Although loyal, affectionate, and good-natured, Mini Aussie temperaments can get out of hand. This can result in emotional issues like anxiety, fear, stress, and being overly excited. For this reason, knowing how to soothe your puppy when needed is crucial.
You can soothe your Mini Aussie by creating a safe refuge space, consistent routines, engaging them in physical exercises, calming music, massaging, and aromatherapy. You can also train your puppy to stay calm when overwhelmed by rewarding calm behavior.
In this post, I’ll take you through Mini Aussie temperaments and explain everything you need to know about soothing your puppy. Read on!
Mini Aussie Temperament Overview
Mini Australian Shepherds have bigger-than-life personalities and exuberant energy despite their small stature. They’re lively, easy-going dogs that love playing. Moreover, they’re excellent companions and great with children and other pets.
True herders, Mini Aussies are loyal guardians. Their devotion and eager-to-please temperament can make them do nearly anything for their owners. They are agile and attentive. And although they are not aggressive when properly socialized, they can be aloof with strangers, thanks to their innate protective nature.
Mini Aussies are also incredibly brilliant and easy to train. However, since they’re energetic and hard workers, they need a job to thrive.
As mentioned earlier, Mini Aussie temperaments make them highly prone to emotional problems.
For instance, they can easily suffer from separation anxiety because they tend to be super attached to their owners.
Furthermore, these dogs are easily frustrated when bored and overly excited when engaged too much. Consequently, they can be aggressive or fearful of their surroundings without enough socialization.
7 Ways to Soothe Your Mini Aussie
1. Create a Safe Space
It is natural for animals to retreat to their safe spaces whenever they feel overwhelmed. That’s enough reason to designate an area for your Mini Aussie to seek refuge during such situations.
A calm, safe space is handy for puppies whose anxiety is triggered by loud noises, such as thunderstorms, metalwork, and fireworks.
Try using ZenCrate. It’s an escape pod similar to a regular crate but designed to insulate sound, reduce light exposure and automatically play calm music immediately after your dog enters it. It uses technology that damps external sounds and, at the same time, keeps the music inside.
Alternatively, consider putting a soft blanket or dog bed in your room’s quiet corner. Some toys, low lights, soft music, and aromatherapy would greatly help soothe their frayed nerves. Remember to leave the door open so your puppy can access the room easily.
On that note, it’s worth knowing that music therapy has a powerful impact on a dog’s mood. Soft, soothing instrumental music can be a natural sedative. It helps to drown out external noises, creating a calm environment for your puppy.
Dog experts advise pet parents to play classical music. Research shows that dogs appear most relaxed after listening to classical tunes.
You can find great selections for your Mini on Spotify.
2. Aromatherapy
Besides music, experts have proven aromatherapy to calm pets. This practice involves using a careful blend of essential plant oils to treat specific physical and behavioral issues.
Aromatherapy stimulates the brain to release chemicals, such as serotonin and dopamine, which regulate mood. The practice helps relieve depression and anxiety, lower stress levels, and relaxes, sedates, or stimulates your dog, restoring their emotional well-being.
You can use essential oils on your puppy in two ways:
- By massaging directly on their coat: You can concentrate on specific body parts like the neck and avoid sensitive areas like the eyes, nose, and genitals.
- By letting them inhale: You’ll need to use a diffuser or spray for this purpose.
Essential oils that can be taken orally also exist, but they’re only advisable when prescribed by a vet. These oils are highly concentrated, thus, can be dangerous when administered orally without following the correct dosage.
You can find ready-made blends in stores or prepare your own at home if you have knowledge of safe essential oils for dogs. However, if you don’t, consider finding guidance from a certified aromatherapist.
3. Engage Them in Physical Activities
Directing your dog’s energy toward healthy activities is a great way to manage their stress or hyperactivity.
Mini Aussies, in particular, are energetic dogs. They need to release pent-up energy regularly to stay healthy and happy.
Otherwise, boredom will result in frustration, manifesting in negative behaviors such as barking, biting, jumping, and destructive chewing.
Moreover, like humans, physical exercise helps their brains release endorphins. These feel-good hormones alleviates stress.
Interactive play is one way to soothe your puppy. It can include playing fetch with a ball or tug-of-war.
You can also:
- Go for regular walks in the mornings or evenings when they’re most active
- Tag them along when you go jogging or running
- Take them to the park to run around and play with other dogs
Mini Aussies are also intelligent dogs and need regular mental activities to challenge their mind and keep them engaged.
Mental stimulation also helps to calm a dog. You can do the following:
- Offer them puzzle toys
- Engage them in interactive mind games
- Use treat-dispensing or enrichment toys
- Obedience training
Find Out: 4 Main Mini Aussie Pros and Cons: How to Understand Your Dog
4. Establish a Predictable Routine
Dogs thrive on routines and structure.
A predictive practice will give your puppy stability and security. If you train them on what to expect throughout the day, they’ll adapt well to daily life.
Unpredictive routines raises anxiety levels in dogs.
Try to feed your Mini Aussie around the same time every day. Generally, puppies require three meals a day. A simple hack to remember this is to adhere to your meal schedule: breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Similarly, it would help if you allotted specific times for potty breaks, playtime, and sleep.
Regular naptimes are incredibly essential. They allow your puppy enough rest, promoting a generally calm demeanor.
Regimenting them to the clock will allow you to notice a stressed puppy quickly. You’ll easily read their moods by judging from their willingness to play or participate in any routine activity.
5. Take Breaks
You must have noticed how your puppy can get overly excited at some point during activities such as interactive play.
They shouldn’t go overboard since they can start acting out of control due to overstimulation.
Taking frequent breaks between such activities is vital in preventing such scenarios.
As such, you must observe your pet keenly to see when they’re about to become over-stimulated, then give them time-out to calm down.
The same is true for training sessions. For instance, calling their name during training should excite them, but not to the extent of them jumping on you and licking. Such situations require you to end the session before they get out of control, allow them to rest, then continue.
6. Physical Touch
There’s nothing as calming to an anxious puppy as its owner’s touch. Pick your dog up whenever you see them anxious and cuddle or pet them.
However, avoid petting them when they act out of control due to hyperactivity, as you’ll only encourage the behavior.
Similar to humans, a gentle massage will also calm an anxious dog. Always stroke your puppy on the neck and work your way downwards to the back while holding him on the collar with the other hand.
Be mindful of its body language and adjust your touch accordingly. If it seems excited when you touch it on a particular body part, then you should pay attention to that area.
Massaging them helps relax their tensed muscles—alleviating overall tension and providing comfort when worried, anxious, or lonely.
7. Reward Calm Behavior
You should train your puppy that being calm is good. For this reason, rewarding your dog when calm is a perfect way to teach them the behavior.
Start with rewarding your puppy whenever they sit and stop behaving dramatically. Increase their expectations as they keep learning, such that next time, they will expect a reward only after they lie down and not just sit.
Learn to ignore them when they become hyper by avoiding eye contact, and reward them when they cool down. As much as they crave your attention at such moments of hyperactivity, you’ll validate their anxious behavior by looking them in the eye.
It’s essential to keep your expectations low and patience high as you start on this calming trick.
After several consistent attempts, the puppy will learn and perform the behaviors prudently and naturally.
Final Thoughts
Understanding the cause of your Mini Aussie’s behavior is essential in finding out how to soothe them properly.
The strategies highlighted in this article will help you provide your Mini Aussie puppy with comfort, relaxation, and mental stability.
Always remember that each dog is different, and it may take some time to discover the best methods for your puppy.
If you can’t find a solution, consider seeking the help of a vet doctor. I hope you create a harmonious environment for your Mini Aussie!
