How Watching DOGTV Calmed My Dog’s Anxiety
I have tried everything from A to Z to calm my dog’s anxiety, and we are presently trying CBD oil that we plan to discuss in a future post. My dog’s situational anxiety started when he was just a year or two old after some kids on bikes tossed fireworks at him on the fourth of July. I wish I could go back in time, but the damage has been done.
The folks at DOGTV asked if we would be willing to try their service for my dog to see if it could help calm him, relax him, and also stimulate his mind while I work. I was skeptical, but I’m up for most anything if it can help my dog with no side effects. Here’s our honest review of DOGTV, what we experienced, how it helped, and how you can snag a 30-day free trial for your dog(s).
What is DOGTV?
My belief was if a dog wants to watch tv or have something to look at when I am busy, I can simply turn on any channel and let it play in the background all day. I learned that DOGTV’s programming is specifically geared for a dog’s viewing and listening pleasure. Dogs experience happy stimulation and comfort from the scientifically developed sights and sounds that DOGTV provides.
I noticed when watching DOGTV that the colors on the screen, the brightness level, the contrast, the camera angles, and even the sounds and music were adjusted to suit a dog’s hearing and seeing abilities. It may seem odd to me, but it’s perfectly normal for a dog.
Subscribing and watching DOGTV were both very easy processes.
In the United States, DOGTV is available on Comcast Xfinity, DIRECTV Nationwide, DISH, RCN and Cox.
DOGTV is also available online for Mac and PC (more about that shortly, as I discovered a way for me, the dog mom, to enjoy DOGTV, too).
You can also watch using the DOGTV app on the following devices: Roku, Apple TV, Fire TV, Chromecast, iOS and Android. DOGTV is also available around the world, in Japan, China, Korea, France, Portugal, and Brazil.
What Programming Is Shown On DOGTV?
This is the part that completely blew me away. I sat down to watch DOGTV with my dog, Dexter. We tried it on my computer screen just to get him used to the process and then we moved on to the big screen television in our living room.
There are thousands of scientifically-designed programs for dogs and even content for dog moms and dog dads, too. Here is an overview of the categories:
There are three main “buckets” of content at DOGTV:
(1) The Relaxation portion of DOGTV is designed to calm your dog. Dogs typically spend fourteen hours a day sleeping or napping. When they are left alone, though, they can become anxious.
(2) The Stimulation segment offers more engaging videos and sounds from dogs and other animals. The Stimulation videos are designed to be playful and keep your dog from getting bored.
(3) The Exposure segment of DOGTV utilizes a variety of videos on subjects that typically make dogs nervous. Those subjects include: vacuum cleaners, car rides, busy street noise, and more. With Exposure programming, your dog will be gradually introduced to sounds which frighten him or her.
DOGTV programming is available 24/7/365 LIVE and you can also choose what you and your dog watch with the VOD (video on demand) that comes with a subscription.
Can DOGTV Help Calm A Dog’s Anxiety?
This is one of the main reasons I decided to try DOGTV, and I received a surprise benefit as well. Dexter was immediately smitten with the sounds, and maybe even the colors on the screen. I never saw him react in such a way to television programming. He’s the type of dog that if a squirrel is on television and I say, “squirrel, Dexter,” he looks BEHIND the television for the critter.
With DOGTV, he went into a semi-trance, I kid you not. I asked my spouse to snap some photos the first time we watched DOGTV together and then on the television.
We waited about 20 minutes and then sat down together to watch DOGTV through Xfinity on-demand, which comes with the subscription. We watched a dog running through a field of sorts. Again, Dexter was mesmerized, folks.
I wanted to know why he was taken in by the images, or was it the sounds or both? Unlike any other TV channel, every frame and every sound on DOGTV is designed 100% for dogs. Through years of research, special content was created to meet the specific attributes of a dog’s sense of vision and hearing, for example: programs are specially colored to enhance picture details and great emphasis was put on contrast, brightness, and frame rate; the use of special sound effects, music and specific ranges of frequencies, are tailored to a dog’s unique sense of hearing without startling or annoying their sensitive ears.
So you know those tips to “blast your television to drown out fireworks or thunder?” That can actually cause your dog to be more anxious due to competing sounds and loud noise.
I can honestly say that Dexter was calm, relaxed, and genuinely interested in what he saw and heard. If you have a deaf dog, I would think the images would be wonderful for them, too. I plan to try the relaxation and exposure segments over the next month or two in advance of thunderstorm and firework season.
Added surprise bonus: I have two computer screens in my office, and I write a lot, as that’s my career! What a joy to have a second screen that showed me fish swimming. This writer found it very relaxing and soothing to have visually appealing content to look while going about my work day.
Of course, DOGTV will be a unique experience for each dog that watches it, but I would suggest you acclimate your dog to it before thunderstorms and loud sounds if that’s an issue. Think about how you would use a calming vest. It takes time for a dog to get used to it. You also don’t want to plop a dog down in front of DOGTV for the first time if he is anxious. Play the programming during calm times and when you are both home with him and when he is home alone, too.
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Try DOGTV For 30 Days Free
Fidose of Reality is able to offer our fans a 30-day trial of DOGTV. If you love it after 30 days, you can simply sign up for $9.99 a month. That comes out to about 33 cents a day, which for my dog, is worth it. You can cancel at any time.
Simply visit dogtv.com and sign up – and where the screen comes up for a code, you type in FIDOSEAPR
You must try it in April, 2019 to get this deal. Please note the code is only valid for the digital subscription ( Roku, IOS, Android, Amazon, Web Browser) and doesn’t include the cable providers.
DOGTV FAQs
Most questions about DOGTV can be answered by visiting their FAQ page here.
Don’t miss a beat or an announcement: We send no more than two emails per month. Sign up here:
This is super awesome! I’m glad it is working for you! I might try this with my newly rescued girl. She reacts to a lot of different sounds and is still curious about being in a house in itself. It may do her some good while she is kenneled while I’m at work and while I’m at home with her. I hear animal planet works as well but haven’t tried that. I’m worried about cats and small dogs being shown on tv as she isn’t quite a fan of the little squirts. 😉 Thank you! Passing this on!