HAVING a dog with anxiety can be challenging. You see both extreme kindness and verbal abuse within days of each other.

That is what Northwich resident of 24 years, Tracy Coppock, has been faced with.

In recent weeks she had a lovely experience with a delivery driver and wanted to pay tribute to him. Tracy was near a set of stairs in town. Her rescue dog, Oscar, is full of anxiety and sits down and stops.

The driver was around the back of McDonalds and took to the dog, who is one-and-a-half years old.

“Oscar just started barking at him because he was still in a state of anxiety but the delivery driver did not even think twice, he came over and said ‘Ey up fella, what’s wrong with you, come on, you’re alright’ and put his hand out to him.

“My dog immediately responded and he made a little fuss of him and walked off.

“It was really nice because a lot of people when they see a barking dog assume that the dog is aggressive, barking at them for negative reasons or you are an incompetent owner, so for him to do that is nice.

Northwich Guardian: Tracy's dog suffers from anxietyTracy's dog suffers from anxiety

“How many people would go up to a dog barking and put your hand out to it? Not many. The delivery driver was giving something off that made him feel safe.

“I just thought that was amazing and it was really nice to experience that.”

But occurrences as such are not always as straightforward. Oscar, a rescue from Romania, doesn’t like electric scooters. So when Tracy could hear an elderly man coming from behind on an electric scooter, she stepped to the side and put the dog on a shorter lead.

The man, on his phone, went past, ended the call and turned around pointing at the dog. He said ‘every time I see this dog it attacks me’.

“I hadn’t seen this man before and said ‘he’s not attacking you, he’s scared of the electric scooter’,” Tracy, a secretary, replied.

That set the elderly man off again, before he headed off, and continued to shout from a distance.

“I was so annoyed because that’s really unfair that you’ve made a judgement without asking what the problem is or why he does it,” Tracy, 49, continued.

“I was left a bit shaken. It’s a bit sad when people make a judgement and don’t really find out the full facts.

“It’s not just rescue dogs, it’s any kind of dog like with human beings, we all have our own anxieties, problems, good days, bad days. It could just be that my dog is having a bad day, we as humans have bad days, why shouldn’t dogs be exactly the same?

“We do have a lead cover that says ‘I need space’ and not everyone respects that. Quite a lot of dog owners do, but there should be the same understand that dogs have mental health issues too.”

Tracy’s previous rescue dog also experienced mental health issues, but now they have a dog trainer on board to help as there is now a better understanding of the challenges that dogs can face.

If your dog is struggling with anxiety, vets4pets advise that you:

  • Provide a safe and quiet space for your dog to retreat to.
  • Ensure your dog has toys to keep them occupied.
  • Keep your departures and returns calm and quiet.
  • Consider getting a diffuser, some spray, collar or medication to calm your dog. The pheromone released in ADAPTIL is identical to the dog appeasing pheromone secreted by a mother dog from three to five days after the puppy’s birth to provide reassurance to the puppies.
  • Remember that not all dogs are calmer when crated; some dogs panic when caged and will injure themselves if forced to be confined.
  • Gently reassure your dog.
  • If the stimulus is outside close curtains, turn on the television or radio and distract your dog with play or treats.
  • Reward your dog for calming down and absolutely avoid punishment for behaviour related to fear, phobia, or anxiety.
  • If your dog has chronic anxiety, or gets anxious about a specific issue such as separation anxiety or noises, speak to your vet or a trained animal behaviourist for advice.