Calm your canine with a natural product

We moved to Spokane in early June 12 years ago. By that October we had adopted a young, lovable retriever-mix from the Spokane Humane Society. I spent a week “interviewing” the puppy, making sure he was a good fit for our family, especially my youngest child who had just turned four. He passed the test in every way. I brought him home and Chester has been a beloved member of the family since then. Now, edging close to 14 years old, he’s no longer a puppy. He’s an old guy, in fact. He sleeps more, moves more slowly and suffers many of the effects of aging common to most mammals. One of the changes we’ve seen in him is anxiety. The older he gets, the more anxious he becomes. After a recent bout with an ear infection, and the subsequent trips to the veterinarian and at-home dosing of prescription medications, he’s been very unsettled. My daughter works with psychiatric patients and she often uses essential oil and aromatherapy in her work. She had just been talking about the calming effects of Bergamot when I mentioned the dog’s condition. I’m a big fan of lavender and use a lavender spray on my linens and spritz a bit on my pillowcase each night before I go to bed. After talking to my daughter I looked into some kind of essential oil therapy for my old dog. That’s how I found Canine Calm. Canine Calm is a blend of bergamot, lavender, geranium, ylang ylang an other natural elements. It can be used, the manufacturer says, to calm dogs during thunderstorms, fireworks, at bath time, during competitions, travel and other stressful times. I hated to resort to medications or any other chemical treatment for Chester so we tried the spray. The first thing I noticed was that the actual spritzing didn’t bother him. That surprised me. Nor did the strong smell of all those lovely botanicals. Initially, I misted his bedding and, following the instructions, the back of his head. In the beginning, I couldn’t really tell any discernible difference. But, after a few uses, it did seem as though he relaxed. I followed the suggestion of spraying my hands and then massaging him. The massage in itself was relaxing but combined with the natural oils, I think it did have an effect on him. I think we both felt better. I’ll keep my eye on the old guy. If it looks as though he’s getting worse, we’ll look at other treatment. But for the time being I think I’ll take the more natural route. For more information about Earth Heart’s “Canine Calm” and other natural canine care products, click here for the Earth Heart Canine Care website.