I guess this is the first time since we got Captain that we’ve had a really thundery thunderstorm? It seems improbable, but he’s never tried to chew through a door before, so…
I’ve never had a dog that liked thunderstorms, of course. Haplo would bark at them. Captain whines and is obviously nervous about the whole thing. I had him with me in the living room until we went to bed, and then I put him in his room, as usual. He whined and banged on the door a bit, but I figured 1) he’d stop and go to sleep, and 2) I didn’t want him to learn that if he pitched a big enough fit then Mama would come to comfort him, you know?
So I go in this morning to let him out and feed him, and the floor is covered in wood splinters from where he either ate or clawed a good bit of the way through the door. Of course, I feel awful that he was that scared, but we can’t be having that! That’s an exterior-type solid door and not cheap! (And surely not good for the dog, although I doubt he swallowed much - there’s a lot on the floor.)
So, what do you do? Sleeping with us is not an option. I didn’t want to leave him out free because I didn’t think it was a good idea for him to be all stressed about the storm and in with the cats, you know? Generally I trust them together (all day when I’m at work) but I didn’t see the point of tempting fate.
After various levels of destruction from the panic that a 100 pound dog can induce, we finally asked a neighbor who is a vet and pro dog trainer for help.
She recommended a capsule of valarian root ( available at any supplement section for adults.) It is a natural sedative for humans and works on dogs. I would give our dog 2 because of her size and within a half hour she would be snoozing through the storm.
Anecdote: When we acquired Dakota (around 3 y.o) he didn’t worry about thunderstorms or food. After he shared the house with 11y.o. Jim-Dog for awhile, he became terrified of storms and obsessive about food --just like Jim (who spent part of his puppyhood abandoned in the countryside, living on bugs and whatever else.)
Now when we have thunderstorms, Dakota wants us to open the basement door so he can go hide in the windowless downstairs office.
As for Captain, you could put a metal plate on the edible part of the door. Or you could construct a storm retreat for him, such as a sound insulated interior closet. Or a basement corner, if such is available.
I’m told that vets can prescribe a drug to calm dogs; it’s even called “the thunder pill.”
Our rescued Lhasa is terrified of loud noises. If she isn’t empty before a thunderstorm, she can’t help crapping on the floor. Walking her during the three weeks around Independence Day was frustrating. At the first bang of a firecracker, she’d turn around, and she’d pull like a tiny sled dog all the way back home.
I just heard about the drug the other day, and I have mixed feelings about it. In the summer, it’s not unusual to hear thunder every day for a week here. Is it safe to have her zonked out for two or three days in a row?
My parents terrier LOVES thunderstorms, he races outside and barks at the sky for hours, we call him THunderdog. I will be interested to see what you do, because if you keep him inside he will rip stuff up in anger. He’s a bad dog!
I have two black labs and I’ve had the same problem. They would just go NUTS during a thunderstorm, but lately I’ve also been using valarian root and it seems to be working (There have been quite a few storms here lately). So I definitly reccommend it!
She trembles, but she tries to be brave about it, watching us out of the corner of her eye to see if we’re going to help her out. When I’m home, I usually go over and let her lean on me. If it’s really bad, I’ll stop what I’m doing and go play with her – often directly engaging her with a toy gets her mind off the thunder.
Our dog, Smokey, used to be an early-warning system for thunderstorms. It took us a while to figure it out, but eventually we knew that if he was acting nervous and following family members around the house, a storm was on its way. A trainer told my mom to buy a recording of thunderstorms and play it at gradually increasing volume over several days to help him get over his fear, but it didn’t work. He wasn’t destructive or loud, so we just let him follow us around and sleep in someone’s room (on the floor).
