Gift Calming Music for Your Dog

We found our fur kid, Lana,

after she had been at the local humane society for five weeks. I knew immediately she was the one for us. I knew it deep In my heart. The same heart which had just begun to pull itself together a little more each day after the loss of our beloved dog, Sushi, several months prior.

My husband was skeptical and perplexed at my choice. Of course he had picked the hugely pawed loud and deep barking ginormous pup kenneled next to Lana. That particular pup had just gone up for adoption that morning and would very likely be snapped up before the end of the day. I myself prefer the animals in what I call the "misfit section" of the kennel for two reasons:

1. I'm kind of a misfit myself and proud of it.

2. The "misfit section" is where the very, very special fur kids are. They are the tender older souls like 6-year old Lana (formerly called Maxine at the shelter because she came in as a stray) who keep getting overlooked by folks too much in a hurry.

My husband said, "She's not doing anything. She won't even look at us! Her papers say she needs dental work. That will be expensive! Look at the scars on her face and legs. ..............Oh, poor thing!"

Once my tender-hearted husband said that last part, I knew she would soon be part of our empty-nest family. I was right! Fast forward to four years later. We have never once regretted bringing Lana home.

Lana is a very quiet dog. It took her several months to realize she was home and safe and the food bowl would not be empty and she would always have fresh water and daily long walks so she could sniff to her hearts content. Trust takes time, but the three of us eventually became our own little pack.

I have always been a strong advocate for the animals. A while back, a fellow animal lover had mentioned on Facebook about this CD made by a concert pianist, a graduate of Julliard. Supposedly you would play the CD for your dog and it would help them to relax. At first I thought it was just a gimmicky thing for people who had those little pampered dogs they dressed in cute sweaters and carried around in handbags. The more I kept reading about this CD though, I decided it might just be the perfect thing for our dear Lana.

Why would I buy a CD that claims to calm a dog when Lana was already so quiet?

Well, just that.....Lana was quiet, but...

Lana was not able to stay relaxed. She was quiet but alert and always listening with one ear for the unknown. When she was sleeping she would be frantically running and whimpering a lot. It made us sad to think of what may have transpired in her past to cause her such anguish.

For way less than the price of an aforementioned doggie sweater, I ordered the CD. I have to say without a doubt it has been like a gift from doggie heaven for Lana! The music is based on the classics but it is slowed down, lowered in tone and thoroughly, softly enchanting. Lana and I are listening to the tape right now as I type. She is sleeping soundly. (Truthfully, I'm feeling super relaxed too right now!) Lana no longer has the restless, twitching limbs or fearful whimpers. It is such a lovely thing to see her relaxed and content!

Through a Dog's Ear: Music to Calm Your Canine Companion, Volume 1 is the only one we've listened to so far, but we play it regularly and Lana and I both have not grown tired of this soothing ritual. Many innovative animal shelters now are playing this type of music in an effort to relieve stress for the animals. If you have a dog, misfit or not THIS CD is wholeheartedly recommended by me and Lana.

If you don't have a fur kid, please consider going to your local humane society or animal rescue and adopting one today. Lana and I thank you for being kind to animals! YAY You!!!

Sample the soothing music!

Lisa Spector plays one of the tunes from Through a Dog's Ear. Very soothing!

This is a podcast interview with Lisa Spector, the pianist behind the wonderful music! It explains more in depth how this music works to calm canines.