'Sedatives by the Crate': How Israelis Can Help Their Pets Deal With the Anxiety of War
Henya is the 10-year-old chihuahua of Elena Lifshitz, who lives in Katzrin in the Golan Heights. Henya's good buddy at home is a Persian cat named Roska. In August, a rocket struck the Lifshitzes' home; the family escaped with minor injuries and took Henya with them. Roska was found after a three-day search.
"Ever since the rocket fell on the house, Henya has been following me everywhere. She doesn't leave me for a moment. She is next to me all the time and even comes with me into the bathroom," Lifshitz said just a few days before Israel and Hezbollah agreed on a cease-fire this week.
"She's constantly looking me in the eyes as if she's afraid I'm going to disappear. Every day I tell her, 'Henya, everything's okay, I'm not going anywhere, everything is fine,' but she's still very scared."
The 14-month war has taken a toll on animals as well as people, on both the northern and southern fronts. Three veterinarians from the Galilee and the Jordan Valley say that they have even encountered dogs and cats in need of anxiety medication.
A resident of Rosh Pina with her pet. "Dogs who have no one to look after them have become more aggressive."Credit: Gil Eliyahu
Then there's the problem of stray dogs – some crossing the border from enemy territory, others abandoned by evacuated families or owners who simply couldn't take care of them anymore. People have not readily adopted strays, so some local authorities are euthanizing dogs earlier than they usually do.
"Psychiatric pills were never something I had in my medicine cabinet, but for a year now I've been prescribing three kinds of pills for dogs in distress," says Dr. Gil Shavit, a veterinarian from Yesud Hama'ala in the northern Galilee. "To dogs and cats, the nonstop sirens and booms sound and look like the end of the world. They run away, sometimes a very great distance."
After dogs flee in a panic, they're often found shaking with their tail between their legs. It's similar with horses; in one case, five horses bolted from a Galilee farm and are still missing., panic and tension end when the war is over?
Shavit: "It's hard to know if the anxiety will continue long-term. Clearly, a dog is influenced by its owner. When the owner is worried or stressed, it affects the dog. I've been seeing a total overlap between the nature of the owner and the nature of the dog. The dog reads the owner's behavior and sees him as the leader of the pack."
How are anxiety medications being used now?
"It varies from one dog to another. All these medications are meant to lower stress. Usually we'll recommend giving the medication for two weeks and then we reassess."
Dr. Gil Shavit.Credit: Gil Eliyahu
Has the phenomenon of abandoned animals increased?
"Yes. This problem has grown considerably. It's especially notable in an evacuated area like Kiryat Shmona [abutting the Lebanese border]. For the most part, owners took the dogs with them, but the cats remained in the city. It's harder to move a cat to a new residential area. Since there are fewer people in the city now, there's less garbage, and so there's less food for the cats.
"In Kiryat Shmona, there still are people who feed the stray cats, and it's absolutely clear that there has been a big increase in their number. The people who feed them mean well, of course, but sometimes the feeding hurts the ecosystem. I've also encountered evacuees who couldn't take their dog with them because the hotel where they're staying won't allow pets, so they come home every day to look after and feed it."
How have cattle been affected by the war?
"The saddest case is the herd of cattle at Kibbutz Malkiya. They had 350 cows that were very carefully tended. The herd scattered at the start of the war due to panic from the loud booms and the noise of the tanks and planes. Some still haven't been found. Also, there were a lot of fires in Malkiya's grazing areas on the Manara ridge. The pasture was burned and the cows were left without food.
"Also, it's very hard for the cattle wranglers to reach the pasture areas to take care of the cows. It's just too dangerous. A few times we saw cows that had come into Kiryat Shmona looking for food. They were on lawns in the city. Ultimately the people from Malkiya were forced to sell off the herd, after they found about half of it. It's terribly sad because this was a lifelong project that evaporated during the war, and it's hard to know whether it can be revived."
Kibbutz Malkiya's cows. "The herd scattered at the start of the war due to panic from the booms and noise of tanks. Some still haven't been found," says Dr. Shavit.Credit: Gil Eliyahu
Four months ago, Dr. Basel Heib opened a veterinary clinic in Rosh Pina up north in what he calls a "suicidal" move. No clients were there during a visit this week, but Heib remains optimistic.
One time a siren sounded when he was operating on a dog. "I went on operating," he says, almost apologetically. "If I had left and run to the shelter, the dog would have died on the table. So I stayed with him, and we both survived."
But he too says that most of the problems he has seen during the war derive from stress. Every day he treats animals suffering from urinary blockages, a lack of appetite and hair loss. Some dogs who have no one to look after them have become more aggressive.
"You have no idea how many sedatives we've been selling lately. In the past we hardly ever used these kinds of medications, and now whole crates are disappearing," Heib says. "Credit is really due to the pet owners who are doing what they can to look after their animals in this difficult situation. In general, nobody has the money or the bandwidth right now for other worries, but these people still come to take care of their dog or cat."
Basel Heib.Credit: Gil Eliyahu
A sedative every morning
Irit Betman of Kibbutz Beit Keshet in the Lower Galilee describes her 5-year-old dog Chief as energetic but timid. One night, when loud booms wracked the kibbutz and he was inside, Chief became hysterical. He scratched wildly at the doors of the house, and when Betman's daughter opened the front door he bolted outside and ran away. At first they could hear him barking in the nearby forest. Then nothing.
"We looked for him for hours – until about 3 in the morning – and then I figured he had come back to sleep in the yard," Betman says. "In the morning we discovered that he was gone. We looked all around, I called out to him, and then later in the afternoon, 12 hours after he ran away, a friend sent a picture of him wandering around Kfar Tavor, about 8 kilometers [5 miles] away.
"I wouldn't have thought he could run all that distance in one go, but at around 5 in the morning, there were more booms, and that apparently made him keep running. Even for an energetic dog like him, that's really far.
"Since that night, he only goes for walks on a leash, and we hardly let him out into the yard. Whenever we hear booms, he starts to shake. Sometimes there are booms that I don't hear, but I can see that it affects him. When the app shows that there's a siren, he runs to the safe room."
You have no idea how many sedatives we've been selling lately. In the past we hardly ever used these kinds of medications, and now whole crates are disappearing.
Basel Heib
Neta Shpigler of Moshav Sharona near Tiberias has an 11-year-old dog, Pooch. "Until three months ago, she was a relaxed and easygoing dog, and then she changed completely," Shpigler says. "When the air raid sirens began going off a lot in our area, she would howl, scratch at the doors, bark and look to us for help. It seems she hears the missile interceptions and notices what's happening around us long before we do.
"It took us a while to understand how sensitive she is. Then we tried all kinds of methods, to make her calm down and feel safe, like a big hug or holding her between our legs. Nothing helped. There were times when she raced to the safe room and hid there, shaking. There were days when I was worried she'd have a heart attack, so we went to the veterinarian.
"The attacks passed, but she was still very tense all the time. Initially they tried to just give her pills with natural ingredients, but they quickly stopped having an effect. Now we give her a sedative every morning, and it has had an immediate effect," Shpigler explains. "Her behavior is almost back to normal. She goes outside again and behaves pretty normally. The veterinarian explained to us that, just as can happen with people, Pooch is apparently oversensitive. She used to be a brave dog but the war changed her."
Pooch. "Until three months ago, she was a relaxed and easygoing dog, and then she changed completely."Credit: Gil Eliahu
Dr. Shoshi Hadar, a veterinarian with a clinic at Kibbutz Degania, had connected me with Shpigler. During a visit to her clinic, Hadar said she doesn't rush to give dogs anti-anxiety pills.
"These are medications that cause dependency and require a very specific treatment protocol that isn't always suited to the dog's way of life. It's very important to examine the direct emotional connection between the animal and its owner," she says. "Sometimes, that's where the anxiety comes from. In other cases, the anxiety comes from the dog suddenly being moved to live in a new place, like with people who have been evacuated from towns in the north."
What sort of symptoms are you seeing?
Hadar: "Different things. There are dogs that run away, and others that hear things that we don't hear and have an anxiety attack. Sometimes they pee or defecate in places where they wouldn't have in normal times. They have more fears and are more wary. Sometimes they gain or lose weight. I think that eventually we'll be seeing the effects of all the anxiety among people too.
"The main problem is that this period of stress is so prolonged. Stress is also noticeable in organic illnesses, although it's often hard to say just what triggered an illness. I had a cat that lost all its fur. This might have been due to stress, but it's hard to say for sure."
Is there professional literature on the subject?
"I expect that our reality will generate long-term studies by the pharmaceutical companies. Right now there aren't a lot of studies that focus on stress in animals over long periods. We have treatments for more limited episodes of anxiety, but this is a whole other story."
What's the simplest thing that can be done?
"The most important thing is to get them used to the different situations. With cats, it's a good idea to keep their carrier inside the house and not on the balcony or outside.
"Dogs that aren't used to the leash should get used to using a collar and leash. It's good to practice going to the shelter with them even when there are no sirens. They shouldn't be made to think that it's a punishment. They should remain as close as possible to their owners. That gives them a sense of security.
Dr. Shoshi Hadar.Credit: Gil Eliyahu
"Cats need to get used to the idea that if they're being put in a cage, it doesn't mean this is something terrible. If they come to see it as something routine, it will be easier for them."
Should people take their pets with them to the bomb shelter or safe room when there's a siren?
"This might sound weird, but sometimes I'm in favor of leaving the animal in the house if the shelter causes them stress. I realize that it's hard for dog owners to even think about doing something like that, but sometimes it's for the animal's benefit."
Photographer Gil Eliyahu joins our conversation. For the past few years he has been raising a Bengal cat named Leo at his home in Tiberias. I'd met Leo a few times before the war, and he's an amazing animal. He really does look like a tiger and is prone to capricious behavior, befitting his noble lineage.
During the war, Leo has become highly sensitive and fearful. Sometimes he hides out for long stretches, whether before, during or after a siren. Somehow he can tell if there's going to be rocket fire even before the siren sounds, and he scrambles for a hiding place. Sometimes he hears the siren over Gil's phone and can tell if the wailing is from somewhere far away like Kiryat Shmona or somewhere nearby, forcing him to take shelter.
"He also looks for fights more than he ever did before," Gil says. "He tries to attack dogs or cats more often. If he succeeds in his aggression, he comes home and gazes at me with a look of triumph. If he doesn't succeed, he feels humiliated and completely ignores me. He even locked me out of the house once. People have said to me, 'Shut him up in a room,' to which I reply, 'Leo has a home, I just have a room there.'"
Leo the cat has become aggressive during the war.Credit: Gil Eliyahu
After visiting with the three veterinarians, I jotted down a summary of the advice we received. First, it's good to provide the dog or cat with a safe place, preferably a quiet corner in a room without windows. This is especially pertinent for cats, which are harder to take to a shelter or safe room.
Either way, pet owners should try to remain calm and project confidence, because pets feel the stress of the people around them. Be patient and offer warmth and support. It can be very helpful to try to distract the dog or cat with a game or toy that they like, or to play quiet music to help calm them.
Finally, if the dog or cat experiences repeated anxiety attacks, definitely consult a veterinarian. Only then is it possible to consider medication or behavioral therapy on the recommendation of the doctor.
This might sound weird, but sometimes I'm in favor of leaving the animal in the house if the bomb shelter causes them stress.
Dr. Shoshi Hadar
The charge: vagrancy
Stray dogs remain a major problem. "Since October 7 we've seen a large increase in the number of stray dogs, not only because of abandonment but also because they are coming in from the Gaza Strip," says Yael Arkin, CEO of the nonprofit group Let the Animals Live.
"The hardest problem is that there are no adoptions now. At the start of the war a lot of people came in to adopt a dog, but that stopped.... It's a sad situation; I can't remember a time like this. We're always fighting for the welfare of the animals, but now I feel that the insanity of the war is giving local authorities the legitimacy to do whatever they want.... We have to realize that we need to take steps to stop the problem and not kill dogs."
Arkin says the fact that many more dogs have been put down during the war than during regular times will be clear in her group's report, to be published at the end of the year.
A second problem, she notes, is an emergency order that the Agriculture Ministry had issued for killing stray dogs immediately without their being taken first to a shelter, which would give them a chance to find a home.
"Due to pressure, it was agreed that instead of killing them outright they would get four days in a shelter. That's a very short period, which doesn't afford any chance to find them a home," Arkin says, adding that some dogs are even being shot in the field with poison arrows. "Permits to kills dogs are awarded without examining humane options. It's a cruel death that paralyzes the dog and its respiratory tract.
Elena Lifshitz with Henya, the 10-year-old chihuahua, after a rocket hit their home Katzrin.Credit: Gil Eliyahu
"All these methods are being accelerated, with the excuse that a war is going on. We saw that as early as the last quarter of 2023 there was an increase in the killing of dogs by the local authorities."
Arkin: "I think that what's happening now is total lawlessness. You have to realize that killing dogs isn't a solution to the problem. We have lots of other solutions, but they [the authorities] are not wiling to listen. It's Third World behavior. According to our estimate, there are 32,000 stray dogs in Israel. It's a problem that can be handled humanely. For example, we have to pass a law in Israel making it obligatory to sterilize or neuter dogs."
MK Yasmin Fridman of Yair Lapid's Yesh Atid party says that Israel has failed to adopt solutions that have proved effective in other countries. "Over the years the Agriculture Ministry has been advocating killing as a solution. That's what's happening with dogs as well as with boars and other animals," she says, adding that for three years she has been trying to pass a bill for the stray-dog problem. The idea is that the animals would be sterilized or neutered, vaccinated against rabies, and then released back into the community.
"The current average life expectancy of these dogs is about three years, so we would begin to see a real long-term change," Fridman adds. "But the Agriculture Ministry repeatedly refuses to pass the legislation and continues to budget millions every year for solutions that don't work."
She says that in April the ministry issued a memo approving the putting down of stray dogs. Around 500 dogs were killed, a move backed by the claim that they had entered from Gaza. Then, on November 24, the ministry published a report saying it would budget 8.1 million shekels ($2.2 million) to local authorities in the south and north to deal with stray and feral dogs. The ministry undertook to support the capture, rehabilitation, neutering and putting up for adoption of suitable dogs to responsible owners, removal of open containers of garbage and improvement of sanitation in local authorities, as well as public education on those topics.
"In light of the absence of veterinary supervision of these dogs, a situation has been created of close encounters with various types of animals, and this increases fears about contagion and the dissemination of diseases," the ministry said.
Only dogs unsuitable for adoption due to their aggressiveness or poor health would be put to sleep.