dog sedative

[please help desperate]

today my 6 year old english pointer trashed the house so bad i actually thought i'd been burgled. He is the most angelic dog but he seems to have a problem when my neighbours grandkids visit. They are not at all noisy and he is used to children (i'm a childminder!) but it seems that he can slightly hear the neighbours but obviously being a dog he doesn't click we have neighbours - he seems to think we have ghost children in our adjoining wall! (bless him, dumb beast). The neighbours and kids have always been there by the way.
Anyway, he starts shaking so badly its almost as though he is having a fit, his teeth chatter and he'll crawl into corners far to small to escape. He really does seem genuinely scared witless. This happened today but he had nearly settled by the time i came to go out (for an hour) but when i got back the living room carpet had been ripped up(from scratching, also damaged a few claws), tables and chairs overturned etc etc.
This only happens when he hears next door, and we have only had 3 incidents of damage when i've been out. He could be left with the run of the house for ages normally and is suberb.
Anyway i don't want to punish him, lock him up etc but i don't want the house trashed occasionally either! also hate seeing him so scared and upset. I was wondering about a mild sedative - hard to administer when i don't know when its going to happen though or perhaps bachs rescue remedy or calms? If anyone has any tips at all i would be very grateful.

[Milliesmum]

When I had a problem with fireworks, I was recommended something called a DAP diffuser - in the event I didn't need it but it may be worth looking into it.

[princessstacie22]

we have a DAP diffuser. Its in all the time and quite affective

[cathor45]

think i have seen these in our local chemist so will give it a try. dreading going out to the chemist though in case we have a mess when we come back. Harvey was exhausted last night after yesterdays antics which is a shame as he's normally such a wriggly pup. Hopefully i can sort something out as i hate him being so distressed.
thanks for the replies (i posted above before i realised i wasn't logged in!)

[vet nurse]

i agree, try DAP diffuser (it may take a few weeks to have any noticed effect and will have to stay plugged in 24/7)

may also be worth contacting your vets for zylkene capsules, i think i am right in saying that you can buy it over the counter so it shouldnt cost you anything like a consult etc. its a natural product so dont be put off about "medicating" your dog. i know some people would rather not go down that route but i have tried this with my cat (he got attacked and was too scared to go outside after) and it worked wonders!!

[vet nurse]

and even though sedatives may help they are only masking the sypmtoms and not dealing with the problem. there is unfortunately no quick fix to most behavioural problems and rather than dealing with what makes life easier for us as owners, its better to get to the route of the problem to make the quality of life for the dog better. sometimes the problem will not be 100% cured but a marked improvement and good management can still be as much of a success.

[vet nurse]

sorry, i promise this will be the last comment!! :-) i personally think this sounds quite serious and i would recc that you contact your vets for behavioural advice. by trying to self treat, owners can often make behavioural problems worse. you have also explained your take on why your dog is reacting like this but sometimes owners get it wrong (not saying you are but i see this quite a lot!). at my practice myself and another nurse see behavioural cases(free of charge for half hour appts though most vets do charge a small fee). it may be that there isnt a vet or a vet nurse at your practice who have an interest in behaviour but they can put you in contact with a reputable behaviourist. they can take a history, try and identify a trigger to this behaviour, work out a behaviour modification plan for you to put in place and keep in regular contact to monitor progress and make ammendments as necessary.

it will involve a lot of effort on your part but i promise you it will be worth it for your dog.

the main thing at the moment is to not let the problem get any worse. where possible prevent these triggers until you can speak to your vets. if it means having someone home at all times so it doesnt happen then try and do this, or speak to your neighbour, or have music/tv etc on to mask the sounds. i know this first hand that if you are scared of something and you keep getting put in a situation where you have this fear, the fear increases and will become more frequent until you are constantly scared. so the more times you feel scared, the more you are likely to feel scared if that makes sense, that is why it is so important to try and reduce the freq of your dog feeling scared until you can get help.

good luck x

[cathor45]

thanks vet nurse for the advice, i might just give the vets a ring and see what they say. I work from home so i'm with him for the majority of the day and like i say he is a fab dog. This morning i had my looked after children in the house and he was dozing on the settee when he got up and started the distressed act again (teeth chattering, tail tucked under, shaking, trying to hide) and when i turned the tv down i could vaguely hear next doors grandkids again! I managed to massage him out of it (tried ignoring, tried telling off before and doesn't work) and as soon as they got in the car and went he was fine.
The only other thing that has ever set him off like this is when we had guinea pigs - they were there before him and for 5 years all was well, he loved them. then practically overnight if they made any sudden movements in their cage he'd do the same but used to hide in the bath! Guineas died so that ended that one but i don't think i could do away with the very nice neighbour!
I did wonder whether his hearing had deteriorated over the years so he can't locate sounds as well as he could before? And i agree, the fear is breeding fear, i just don't know what else i can do. I would literally move to a detached house if i could, how do i explain to a dog its totally irrational.
Thought of a dog "whisperer" before now but wouldn't know where to look!

[dazycutter]

I agree with vet nurse.. you need to get to the root of the problem.. there are some excellent doggy shrinks about and I have used them. DAP collars are alos good, check out internet prices rather than vets or supermarkets as you can get them a lot cheaper.

poor pup.. its so distressing for him

[cathor45]

had a good day today, happy pup - the neighbours grandkids haven't visited!
Think i'm gonna keep a diary of when it happens and possible triggers etc and also going to have a word with friendly neighbour to see if he can tell me when the grandkids are arriving so i'm prepared. I think if i perhaps take harvey out to meet them when they arrive it might be a step in the right direction. I'm sure my neighbour will be helpful, he's lovely although its not a case of asking them to be quiet as they really are (maybe i should ask them to be noisier!) and he puts up with the noise from 10 kids in my house from 7am til 5.30 each day! Got some rescue remedy to try if things get bad and going to track down a difuser this weekend. Thanks again for the advice, i'll let you know how we get on.

[dazycutter]

look on the web...

www.bestpetpharmacy.co.uk/search_results.asp?search_type=free_any&search=dog_appeasing&gclid=COmakYObkKACFVpb4wod0mU0dQ

also, have you thought about leaving the TV or radio on very loud so he doesnt hear the kids!! Jsut a thought

[cathor45]

i've always left the tv on for him anyway (not very polar bear friendly!) but it doesn't seem to make any differance!