Why Are Some Dogs Afraid Of Thunder?
Our dog, Jake, is not really afraid of thunder, but I remember growing up with Peppi, a Schnauzer / Poodle mix that was terrified of thunder, fireworks, gun shots and anything else noisy and sudden. He’d try to hide under the bed, in the basement, under a box – whatever he could find.
The fear of thunder and loud noises, in general, is a natural response in pets and humans. It prepares us to protect ourselves if required. Dogs may overreact to loud noises because of a significant scary event in their lives. For some dogs, this snowballs to becoming more and more scared of lesser and lesser noises.
There are a number of “therapies” that can be used to try to lessen your dog’s anxiety, not necessarily effective. I’ve heard of some specialists have your pet listen to a recording of noises at a high level, and gradually lessening it as they become used to it. I am no dog psychologist, but this doesn’t seem to be the right approach and may make the fear more intensified.
Peppi is gone for a couple decades now, but we have gotten reports from numerous customers that the Thundershirt for Dogs is an effective therapy. If you have any other therapies that have worked, please do not hesitate to post them here and help all of our readers!