Music to Relax By (for your pet)
- Havanese
As a pet sitter in Colorado Springs, pet owners recently asked me how to calm an anxious pet when they are away. A lot has to do with the sitter watching a pet’s behavior and then helping to calm the pet. Music is a good alternative technique to use when you are gone for a few hours. Music and good handling can help you to improve your pet’s overall ‘happiness’.
For instance, a Havanese dog I recently cared for needed human contact. It was in a familiar environment but not so familiar with me. I personally gave it care that gave it comfort and built trust. So, I pet it like I was playing with my hair, and I left the TV on for a while when I was not there. I cleared its eyes of goobers using a wet paper towel to soften them and to work them free. I then brushed him like I might brush a child’s hair.
These little touches helped the dog to calm down tremendously. So much so the owner asked if I was a Pet Guru! Flattering!
- Bengal cat
I also work with cats. Many cats are finiky about petting and handling. It is again about watching your cat’s behavior and figuring out what it likes and doesn’t like. For example I watched some Bengal cats for a local breeder, Lunakatz. One is an F-3, three generations from the original pair, so it still has a touch of the wild. This cat runs from a person to save its life, but purrs immediately upon touching her. She responded to my voice and non-threatening approach. Her big deal was never to pet her head. Imagine that! A cat that doesn’t want its head scratched and petted!
Music or voices help pets calm down when people are absent. Some local kennels also use music in their program for the pets they care for. Exercise also is important, but we are talking about music and sound in this article.
As an individual pet owner, you may be seeking other ways than human interaction (like a pet sitter, dog walker or kennel) to help calm your pet while you are away for a few hours. Thank heaven for modern technology. You can download music or purchase CDs specifically to help calm your pet. Soon I will be offering a line of CDs to do much the same thing. Of course, I will test the music before offering it for 
sale. Frankly, anyone can sell anything. You want what will work.
The general idea is that the music operates at frequencies your pet can hear in addition to the frequency humans can hear. That is the trick, are you just buying a normal CD or one that really has these other frequencies on it? AND, do these frequencies actually calm your pet? Keep in mind, too, we like different types of music and the same may be true for your pet.
I haven’t listened to it, but “Calming Music for Pets” is available for download on Napster. If you’ve used this specific music, let me know and tell me if it worked for your pet!
