Stress in Dogs

Dogs use their body language to show us their mood and even their health. Sometimes small signs and movements go unnoticed by us.

However, the signs of stress dogs give off are very obvious, since they're always the same. We need to pay close attention to them, since a stressed dog can become unstable and unpredictable.

At Soyunperro we want to show you these signs so that, if you notice them, you'll know your dog has problems and needs your close attention to find the source of its stress and fix it. Ready?

My Dog Pants and Drools a Lot

When a dog exercises, it's completely normal for it to pant, since that's how it cools down, as they don't sweat. Even in summer, when it's too hot, it's normal for them to pant constantly.

But if our dog starts panting and drooling for no apparent reason, it's because it's too excited or nervous. Something is probably stressing it, and this is one of the symptoms shown by stressed dogs.

Tremors Caused by Stress

Have you ever gone to the vet and had your dog start shivering? Tremors can also be caused by stressful situations in which the dog gets so nervous that it involuntarily starts shaking. That said, we shouldn't confuse this symptom with the classic shivering from cold or pain.

Excessive, Unjustified Hair Loss

Canine anxiety and stress cause excessive hair loss, explained by the excessive increase in stress-related hormones like cortisol. We all know dogs shed their coat a couple of times a year, but if it doesn't match those dates, the dog may be shedding fur from stress.

It's not something progressive — simply from one day to the next, or even within a few hours, we'll notice the dog starting to lose a lot of fur, as if it were in the middle of its seasonal shed. This is one of the most obvious symptoms when there are stressful situations.

Body Stiffness

Stress causes a lot of nervousness, which in turn prevents the dog's muscles from relaxing normally. This causes an odd stiffness in the dog that prevents it from moving normally in the most extreme cases.

A continuously stressed dog will always be tense, its muscles won't be able to relax, and this will cause it to appear very rigid, abnormally, as if it had some disease preventing it from moving, but as mentioned earlier, this only happens in the most extreme cases, so it's a good idea to take it to the vet before reaching this point.

Lack of Focus and Nervousness

Constantly looking in every direction, not paying attention to our call or any command we give it, seeming restless without knowing where to go, or trying to hide under our legs are very obvious symptoms of stress in dogs.

In these situations, we shouldn't scold our dog, but we also shouldn't pet it, since if we comfort it while it's nervous, it will interpret that being like this is good, and we'll unknowingly intensify the problem.

Unusual Behaviors

Stress can lead to anxiety in our pet, so if it starts breaking things at home or crying when we leave it alone, it's likely this latter condition.

Performing repetitive, meaningless movements, known as obsessive-compulsive disorder, is also a sign of excess stress in a dog. All these symptoms tell us our dog has a problem.

How Can I Fix My Dog's Stress?

One of the main causes of stress in dogs is lack of exercise, being unable to burn off the excess energy they have. That's why it's recommended to take our dog on long daily walks and even take it for a run.

Loneliness also causes stress and anxiety in dogs — they're companion animals, not "things" that can be chained up or locked up all day. They need to be with us, their family. But it's important, in the early stages of the animal's life, to get it used to spending time alone, since otherwise, over time, it will develop separation anxiety.

Our best advice is to see a canine ethologist, a specialist in canine behavior. They'll be able to identify the source of the problem and give us the guidelines to follow to fix our dog's stress problem.