn’t been feeling well recently, and I’ll be honest I’m afraid our vet will tell us it’s time soon. I need to try some of these tips with my younger dog to help alleviate stress when the time comes.
I agree pets can change our lives – I left my pup from college with my dad after he recovered from terminal cancer. I miss my pup but I see how much joy he brings my dad so it makes me happy, pets are such a great gift to have!
Pets are so much like humans. I never realize how sensitive they can get. Those tips are great!
When my dog is stressed, he vomits his food. He seems to have an appetite but he just vomits it out. Thank you for sharing. Great read.
These are great tips to help dogs deal with stress. I think I would need a couple dogs for our big family, I don’t know when they would get time to themselves. Thanks so much for sharing.
It’s amazing to see how much our pets have personalities like ours. Definitely important to look for signs of stress
We don’t have pets at home, but there are times when I have watched the dogs at my neighborhood staying so inactive & hiding himself in a corner. These sounds like some great tips to keep them refreshing & come out of stress as well.
One of my friends from grad school had an adorable cat who was always stressed it. I was surprised when she was placed on an anti-depressant.
What a great list! I wish I had seen this when we had our first and our dog went through a lot of stress.
You gave some excellent tips. We have a cat that seems to get stressed when he doesn’t know where we are… he wanders and howls loudly.. sort of calling for us.
I have an older girl that gets very stressed and anxious over just about anything. We call her Nervous Nellie. Most of the time, we just have to pet and talk to her but sometimes we just need to put her in the bedroom by herself and she will calm right down.
What cute dogs! One of our dogs deals with a lot of stress, so these tips are very helpful.
these are good tips. Great reminder that we need to protect and take care of our pets’s mental stat also.
These are great tips! One of my boxers gets stressed at loud noises, so we are always having to reassure her that it’s all okay.
These are great tips. Our giant Newfy used to totally stress out on the 4th of July or when it thundered.
I didn’t know the sign of stressed dog, but that was a smart advice, my dog is most likely to do is to exercise with me I think he enjoy it.
My daughter has a dog, Elvia that is a total spaz! He gets so nervous if even the wind blows lol
My one dog Ace, stresses so much when I leave the room or go out of the house to even check the mail. It’s gotten REALLY bad. These are some great tips I’ll try.
This is really helpful. Our cat does not like to be a one for very long. We’ve been having issues of her crying to get into our rooms at night;.
Great tips! I know one of my pups get more nervous than the other one so she needs some extra TLC.
Exercise is the best way to deal with stress, for pets and their humans!
Our dog, as of now, is only under stress when we camp and she has to be confined to a leash. I’m assuming training will help greatly with that.
These are great tips. My dog has some anxiety issues, and it makes her so miserable. We do what we can to limit her stress.
These are some great tips, Sally hate it when anything happens of schedule she is so funny. x
These sound like great ways to relieve stress in pets. I will share this with friends and family that have dogs.
My dog definitely loves routine. She knows it by heart and when we deviate from it she can get a little nervous.
I am going to look for a food puzzle for my pets. I bet they would enjoy that!
These are great tips. It sounds like an informative trip!
I agree, they are great tips. It looks like a great summit to attend.
Thanks for sharing these tips. Anxiety in dogs is such a horrible thing. Those poor little guys don’t know what’s happening. They just know they’re afraid.
These are awesome tips. The food puzzle sounds fun.
Yes it does. I want to give that one a try!
My dog is completely, 100% neurotic. He get so stressed out SO easily. I love your tips!