How to Deal with Your Dog's Thunderstorm Anxiety

Flashing lights. Booming cracks. Are thunderstorms terrorizing your furry loved one?

Dogs have that fight-or-flight instinct like we do. They hear a loud, scary sound and some may react without a thought. Sadly, they don't always make the right decision. Instead of hiding away temporarily like a cat, dogs try to escape and get as far away from the scariness. That doesn't bode well for them or for you!

You can help your dog in these stressful times, though!

Reward calm behavior. If you aren’t giving your dog praise or treats for being calm, now is the time. You shouldn’t wait until a storm comes. Teach your dog, in advance, that calm, relaxed behavior is appreciated and rewarded!
Create a safe haven. Where does your dog go when a storm approaches? Turn that location into a safe place by providing a cozy bed and a special treat. Ensure that your dog can easily come and go. They shouldn’t feel trapped, so I don’t recommend relying on a crate.
Desensitize. Play CDs (or other media) of thunderstorms to desensitize your dog from the sound. Keep the volume relatively low as you don’t want to scare your pet. This won’t stop their sensitivity to the static electricity or barometric pressure changes, but it can provide some relief.
Engage with your dog. Now is the time to pull out that dog tricks book and reinforce any others that your dog already knows. Ask your dog to perform a task and give him a treat when he does it.
“Dress Up” your dog. We all enjoy snuggling under the covers on dreary, stormy days. Give your dog a snug-fitting shirt to bring comfort. The ThunderShirt® is an option that's proven to work.
Ask your vet or trainer. They deal with dogs regularly, getting positive and negative feedback from their clients on what works, so they should be able to steer you in the right direction.

If your dog is a repeat escape artist due to fear, a GPS collar is a stress-free tool for knowing where your dog is when he manages to get away.

Have these tips helped? Do you have any not mentioned? Join our community of dog parents by commenting and sharing.

(And don't be shy! Myself and Kodiak are here to answer any dog-related questions you may have. Send an email to customerservice@goodlifeinc.com with “Ask Kodiak” in subject line and it may be featured on this very blog.)

Oh this works great on my dog’s barking. I used it once… just a super short correction. He stopped barking and after that I just had to say his name , show him the unit , he stopped instantly what he was doing.

I'm able to get the neighbors dogs to reduce their barking.

I had to purchase a second dog silencer, one close to the dog on automatic was not enough. The second I use with the remote to activate when the dogs keep barking to silence. I would be nice to have a setting to have silencer active for extended period of time, like 10 to 30 minutes to make the stubborn dogs get the message not to bark. Now the most effective way to get the dogs to stop barking when they won't stop, is the press the remote every 10 seconds for 5 to 15 minutes. The continuous activation make the dogs quite down for awhile.

Ultimate Dog Bark is the best!

I've been using their products for years and can' say enough good things about their service and the quality of their products. They're the best.

They really work !

I am surrounded by neighbors who let their dogs bark day and night and who don't care about their neighbors, nor the CC&R rules of our HOA. Talking to the neighbors has been a waste of time. This has been going on for about 10 years with the HOA nor the City of Las Vegas willing to do anything about it. I tried different dog barking silencers and then about 6 years ago bought these. It took a while, but the dogs finally started to stop barking when the Dog Silencers would sound. Out in the desert sun for 6 years, 1 of them started to work intermittently so I bought 2 more, replaced 1, and installed 1 on my side of the block wall set on automatic. That really shut those dogs up fast. The range on the manual transmitter is also excellent. Try these. They work.

It is as described and as expected.

Add to your order

Cover this Product

2-Year Warranty CAD

3-Year Warranty CAD

How to Deal with Your Dog's Thunderstorm Anxiety

Recent Articles

Will it Work on This Dog?

Festive Foods Can be Dangerous for Your Dog

It's All in the Fine Print!

What Do Porcupine Quills and Crowdfunding Have in Common?

Adopt a Senior Pet

Find Us on Social Media

Let customers speak for us