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In the beginning of January, our family took in a foster child. This boy is a 3-year-old retired racing greyhound. His behavior over the last 6 weeks has reminded me of my own journey of healing and teaches us about the biologic nature of psychological symptoms. There is no doubt that this poor boy suffers from PTSD. Furthermore, the PTSD has caused depression and has prevented him from being able to enjoy his life.
As part of a conscious program to teach empathy and caretaking to the children, we’ve fostered many dogs over the last 4 years. Although each dog had a sad story to tell, none came with the combination of symptoms Mr. Goodstuff suffered. I have never seen a dog as fearful and yet as placid as this animal. In some dogs, fear might be associated with aggressiveness and self defense. Although Mr. Goodstuff is fearful, he lacks completely the ability to defend himself. He even runs from our dachshund who is an eighth his size. I think this shows that anxiety can manifest differently in beings with different temperaments. Since the greyhound is not by nature aggressive, he does not become defensively aggressive when anxious. |
| Most striking of all was that with all this anxiety, Mr. Goodstuff could not tolerate being alone. He followed us around the house and if he could not see one of us, he immediately began to howl. If we left him alone, he became so distressed that he had diarrhea in his crate. I believe this represents the dog version of Stockholm Syndrome. It is clear that even though humans are the source of his distress, he feels compelled still to seek us out to calm his fears. It is good that we are loving and affectionate, otherwise he would be seeking to have his anxiety relieved by a tormentor. Sound familiar?
I also have never before seen a dog with clinical depression. When he first arrived, Mr. Goodstuff was unable to experience any pleasure. Although he anxiously sought to be near us, he never wagged his tail and showed a complete absence of play behavior. Although being around us made him feel less anxious, we were not a source of pleasure for him. Looking back, it is apparent that his anxiety depleted him of all pleasure and caused his depression. I have seen this picture in humans many times. The fact that dogs experience the same shows us how biologic these symptoms are. They are not related to a psychology that is uniquely human. All social beings that form attachments are subject to developing PTSD and depression when abused by another who is the object of the attachment. The job of foster mom here is not mine, I am more the foster grandmother. My 14-year-old daughter is the dog whisperer of the family. I am pleased to report that her treatment program has produced much improvement in the symptoms of anxiety and depression. He has gained about 10 pounds and no longer looks emaciated. Seven days ago there was a hint of a wag in his tail. Over the last 3 days he has started to play. He also tolerates being alone and does not mess on the floor when left. What kind of therapy helped Mr. Goodstuff? He has had a good healthy diet and vitamins. He has been showered constantly with love and affection, and just as important, he has been walked several miles a day. I write about Mr. Goodstuff for two reasons. First, to encourage you to adopt a retired racer. Mr. Goodstuff is a great dog. Even though he is large, he is no trouble and is very unobtrusive. It is easy to forget he’s here. If you suffer from PTSD yourself, helping rehabilitate, or taking in permanently, a retired racer might be therapeutic for you. You also need companionship, affection and exercise. You can get all of these from a greyhound. The second reason I write about PTSD and depression in dogs is to demonstrate the inter-related nature of these conditions. Treat one and the other will also respond. Both respond very well to exercise. Those of us who have suffered at the hands of an aggressor can uniquely empathize with the plight of other beings who have had similar experiences. It is therapeutic for us to put that empathy to action and do good for another, even if that other is not a human. |
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this is so true!
my dog, who I adopted in September, has really gotten me through this.
this fall, as i walked and walked with him, he brought me to flocks of bluebirds, new friends, golden leaves and hope.
he is sleeping at my feet now as i write this. he is my angel with a tail. he was sent to me from heaven and i really feel like he will pull me out of this.
if you are struggling, feeling alone, and if you can, please consider adopting a dog who is grown and needs a home. but first, i have a little advice.
what really made a difference for me in my struggle to get free from my S, as unusual as it sounds, was spending my Friday nights watching “The Dog Whisperer” on the National Geographic Channel, well before I adopted my dog.
I not only learned about dogs, how to have a balanced animal, but I found it to be one of the most empowering messages I have ever received. I am now a “pack leader,” not a victim of a S.
I don’t walk my dog – I travel with my dog. I LEAD him, and he trusts me and follows. He looks to me as his leader, and wow, when I am traveling, my chest held high, shoulders back and with him at my side, I can handle anything.
I smile a little to myself when we travel and pass a dog who is pulling its handler down the path, and the handler grunts out in defense, “he’s friendly.” I say “I know, but we’re traveling right now and we need to keep moving.” We just move in rhythm, right on by the other dog. It is VERY empowering.
I have often thought, over the past months, that I want to contact my local women’s shelter and extend an invitation to the women there to come and travel with me and my dog. He can bring them flocks of bluebirds, rolling streams, and hope.
For the first time in five years, with his help, I know I will get out of this.
I find that with dogs, a “job” is the icing on the cake. If they have a job, like carrying small packages from the car to the house or keeping squirrels away from the feeder, it really makes them feel fulfilled. Those are retriever type jobs. I guess other chores might be better for other breeds.
It sounds like Mr. Goodstuff is a great dog. all the retired greyhounds I’ve met have been sweet and calm. My husband resisted when I asked to adopt one, so I didn’t push. I still think they’re a really good choice.
A dog breeder once pointed out how the different breeds relate differently to their masters. A terrier, for example, chases off after prey. A retriever goes out to bring back the game to the master: poodles, labs, goldens. Herd dogs are always checking in with the master, but they are also independent thinkers — I guess you’d have to be in order to be in charge of 300 sheep or cattle.
I bet your dogs are smarter than my dog!
Seriously, I realize sheep dog are sharp cookies. We’ve admired them, but noticed they often have a lot more energy than we Conley’s do.
Our golden is always at our feet. She’s a worrier, and the first few times I took a drive she’d hide her face in my armpit. It’s a good thing I don’t drive a manual transmission vehicle any more. When she was younger it seemed like helping her work through her phobias was a full time job. Now she’s pretty sane, but every once in a while our chicken-dog dives for cover. She seems a bit claustrophobic, but not unmanageably so. She approaches anything new and all transitions with a high degree of caution. I wouldn’t call her independent. Not by a long shot.
She’s never, ever, ever run away or failed to come when called. For a puppy, I’d say that’s almost weird. They do that, as a rule.
Our most significant training issue has been getting her to greet us calmly. She used to overwhelm us with her enthusiasm. This was a problem because our son’s middle ear disease had made his balance a bit off. Punkin could knock him down, and we were afraid he’d get hurt. She caught on pretty quickly. When the family gets upset, she gets very anxious. The challenge is to correct her with the right balance of firmness and gentleness. Overly harsh, and she forgets what’s going on so no learning takes place.
It turned out that studiously ignoring her until she settled down did the trick. Who knew? Not I.
Elizabeth Conley: My dog Neuphy (110 lbs) can leap over the fence surrounding my yard. Where does he go? 5 blocks away to my friend’s house, barking underneath his window which is Neuphy’s way to tell my friend to take him on one of his famous long walks.
I realize my dog is out of the yard, immediately, I’m panicked as my boots and coat go on, I’m grabbing my keys … and the phone rings … “Wini, Neuphy’s over here … I’ll be walking him back after we have our breakfast … then go out for him to play and get his exercise”. Of course, I walk over there … and my friend comes out with me to walk Neuphy for about 2 hours. Neuphy is sneaky like this. He loves when people pay attention to him. My family and friends all love him.
Thank God for good friends that live close.
Peace.
My boy dog is a fast runner, and he can put more miles under his paws faster than I could imagine. He also had a knack for knowing just which second to use to push past someone who was answering the door, and be off and away on a lark. For awhile he got a little too well acquainted with the doggy patrol. I had my phone number in a pocket on his collar, and I once got a phone call from a bar downtown, several miles away. He had shown up, all eager to make new friends. I wondered if he tried to order a Red Dog Ale, but they didn’t serve him, because of course he was underage.
I did appreciate the time he got “rescued” by a professional dog walker. He ran up to her front door, and she let him in and they got to be good buddies. I think he and Neuphy knew the same trick!
What’s really amazing, though is when the dogs work to figure something out. Instead of the command “stay,” I say, “You wait.” (I thought it sounded more polite.) Often the dogs consider my commands to be sort of guidelines, but they try to humor me. So, I took my girl-dog to the vet, and the vet tech got my dog up on the slippery stainless scale, saying “We’re going to get your weight.” She was unhappy and nervous but she obediently stood on the scale, and stood, and stood . . . Until I realized that she thought she had been told “You wait!”
Rune: Neuphy can hear me inside the house. He knows if I’m standing at the door watching him through my back door, or if I walk away and get busy doing something else.
I fixed him … I stand there and watch him in the back yard … the big sneak. And, he is a sneak. He loves to mosey away if I am talking with someone. He does his cow routine and roams … away. Like a 5 year old … all the time, he knows when you are paying attention to him or if you are engrossed in a conversation.
I feel bad for him. I’ve only taken him around the block for his walks due to the heavy snowfall we’ve had this winter. I have taken him to his favorite acreage … but, not every day … when I tried, he was walking on top of the snow … drifts about 4 feet high. Last time he escaped, it was about 6:00 a.m. in the height of a huge storm. I threw my boots, coats, grabbed my keys … walked into the back block of my house … and followed his footsteps … until I looked up and saw him a block away from me. I said “Neeeeuppppppppppphie … get over here” … his head went down as he walked slowly towards me. He knows, they all know when they are doing something right or not.
Big sneaky baby. But, I love him. He’s so mellow too. A Big Sneaky, Mellow Neuphasoid. (LOL).
Peace.
You ladies have some real characters on your hands.
Punkin’s game is keep away. When she wants attention she snatches something she knows we’ll chase her for. One day she got fed up with my preoccupation and snatched my reading glasses right off my nose. She pranced around me with an outrageous sashay, wagging her tail and rolling her eyes. It seemed she was saying “Ignore me now!”
She is an extremely dainty eater, and very skinny for a Golden. She holds out until we get worried and drizzle grease or canned fish juices on her food. She can hold out for days! Don’t tell the vet, but we usually fold after 36 hours.
Elizabeth: I’ve done some research into brainwaves, and have come to acknowledge that we both send and receive information along certain frequencies in our brainwaves. The slower waves, the ones we are more “conscious” of when we sleep, or meditate, or even pray, are also the ones that — when we train ourselves to use them or to trust them — can conduct telepathic information.
I’ve concluded that my dogs really do telepath. I remember one night when I got a clear image of the dog bowl in the bathroom — not something I would ordinarily think of on my own! I detoured from my path to bed, and sure enough, the water bowl was empty. That might also explain the behavior of Wini’s sneaky pal.