We all know that dogs are social beings that like to be involved in the family. They became domesticated hundreds of years ago and learned to work beside their owners. In other words, the owners present their pack leaders. That’s why it can be very stressful for a pooch to be left at home alone once he got used to spending plenty of time with his favorite family member. Anxiety in French bulldogs presents one of the most common health issues that affect this breed. It’s because they belong to the Molossus family of dogs that are known as loyal and affectionate human companions.
French Bulldog Separation Anxiety Symptoms
In case you’ve noticed that your French bulldog shows strange behavior every time you need to leave the house, then he might suffer from a condition called separation anxiety.
Barking and Howling
Does your Frenchie bark and howl excessively every time you start to perform your ‘departure routine’? Of course, it’s normal for a dog to bark and howl but maybe you should ask your neighbors if they hear your ‘dog’s calling’ when he’s left alone. A stressed Frenchie will also whine, pace or stay in one spot for a long time.
Appetite loss
Loss of appetite can be only one of the signs of anxiety in French bulldogs. A dog may seem uninterested in food and start to lose weight. Note that this issue can lead to ruining your Frenchie’s vital functions if it lasts long.
Yawning and Panting
Yawning in dogs doesn’t work the same as in humans. Excessive yawning may present your dog’s way to relieve anxiety and can be followed by panting.
Self-Destructive Behavior
When a dog suffers from a severe type of anxiety, he may show self-destructive behavior such as trying to escape through the window and trying to break the door. Unfortunately, this can end up getting dangerous injuries.
Hiding
When a Frenchie is feeling stressed, he may search to find a confined space in the house or the owner’s part of clothes that contains his/her scent. In order to solace himself, your pooch may spend hours by being curled up under the table or some other place in the house.
French Bulldog Anxiety Medication
In case your Frenchie suffers from a mild or moderate type of anxiety, I advise you using separation anxiety toys. One of the first steps presents teaching a dog to spend time alone by occupying his attention. Separation anxiety toys serve to activate the dog’s intelligence and to distract his mind from the fact he has been left alone. Unfortunately, these toys can’t do a lot when a dog suffers from a severe type of anxiety. Severe type often requires using antidepressants to ease the dog’s destructive behavior.
How can a Separation Anxiety Jacket Help Your French Bulldog?
It might sound silly, but emotional appeasing Clothes serve to provide a French bulldog with a safe feeling. It makes a gentle and constant pressure to a dog’s body and makes him feel like someone is hugging him.
It provenly helps dogs to deal with a loud noise, thunderstorm, fireworks, traveling and other stressful situations.
If your little gremlin adores food, then he’ll become thrilled with this Frenchie World® IQ Treat ball interactive food egg. It will make your Frenchie work for his food because the reward with come out as he rolls the ball. You can also choose the level of difficulty, so your pooch will need to figure out how it works over and over again.
If you want to stop your little batpig from chewing on home items, the following beeping chew toy can become a life savior option. The toy is great for cleaning plaque and tartar from your Frenchie’s teeth and releases a beeping sound every time your pooch tries to chew it. Your four-legged friend will have hours of fun when playing with this toy.
The following snufflemat will make your dog pleasantly tired and make him less prone to chew on home items and feel anxious. You can hide your Frenchie favorite treats deep inside the mat while the smell will make him search for the food.
The snuffle mat presents one of the best relaxing games for your Frenchie.
For releasing your dog’s pent-up energy I advise you to take a look at the following self rolling interactive ball. The ball will never stop rolling because it has a mechanism that automatically changes the direction. It will continuously move around your house while producing a red light simultaneously.
Why not induce your Frenchie’s curiosity by buying him the following food hiding puzzle game? This awesome game serves not only to occupy your Frenchie’s attention but also to help him solve this brain teaser. You can hide inside the cases your dog’s dry kibble and let him enjoy searching for rewards.
Frenchies Separation Anxiety Extra Tips
For making your French bulldog more relaxed when you need to leave the house, I suggest you leave him the part of the clothes that contains your smell. In that way, he will be able to settle down because it will remind him of you.
Try to confuse your dog by changing your departure routine. Note that your French bulldog is highly intelligent being that will easily memorize your daily steps. Your dog can ‘smell’ the time when you need to leave the house by observing your leaving ‘triggers’.
Bring your Frenchie with you whenever you can. The following French bulldog carrier presents a great solution when you want to prevent your dog from overexercising when you go shopping or traveling. French bulldog carriers can also be used if your pooch got injured or when you go hiking.