Does your dog find Christmas stressful?
Christmas time brings with it the noise of crackers, changes in routine and who is at home alongside new visitors.
In addition, New Year’s Eve celebrations may involve fireworks and other loud celebrations that may be difficult for some dogs to cope with.
For those dogs with an anxious temperament, the festive period is an additional burden.
A new study, sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim, at the University of Lincoln’s Animal Behaviour Clinic may be able to help.
The team is looking at the new use of an established medicine to help dogs with these types of problems.
The medication to be trialled is a safe drug currently licensed to control epilepsy and seizures in dogs, which in the process of its development was reported by owners to have beneficial effects in some of the dogs also displaying anxiety.
The clinic is offering free advice and support to help individuals with these problems if they meet a series of inclusion criteria.
To qualify for the study your dog must be healthy, over six months of age, greater than 5kg in bodyweight and show signs of a fear/anxiety related problem at least twice a week.
If you think your dog might qualify and would like to take part please go to http://www.lincolnanimalbehaviourclinic.co.uk/new-study.php or contact Kevin McPeake at kmcpeake@lincoln.ac.uk or call 01522 835425 for further details