Post Pup-tum Depression?
If you’ve experienced the puppy blues with a very young dog, you are by no means alone.
n We’ve all heard of the baby blues—that short-term drop in mood coupled with melancholy soon after a baby’s birth. It turns out that “parents” of new puppies can experience the “baby” blues, too.
In fact, almost half of all people with new pups experience anxiety, weariness, or frustration during their dogs’ early days, making it potentially difficult to bond with the new “baby,” according to research conducted at the University of Helsinki. It’s not full-blown postpartum depression. Still, it encompasses “feelings of emotional strain, anxiety about responsibility, and challenges in adapting to the changes brought by a new puppy,” write the investigators in Mental Health Research. Many of the 1,500-plus people (mostly women) who answered a detailed survey shared that they experienced those feelings for longer than a year.
Among the respondents’ specific issues: exhaustion or sleep problems; feelings of inadequacy as a dog owner; anxiety about the puppy taking up time; concerns about raising the dog “correctly”; feelings of regret about getting a puppy; difficulty forming an emotional bond with the pet; disappointment with the puppy phase not meeting expectations; feelings of anger and irritability towards the dog; worry for the puppy’s well-being; and considering giving the puppy away.
The silver linings
If you are in the throes of the puppy blues and feel guilty about experiencing negative emotions with an almost-newborn dog, the findings should help dispel notions that you are “bad” for feeling frustrated by your puppy. You are simply human.
Second, as the investigators point out, “dogs are puppies for only a brief period.” Unlike human children, they become adults pretty quickly; you’re not going to be raising a difficult child for a couple of decades.
The researchers also make clear that experiencing the puppy blues “does not preclude the potential for obtaining positive effects from having a dog, such as protection against loneliness.” In other words, even as your pup is shredding your designer throw pillows, you can be experiencing positive emotions because of your pet.
Perhaps that’s why, the scientists found, as puppyhood receded into the past, people recalled their dogs’ young days more fondly. The early “labor” no longer mattered so much.
SimeonD | Bigstock
Teaching a new puppy the ropes can be exhausting.
We’ve all heard of the baby blues—that short-term drop in mood coupled with melancholy soon after a baby’s birth. It turns out that “parents” of new puppies can experience the “baby” blues, too.
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