# Severe/dangerous thunderstorm anxiety



## surrealflane (Jul 29, 2010)

So 4 days ago I got a call from a guy saying he has my dog. I thought to myself, this has to be a wrong number. The dog was inside the house and our yard is fenced. When he said she's a german shepard my heart stopped. He said she looked like she got in a fight. 

Turns out she chewed through the metal frame of the window screen, then broke though a pane of glass that's less than 12 inches tall, then ripped up a corner of chain link fence enough to escape. First, one of the guy's across the street put her back in the yard, then she went through the fence again. That's when the guy called me. She only went another block but we live 2 houses down from a very busy road and we're in South Florida where the drivers are easily the worst I've seen.

We knew she had a thunderstorm/firework anxiety, it wasn't at all this severe. She used to hide out in the bathroom for a day. We never coddled her during any of this. We tried Springtime Stress-free Calmplex and that helped with her not being in the bathroom all day, but she still got panicky. Shes chewed the wood molding from around the front and back doors and ripped off a good part of it once. She broke through her crate twice. One time popping out stitches from where she had teeth removed. When we rescued her she had 3 broken teeth. Then we tried Rescue Remedy with decent results, until the last time. 

We've been doing desensitization training with a really great thunderstorm CD (some of those cracks sound like they're right there) and rewarding her with cheese (her absolute favorite) when she doesn't run. She was making great progress. The day before she busted out, we had a storm. I left the thunderstorm cd on very low, we had the wall AC unit on, and gave her 12 drops of Rescue Remedy. I came home from work and she was fine, the only thing she did was let the rabbit out of her cage. We both thought that was wicked cute! 

So we did the same thing again and thats when she broke out. Luckily she only cut up her nose and a few small cuts. We just started her on Clomipramine and that takes weeks to build up in the system. The vet gave us Xanax to give her when needed until the other one takes effect. The problem with that is it only lasts 4 hours. We both work full time during the day and with summer here in So Fla, thunderstorms will be occurring everyday. The day it happened our vet gave us Aceprozamine, a sedative. 

Her destructive behavior only occurs when we're not there, but it hasn't been consistent. Like I said, we both work full time and day boarding her is not an option. 

We're both scared to death. We really don't know how to handle it, short of boarding the windows from the inside and even then she'll probably chew through the walls. 

Any suggestions are very much appreciated!! 
:help:


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## GSD_Xander (Nov 27, 2010)

Wow - to be honest...I don't know but I am interested in what other posters have to say. 

The only thing I can think of is crating her in a REALLY sturdy crate:
Leerburg | Aluminum Dog Crates

Or, for days there might be a thunderstorm, making a pen in the garage with very sturdy fencing (probably not just cyclone - something stronger), bolting it to the floor and having a roof on it so she can't get out.


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## JustMeLeslie (Sep 15, 2010)

Have you ever heard of the thundershirt? The anxiety your dog is experiencing is what the shirt is designed for:
Thundershirt | The Best Dog Anxiety Treatment


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## DCluver33 (May 27, 2010)

I agree with Leslie, you might want to try a thundershirt. 

when we get Thunderstorm's my dog Molly, had anxiety, she's never broken out before. I usually try to be home when they hit (which rare). when I'm home I tie her to my stairs, give her some Rescue Remedy, she gets this everyday, and try to ignore her. Now she doesn't have the anxiety as bad as your dog does though so this probably won't do anything. I'm going to try a thundershirt for her to wear everyday because her anxiety is going through the roof and nothing really seems to be working.


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## surrealflane (Jul 29, 2010)

Thanks all for your suggestions. A crate like that is way too expensive and she'd probably knock herself out trying to get out. We just ordered a Thundershirt. Initially I thought you were talking about the Thunder Cape, which worked just as well as the placebo in tests. We'll have it by the next forecasted storm. Even if it alleviates her anxiety I'll be thrilled. All the reviews seemed very positive, so I'm hopeful. I have a feeling this is gonna be a kitchen sink deal with her for awhile. 

I really did consider covering all windows from the inside with Lexan. I just got back from Lowe's getting plexiglass to replace the window. 

Anymore suggestions?


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

my friend had a dog that was very similar to this . She used to joke and say that she could phone the weather bureau and tell them a storm was approaching. The dog would get anxious about 20 minutes before a thunder storm hit. The dog would start heavy fast panting , wander around, then the eyes would glaze as if the dog was zoned out , then whining and screaming. One day we had a fast moving storm front come through, some unexpected edge of a tornado , a rarity in Ontario. 

The dog was so petrified it jumped through a front window and was found wandering around on the roads evading everyone who tried to help it. My friend was notified at work by one of the neighbours and they finally were able to catch her and make her quiet. Her solution was to have the dog in a safe room in the basement where it could not get to the windows. The noise of thunder and the flashes of lightning were dampened . Radio on provided white noise . 
Providing a little den , small refuge to withdraw to helped.
Carmen
Carmspack Working German Shepherd Dogs


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

i got my pup at 9 weeks old. i made sure in any inclimate
weather we went outside. sometimes we walked and sometimes we
just played in the yard or on a short walk. i also made sure my dog
was around fire crackers and guns being fired.


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## surrealflane (Jul 29, 2010)

We live in South Florida...no one has basements due to the water level being so high...Believe me I wish we had one. We rescued her almost a year ago and our vet estimates her to be around 3 years old. She had it pretty rough before we got her, so whatever is gonna work is gonna take some time. I wish we got her as a pup. She hears one firecracker a few blocks away and she runs for the bathroom.

I also have been playing "Through a Dog's Ears" for about 2 hrs, its a collection of classical music tested on dogs to relax them. She's been way anxious since her breakout. It took a while but right now she's just laying in her crate.


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## surrealflane (Jul 29, 2010)

so our Thundershirt arrived today. we had a mild storm after I introduced her to her new shirt and she was wearing it. there really wasn't any decent thunder, just some wind and rain, which will trigger her. I managed to get her outside off leash and had her sitting with the wind whipping and a light rain going. also I don't feel she was as frantic as usual the rest of the day. but I was home with her, so it's a totally different story. with the first use of the Thundershirt, I'd say it was positive with minor improvement. they do say it may take a few times to really see some better behavior. so we'll see and thanks again JustMeLeslie for the suggestion. DCluver33, I think its definately worth a shot.


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## KatieStanley (Apr 27, 2010)

Our female GSD has SEVERE seperation anxiety- to the point that she was hurting herself. After two months of being on a daily medication, she was a NEW dog. The medication didn't cause her to act "drugy" either- just helped her level out and learn. We weened her off after 2 months and she is doing very well. CLOMICALM for Dogs Home - Novartis Animal Health US, Inc.


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## surrealflane (Jul 29, 2010)

thank you Katie for giving us some hope for the medication. It really was a last resort and hearing that another severe case was aided is just great! :hug:


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