Pheromones

Toby is having such a good reaction to her pheromone collar that I thought I would write about it a little more. While I had heard about pheromones a while back it was in the context of sexual attraction and something I really thought was nothing more than a gimmick to sell perfume. I also knew some animals [like bees] used pheromones to communicate with each other but that was pretty much my sum total of knowledge.
Then, a couple of weeks ago, I saw a display for pheromone collars for dogs at a pet resort here in town. The packaging said it was useful for fearful behaviors in dogs - separation anxiety, etc. Apparently, it emits a scent that reminds them of the time they were with their mother and is comforting. It seemed tailor made for Toby. We were forced to place her on Prozac about a year ago because of her high anxiety levels. It wasn't something I wanted to do but nothing else [herbs, homeopathic remedies, etc] seemed to help her. And after she injured herself going through the kitty door a couple of years ago while we were away, I wanted to make sure she didn't feel that upset ever again.
So, I tapered her of the Prozac and placed the collar on her. The transformation was almost immediate. She seemed like her old self, when she was a much younger dog and enjoying life. The irritability that I had noticed creeping up in her while on the Prozac subsided and in its place was a carefree happy dog. She has been playing more with Jessie. She also doesn't seem to mind the triggers that before would send her retreating under my desk. Before, even a raised voice [even if it was raised in exhilaration] would make her nervous and she would look to us for reassurance and show anxiety behaviors. Now, she looks up when she hears a trigger and then just goes back to whatever she was doing. She's eating better and the irritability is gone.
We couldn't be happier with her response.
I wonder if they make these for humans? :>)