Thunder Shirt

[Root Beer]

I'm always looking for new things to help Dean with his thunderphobia. I've tried a lot of things that didn't work, but I still keep trying. He actually is on medication, and the medication helps him recover after the storms are over and gone, but it has never really done a lot for him while the storms are actually happening.

 

Recently I got a "Thundershirt" for him. This is a newer product, and it is different from the Thundercape that I got for him a few years ago (which really did not help him because it only addresses the static electricity in the air, not the noise phobia part). The Thundershirt is made of a stretchy t-shirtlike material and it wraps around the torso, and the chest. It is the wrap effect that is supposed to help with the anxiety.

 

This morning I woke up to him shaking next to me, and then I heard the thunder. I had already had him wear the Thundershirt a few times when it wasn't storming, so I decided to give it a try. To my surprise, it actually helped him. He still hunkered down on the futon, but the shaking, hyperventilating, and profuse drooling stopped completely. And that was in spite of the fact that that storm actually got a lot louder after I put the Thundershirt on him. He was still worried about the thunder, but he actually calmed down a lot.

 

This is worth a try if you have a dog with thunderphobia. They do offer a money back guarantee if the shirt does not help the dog. I ordered it off of Karen Pryor's website. I'm not sure if it's available anywhere else.

[yvette9995]

Thanks for posting this- I had a look at their website and am intrigued. Greta doesn't have a problem with thunder or noise phobias, but I'm wondering if anyone has tried this for leash aggression or overexcitement issues? The company claims that it also works to calm the dog in those situations as well. I'm thinking of getting the shirt, especially since there is a money back guarantee, but would love to hear more feedback on this product before buying it.

[AmandaMJL]

My friend Jeannie has something like that for her BC girl who does not like thunder and it really works for her!

[Root Beer]

Thanks for posting this- I had a look at their website and am intrigued. Greta doesn't have a problem with thunder or noise phobias, but I'm wondering if anyone has tried this for leash aggression or overexcitement issues? The company claims that it also works to calm the dog in those situations as well. I'm thinking of getting the shirt, especially since there is a money back guarantee, but would love to hear more feedback on this product before buying it.

 

I'd say it's worth a try, but in that case, I would also do some CU training to address those two issues, in addition to use of the shirt.

 

I'm thinking of trying it with Speedy in a situation where there might be barky dogs that would spook him. I've never used anything like that on him and I'm interested to see if it makes a difference. I tried it on him yesterday and he didn't seem to mind having it on.

[kimkathan]

I used this product on my bred bitch last summer. She would work herself into such a fret, that I was afraid she would stroke out or loose the pups, constantly under foot, quaking, panting; just a nervous wreck. Most meds, didn't help, and what did, I really didn't want to use on here at that point. I ordered one thinking what would it hurt. It calmed her enough that she could get herself to her crate and lie there, not happy, but not as stressed as she normally would be. I'd definatly say that it did help.