Adaptil and Thunder Shirts

[GinaB]

Experiences of the above please! More for stressed dogs or those who suffer from anxiety. Thanks

 

[Dobiegirl]

I bought an Adaptil collar for my last foster dog a very nervous Manchester Terrier, it had no affect whatsoever, I looked into a thundershirt but thought they looked very pricey so ending up adapting a babygrow, again no affect. He was an extreme case though and freaked out at random things, the only thing that helped him was training and habituation. Some people do swear by them though and can work for the right dog, it is a lottery though and its not cheap.

 

[PucciNPoni]

I use adaptil spray for my dogs while travelling (they're not terrible travellers but one does stress and whinge a bit so it is distracting to me as a driver). He can also be a bit stress in strange places/in a crate etc. So I started using it on him for taking away to competitions and he was really good - I did however team it up with Zylkene tablets from the vet (not sedative) and the whole combination was brilliant. I also use an adaptil diffuser in the salon and it has helped well with known anxious dogs. It's not a magical cure-all for all dogs but it's worth trying out.

 

[Morag4]

I used to use an adaptil diffuser for our TT who had separation anxiety and it did seen to help.
I have used a thundershirt for one of our current dogs who is scared of other dogs, It didn't seem to help a lot though.

 

[twiggy2]

Adaptil works for my bitch who is clingy when she is in season, the thunder shirt did nothing for her but it was really tricky to get one that fits her properly so it may be because of that

 

[Sprout]

Zylkene tablets helped with my dogs fear of thunderstorms/fireworks, but you have to dose up BEFORE the trigger starts, which is not always easy to judge!
The thundershirt helped a bit, encouraging her to lie down and not pace and pant so much - I think I might try both together in the future.

Good Luck!

 

[GinaB]

Thanks everyone. Currently I'm leaning more towards the Adaptil plug in. I think it may well be worth a go as certainly it isn't as dear as the Thundershirt.

 

[Teaselmeg]

I tried Adaptil, but found that Pet Remedy plug in had more effect. The Thundershirt worked really well on my girl who was terrified of thunder/fireworks, but not so much on my anxious boy. I think they work well for some dogs more than others, but they are not a magic cure and I always do T Touch as well if they are wearing it.

 

[lexiedhb]

Adaptil ( plug in or collar) seems to work for the ginger one when faced with a stressful situation- new place etc. Thundershirt IMO did nowt....

 

[Mynstrel]

I've used both and found them good, the adaptil for general stress such as when my husband had been in hospital and our routine was turned upside down and the thunder shirt for scary times like storms or fireworks, but a good alternative to a shirt is a TTouch body wrap. You don't need anything special to do it, we just use a tail bandage, the main thing you have to remember is to make sure it's tight enough for the dog to feel when its on because it won't have any effect if it's too loose. I'd try to explain how to do it but it'll probably make more sense if you google it!

 

[cremedemonthe]

I was selling the Anxiety Wrap which is the original wrap and what first coined the phrase, wraps.It works in a slightly different way to the thundershirt, which incidently is a knock off of the anxiety wrap. The anxiety wrap helps alleviate nervous tension in the rear of the dog where it often is stored (think of cowering scared dogs with tails down and back legs tucked up under them). I use a wrap on my dog who is noise phobic and gets very anxious, it certainly took the edge off it but I don't think anything will get rid him of the fear 100%. I use it in conjunction with forest farmacy (that's their spelling) calmer spray, the combined 2 do seem to help him greatly, he can now manage his own fears without pacing and thrashing around panting.He goes under my bed and goes to sleep but is still wary of noises that scare him and won't come out until they have stopped.
I was impressed enough with the Anxiety Wrap to have been selling them and the face wrap too.
I have tried dap diffusers, cd's with noises on, other sprays and calmers, none of which touched the fear in any way but my method mentioned above is the best combination I have found so far for my dog, Oz

 

[Saneta]

Successfully used thunder shirt for my noise phobic dog. Now she's deaf in her old age, so don't have to use it!! Good to know there is some blessing nine getting older. Also had success with Bach Rescue Remedy and feeding mashed potato on firework night. Makes them sleepy!!

 

[splashgirl45]

i used an adaptil collar and it hardly made any difference, but when i used zylkene it really calmed my lurcher down. with thunderstorms or fireworks she would pace, pant and cry and often scrabble at the kitchen door to get out....with the collar and zylkene she didnt pant or cry or scrabble at the door. she paced a little bit and then laid down quietly, so zylkene is the magic calmer for my dog... its not cheap but well worth it for my dog to be less stressed. also used a thundershirt and it made no difference...

 

[jumbyjack]

Thunder shirt worked wonders with my highly stressy noise phobic Jack Russell. None of the plugins, sprays or calmers did any good at all. Shirt was a tad pricey but worth every penny!

 

[dappyness]

I tried Adaptil collars and spray with my two whippets to help with a move. Although they are not stressy dogs, one had a habit of marking areas. I can honestly say it didnt do anything for my dogs apart from make the castrated one hump the entire dog frantically. It was like he was possessed!

 

[Booboos]

Adaptil collars/diffusers have worked really well with a couple of my dogs and a cat. Adaptil and Zylkene offers some help to a very stressy dog I have now.