My dog is afraid of the sound of thunderstorms

[Minty]

He keeps whining when we get thunderstorms. I usually keep him by my side but recently he gets more nervous. I wonder if you guys have been having similar situations with your dogs as well.

 

[Rosebud]

Thunderstorms commonly make dogs nervous. Have you tried a ThunderShirt? It's kind of like swaddling for dogs - the compression of the vest calms them. It might be worth a try. I have friends who say that they've helped their dogs.

 

[Skyline]

It depends on how anxious he usually is. You can try getting him earmuffs. Although some dogs find them uncomfortable to wear, I guess you can try and see if they work for your dogs first.

 

[Birdie]

I had a dog like that once and the vet told me to ignore the thunder and go about my business. In time the dog learned that the thunder was nothing special. However, my dog hadn't been abused or anything like that. I imagine it's tougher in those cases.

 

[Minty]

I forgot to reply but thanks for all your suggestions and such! It has been quite a while that he doesn’t feel comfortable with the thunderstorms. Sometimes better sometimes it gets worse.