What to do if your pets are afraid of thunder/lightening?

[Dee*Jay]

We''re having one of our big spring storms right now and the Demon Dog is just beside hiself. He was hiding in the master bathoom for a while, but when when the serious thunder and lightening started he ran down here in my office and now he''s hiding IN the bottom of the office armoire. (He''s a pretty big dog and the space isn''t that big; I''m amazed he can get in there.)

I can feel him shaking -- Poor thing!!! And all the petting and cuddling and talking in the world don''t help when he''s like this.

Do your pets get afraid during storms? Do you do anything that makes them feel better?

 

[JDgirl]

I belong to a wonderful dog forum, and this question was asked a while ago. Here''s the thread with some suggestions and shared experiences:

http://dogaddicts.com/smf/index.php?topic=4964.0

 

[XChick03]

Jack gets afraid, its so sad. First, when the thunder isn''t very loud, he barks at the ceiling while Bella stares at him like he''s lost his mind. Then, when it gets really loud, he plants all 70 lbs of himself firmly in my lap and won''t budge. The most I can do for him is hold him and talk to him in a really kind, soft tone. Bella, on the otherhand, isn''t afraid of anything. Thunder has never ever phased her and she actually likes being outside during storms.

Sorry I can''t be more help.

 

[Scooba]

My boyfriend had a dog while he was growing up who was absolutely traumatized by storms so they used to give her a mild tranquilizer from the vet, it was a severe case and the vet thought it was best. I have a dog now who is afraid of everything but storms!

 

[Dee*Jay]

Thanks for the replies. I feel so sorry for Dino when it happens, and I especially worry when my husband and I are both out and it storms. He must be so miserable...

My grandmother heard on some radio talk show that you should put a t-shirt on your dog if he's afraid. (This is mentioned in the link that JDGirl posted too.) I figured what the hell, so I dug out an old t-shirt and tried it. Well, let's just say we never actually got the shirt ON The Demon Dog, but at least he was distracted from the storm for a while!

 

[diamondfan]

Diamonds, we just got a new pup and took her to the trainer for a few days and when I picked her up he gave me some good advice, advice I think makes perfect sense but had not looked at that way. When a dog is anxious or afraid, our first instinct would be to cuddle and reassure them, at least that is what I would be inclined to do. He told me that is the WORST thing to do. The dog thinks that you are showing them love and affection for how they are CURRENTLY acting. A dog associates what we do (a reward like cuddles and hugs) with the state of mind they are in at the time, what they are feeling right then. Therefore, it tends to reinforce that state of mind for the dog. He said it best to let the dog calm itself, no eye contact or cuddles or talking...so the dog learns to calm down and THEN get attention. Sounds tough since I always want to give her attention as do my kids when they ssee her, and it even seems a bit simplistic, but he swears it works and helps a dog to know how to act and how to behave well!

 

[Dee*Jay]

Diamondfan, when we got The Demon our trainer told us the same thing. And we did try positive association for some things too (when they would set off the fire works every Saturday night we would give him treats ''till he just about exploded - LOL!) But unfortunately for storms we just can''t find anything that works, and ignorning him seems cruel under the circumstances.

 

[Kaleigh]

I'm having a tough time with this too. Casper is 14 and just became afraid of thunder storms. Like out of the blue. He shakes and quivers. I knew that if I gave into his fear, I'd make it worse. But he's the kind of dog that if he isn't right next to me, he goes nuts. So I let him sit next to me, but don't reinforce the fear by saying anything. It's not working. My vet wants me to try tranquilizers. At 14, his nerves may just be getting the best of him.

 

[Mara]

Alot of people who have had this issue swear by Rescue Remedy which I think is some sort of natural herb thing you give to the dogs. Anyway...I have never tried it but I have heard it can work. I would try that before a tranquilizer.

 

[Kaleigh]

Date: 4/16/2006 10:37:21 PM
Author: Mara
Alot of people who have had this issue swear by Rescue Remedy which I think is some sort of natural herb thing you give to the dogs. Anyway...I have never tried it but I have heard it can work. I would try that before a tranquilizer.

I want to try that first. Is it something I get from the vet?? Not sure where to find it. Can you give me a link?? Thanks.

 

[diamondfan]

I think rescue rememdy comes from the health food store I think...you could check with a vet or something about it...What kind of dog is the Demon? I agree I would not want to drug an older dog, you do not want them to suffer though...

 

[msdarlinjoy]

I think it is cruel to ingnor any kind of pet when there is something out of the ordinary, esp. like Thunderstom, lightning, gunfire, fireworks. I always bring in the dogs from outside and let them stay in the kitchen where it is warm, and I think it is perfectly ok to give your pet a tranquelizer if necc. until the event has passed. We have two dog''s, a beagle and a boarder collie. Beagle does fine with load noises, the boarder collie on the other hand is hysterical! We always bring her in and also give her a dose of benadryl ... it''s just enough to take the edge off, and calms her down, it also helps eliminate excessive salivating from being in a stressed situation, and the end result ... a much less terrified animal!

Most animals sense things before they actually happen, I know Maggie our boarder collie will start pacing, whinning and trying to hind in anything that she could litterally get herself in-between, under etc... especially right before a storm approaches ... The poor girl, she is just a scardie-cat when it comes to Thunder & lightning & fireworks! Other than that, she is a good lil'' doggie.

I don''t think there is concern for addiction with tanquelizers ... I would just ask your vet what he would suggest. Just make them comfortable, bring them inside if they are out, and if needed some meds.

Good luck!

 

[diamondfan]

I would never be cruel or leave a pet outside. Dogs have a keen sense of the environment too, and often know when earthquakes are coming. This is just the view of dog behaviorists, and the theory is if you do it from when they are young it never gets too bad. of course the dog still might have fears or dislikes and knows you are available, but they operate from a more calm place. it made sense yet I think it is a bit counter intuitive, as people, we want comfort when we are upset and we understand that we are not being praised or rewarded for our state of mind at the time. I am trying this approach with our new puppy, and I think it works well with things like returning home...she is now very placid when we open the door, she is glad to see us and wags and comes over to us for pets, but she is not frantically jumping or whining at us. It also works with vet trips and things like using the vaccuum, she is simply much calmer and less freaked by this stuff now then she was at first...

 

[monarch64]

our beagle has "learned" to be afraid of storms... I say "learned" because as a puppy he just didn''t know what was going on, but when he was about 1 we had been at obedience class and as we were leaving a bad storm hit, complete with hail, as we were driving home. He leapt onto my lap as I was driving down the street, thunder booming and hail bombarding my car. From that point on he''s been scared to death of thunder, lightning, and hail storms. We find the best approach is to pay attention to him and hold him when we are home during storms. If we arent'' home, we think he must hide under our bed or seek a safe place where he feels secure (he never would let us crate train him).

We have tried a bottled remedy called Calm Down. DH thinks it''s great; I have concerns because there is a small amount of alcohol in it. We haven''t tried it as a storm remedy yet, but have used it before long road trips or other occasions during which there may be some "excitement." It seems to do the trick.

I had a dog growing up who, when thunderstorms would happen, would hide underneath a back shelf in my walk-in closet. She just lay there panting and shaking until the noise was over. Afterwards, she was fine, but we all worried about her. She''d never come down to the basement with us when there was a tornado warning, but would stay in her chosen spot. We always thought she must''ve known it was the safest place in the house somehow (the closet shared a wall with a bathroom on the first floor), and I remember telling my mother I could stay upstairs with her because the dog knew the best place to be!

 

[msdarlinjoy]

I think some animals have more "neuroligical" problems than others. I know Hubby got her Maggie, when she was about 1 year old from the pound, she had 2 days before they were going to put her down because of space and $$ issues ... she was a very needy dog in the beggining when he got her, and he just gave her lot''s of love and pets, and also started over with the training. She is a very smart lady now, 8 yrs ... but I notice that as she is getting older, she is getting more .... fragile. I wonder if Dog''s can develop nervous disorders, or even ... Alzheimers?

Hubby got her to stop barking every other day when he vaccumed, and got her to stop trying to bite and tear apart the lawn mower when she was younger, but no matter what we try now ... she get''s into this hysterical state of mind and no amount of training, love, pets etc can calm her down when a storm hits, or the forget 4th of July ... It''s amazing now that we give her a benadryl, she doesn''t get doppey, she is able to breathe normally - not pant like a choo-choo train and slober everwhere as she paces ... but she just is able to lay there under the kitchen table and watch us doing whatever it is we are doing at that particular time. She will wag her tail if we look at her, instead of whinning and pacing everywhere!

Beagle on the other hand ... I think an Earthquake could happen and he''d turn over so that you could pet and rub his belly as your trying to find the nearest door way or table! Go figure!

I wonder what that stuff is that is "herbal" ... very interesting that is for sure!

Have a wonderful evening!

 

[monarch64]

OMG, DarlinJoy, my beagle is CRAZY! When I bring him to my parents'' house about 5 hours away (they love him) I have to give him benadryl for the car ride, and then again so he''ll go to sleep at night, which still doesn''t work! I literally have to keep him on leash and keep the leash tucked under me at night in bed so he doesn''t wake my parents up over every little noise! Unfortunately, I only get to stay there for a weekend of 2 days at most, so the first evening and day he goes nutso over everything that smells or makes a noise (they live on a 65 acre used-to-be farm.) By the time I''m ready to leave on Sunday he is all calm as can be and lolling all over the place because he''s checked everything out, I guess. It''s just hard because those first two nights he cannot settle down! What to do? I''ve tried the Benadryl and Calm Down stuff and it just doesn''t work.

 

[diamondfan]

I agree with the notion that dogs (or cats) can have "issues" just like a human. I do not know how their wiring works, but I am certain, even if they do not think like humans, that they are capable of suffering from ills mentally. I know anxiety is HUGE, it causes pets to be very destructive. Pets can become extremely upset when they are left. They do not know if you are ever coming back. Some dogs will literally sit at the back door the entire day waiting til they hear their owner...

 

[msdarlinjoy]

Date: 4/17/2006 12:45:52 AM
Author: monarch64
OMG, DarlinJoy, my beagle is CRAZY! When I bring him to my parents'' house about 5 hours away (they love him) I have to give him benadryl for the car ride, and then again so he''ll go to sleep at night, which still doesn''t work! I literally have to keep him on leash and keep the leash tucked under me at night in bed so he doesn''t wake my parents up over every little noise! Unfortunately, I only get to stay there for a weekend of 2 days at most, so the first evening and day he goes nutso over everything that smells or makes a noise (they live on a 65 acre used-to-be farm.) By the time I''m ready to leave on Sunday he is all calm as can be and lolling all over the place because he''s checked everything out, I guess. It''s just hard because those first two nights he cannot settle down! What to do? I''ve tried the Benadryl and Calm Down stuff and it just doesn''t work.

Oh my gosh ... I am sorry! They do have a "nose" if you nose what I mean! My lil'' guy is a lover. He does love to sniff if we go somewhere new, but not to an excess. The breeder didn''t want to give him to me, he was going to keep him as a show dog and breed him, but the other four that he had as nice looking as they were ... didn''t have alot of white in them, esp. the face, and that is what I needed to get, as this was a replacement beagle ... we orriginally had a lil'' lemon lady beagle ... she was so sweet ... anyway sad story ... so, I told him I would have to wait since the four lil'' puppies weren''t the ones, told him the story, showed him a picture of "chloe" and he said ... well ... I do have one more back at home, it''s a male though, not a female, and he''s not lemon, but he sure does have alot of white in his face, and well he''s got the makin''s of a champion. I told him I would not show him, and I would register him, but wasn''t looking to make money and breeding him, just wanted and needed a lil'' lover for the kids and myself ... and he said he would think about it. I got a call two weeks later, and well, we have him. He has always been a great dog. Some beagles can be hyperactive, we were really blessed with him. He came back down from the mountains where he has a ranch home, and breeds. His mom came from England. Anyway, he has been a sweet blessing! I''ll have to find some pics and post one of these days. Oh and the stangest thing is that he loves to groom himself like a cat would, does your beagle do this?

Monarch, I don''t know what to tell you ... I think my dog would be like a kid in the candy store if he got to go to an old farm ... Oh all the new smells! Good luck with your next visit!

 

[firebirdgold]

My parent''s dog is just a teensy bit anxious. ok neurotic. He''s terrified of storms and even hard winds. They let him on the bed and cuddle and reassure him, but it hasn''t done anything other than make them feel better about it. Perhaps too much reassurance is telling the dog that this really is something to be afraid of. They seriously baby this dog, and since my mother is rather on the anxious side I wonder if his behavior is.. acquired rather than genetic.

Although my trainer did say that some dogs are just genetically predisposed to being anxious just like some people.

It''s different than fear-aggression which is my dog''s problem.

At least he doesn''t twitch an ear over thunder and lightening. Which is a good thing since we get a lot of it. But I never expected him to be afraid as a puppy so maybe that made a difference. Although once or twice we''ve had a storm bad enough that I got scared and went and sat with my arms around him for comfort!

Normally we both ignore storms though.
Too bad I can''t say the same thing for my dog with cats.

My new theory is that he must have had a traumatic experience as a puppy with maybe a bobcat or something. An 80 lb dog shouldn''t run inside crying because a stray cat didn''t run away when he barked and is now threatening to jump down into the yard from the fence!!

Anyway, maybe you can strike a happy medium of trying to comfort the dog while conveying the impression that there is no reason for him to be afraid? It''s a bit like a kid who falls down and skins his knee but doesn''t cry until an adult rushes over and makes a fuss over the wound.

Mrs Darlin Joy, it certainly is possible for a dog to get dementia. My parents previous dog did, and degenerated to a point where he just stared at walls. There was a bunch of wierd behavior for a long time before that, it was pretty obvious to me that there was something wrong. I''ve always wondered if the abuse he suffered as puppy had something to do with it. His previous owner''s wife (now ex) used to beat him on the head with her high heel shoes when he was just a puppy!

12 years in a loving home never totally erased that first year, and he always flinched when you moved to quickly to pet his head. Sorry for the digression. But with Maggie coming from the pound, you never know what happened before she entered your life.
As for Rescue Remedy, my boarding place swears by it! They get it at the local herbal shop. Since they are a ''cageless'' place, I think they have a lot of call for it.

 

[Lorelei]

Kaleigh here you go - this is the link for Rescue Remedy


http://www.ihealthtree.com/ihealthtree/bach-flower-remedies.html

The RR is considered to be the best all rounder for stressful situations and is well worth a try. Humans can use it too! You can put a few drops in your pet's water or a little in a treat.

 

[Dee*Jay]

You can also get it at Whole Foods (a grocery store chain -- I think they're national) or health food stores. The people at our doggie daycare place recommended it to somone else a few weeks ago for some other "malady" (can remember what; just overhead them talking while I was waiting for them to bring The Demon out).

 

[fire&ice]

Date: 4/16/2006 11:20:22 PM
Author: diamondfan
it made sense yet I think it is a bit counter intuitive, as people, we want comfort when we are upset and we understand that we are not being praised or rewarded for our state of mind at the time.

Precisely - and to add it''s almost cruel to view a doggie view in human terms. They aren''t little people.

As for Demon Dog, quite likely he has already manifestered his "response" to storms w/ positive reinforcement from you. It''s human natural response to "care" for your beloved pet. Pets learn nearly all behaviors from reinforcement. The reinforcement being your cuddling (natural instinct) during his reaction to the storm. You could try some desenstivity - acting calm like no big deal. But, if your like me, THAT''S easier said than done. Fortunately for me, I have my dogs to calm ME down. I''ve heard mixed reviews about the herbal remedies. Talk to your vet about any down side to it. I''d certainly try that before sedating him. I''d only sedate if there is a fear of destructive behavior to himself. It sounds like he''s not that bad. I''ve heard of dogs that will literall chew themselves to the point of severaly hurting them. Or, get so worked up that they are near comotose.

Good luck. I like the t-shirt idea. More than anything it''s a distraction & a "routine". Dogs thrive on routine. The problem is that the routine needs to be there if you are not.

 

[diamondfan]

F and I, what kind of dogs do you have? I have a chesapeake bay retriever. She is such a sweetie and pretty well behaved...I had not had a dog since I was a teen ager (and then I was not really doing all the training and such, just playing with the dog and leaving the work to my mom!!!) and I was a bit afraid since I have three kids and a hectic house and needed to make sure the dog started out with structure...the training said he had so many clients when the dog is older and has learned all these maladaptive, destructive things...things the owners have often unknowingly reinforced or created in their pet! I had told him about an incident when Maya got freaked by her invisible fence and came running to my side all hyped. He asked me what I did, and I of course answered that I tried to comfort and reassure her. I was surprised when he said not to do it, but when he explained it it did make sense. He kept telling me, Dogs are not people. They do not think like people. Therefore, you cannot treat them like people. Now, I try very hard to allow her her space to calm herself, and for the most part it is working well. She is barely 6 months old and she is always being complimented on how calm she is, even when we take her to Petco or out on walks...this trainer even said that when we are out, no one should pet her (strangers) until she is sitting and calm. This is hard because she is cute and friendly and people always want to pet her, but I tell her to sit and she knows to quiet down right away...I would love to have a dog that doesn''t freak out with stangers or jump up on all my guests, especially since my youngest is smaller than Maya right now and she could knock him down in an instant!

 

[fire&ice]

I''ve got Standard Schnauzers. By their very nature they are somewhat bullet proof. Cheasapeake Bay Retrivers are very nice calmer dogs. You''re trainer is correct. It''s best for her to be calm and sitting for petting. Sometimes though they get beside themselves with glee & it''s more difficult to react. 6 mos. is still very young dog for a breed that size. It''s great that she is that calm! Large breed dogs take longer to mature. They are goofy longer.

 

[AChiOAlumna]

Our dog when we were growing up was terrified of thunderstorms! She was part silky/part yorkie and a timid little thing. She just wanted to hide anywhere she could. We eventually made a "den" for her inside her favorite bathroom cabinet and when the thunder roared, she retreated to that "den". When she was ready to come out, she did so on her own....