Weathering Summer Storm Season With Your Furry Family Members

Here in the Krebs' household, storm season is no fun.

We have had two dogs with thunderstorm anxiety - our first greyhound Condor and now our Maddox. 

We shared our lives with Condor for nearly six years, before losing her to bone cancer in 2009.  Condor knew a thunderstorm was coming over an hour before it began.  I believe she was picking up on either a change in barometric pressure or static electricity.  It could be perfectly sunny out and her anxiety would begin - panting, whining, pacing and trembling.  Through the years, Condor's storm phobia lessened.  She never liked them, but they became much less stressful to her as years passed.

Condor, our first of 7 rescued greyhounds

Maddox has been a very different experience.  When he joined our family in 2009, he didn't seem to have thunderstorm anxiety the first few times we had storms.  But then came New Year's Eve fireworks, and then the 4th of July holiday and summer storms of 2010, and it was a sound phobia snowball rolling downhill.  Pretty soon, he didn't have to hear thunder to become anxious.  Hard rain was enough, and then seeing the trees blow in the wind sufficed.  Then loud vehicles and motorcycles driving by would frighten him.  He trembles so violently that we can feel the floor vibrate in the room he's standing in.  He flushes pink from head to toe as his blood pressure sky rockets, and his heart rate goes through the roof.  It is a very frightening experience for all of us.

Maddox, enjoying a beautiful fall day in our yard

We tried many different natural approaches to helping him with his anxiety, but ultimately found that we had to address it with the help of our veterinarian and anti-anxiety medications.  Hopefully his phobias will lessen as time passes.

Dogs with storm anxiety respond physiologically.  A study showed that a dog's cortisol level - a stress hormone - can increase 200% on average.

If your dog has thunderstorm anxiety or sound phobias, here are some things to try -

• Give them a 'safe place' to hide.  This could be a closet, a bathroom or a room in the basement.  A room without windows is ideal - this helps with sound insulation as well as preventing your dog from seeing lightning.
• Play music or the television more loudly than normal to help drown out storm sounds. Running a fan might help too.
• Give your dog a special chew treat (such as a bully stick or an elk antler) or toy, or play a game that he enjoys, to help distract him.
• Try an anti-anxiety garment such as the Thundershirt or the Anxiety Wrap.  The acupressure provided by these garments can ease a dog's fear during high stress times, including storms, travel and introduction to new people or places.
• Homeopathic remedies work for some dogs.  This may include herbal solutions like Rescue Remedy for Pets by Bach Flower Remedies, nutritional supplements or aromatherapy.  Please speak with your veterinarian before trying any of these, or consider seeing a holistic veterinarian for your pets' care.
• Consider anti-anxiety drug therapy with the assistance of your veterinarian.  This approach is a process, as it has been for us with Maddox.  Learning your pets' triggers, using behavior modification, and having an ongoing dialog with your vet about the efficacy of treatment are keys to success.

If you have pets that experience storm phobia, or other types of anxiety, please let me know what your approach has been and what things have helped!

Summer storms are part of life, but hopefully pet parents and the veterinary community will continue to find effective ways to make it easier for Maddox and others like him to weather them.

Georgia on my mind...

Which of course brings Ray Charles to mind.  Good stuff, huh?

Georgia is on my mind because today through the end of the week, we have a very high chance of thunderstorms.  I'm glad for the rain, but along with it comes the possibility of severe weather conditions such as heavy rain, high winds and lightning.

John and I moved to Acworth from Orlando, Florida in 2006.  We were glad to get out of hurricane central, especially having experienced a direct hit from Hurricane Charley on August 13, 2004. We rode out the storm in our master bedroom closet - 'we' being John, our Rottweiler Katie, our first greyhound Condor, our cat Ernie and me.  We were very fortunate, because we were woefully unprepared.  Just a few weeks later, another hurricane was forecast to affect our area as well, and it sent us packing.  We drove two cars through the night to John's parents' home in the Panhandle, and stayed there - with all of our furkids - for a week until the risk was over. 

Hurricanes are of little to no threat to us here in north Georgia, but tornadoes are.  We've had a few close calls at home that have sent us scurrying to the basement with all of our animals in tow - Flex, Taylor, Maddox and Chipmunk (our four greyhounds) and Coleman The Cat.  I've had one close call as a pet sitter, during which I spent some time in a client's basement bathtub with two cocker spaniels.  I chuckle now thinking about it, but it wasn't very funny at the time.

We should all have a disaster preparedness plan that includes our animal companions.

Hurricane Katrina led to the passage of the PETS Act of 2006, which requires states seeking FEMA assistance to accommodate pets and service animals in their plans for evacuating residents facing disasters.  That was certainly a step in the right direction, but the protection of our animal family members is ultimately up to us.

You should have -

• a plan in place for transporting your pets if evacuation is necessary.  For us, that means we will take both of our vehicles to accommodate our four dogs and cat.
• an idea of where to go and stay.  Perhaps that means friends' or family members' residences located outside of the affected area.  It could also mean staying at pet-friendly lodging.
• copies of your pets' vaccination records and information for their care, including medications, diet and health history.  These documents should be stored in a waterproof container and kept in a easily accessed area.
• leashes and collars *with ID* in a readily available location in your home.  Hopefully, all of your furry family members wear collars with ID at all times.
• at least a one-week supply of food, water and medications.
• a pet first aid kit.
• knowledge of your area and familiarity with emergency resources.

Looking at this list tells me I have some work to do, and it may do the same for you.  

Here's to a safe and uneventful storm season for all of us, and to having the peace of mind that comes with proper planning.