Tips for your anxious dog

Yellow accessories for your dog act as a visual reminder and are a really powerful way to communicate that your dog needs space.

At My Anxious Dog we have a range of accessories, from harnesses to lead covers to raincoats and even human clothing. They come with a variety of messages:

Consider your dog’s size and their comfort with wearing accessories. If your dog isn’t a fan of wearing jumpers or coats, then you may find a lead cover or a lead to be the best choice for your dog.

Alternatively, owners have great success with our human range of accessories. We are generally larger than our dogs and easier to spot –plus, it means any eyes are on you, rather than on your dog!

SHOP HUMAN SPACE AWARENESS ACCESSORIES HERE in distress and it is encouraging to see attitudes are changing and that the message is getting out there.”

Sarah, 57, from Berkshire/Hampshire began making yellow harnesses and leads with ‘anxious’ and ‘keep away’ on for Bella, now 10, when she realised she was terrified of other dogs and being touched by people.

Her birth was traumatic and her mum needed an emergency C section, then Bella was attacked by a litter mate as a pup, and suffered a nasty injury to her spine aged nine months at a training class.

It was when she started snapping at people that Sarah realised she needed to spell it out to keep away from Bella, which was challenging as she was an adorable puppy.

Then she was approached by other anxious dog owners who wanted a way to protect their dogs and started a community that has grown to 12,000 members.

Thanks to her support, over 78 percent of anxious dog owners who use yellow report their dogs have more space, enjoy their walks more, feel more confident and calmer.

Two thirds of owners say it’s reduced the number of people and dogs they come into close contact with on walks.

Nine out of ten owners now educate others on what yellow means. Over a third, 36 per cent, said they were proud to show they were sticking up for their dog’s wishes by wearing yellow, and only two per cent said they felt self conscious.

Nearly a third - 32 per cent - said using yellow has meant they’ve felt confident enough to try dog training classes and visit pubs and cafes.

Sarah added: “It’s been incredible hearing about the impact of #dogsinyellow in such a short space of time.

“My dream is for this to continue and for anxious dog owners to enjoy life as regular dog owners do, not to have the stress of constantly explaining and be proud of their dog in yellow.” n To show your support, join in by sharing posts on social media using the #dogsinyellow hashtag and find out more at www.myanxiousdog.co.uk

Having a reactive dog she very much understands what is needed to confidently book a holiday cottage. The owner anxiety levels can be very high when trying to find somewhere and come to potentially an unfamiliar area and staying in an unknown property.

So Sue asked one of her guests, Lisa Bolt, how she found us, and how she got on with her first holiday here with her reactive dogs. It must have gone pretty well as having stayed for the first time in 2022 she now has booked 4 more holidays for 2023 and 2024!

One of the reasons she chose Norfolk was because she “didn’t want to be anywhere touristy” and most of our cottages are well away from busy areas, either in the countryside or quiet coastal villages. She needed to be “certain that the garden would be fully enclosed and escape proof” and the fact that we have a full description of the outside areas on each of our cottage website pages helped her.

She also found the little videos useful too – both on the website and on our very popular Facebook page. “Another useful thing is the aerial photos and videos, showing exactly the area the cottages are in.” We don’t have them on all cottage pages at the moment but we will be adding a lot more this year.

Another helpful resource was “….the Facebook chat group – open to all and so helpful when you want to find out about the cottages and the area first hand from people who have stayed before with their reactive dogs. Very reassuring!” www.eastrustoncottages.co.uk Book online here! n Follow us on our active Facebook page! https://www.facebook .com/EastRustonCottages/

Another aspect that Lisa really likes about ERC cottages? “The cottage might be very dog friendly but it certainly wasn’t doggy or dog-eared” and she loved how clean and well fitted out it was. This is typical of all of our cottages. Why should you stay somewhere dog-eared just because you have dogs?

In short, what we are able to offer Lisa and many other of our reactive dog owning guests means that you can come to stay here with us here in Norfolk and have a very relaxing holiday. Just what holidays should be!