Is your dog afraid of thunder, lightning, and rain? Mine is. We had a huge storm last night. Some tornadoes formed down south of us, but we had a lot of wind and rain. At one point (around two in the morning), the rain was coming down almost horizontally. It was a fun night.
Belle has always had a fear of storms. She trembles a bit and slinks under a table, but it has progressed significantly further than that. We had a series of hurricanes come through our state several years ago. Though it seemed like they were one after another, I think there were several months in between. Then, two years ago, we had a series of tornado scares. Sirens went off in what seemed like two hour intervals, both day and night. It was very nerve-wracking - both for me and for Belle.
I don’t doubt that the frequency of storms we have had in the last several years have impacted Belle in a negative way, but I think that I contributed to it as well. Not only with my body language, which, as you dog owners know, dogs can read with ease, but also with my response to her fear. Like any new dog owner, I wanted to comfort my dog in her time of stress, so I would pet her, and talk to her and try to comfort her. I thought this would help.
After listening to one of the master of dog training’s shows, Cesar Milan, I found out that this actually encourages the neurosis in the dog. By providing positive reinforcement to her behavior, I was encouraging her to become more and more fearful and act out.
She became a drooler during storms, pacing back and forth incessantly. Then one time she was so upset, she hopped into the tub! This was unbelievable to me, because this is where she gets her baths — and she HATES baths.
Finally, during one storm, she was trying to find a place to hide and escape, and she was banging in to things and I was afraid that she would hurt herself. When she acts like this, it upsets me as well. She even crawled underneath a bed one time, that is only about 9 inches from the floor. I thought for sure she was stuck, but a few hours later, she eventually got out.
I read some online research and then talked to some friends of mine who have had multiple dogs and are good at solving dog problems.
My dog came to me crate trained (Thank goodness!). All I have to do is tell her “it’s time for bed,” and she heads straight for her crate. I *really* appreciate whomever taught her this trick. It’s come in handy more than once.
After speaking with my friend, we came up with a solution to keep Belle from hurting herself during storms and to help calm her. He recommended that as soon as she shows signs of fear - the pacing and drooling, that I should send her to her crate and cover the crate up with a sheet or towel.
I can not tell you how much this has helped. At first I felt like I was punishing her and I felt bad for keeping her locked up when we had long storms, but whenever my guilt overcame me and I let her out, she would start her destructive behavior again. She is much calmer, safer, and I am much happier with her in her crate during storms. I think she feels safer and I don’t have to worry about her getting injured.
I don’t know if this will help other dogs, but it was a great solution to my dog’s problem. I don’t know if she will ever decrease her fear of storms, but at least this is a way to manage the results.
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