D.A.P. and Rabbits (Dog Appeasing Pheromone)

[Rex]

I adopted my wonderful dog who is great with the bunny (under supervision only and trained to “leave it”) from an animal shelter.  He came complete with kennel cough and a pretty good case of separation anxiety.  Almost a year later, we are still dealing with it – and I want to try using D.A.P. products (dog appeasing pheremone).   

Has anyone ever used these products around their bunnies?  I haven’t tried because I don’t know if it would be potentially harmful for Coffeebean.  
 

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

DAP is apparently a god send or does nothing so you’ll have to tell us how it works out for you!! It’s the most highly regarded pheramone for treating anxiety and other issues I’m very interested in how you find you like it Are you going with the almost-glade plug in dispenser-goes into a wall? Or the spray?

I would think it’s totally not harmful, it’s a pheramone, so a horomone that gives chemical signals to other members of the species. DAP is supposedly what mom dog would smell like to pups. WE also always release pheramones so I doubt it would be harmful-really doubt it.

That said I haven’t used it. But I really doubt it because it’s something that occurs naturally.

Question-are you going to combine the DAP with any behaviour modification program for the anxiety? Have you also tried any of the anxiety wraps (like thundershirt) anxiety caps or other methods? I’m super interested

[Rex]

I’ve tried the thundershirt. It stopped him from pooping when we left (the loss of bowels from anxiety, not housebreaking. He would literally poop in his small crate with no where to get away from it after being left alone for 15 minutes – not something a healthy dog would do) The thundershirt does nothing for the barking/crying, which is what gets us in trouble from the neighbors.

We also tried desensitization exercises for months for behavior modification with minimal results (kinda gave up, maybe it was really weeks, could have done more but it is HARD to keep up – the dog is too smart), and really just started to manage separations with dog daycare. My wallet didn’t like it, but Zeus did. I moved, though, and there is no dog daycare here so I have to leave my dog with my family during the week so he doesn’t descend into a crying mass of anxiety while I work.

I miss him so much and want to try D.A.P. to see if it works for him. I was thinking the plug in type by his bed. I’m almost ready to medicate him after all, but don’t like the idea. The hardest part is that he mopes around during the week with my family (he bonded strongest to me) and when I see him he is over the top. Last week he skinned his knee because he fell off the deck (about 6 inches) from jumping around and not paying attention to where he was going when I came back on Thursday. He’s talented.

The DAP would for sure be combined with a behavior modification program. We haven’t left him alone at all in our new place so he doesn’t start off with any scary feelings about us leaving. He does wait at the door if we are gone for a few seconds though. If I went to the grocery store, he would flip out, I’m sure. Then it is all undoing the damage. I figure we have a clean slate, kinda, and might have more success if we make sure he is NEVER too anxious here and take it really slow. That said – I’m taking all the help I can get. I just bought some anxiety relief tea from The Honest Kitchen, I think it is called quiet tea. Going to give that a go.

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