To say my 13 month old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Louis and I love each other is an understatement. We adore each other. We sleep cuddled, often nose to nose and he follows me everywhere. When I do laundry in my building’s laundry facility, down the hall, he follows. Into the kitchen in the middle of the night? He is there. He gazes up at me adoringly while I write, drifting off to sleep from time to time.

The downside is, dogs don’t ‘love’ in the human sense and I am anthropomorphising my precious Louis. He is fixated on me, a common trait to his breed and it isn’t helped by the fact that I work from home. We spend more time together, then not and his days are filled with intermittent ear massages, belly rubs, play sessions and naps.

So, what’s the problem? This fixation makes Louis really upset when I leave the house. I can do everything that The Dog Whisperer or my hero Victoria Stillwell
would suggest to curb this behavior, but because of my schedule (and lack of car during days when my husband is out) we are inextricably bonded.

Because he doesn’t exhibit destructive behavior and about 10 minutes after I leave he is sound asleep or playing with his little sister Ella Bean, the key is keeping him calm during the ‘leaving the house’ process. Its not good for anyone to get so worked up that they are crying hysterically on a daily basis! Enter Bach’s Rescue Remedy.

The famous Dr. Edward Bach was a British doctor, practicing allopathic medicine in the 1920’s and 30’s. Frustrated by the limitations of the medical profession and the focus on disease vs. the patient, Dr. Bach began working with homeopathic remedies and eventually, flower essences.

Rescue Remedy, the most famous of all of his remedies, is a combination of five flower essences, that when mixed together become an essence of its own that works to calm and soothe. Used on pets, Rescue Remedy is commonly used by vets on nervous patients, after seizures or anesthesia to revive and to speed recovery from heatstroke or exhaustion. When we first adopted Ella Bean, we used it to soothe her during the transition process. Many people find it useful for dogs who are afraid of thunderstorms. It can be used for anxious travelers on car rides and I use it to aid with separation anxiety. Basically, it provides instant calming in any situation.

It has become so popular for pets, that an alcohol-free version of the original remedy is being specifically marketed to pet owners. Louis loves it. When he sees the bottle he comes right over and practically opens his mouth for his dose. Ella Bean isn’t quite as fond of the ‘dropper in the mouth’ method. We put a few drops on our finger and rub it on her gums. Instant calm. My husband and I use it too - 10 drops in some tea before bed is totally relaxing.

My family, those with paws and without, highly recommend a bit of Rescue Remedy for calming, whenever things get stressful.

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