Thunderstorms

[Guest carlysmom121]

Tis the season--

 

for thunderstorms.

 

I love them, but my grey does not! I can't stand the anxiety that it puts her thru and the drool spots on the floor are dangerous to the humans in the house.

I know there are pharmacuticals for this but I am looking for a more natural (holistic tincture) remedy.

 

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[Ruth]

I have a girl that has this and I found that Melaonin 1 mg. works wonders along with her safe space. You can give them up to 3 mg's but I found that one is enough for Polo. It just clams her down and doesn't make a zombie out of her. She has problems with the barametric pressure so it isn't just the storms that get to her. We know they are coming an hour before they get her. You can get it almost anywhere. I get mine at the health food store. Hope this will help.

 

Ruth in Idaho

[Guest Judynyc]

Yes, I agree with melatonin as I too, have had great success with it for my dog with thunder phobias.

I gave it to her as soon as I heard the thunder and 20-30 minutes later, she was sleeping.

A larger dog can handle up to 3 mgs so if 1 mg doesn't do it, don't be afraid to go to 2 or 3.

[Stoney]

We tried all the non Rx methods on Stoney.

 

Melatonin - didn't do anything to him

'Happy Traveler' - ditto

Rescue Remedy - same thing

Lavender oil and pressure point massage - HA!

Tight fitting shirts/clothing - made him look funny but didn't help

Rubbing w/ a bounce sheet - made him smell good - but didn't help

Canine Lullabies CD - made us sleepy - but didn't do anything for the dog

Confined spaces (closet, bathroom, crate) - just made him nervous

 

Then we tried Xanax - which didn't do much even when we gave him the max dosage.

 

Finally we hit on Valium. 30mg about 30 min before the storm hits is best. Even if we don't know about the storm 30 min in advance we can give it to him and it really calms him down. The best part is that it doesn't make him a zombie dog. He does get really relaxed and lays around looking stoned - but he's still his normal 'Stoney' self.

 

Sometimes the fear and anxiety are too much for the natural/non Rx methods to work.

[brandimom]

I don't have any experience in this but I have heard the anxiety wrap works well.

 

I have a girl that has this and I found that Melaonin 1 mg. works wonders along with her safe space. You can give them up to 3 mg's but I found that one is enough for Polo. It just clams her down and doesn't make a zombie out of her. She has problems with the barametric pressure so it isn't just the storms that get to her. We know they are coming an hour before they get her. You can get it almost anywhere. I get mine at the health food store. Hope this will help.

 

Ruth in Idaho

Thanks for that reminder. The president of our group who has had greys 20+ years also gives one of her greys melatonin 3 mg. and it calms her down too.

[ivon]

I have a theory, but can't test it since both of my dogs are bomb-proof ( the neighbor set off fireworks last weekend, I jumped and cussed, the dogs didn't even lift their heads), but I had thunder phobic Labs in the past. I now know I was feeding their anxiety by feeling sorry for them and comforting them when they freaked out.....but anyway, my theory goes like this: what if you were to play a CD with thunder sounds, and every time it rumbles give a treat. If the dog starts freaking out, turn off the sound, no more treats. Over time thunder becomes a good thing, right?

[RobinM]

We tried all natrual remedies first, with no luck and wound up with 10mg of valium. It works wonders and takes them out of their misery.

 

10 mg and they are good. You can give in extreme emergencys up to 20mg in 24 hours but always speak to your vet first.

[sobesmom]

It's not a scientific theory, but when we first got Sobe, and he freaked out at thunderstorms - it was the noise that got to him - so - we upped the noise in our (usually quiet) house to drown it out. We turned on every TV in the house, plus the radio, and turned on box fans, so you couldn't hear the thunder. Fans are really good for drowning out noise, without being too noisy.

 

After he got more comfortable, we gradually lowered to volume. Even a fan in the room he's in might help. A good ole box fan, not a "good quiet" one. Ten bucks at Walmart might help a lot. I can't even hear a thunderstorm at night if there's a box fan in my bedroom window...

 

[KF_in_Georgia]

Is it the noise that starts the trouble? Or the barometric pressure?

 

If it's the noise, try a thunderstorm CD.

 

Jacey's first storm at my house, she jumped and spooked. Fortunately, it was a short storm.

 

I broke out the thunderstorm CD. (Its non-rhythmic booms are perfect for drowning out a neighbor's annoying bass track.) I let Jacey watch me put it in the player, and I pushed the button and played. She was just curious about it--not frightened. The walls didn't rumble or shake, and I think she quickly realized the noise from the player was harmless.

 

For a while after that, when I had to leave her at home, I'd leave the CD playing in a loop. And I'd play it in the bedroom at night when we were all sleeping. (I love a good thunderstorm to sleep by.) Leaving the player running during the day just meant that she got used to the noise more quickly, and it also masked any sounds of real approaching storms. And it helps that Sam doesn't even blink for a storm.

 

Then we had a humdinger of a storm on a day I was home. The dogs and I went out and sat in the carport--sheltered from the rain--where Jacey could see the flashes and feel the booms. Sam laid down and went right to sleep. Jacey stood and watched for a time, then laid down. She didn't sleep, but she didn't panic.

 

We still go out to the carport if there's a storm while I'm home. Sam sleeps. Jacey lays down right away, rests her head on my leg, and watches the storm. I've always thought that I caught an incipient thunder phobia right in the nick of time. (She's had several little phobias for us to work through. She's not a spook--but she's been skittish about all kinds of unexpected things--like envelopes with crinkly cellophane windows. )

 

---

 

If it's the barometric pressure that triggers her stress, then the CD won't help. Have you looked into the Storm Defender Cape? I've heard of success stories, and they offer a full refund if it doesn't help.

[Anne]

Tried all the non-prescription remidies... not one bit of luck, nothing but a terrified dog.

Tried wraps and such and the thunder cape helped at first and now nothing.

Tried Valium and Xanax, nothing when in theraputic range.

Finally tried ace and it worked, and worked well.

Now the storms here aren't all that long (though they are way more violent than Ohio) a little benedryl works fine for us, and now that the dogs are all seniors, I feel better about benedryl vs. ace.

 

 

[Guest fatesrelease]

We had some last night, and so far Sarah didn't react to them so that's a good sign! I don't know if it's because she didn't hear them (they weren't very loud) or if she doesn't care, but I guess we'll find out in the months to come!

[Ruth]

We realized it was the pressure for Polo when we took her to the mountains and she acted the same way as BEFORE a storm. She starts panting and shaking about an hour before there is any thunder or anything else except the feeling in the air that a storm is coming. When we would go to the mountains we had to do the Melatonin just like at home before a storm. Wayne finally figured out it must be the pressure when his ears pluged and finally did that poping thing. It started for him about the same time it did for Polo. We don't take Polo to the mountains any more.

 

I have also found that she will pick her safe spot and lay and shake and if I cover her will a light blankey that it helps her also. She snuggles down in it and settled quicker.

 

Hope this helps some.

 

Ruth in Idaho

[Guest 4greytful]

melatonin, lavender oil and Storm Defender Cape http://www.stormdefender.com/how_it_works.htm