09/04/2021
Anxiety with thunderstorms:
Its something that is quite common in dogs. It can range from very mild to pretty severe. For some, something as simple as an anxiety wrap/thunder-shirt may work to help calm them down and for others it may take medication prescribed to your dog through a veterinarian (please dont go online to attempt to find medications to help, its always best to talk to a vet. If there is an OTC product, they will tell you) What are some tips/tricks you've heard of and tried? Did they work? Have you thought about trying some counter-conditioning to help reduce their stress?
Hope has always had mild anxiety with thunderstorms, usually laying with her head in my lap is enough to calm her down. With this being one of the first, it wasn't calming her as it normally would. Large eyes, panting, and a tight commiser were a few sure signs that she was very stressed. The only item I had available was my work hoodie which I wrapped according to the picture as best I could. This is something you can try if its late at night and there aren't other resources available. Just be sure you arent using a bandage that will self-tigthen over time (like vet wrap), as we want the wrap to feel like a tight hug, but not be constricting. After about 2 minutes she had quite panting, and after 10 minutes she laid down and fell fast asleep at my feet
