How to Help a Dog That’s Scared of Loud Noises?


How to Help a Dog That's Scared of Loud Noises? |

Does your dog get scared of loud noises? Does he/she jump once a loud noise starts whether it was a car, thunder, fireworks, or even very loud music; he/she starts shaking and searching for a place to hide? Don’t worry, we are here to clear everything out for you.

To help your dog that’s scared of loud noises to be more comfortable while hearing it or not be too scared. You need to know first whether your dog is suffering from noise phobia or he/she is suffering from anxiety or fear of noise. Because although they might sound the same, they are different.

loud noises

Loud and unexpected noise can make any dog or even person uncomfortable, that is normal. Especially for those who live in a quiet environment and not used to hearing loud noises all the time. Therefore, if your dog is afraid of loud noises, that is a normal response to unexpected situation that could have been dangerous.

So, if that is the case, your dog is completely fine. You don’t have to worry. However, if this is not, you need to know what are the symptoms and treatments of the anxiety and noise phobia.

Dog Noise Phobia and Anxiety:

If your dog is experiencing noise phobia or anxiety you should expect that he/she will take everything to the extreme of it. The noise will give your dog a very hard time, so he/she will pace, pant, shake and he/she might also have Zoomies. If you don’t know what Zoomies is, check this link.

Also, you might find your dog clinging to you, trying to find him/herself a safe place. Another thing that some of the dog owners found their dogs do when they hear unexpected and unfamiliar noise is digging holes, scratching couches, and chewing stuff.

These are normal symptoms for a dog noise phobia and anxiety, that you will usually find in your dog. To sum everything up, here are all the symptoms you might find in your dog according to the AKC, other organizations, and dog owners:

Symptoms

  • Panting
  • Pacing
  • Aggression
  • Zoomies
  • Drooling
  • Depression
  • Chewing stuff
  • Barking and Howling
  • Scratching
  • Digging
  • Tearing up objects
  • Hiding

Treatments

To ease your dog’s fear of scary noises, you need to make your dog familiar with the sounds that makes him/her uncomfortable at first. For instance, if your dog is not comfortable with the vacuum cleaner’s sound, you need to try to turn it on and lower its voice down for sometime till your dog recognize that this sound can be around him/her and he/she can still be safe.

loud noises

Also, if you are in an event where there will be a lot of fireworks, and you know that it will drive your dog crazy, you need to check the ‘How to calm down a dog during fireworks in 3 simple steps‘ article.

In addition to that, here are 7 proven solutions for a dog that’s scared of loud noises:

7 Proven Solutions

  1. Make your dog familiar with loud noises.
  2. Distract your dog from the loud noises.
  3. Reward your dog for calm behavior.
  4. Provide your dog with a comfortable and safe place.
  5. Get your dog a dog-anxiety calming vest.
  6. Get your dog some games to play with when he/she is uncomfortable.
  7. Help your dog stay away from loud noises.

1- Make your dog familiar with loud noises.

The very first thing you can do to help a dog that’s scared of loud noises is to make him/her familiar with those loud noises.

Usually, dogs are so sensitive to sounds they don’t know, or loud sounds that come out of nowhere. They get scared because they don’t know if they can keep themselves and their owners safe around it or not.

So, the first thing you can do is to make them feel safe around it, and this will happen when they become familiar with those sounds and see by themselves that nothing bad happened.

Therefore, try to put some loud noises which you know that your dog will not be comfortable with, and play it in low volume then gradually turn the volume up, till you see your dog is comfortable with it.

2- Distract your dog from loud noises.

Another thing you can do to help your dog get over his/her anxiety to loud noises is to distract him/her from it. So, when you know that loud noise is about to happen, and you know that your dog will not feel comfortable with it, distract him/her with something you know that it will help him/her feel more comfortable.

So, you can put his/her favorite song on, you can bring his/her favorite toys, close friends, or even his/her favorite movie and let him/her enjoy it to feel safe and comfortable, and distracted from the loud noises.

3- Reward your dog for calm behavior.

This is a really good trick that helped a lot of scared dogs calm down. Everything is doable with good training and a nice treat. Dogs understand that you are happy with them or with a specific thing they did when you treat them for doing it.

loud noises

Therefore, try to reward your dog every single time he/she calmed him/herself down while hearing loud noises. And, to do that, you need to train him/her by repeating the loud noise and treating him/her when he/she calm down. By the time, he/she will not panic while and he/she will stay calm.

4- Provide your dog with a comfortable and safe place.

The calming down process can be hard, and really stressful for both of you. Besides, not all dogs will understand and calm down like each other. Therefore, if you found that your dog becomes really stressed out, and you can’t calm him/her down. You need to find him/her a safe place.

Even if that safe place is your lap. The most important thing is to keep your dog safe, happy and calm.

5- Get your dog a dog-anxiety calming vest.

The dog-anxiety calming vest is the best solution for dogs that panic and gets really stressed from loud noises, it provides them a tight hug, and makes them feel comfortable and safe.

loud noises

The cuddle that the dog-anxiety calming vest provides to your dog can help him/her feel safe and relaxed as if they are in your lap and you are cuddling him/her to make him/her feel better.

6- Get your dog some games to play with when he/she is uncomfortable.

Another very successful solution for a dog’s Loud noises anxiety is to make him/her do what he/she is comfortable doing it; whether it is playing with his/her favorite toy, or even grab his/her attention to a new one.

So, if you are interested in knowing what kind of games or toys can help your dog feel better while enjoying playing with it, you can check out up-to-date top dog toys picks for 2020, from here.

7- Help your dog stay away from loud noises.

Last, but not least. If all the other 6 steps didn’t work with your dog, you need to find your dog a safe place where he/she can stay away from all the loud noises that make him/her uncomfortable and stressed.

You can make him/her stay at your friend’s house, shelter, or even with your neighbor’s dog. Just do whatever you can to help your dog stay calm and away from any stressful event.

loud noises

What to NEVER do if your dog is scared of loud noises?

  • Don’t force your dog to be in a place that he/she is not comfortable in.
  • Don’t punish your dog for being scared of something.
  • Don’t give her/him extra attention.
  • Don’t ignore your scared dog.

Don’t force your dog to be in a place that he/she is not comfortable in.

If your dog is not comfortable being in a place where there are loud noises that stresses him/her out. You better understand your dog’s body language and know when he/she can take it, and when your four-legged friend can’t handle it and really need to get out of here.

Don’t punish your dog for being scared of something.

If your dog panicked in the middle of an event where there is a lot of loud noises, don’t punish him/her for being scared; that will make things much worse.

You need to calm down and understand that your dog has feelings like yours, and if he/she is scared of something, he/she is not faking it or just doing that to annoy you. Your dog is really afraid, and you should do what is best for him/her in this situation.

Don’t give her/him extra attention.

Even though you need to take care of your dog and know what he/she really needs. You need to understand that extra attention can make them afraid because dogs are very smart and can feel when you are not being yourself, and that can make them feel uncomfortable, too.

Don’t ignore your scared dog.

A frightened dog is a really critical situation that you should never ignore. You need to pay attention to what scares your dog and make him/her stay away from it because a frightened dog can really be out of control sometimes and hurt him/herself or others.

Also, watch how Cesar deal with this dog’s fear of loud noises:

Related Questions:

Is there any other solutions that can help my dog feel better fast?

Well, you can use cotton balls or even rolled gauze sponges and put them in your dog’s ear. However, you should ask your dog’s veterinarian first, and know what is the best product you can use, or the best solution for your dog’s problem in general.

Now you know how to calm your dog when he/she is scared of loud noises. Tell us about the first time you noticed that your dog has a problem with loud noises.

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