My dogs usually had anxiety during storms (even mild storms) and I read some things on Facebook groups about how dog parents used catnip for dog anxiety, I confirmed this from a friend that used and it worked for him.

I tried it once during a mild storm and I noticed that my dog’s anxiety reduced and since then, that is what I use for my dogs during storms. In this post, we will be looking at how to use catnip for dog anxiety.

You should know that catnip does not work for all dogs, my cousin said catnip does not work for his dog and after doing research, I found that it was through, catnip just does not work for all dogs.

Ways to use catnip for dog anxiety

Sprinkling on their food

When I see sign signs that there might be a mild storm, I sprinkle catnip on the food my dog is going to eat. If I see the signs in the morning, I would sprinkle it on her breakfast, if I the signs in the evening, I would sprinkle it on their dinner.

If you know your dog is going to eat before doing anything that would make them anxious, you can put catnip in their food. I know someone whose dog gets anxious during car rides, so they put catnip in his food and feed it to him before they drive out with their dog in the morning.

Putting catnip in dog’s toys

I have uniquely shaped toys that I stuff with treats and give my dogs, sometimes I put catnip in these toys and give it to my dog to play with. Using chew toys would also help distract them.

Sprinkling catnip on your dog’s bed

If your dog has anxiety when you leave him/her alone, you can sprinkle some catnip on your dog’s bed before you leave him/her alone. The scent of catnip would help soothe your dog and they could nibble on it a bit, which is okay.

Add it to the baked dog treats

If you are the type of dog parent that bakes treats for their dogs, you can add catnip to some treats and keep them for times when your dog is getting anxious.

Put it in yogurt

If your dog is okay with yogurts, you can add catnip to yogurt and give it to them as a treat.

The way I do it is that I mix my yogurt with catnip, then I get an ice cube tray and put the yogurt in it, and allow it to freeze. So, when whenever my dog is getting anxious, I feed it as a treat.

I wrote a post on the best yogurts for dogs, you can go look at it if you want to try this method.

Catnip for dog dosage

¼ teaspoons for small dogs

½- 3/4 teaspoons for medium dogs to big dogs

You should make sure you talk to your vet before giving your dog cat nip, Dogs are different and it might not be right for your dog.

FAQs about how to use catnip for dog anxiety

How does catnip work?

Dogs have catnip receptors in their faces and stomachs they can be affected when they sniff or ingest catnip.  The compound that catnip produces is similar to a female cat being In heat so, dogs don’t respond the same way to the compound which explains why some dogs don’t experience any catnip effects at all.

Is catnip safe for dogs?

Most vets agree that catnip is safe for dogs in small quantities. Dangers of catnip can emerge if your dog consumes too much of it and in most cases, it is not too severe.

However, if your dog ingests too much catnip they can suffer from stomach discomfort, diarrhea, Vomiting, and body ache.

Catnip is safe for dogs and sometimes provides calming, soothing, antiseptic, and digestive benefits. Catnip contains a chemical called nepetalactone this is a relaxing chemical with sedative properties, but this does not always affect dogs.

How long does catnip last for dogs?

Catnip lasts for about 40 minutes depending on your dog, I have heard some people say it helps their dogs for about one hour and some people say it lasts for about 20 minutes.

How long does it take for catnip to kick in for dogs?

It takes about 30 minutes for the catnip to kick in for dogs, though some people say it takes less time and some people say it takes more time.

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Important information

I am not a vet, any advice shared in this post is from my personal experience, deep research, and advice from dog parents, and vets in the Reddit and Facebook dog groups and dog forums that I am a member of.

A Lot of dog parents don’t know how to use catnip for dog anxiety, so if this post was helpful to you, please share it with people or groups that might need it.