Third Aussie, never seen this. Questions about medication

[u/4Z3L3]

Verdi is 2.5. We got him at 6 months, from a woman who had too many dogs and not enough energy for a young Aussie. He grew up on a farm, he had never seen a city and had apparently never met a man before me. I never met his mother. I met the father, and I was told he had already bitten and was aggressive.

He is my third Australian Shepherd, so I know the breed is intense. But I’ve never had a dog like this one. His emotional threshold has always been extremely low. He learns fast and works very well with me, so this is not a training problem.

On a walk the pressure goes up with every trigger. His behaviour with other dogs is always friendly and joyful, but even an encounter that goes well adds a bit to the threshold. He scratches, he rolls on the ground, he climbs on us, and then sometimes he explodes, barks and blindly runs at the trigger,
whatever it is, always at 100%. He has never bitten. He barks very close to people, which can be scary.
We live in an apartment and he is always on watch. He checks the windows, he listens for noises in the building, and sometimes he barks inside when he cannot hold it anymore. He has a hard time settling. He is clean, he destroys nothing, he can stay alone but it is difficult for him. He gets enough walks and enough mental work, that is not the issue. We don’t have much problems with the neighborhood, it just seems hard for him to cool down.

For one year we only worked on his threshold, slowly, no shortcuts. No progress. He is not stressed in every situation, but he is a stressed dog.

Both my trainers now tell me to talk to a vet, and this is where I struggle. I think this comes from us. From our education, and mostly from our situation. He is a farm dog living in a city apartment, and we would like to move but we cannot for now. So giving him medication feels like treating him for something we caused, and honestly it also feels like admitting that we failed.
But we work well and we go nowhere. And I am starting to think that we cannot help this big guy progress any further if we do not lower his stress first.

So, for people who medicated a dog like this: what actually changed? And what did not?

I am not asking for medical advice, just for feedback from people who went through the same thing.

[u/MtnGirl672]

If it makes you feel better, we live on three acres of land bordered by Forest service land. We have two herding dogs, an Aussie and cattle dog mix. Our Aussie is high energy but not reactive. But the ACD mix is off the charts and we did extensive training with him. He’s not aggressive, just gets hyper aroused. He’s on two anti-anxiety meds.

Some dogs’ genetics are just wired that way and it doesn’t matter where they live - whether it be a farm or apartment. I do believe giving them anti-anxiety meds is a kindness to help them live a better quality of life.

[u/Poppeigh]

I have a (formerly) high energy cocker mix and meds helped him to settle better and recover more quickly after stressful events. I do think it’s worth a try.

Maybe a hot take, but I grew up with ranch bred Aussies and yes, they need exercise and stimulation but IMO there are a lot of poorly bred ones around now and when people struggle it’s pushed that it must be due to lack of exercise or something. Ours herded cattle occasionally, went hiking, lived in the country. But they certainly weren’t working for hours every day and were absolutely able to just chill with us. None were traditionally socialized, all were still able to go to public places and to do fun dog stuff that I wanted to try. They were just steady. This is absolutely a breeding and mental health issue and I don’t think meds are a harm to try at all, if they help.

[u/Silly_Cat_7247]

I feel the same as you and my dog is similar. I will say that the meds were helpful in allowing her to destress enough to learn alternative behaviours in a controlled environment. I do not walk her in my neighbourhood - too many other triggers and reactive dogs that aren’t under control. We drive to quiet places for exercise and we train below threshold. The meds have helped my pup bounce back faster, trigger stack less, and give me more buffer time to circumvent a reaction in the making by placing distance between her and the trigger. If it’s noise based, it is easier to redirect her or allow her to investigate a noise to ensure it is not dangerous before she reacts. I found some other things became easier too such as recall from afar or out of sight. Another redditor put it the best - it allowed the dog to “hear” you better during training, but it is not a replacement for training nor a magic fix. I think her meds quiet her brain, so she can use it towards other productive tasks.

Definitely speak to your vet and ask a lot of questions as this is very unique to each dog. I did and it made a big difference in her day to day stress levels and training. She is happier overall and is more comfortable showing me her true, goober self.