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When you think of a Golden Retriever, you probably imagine the joyful, lovable dog who is just happy to be here, right?
That’s what this incredible breed is known for, and one of the reasons they are so beloved.
But sometimes even Golden Retrievers can experience anxiety.
As an owner, it’s very hard to see your dog looking so stressed out, especially when you may not be able to understand or control the cause of it.
In this article, you will learn:
- What anxiety really is
- Symptoms that your dog is anxious
- Different types of dog anxiety (and the most common kinds of anxiety for Golden Retrievers)
- What causes anxiety for dogs — and how to calm your anxious Golden
- What to avoid that makes your dog’s anxiety worse (DON’T do this)
- How to treat your dog’s anxiety
- And more
Anxiety In Golden Retrievers
Anxiety is feelings of discomfort and nervousness about an impending event or threat.
It’s common in golden retrievers, but the good news is that there are things you can do to prevent, treat, and calm your golden retriever.
Anxiety is similar (but slightly different) to fear.
Fear is a response to an actual or perceived threat that involves physiological, behavioral and emotional responses.
Even if there isn’t something that poses a real danger to your Golden, they may feel that it’s a threat and react accordingly.
Fear is part of survival and serves to keep your dog safe and alive.
Anxiety is displayed by very similar signs as fear, but the signs are triggered by the anticipation of the scary, uncomfortable thing.
For example, say your Golden Retriever, unfortunately, had a very stressful experience at the vet yesterday, where they did a blood draw and trimmed her nails.
Today, you want them to get in the car so you can go walk with a friend at the park, but your pup refuses to get in and is doing behaviors that indicate they are stressed.
While you can’t read your dog’s mind, it’s likely that your dog is having anxiety about getting in the car because they worry you may be taking them to the vet again where they had a scary time.
The vet procedures resulted in a fear response, and now the car is triggering anxiety as she anticipates those uncomfortable events again.