A friend of mine had a 110-lb Akita that turned into a quivering mass of jello at the first drop of rain. The only place she felt safe was in the bathtub! (the dog, that is, not my friend! lol)
I have a Katrina rescue, and storms are his biggest fear. Many many nights I have sat with him in the bathroom, or the closet while he shakes and pants. He has to be on me, that is the only thing that eases his stress. I dont baby him, or silly talk him during these times. I just sit there with him in my lap, leaning on me. Keeps his heart rate down and he feels more secure.
Ignore the storm and ignore the dog. Act like everything’s normal. If you ‘comfort’ your dog you are teaching it that there is something to be scared about and encouraging it’s fear. A dog will follow your example and if you are whimpering and cuddling the dog it will think ‘Mommy/Daddy’s scared too so I’m right to be shaking/crying’. Please do not project human emotions and personalities onto your dog. It is a dog. It needs to be treated as such if you want he or she to lead a happy life.
I’m extremely lucky as my dog doesn’t fear thunderstorms and the cats come inside to avoid the thunderstorms. Effi just lifts her head when there is a loud crack but she is calm otherwise. My friends have dogs that are afraid of thunderstorms and it is tough on the dogs and them.
Invest in the ThunderShirt. Our English Setter is terrified of the wind. We battled this for 5 yrs. we bought the ThunderShirt 2 wks ago. Worked amazingly well as we had some serious wind for the past 9 days to test it on.
Thunder shirt is the BEST item I ever bought! We have three in our house. If you buy from their site they have a 45 day money back guarantee! Well worth it in my book! I have several friends who bought it too and love it!! Best of luck to you.
My 110 pound mastiff is terrfied of thunder. He thinks God is angry with him. Hides in the closet or on my lap and tells he has been a very good dog and doesn’t even chase cats anymore.
I got him a ThunderShirt [from Petco] … It works great!!! No shaking, no whinning, no being scared! They said I could return it if it did not work. It is the answer to my prayers!
I let them crawl under my desk…they like me to rest my feet on them…but only during a storm. I guess works like the thundervest. The weight of my feet comforts them. They dont like being under the desk any other time.
One tablet of Benadryl, one tablent of melatonin. Makes my dog fall into relieved, stress-free sleep. Tried the thundershirt – may it work better for everyone else than it did for us, because it did exactly nothing.
I wrap my dog in compression bandages works on the same principle as the thundershirt. A lot calmer, crosses over the chest and down her ribcage. She is a lot calmer, no excessive panting or hiding, just a slight tremble if the storm is overhead.
I sit in the couch with my JR- Shye, and I sing twinkle twinkle little star, and baa baa black sheep to her, while I stroke her, it seems to help a lot!!!
We are forced to use mild tranqs on all three of our boys during thunderstorms, Fourth of July and New Years Eve. I know many people prefer holistic approach, but we have tried those and they didn’t work for us. It is much kinder, in my opinion, to have them sleepy and calm, rather than panting, drooling and hiding under me. Our boy Bandit is so terrified, he runs around looking for an escape route, and could be injured, lost or worse. So, we close up the doors and windows, shut all the curtains and blinds, and sit quietly with them all until the offending noises have ceased. We tried Thundershirt, he just chewed on it until he could get it off.
Some on here say do not pet or comfort them as it reinforces their fear. I have heard this for years, and with my three storm-fearful dogs, I ignored them as they say you should. They never got less fearful, so I started to just gently stroke them to calm them. Its works to some degree, certainly much better than 5 years of ignoring and it never getting better. So I am not really buying the “ignore them” theory anymore, even though I used to preach it!
We use a Thundershirt with our 80lbs Lab too. She is afraid of a lot of things and it helps her calm down just enough to be able to concentrate on us and training. We’re using behavior adjustment training, I love it cause it’s all positive reinforcement! We also put on music too when there is a storm just brought the album ‘through a dogs ear’, classical music for doggie relaxation. Puts them all to sleep (and me) every time!
Be normal, if you act upset you’ll only ‘reassure’ them without meaning to of course, that they should be scared. Instead, I put on a loud happy movie and just provide stability, my dog constantly looks over at me during a storm for reassurance, just like a child.
My Shepherd can get pretty anxious from the sound of thunder (and fireworks) we actually generally try to not make a big deal about it and try to “act natural” as much as possible, she’s submissive, and as her “leaders”, any anxiety or overly emotional reactions from us has actually seemed to make her anxiety worse in the past, and so far, when she sees we’re calm, and do not react or change our normal behaviors, she tends to calm down too.
My sweet 14-year-old beagle used to be petrified of storms – ever since our house was struck by lightning when he was home alone – but in his old age, his hearing is not what it used to be, so I am SO grateful he can’t hear thunder any more. Poor little sweetie!
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A friend of mine had a 110-lb Akita that turned into a quivering mass of jello at the first drop of rain. The only place she felt safe was in the bathtub! (the dog, that is, not my friend! lol)
Aww!
Thundershirt and melatonin and a safe place to lay like the closet….love the pic
My fat terrier an i say fat instead of rat lol likes to open the bathroom cupboard an cloimb in with the towels an makes a nest
)
I have a Katrina rescue, and storms are his biggest fear. Many many nights I have sat with him in the bathroom, or the closet while he shakes and pants. He has to be on me, that is the only thing that eases his stress. I dont baby him, or silly talk him during these times. I just sit there with him in my lap, leaning on me. Keeps his heart rate down and he feels more secure.
Ignore the storm and ignore the dog. Act like everything’s normal. If you ‘comfort’ your dog you are teaching it that there is something to be scared about and encouraging it’s fear. A dog will follow your example and if you are whimpering and cuddling the dog it will think ‘Mommy/Daddy’s scared too so I’m right to be shaking/crying’. Please do not project human emotions and personalities onto your dog. It is a dog. It needs to be treated as such if you want he or she to lead a happy life.
I’m extremely lucky as my dog doesn’t fear thunderstorms and the cats come inside to avoid the thunderstorms. Effi just lifts her head when there is a loud crack but she is calm otherwise. My friends have dogs that are afraid of thunderstorms and it is tough on the dogs and them.
Invest in the ThunderShirt. Our English Setter is terrified of the wind. We battled this for 5 yrs. we bought the ThunderShirt 2 wks ago. Worked amazingly well as we had some serious wind for the past 9 days to test it on.
Thunder shirt is the BEST item I ever bought! We have three in our house. If you buy from their site they have a 45 day money back guarantee! Well worth it in my book! I have several friends who bought it too and love it!! Best of luck to you.
My 110 pound mastiff is terrfied of thunder. He thinks God is angry with him. Hides in the closet or on my lap and tells he has been a very good dog and doesn’t even chase cats anymore.
Mine think a little bite of cheese is magic boomer medicine.
Put on the Thunder shirt. It works great.
seems about right!!
The Thundershirt!!
Thundershirt & rescue remedy…
I got him a ThunderShirt [from Petco] … It works great!!! No shaking, no whinning, no being scared! They said I could return it if it did not work. It is the answer to my prayers!
I let them crawl under my desk…they like me to rest my feet on them…but only during a storm. I guess works like the thundervest. The weight of my feet comforts them. They dont like being under the desk any other time.
thundershirt. herbal Happy Traveler. Rescue Remedy.
Bach rescue remedy, couple of drops works, get it at any natural health store
One tablet of Benadryl, one tablent of melatonin. Makes my dog fall into relieved, stress-free sleep. Tried the thundershirt – may it work better for everyone else than it did for us, because it did exactly nothing.
I wrap my dog in compression bandages works on the same principle as the thundershirt. A lot calmer, crosses over the chest and down her ribcage. She is a lot calmer, no excessive panting or hiding, just a slight tremble if the storm is overhead.
Thundershirts work awesome!!!!
The Thundershirt worked tremendously for our Golden Retriever Mix, Bailey. Helped reduce is anxiety quite a bit! Highly recommend it!
My older Schpperke has found comfort in the Thundershirt…I think it depends on the dog. Mine was worth more than the drugs he threw up.
I sit in the couch with my JR- Shye, and I sing twinkle twinkle little star, and baa baa black sheep to her, while I stroke her, it seems to help a lot!!!
Thunder shirt!!
We are forced to use mild tranqs on all three of our boys during thunderstorms, Fourth of July and New Years Eve. I know many people prefer holistic approach, but we have tried those and they didn’t work for us. It is much kinder, in my opinion, to have them sleepy and calm, rather than panting, drooling and hiding under me. Our boy Bandit is so terrified, he runs around looking for an escape route, and could be injured, lost or worse. So, we close up the doors and windows, shut all the curtains and blinds, and sit quietly with them all until the offending noises have ceased. We tried Thundershirt, he just chewed on it until he could get it off.
He either sits on my lap or hides behind the shower curtain
Maybe a Thunder coat would help.
my daughter swears by the thunder shirt. She says she puts it on her and she calms right down.You can buy them at pet supply stores.
Some on here say do not pet or comfort them as it reinforces their fear. I have heard this for years, and with my three storm-fearful dogs, I ignored them as they say you should. They never got less fearful, so I started to just gently stroke them to calm them. Its works to some degree, certainly much better than 5 years of ignoring and it never getting better. So I am not really buying the “ignore them” theory anymore, even though I used to preach it!
Whats thundershirt? Is it available in australia? My dogs terrified of thunder
lmao! Poor puppy…
Can someone pls send me foto of thundershirt? What is it???
We use a Thundershirt with our 80lbs Lab too. She is afraid of a lot of things and it helps her calm down just enough to be able to concentrate on us and training. We’re using behavior adjustment training, I love it cause it’s all positive reinforcement! We also put on music too when there is a storm just brought the album ‘through a dogs ear’, classical music for doggie relaxation. Puts them all to sleep (and me) every time!
@ Brenda…..Google it and if you can’t find it send me a msg and I will send you the link. I would send it to you now but I can’t from my phone.
Be normal, if you act upset you’ll only ‘reassure’ them without meaning to of course, that they should be scared. Instead, I put on a loud happy movie and just provide stability, my dog constantly looks over at me during a storm for reassurance, just like a child.
If you have a dog with a very bad case, they sell thunder shirts that are supposed to help and medication is available for serious cases, too.
tell her it will pass. and put her in her cage with her blanket to keep her safe.
WHAT A GIRL!!
My Shepherd can get pretty anxious from the sound of thunder (and fireworks) we actually generally try to not make a big deal about it and try to “act natural” as much as possible, she’s submissive, and as her “leaders”, any anxiety or overly emotional reactions from us has actually seemed to make her anxiety worse in the past, and so far, when she sees we’re calm, and do not react or change our normal behaviors, she tends to calm down too.
I have one that hates storms, all I can do is let her follow me around or sit by me, the other dog could care less what’s going on.
My two pups hate storms, they go to window and bark like crazy
My sweet 14-year-old beagle used to be petrified of storms – ever since our house was struck by lightning when he was home alone – but in his old age, his hearing is not what it used to be, so I am SO grateful he can’t hear thunder any more. Poor little sweetie!
Thundershirt!!!
Acupuncture, herbal remedy from the vet that is right for her, put her in her crate with relaxing music on.
Thundershirt!
Tried everything. What Cleo wants is to get into my car so I just let her.