ADAPTIL Calming Pheromone Collar for Dogs

This collar was recommended by my vet. My border collie mix is always on alert for basically anything going on - cars passing by, people moving in the house, etc. She doesn't know how to just "chill." I couldn't really tell that the collar was working until I left it on her a bit over a month. (It's supposed to be replaced monthly.) All of a sudden she was right at the heels of anyone moving in the house, going to the door when a large, noisy vehicle would go down our street, etc. I put a new replacement collar on her, and it was crazy. In less than 20 minutes, she calmed down. Now, we were warned by our vet that the collar doesn't work for all dogs. All I know is that life is much calmer with this collar. It works off pheromones similar to a puppy's mama. There is no scent that humans can smell. Our dog wears this collar along with her regular collar without a problem.

Let me start by saying I have a dog with severe separation anxiety. She is 8.5, and has had it for her entire life. We have tried all the other tips and tricks and this was a last ditch effort when everything else failed, including Prozac, just to say we really have tried absolutely everything out there to help her. I didn’t have high hopes but figured I had nothing to lose at this point. It did nothing. My dog changed not at all while wearing it for several weeks. In fact, if anything, it might have made her act even weirder because I think she thought it was her old shock collar that was used for training when she was a puppy. If you have a dog that just seems a little anxious then maybe it will work for you but if your dog is mega crazy and you have tried all the other possible suggestions out there, maybe don’t waste your money. You know as well as I did when I bought this thing that a collar won’t help that level of insanity when numerous kennels, toys, thunder blanket, desensitization training, peanut butter stuffed kongs, second dog for companionship, doggy daycare at someone else’s house, extra attention, hemp chews, and Prozac didn’t work. I’d say i’m disappointed but honestly i’m just exhausted and not even remotely surprised.

Background for this review: I am a veterinarian. I love, use, and recommend Feliway (another CEVA product) all day, every day. I'm a very small-time practitioner, zero connection with any company or corporation. I use and recommend what works, basically, and my poor pets are a testing ground in many cases! I bought this having heard from a behavioral specialist at a conference that they recommend an Adaptil collar for ALL their patients, regardless of issue, breed, length of issue, etc, while undergoing treatment. I recently acquired a rescue dog who is unbelievably sweet but terrified. She won't touch the floor because she is scared of my cats, particularly the Maine Coon who is larger than her! She "shuts down" in anxiety-inducing situations, which is basically every situation, so ANY degree of sedation is unacceptable. I put the collar on her within a few days of coming home. One month later, yes she is settled in better, but still scared of everything. I'm not sure how much, if any, of that *minimal* improvement could be attributed to the collar, and how much is just that she's getting used to her new captor and those awful fuzzy critters with the long tails and sharp claws. I'm sad that for how expensive this was, it wasn't as magical as Feliway is for my cats. HOWEVER, as I understand it, there seems to be a pretty clear-cut set of responders and non-responders to Adaptil. I suspect that may dog was a non-responder, but I'll never really know. There is zero smell to the human nose, and although the collar is a bit wide (length is adjustable) for probably any dog <10lbs, it was fairly unobtrusive to my dog, as well as a variety of harnesses and regular collars and leashes. The number one thing to watch out for is placing it correctly - it has to be CLOSE to the neck, not loose - read the instructions!!!! I file this under the "doesn't hurt, and might really help." It didn't seem to help my dog, but it does others. Unfortunately, the cost is such that I'm unlikely to reach for it first thing because it's a gamble as to whether your dog will be a responder or not. I will be moving on to more trusted nutraceuticals such as Composure, Anxitane, Zylkene and the like for my own dog until I strike the desired balance of value, non-sedative anxiety relief, and acceptability to the dog. However, if you've got the money, it's absolutely worth a shot early on because it's as simple as putting a collar on correctly.

Customer service/ease of return: Perfect. I received the collar and it was the wrong size. Easy no muss/no fuss Amazon return/replace. Received the correct size a few days later Collar construction: Excellent. It's wide and flat but not thick/bulky, plenty of extra length. I have an American Foxhound (around 78lbs.) had some extra inches - maybe 3-4 to cut off. The clasp is very grippy I am happy about that, I feel confident it will not easily "let go" and come off. Placed snug against his fur but not tight (can get fingers underneath and it moves around easily but not floppy....it actually is able to lay under his regular leather collar and he's not uncomfortable. Now for the best part: I received the diffusers on 12/8/20 and installed them that night. The correct collar came on 12/12/20 and I put it on him right away. These were the issues we were dealing with: Aggressive food begging - I take care of my elderly mother and because she's the "weak" one, he figured out he could intimidate her into giving him food scraps. He did this by literally physically pushing on her or pawing at her. This improved with some training, but I realized I am not present enough (work from home but can't always be in same room) and Mom isn't consistent enough to help make it stick. Danger Barking and Rushing door on deliveries - Several years ago a UPS driver hurt my dog and since then he's been afraid of the UPS truck and anyone with a package. Again this improved with some training but was still a problem. Way too excited to go on a walk or I might leave without him - What concerned me here is that he would work himself up so much he actually slams into things, like the lit wood stove and people. He's a very solid dog and literally can take your knees out. Some training here helped but his emotions have been too much to apply the training I know and continue to learn effectively. So.......drumroll...I'd like to report some great success since putting these products into place: Food begging has 100% stopped already. Sure, he still wants stuff but he does not come to the table, he isn't pushing on anyone or in your face, isn't clawing and insisting at people. Just done. 100% hasn't come into the dining room when we sit for a meal at all in 3 days now. Danger bark/aggression: WAY WAY WAY less....he's not clawing at the window and going "berserker" at all. He becomes concerned, gives a couple of barks and...another drumroll...doesn't come to me for comfort, just gives a couple of much quieter barks and when someone says, "I see him, it's okay"...he just relaxes and is done with it. I have not experimented a lot with going for the leash...mainly because if I'm not actually going to take him I'm not going to tease him with it. BUT.....here is how I know it will be much less - He watched me put my boots on yesterday and wasn't immediately in my face and winding himself up and slamming into things. He became alert and watched. When I put on my coat he came over, hopeful, excited...but when I said I'd be right back and to stay (went to get the mail) he just waited for me by the door....he didn't go bonkers at the windows because I went without him. I am sure and do not expect everything to just "go away"....some of this is his personality but I am glad to see much of his anxiety and fear is reduced because it was becoming concerning and my own training the trainer wasn't keeping up. 100% recommend. I see some review say it didn't work with their dog...and others say it worked but didn't make everything go away. It's inexpensive enough to try and I think that even if the unwanted behavior is not 100% gone, that it just might be putting them in a place where you can get any training you've been attempting (or still need to learn) actually through to the dog. I noticed with my own attempts at training that it seemed he was too emotional to pay attention to the training but when he was calm the training would work and stick, it's just getting them to the point where they can receive the training. I don't think this product should be looked at as the complete solution to fear/anxiety/behavior issues...but as PART of the solution...combine it with good, solid and consistent training.

As far as I know there are no truly scientific studies on the collar...however, I'm willing to give it some anecdotal credit. Of course correlation does not equal causation, but as anyone with a stressed out dog knows, one is willing to try many things! The down side risk was pretty much just the cost of the collar. The upside, well it's having a better adjusted dog. Basically the idea of the collar is to give off a continuous exposure to 'calming hormones' --think mother dog soothing. Dogs are so scent based so it has plausibility (though plausibility + correlation still does not = proof...). My dog Xena is a Spanish Galgo, she was used as a hunting dog in Spain and her life was pretty horrible in terms of basic care and socialization. It's not necessary to go into details, but suffice to say, she was pretty stressed by a lot of things once she got here, including my spouse and oldest child (grown man and teenager...very scary in her world). Xena was improving but VERY slowly and with lots of setbacks. My girl greyhound was pretty passive and old, so not a strong role model for Xena and in an attempt to try something else I bought her one of the 'other brands' of collar. It broke quickly and had a strong smell (a marketing ploy to make a scent humans could perceive) and I switched to this one. Unfortunately my older dog passed away about 2 weeks after I added the collar and I had to go out of town about a week later. Poor Xena was a hot mess when I came home, but more in a listless sense--no more playing with the toys she had learned to love, not eating well and just dragging. We also missed having a 'regular' greyhound so we took her to the local rescue and found a big, male, lovable, calm galoot she clearly felt more comfortable with than the other dogs. A few days later and suddenly I have a happy, waggy Xena. She RUNS UP TO MY HUSBAND for treats and walks and is otherwise doing a ton better in general. Is the new dog helping? Probably. Is it patience and tons of treats and bribes from the husband? Probably. Is it the collar? I don't know, it could be helping facilitate the other things. Again, there are tons of variables--a steady, new, solid doggy friend, time and patience but....it also corresponded with the time frame one should 'expect' from the collar starting to have it's effect. All I can say is, recommended knowing it may be a just a wild bunch of coincidence. Like I said, the downside risk is low and it really was just the cost of the collar to give it a try. And, don't get me wrong, the girl-dog is still a long way from normal, just not nearly as far as she was a month ago. So, Recommended, knowing it certainly didn't hurt and may have been helpful. Hard to say without some science behind it, but I'm willing to give it a solid 4 stars worth of credit. JTG

D.A.P. (Dog Appeasing Pheromone) Collar for Puppies and Small Dogs - 17.7" I don't want to call this a negative review. I know that a lot of people love this product and swear it totally works. However, the D.A.P. collar simply did not work for my dog. I placed it on my pup’s neck a full seven days before Fourth of July fireworks. (According to the reviews, the collar should be worn at least a week before the dreaded event.) As usual, it was an anxiety-filled night and the entire family could not calm him down. The next morning, I was pretty annoyed. I could not even tell if this “dog appeasing pheromone” made even the slightest difference. I love my dog and I’ll buy anything that will help him when he’s feeling nervous or scared. The bottom line is, I paid $20.57 for this product and I feel like I wasted my money. If I had a chance to try this collar again, I would make sure that my dog begins wearing this collar three weeks before the Fourth of July. However, I do not think it would be wise for us to spend another $20 on this product. According to my dog’s veterinarian, the D.A.P. collar does not work on all dogs. I’m fairly certain that’s what happened here. Having said that, I will continue to explore other methods of calming and relieving my dog’s stress. And I will continue to spend money on any product that will bring him any relief. That is what we do for our dogs, right?

I had two doxies until a year ago when one of them died (age 17). The year younger one that remains has been a mess for that year. He completely changed from a laid back, easy going pooch to one that paced anxiously all day, didn't want me to groom him anymore, hates car rides. I took him to the vest numerous times to get help in calming him down. For the past year he's been on an assortment of calming drugs, none of which I could see great effect and I didn't want to up dosages until he was a zombie. I found a doggie daycare facility to take him to during the day so he would have company but he doesn't seem to care - he continued to pace even there. During my last visit to the vet about 3 weeks ago the vet asked if I'd ever consider trying a pherimone collar - he explained it to me and I told him I would consider it but would have to check with the dog daycare facility to see if they would allow the collar. After checking they said yes, that a few of their dogs wear them. Both my vet and the daycare sold them at a price of $34. So, I did as I usually do with high price items, I went onto Amazon to see if by chance they sold the collars and to read reviews. This is the same exact collar as both vets sell and the reviews on Amazon were mixed but mostly to the positive. What did I have to lose? After wearing it for one week, he was calm in the morning before I left for work so I thought I'd try to leave him home. There was absolutely no pacing or panting or anxiety the whole day...so I left him home the next day - same thing. Now this week, doggie daycare is closed 4 days starting tomorrow. He was calm this morning so I left him home again. I just checked the cameras in my house and he's walking around and going outside and sleeping in his bed. No pacing at all. I've since told the vet this and even after him recommending the collar said "well, the collar isn't a magic pill", like he doubted me that it worked so well. It has, and I will continue to order them. If you have an anxious dog try it....it may take a week or more but I swear it's the best thing I could have done for him.

Bought on Vet recommendation due to my dog's fear of wooden floors and stairs. However, the Adaptil collar did not appear to have any positive effects on her behavior after two weeks of continuous use following the included directions. Instead, we began noticing an increasingly bad smell around the dog, as if she had rolled around in particularly odoriferous dog poop (as she's been known to occasionally do). Upon further inspection, we didn't find the expected dried poop under her neck and shoulders, but instead found an unusual amount of moisture on the underside of her collars (both her normal collar and the Adaptil collar, which by recommendation was tighter than the other collar and had consequently slipped under the normal collar) and a dog that very definitely did not want her neck touched at all. After taking her to the Vet, the attached picture shows what was evident once the neck was shaved - a very bad case of moist dermatitis (otherwise known as hot spots) on the underside of the dog's neck where the Adaptil collar had touched and/or restricted the folded skin of the neck. Whether the result of frictional irritation from a too-tight Adaptil collar or a specific allergic reaction to substances released by the collar, this is totally unacceptable for a product meant to help and definitely not harm your four-legged friend. Since the Adaptil collar didn't appear to have any positive effects on our dog, but rather a very definitely significant negative effect, I cannot recommend this collar to anyone. But if you do decide to buy the product, please be aware of potential adverse health effects and definitely don't follow the instruction of tightening the collar more than normal to allow body heat to supposedly facilitate the release of the pheromone infused in the collar. And be sure to check the condition of the dog's skin under their collars on a frequent basis, since hot spots such as this can develop very rapidly.

I have a (previously reactive) very anxious rescue dog who has used the collar for many years on and off and it helps him so much. Probably not the same for every dog but for mine it's a life changer for him.

Ajuda muito na confiança e vinculação comigo

I have used this on and off- I had used the smaller size a few times as I had difficulty getting the bigger one. My dog is generally very nervous as she was a stray at some point in her life. I just put a new collar on her - the bigger sized one - and she seems a bit calmer when I take her for a walk. I am not sure this is suitable for dogs who have a strong reaction to fireworks etc but is better for dogs with a nervous nature who are anxious when on a walk etc I’ve been training my dog to help her get over her fears and the collar will compliment that but its effectiveness is maybe limited used without the training with my dog

Mi perro es sumamente ansioso y antes de medicarlo, el médico nos recomendó comprarle el Adaptil en collar y difusor. A nosotros nos funcionó mejor el collar, tanto así que este es el tercero o cuarto que compramos. Obviamente no funciona por sí solo, necesita refuerzo y educación constante, pero sí notamos que mantiene al perro de mejor ánimo. En últimas fechas llegó a casa un nuevo cachorrito y el proceso de adaptación del perro adulto ha sido complicado, así que cambiamos su collar de Adaptil por uno nuevo y sí lo notamos más relajado al estar con el cachorro. Definitivo sirve, pero no esperen milagros ni que funcione por sí solo.

After a couple of weeks of using this collar 24/7 I found out has no effect whatsoever. Aside from having a collar on nothing changed, my dog still reacted in the same anxious maker and didn't seem to feel any more comfortable. Don't recommend buying this product.