tez Posted September 30, 2010 Share Posted September 30, 2010 As some of my previous posts have indicated, Jane is a pretty full on but lovely and loving dog. She does however seem to need the DAP diffuser to maintain a normal emotional state that enables her to still be switched on but also to rest and respond to external stimulus in a normal way. She is now 19 months old and we have had a diffuser since she was about 14 weeks old. Before then she was an extremely hyper pup who never slept until she literally fell asleep from exhaustion late at night. She actually used to be distressed trying to rest. The first night we had the diffuser on was the first time we saw her fall peacefully asleep in the lounge room in the early evening. We have since had the dap going from that time on. Last night, with the dap almost finished, I decided to turn the thing off and unplug it from the wall thinking that maybe she had outgrown the need. At 4.30am all hell broke loose. Jane was wide awake and as hyped up as she was as a pup. Running through the house, charging out the backyard and stealing and playing with anything she could get her mouth on. Now at no time was she aggressive, just hyper playful and full of so much energy. Her level of play was off the scale and lasted for nearly 5 hours. When I got the opportunity to touch her, she was excessively hot and I would have to say that she looked distressed. At 7am i repluged the almost empty diffuser back in and she collapsed in a heap at about 9am and slept for most of the day. Those 5 hours were like her early puppy hood all over again! I would LOVE to know what the hell is wrong with her that she is so dependant on the diffuser to act normally. Is she missing a hormone or chemical that the Dap is providing? My vet just says if the dap is working then just go with it but after this morning I'm thinking that I want to investigate the cause further. I just don't know which way to go. Is there blood tests that may show something is missing or could it maybe be a physical problem with her brain or endocrine system??? If anyone has any thoughts or if they have a dog who has shown similar behaviours, I would be rapt to hear from you. She has got me worried and extremely confused! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirty Posted September 30, 2010 Share Posted September 30, 2010 The DAP diffuser just releases a scent, so technically it should not be replacing any missing things (if that makes sense). She does sound like a very stressy little dog though. Perhaps she has doggy ADD or similar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted September 30, 2010 Share Posted September 30, 2010 I don't know a lot about them.. but as they release a pheremone (chemical messenger scent) then its message obviously gets thru to Jane, and makes her able to relax and be comfortable.. feeling 'all is right with the world'. I would think, from your description, that she is the perfect test model for the effect of these pheremones . The cause of her behaviour is something you may never know - some dogs are born anxious, some dogs are born aggressive.... same as people are . Thank you for posting - it seems to me to be a terrific way of illustrating how this thing works! make sure you have a spare in the cupboard!! ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tlc Posted September 30, 2010 Share Posted September 30, 2010 (edited) Hi Tez, I have no advice just wanted to say to me she never seems stressed but as you have said hyper active, have you ever tried rescue remedy? I don't know much about that either but have heard it mentioned many times here. What does young Gus do while Jane is having her full on time, does he sleep through it? Really you would think as you have said she should be growing out of it by now. Hope she rests a bit easier tonight!! Edited September 30, 2010 by tlc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tez Posted September 30, 2010 Author Share Posted September 30, 2010 Thanks for the replies! Interestingly, I don't think of Jane as being an anxious dog. She is actually a super friendly, quite fearless and adventurous Labby x. The only time she has seemed distressed is this morning and as a young pup when her 'off' switch dosen't work and she just can't STOP! Hard to explain, but its not anxiety that makes her go hyper, its like she gets distressed trying to stop being hyper once she has started! I'm also wondering whether dogs can have A.D.D! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tez Posted September 30, 2010 Author Share Posted September 30, 2010 Hi Tez, I have no advice just wanted to say to me she never seems stressed but as you have said hyper active, have you ever tried rescue remedy? I don't know much about that either but have heard it mentioned many times here. What does young Gus do while Jane is having her full on time, does he sleep through it? Really you would think as you have said she should be growing out of it by now. Hope she rests a bit easier tonight!! Hey Tlc, Haven't tried the recue remedy as the dap seems to do the job and once the dap was going again she went back to 'normal'! As for Gus, silly young pup that he is, he just ran around after her and thought it was great fun! They weren't so much playing together though as Jane was much too distracted by EVERYTHING! Gus was just following her around waiting for the next adventure. I could see that he was enjoying the show whereas poor Jane just wasn't! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirty Posted September 30, 2010 Share Posted September 30, 2010 We had a dog once who I swear had ADD. She was like Jane, she did not have an off switch. AT. ALL. She was constantly hyper, would pick fights with the other dogs, barked constantly, etc. We lost her at a young age unfortunately, but she was also not an 'anxious' dog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tez Posted September 30, 2010 Author Share Posted September 30, 2010 Hmmm....just out of interest, Kirty, what breed was she? BTW...Jane loves other dogs and is not really a barker however she has always been very easily visually stimulated even by objects far away. Once at dog school she was fixated on a tiny peice of paper being blown along the ground. It was easily 300 metres away and not a single other dog appeared to have noticed it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tlc Posted September 30, 2010 Share Posted September 30, 2010 I reckon some of Janes trouble is she has a super smart brain that she can't switch off. She loves to learn stuff and seems to take in every little thing, and you know she can be very focused when you need her to be. There was a dog at obedience once similar to Jane but he was badly reactive to other dogs, they ended up medicating him as they had tried everything else, he was a Doberman x. Are the diffusers exxy to buy? I had never heard of them till I met you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megan_ Posted September 30, 2010 Share Posted September 30, 2010 Maybe try a vet behaviourist? It may be a combination of something physical and mental? Also, Jane might have ADD, or might actually be a true working dog - one that is so focused and "hyper" that she needs to work 8+ hours a day? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tez Posted September 30, 2010 Author Share Posted September 30, 2010 Tlc...the dap refills are $38 and last between 3 and 4 weeks. If this is the medicine that works best for Jane then its a small price to pay but I suppose I really just want an answer as to why she needs this and if she will always need this. Megan...you are right, Jane would probably make a good working dog as she seems to love training and new situations certainly have never fazed her. The dap dosen't in any way 'dope' her out. It seems to merely let her be normal if you know what I mean. With it she gets to play, interact and respond to her environment in a way that I would consider normal for a young dog plus she also gets the opportunity to relax. Without it all hell breaks loose and more importantly to me, her enjoyment of life goes out the window. When she was a young pup, we couldn't even pat her as even this caused an esculation in her activity levels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted September 30, 2010 Share Posted September 30, 2010 I think you should get in a behaviourist - who knows she could be a naturally neurotic dog and needs the dap? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staff'n'Toller Posted September 30, 2010 Share Posted September 30, 2010 A Veterinary Behaviourist may be able to confirm your findings, or alert you to any research papers done lately on what you are seeing with your dog. They would also be pretty interested in her I think! I actually think that hyperactivity is a form of stress in the physiological effect in would be having on her body if she was always in a high state. You may need to consult with someone to teach her to calm herself down, if you want to experiment with weaning her off it. But if you are happy then just go with the flow I guess...she is still an adolescent after all. At 24-36 months may see her calming down a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oakway Posted October 1, 2010 Share Posted October 1, 2010 Could she be addicted to the DAP just a thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tilly Posted October 1, 2010 Share Posted October 1, 2010 tez - maybe look into TTouch ... this is something that doesn't need to cost any money, won't cause any harm and might be effective. When I first started looking into TTouch I thought it sounded like a load of bull - that it seriously couldn't work ... but I recently attended an intro workshop and there was some amazing changes to the behaviour of many of the dogs after only one session. It is also fantastic for creating a close bond between you and your dog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mackiemad Posted October 1, 2010 Share Posted October 1, 2010 this probably isn't helpful at all BUT: i have an old cat that has dementia and he needs the DAP plugged in all the time in order to be able to 'settle'. he's always been really affectionate (burmese) and vocal but the last year he would just walk around the house meowing. so we'd put him on our lap or on a bed with a hot water bottle but he just couldn't lie down and sleep. he would spend the entire day wandering the house meowing and often just looking at us, but we couldn't get him to settle. he also lost a lot of weight. nothing was physically wrong with him and he was diagnosed with dementia, so he was on hormone tablets that did nothing but conk him out for a couple of hours but the next day same old thing. we tried the DAP and he is still a bit mad (forgets that he has been given dinner etc) but he will settle and snooze. and he is finally putting wieght back on, though his coat is still abit dry and awful but we are getting there. this may not help, but there was something amiss in his brain and the DAP just allowed him to chill and relax. although he has become an anxious cat because of a neighbourhood tom beating him up once or twice, this other cat also wanders around our property at night and it worries our old man even though he is locked up of a night. (been happening for the same amount of time, our vet thinks that this may have triggered some hormones or inhibited hormones in his brain and so triggered the dementia. but it really is as if he isn't sure where he is sometimes and often doesn't respond to his name, whereas before he would come running when he heard it) anyway, we figured that $40 or whatever the refills are was a pretty good price to pay for his happiness, because he really looked, sounded and WAS unhappy, confused and frazzled before the DAP... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raineth Posted October 1, 2010 Share Posted October 1, 2010 this is just a guess, but I think it is worth considering... Jane could have become physically dependent on the Dap. With any drug given over a long term-period the body begins to compensate. If the drug suddenly stops being taken then you end up with the opposite of what the drug was doing. as an example: heroin causes constipation. Over time the body compensate for this; if an individual suddenly stops taking heroin you guessed it, they end up with diarrhoa (among other symptoms). The point is the symptoms are the opposite of what the drug was doing. Maybe by suddenly turning off the Dap meant she went super hyper active because her body had already been compensating for the presence of the Dap diffuser. I think seeking a professional would be the best way to go though and see what they think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekhbet Posted October 1, 2010 Share Posted October 1, 2010 - have you looked into her diet - why dont you crate her at night so she cannot run about at odd hours, giver her a toy or bone in there to keep her entertained - what kind of training have you been doing with her to modify her behaviour? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussielover Posted October 1, 2010 Share Posted October 1, 2010 Thanks for the replies! Interestingly, I don't think of Jane as being an anxious dog. She is actually a super friendly, quite fearless and adventurous Labby x. The only time she has seemed distressed is this morning and as a young pup when her 'off' switch dosen't work and she just can't STOP! Hard to explain, but its not anxiety that makes her go hyper, its like she gets distressed trying to stop being hyper once she has started! I'm also wondering whether dogs can have A.D.D! Yes, you've read "marley and me" haven't you? :p Is she crate trained? A true working dog must have an off switch as well. No gundog would work 8 hrs a day, 7 days a week all year round. Most gundog work is seasonal or a weekend thing, the dogs have to be reasonably companionable for the rest of the time. Have you considered competing in a dog sport with her? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lollipup Posted October 1, 2010 Share Posted October 1, 2010 I don't know whether you wanted to keep her on the DAP or not but my vet recently gave me an article on the new DAP collars, which means the dog doesn't have to be near the wall diffuser. Just a thought. I haven't even read it all yet. It is on the dining room table with the rest of my 'to dos' Let me know if you want a copy though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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