My life is dedicated to helping dogs while remaining compassionate to the wide variety of dog owners.
Note: This is a review written by my mom Nancy who maintains a breast cancer blog called Nancy’s Point. She also writes about her dogs Elsie and Sophie.
I was dying to know if the Thundershirt really works, so the company agreed to send us a free sample in exchange for a review on ThatMutt.com.
Get additional tips to stop your dog from crying and barking here.
Thundershirt review
My golden retriever Elsie is a bit nervous during thunderstorms.
OK, this is an understatement.
Elsie is extremely nervous during thunderstorms. In fact, it doesn’t even need to be an actual thunderstorm.
Elsie almost seems to have some kind of built-in barometric pressure reader. She seems to know when a thunderstorm is coming. Then when it finally does arrive, the real fun begins.
When Elsie senses an approaching thunderstorm, all the classic canine symptoms of anxiety begin to kick in.
She becomes restless. Her body language “screams” worry. She paces. She sniffs the air. She pants – a lot. She whimpers. She forcefully nudges her way under my legs or chair. She “digs.” She tries to find a safe spot. She can’t – in her mind, there isn’t one.
These behaviors start off on the mild side, but quickly escalate, becoming highly annoying and frustrating. Elsie ends up in full-blown, panic-attack mode. I kid you not.
Whenever these symptoms begin to happen, I immediately put her in her kennel in my basement and turn a fan onto its highest setting in order to cool her down and hopefully drown out some of the “terror.”
I have tried ignoring such behaviors. No luck.
I have tried providing comfort verbally and physically by speaking reassuringly while petting and stroking her gently. No luck.
I have tried putting her into a confined space such as a bathroom.
I have even tried an anti-anxiety drug via her vet. Again, to no avail.
So when That Mutt offered me an opportunity to test out a product called the Thundershirt, I was thrilled.
I thought, wow, finally something to try that might work!
When it arrived in the mail, all I had to do was wait for some thunderstorms to materialize.
Of course, a dry spell ensued.
As it turned out, our trial run came at the perfect time for further testing. The Fourth of July was also fast approaching.
In addition to thunderstorms, Elsie is also terrified of fireworks and firecrackers. Since we live in Wisconsin where such noisemakers are legal, we get to hear such sounds for more than a few days before and after the Fourth.
More opportunity for testing!
Now a bit about the product.
The particular product I am critiquing is called the Thundershirt and is marketed as “The Best Solution for Dog Anxiety.”
It has a patent-pending design that applies constant pressure on a dog’s abdomen. This pressure is intended to calm the dog, much like swaddling an infant is supposed to calm her. It’s basically a “wrap” for your dog held in place with Velcro.
The Thundershirt for dogs is labeled as safe, effective, drug free and easy to use, so I will comment on these four claims.
Safety – Yes, it is a safe product to use as far as I can tell, although I did not leave it on my dog while she was kenneled as she tends to chew/destroy things in her kennel when she is agitated. I didn’t know if she would “eat” the product or harm herself with it in some way. She probably would not have, but my choice was better safe than sorry.
Drug free – Yes! I don’t like drugs for myself or for my dogs.
Easy to use – Hmm. I am not good with puzzles. Thankfully the Thundershirt came with a good diagram. Let’s just say I needed it! Most people will probably figure it out more quickly than I did.
Effective – Well, for my dog, not so much.
Will a Thundershirt stop my dog’s fear of storms?
For our particular situation, the Thundershirt did not prove to be very effective in reducing my dog’s stress.
I did notice a slight decrease in her anxiety with a gentle rain (no thunder or lightening, just drizzle), so this was something I will keep testing. Yes, my dog starts to get nervous even when there is a gentle rain!
Maybe she can progress. Who knows?
One positive thing is that Elsie did not seem to mind one bit about putting on or wearing the Thundershirt. There was no struggle to put it on her at all.
Another observation I made was that part of the Velcro came undone after only one use.
All in all, the Thundershirt did not solve our problem.
Could the Thundershirt work for other dogs?
The Thundershirt did not help Elsie overcome her thunderstorm anxiety. However, every dog is an individual and this product may or may not help your dog.
It is important to point out that my dog is an extreme case. If you have a dog only beginning to exhibit signs of anxiety, this product might be of help in keeping the problem from getting worse.
This product is also intended to help with other issues like separation anxiety, barking, travel anxiety, excitability, leash pulling and fearfulness.
It can also be used as a general training tool. For example, it could be used to keep your dog more focused on the lesson at hand.
It may or may not come in handy for these uses. I did not test it for any of these purposes.
If you have a dog suffering from anxiety, the Thundershirt might be worth a try, especially since the company does offer a 100 percent guarantee that it will work or you can return it for a full refund.
You gotta love that!
How much does a Thundershirt cost?
The Thundershirt is priced at $39.95 on Amazon – order your Thundershirt here!
Does your pet suffer from thunderstorm anxiety? What (if anything) works for your dog?
*Thundershirt provided a free product in exchange for a review on this blog. Remember to check out Nancy’s Point, a great blog about grief, breast cancer and other topics.
Lookin’ good, Elsie!
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I have a 10mo old minpin, who has separation anxiety. He’s potty trained, obedience trained. We are having problems crate training him because of the anxiety.
We talked briefly to the vet about meds, because we’ve tried everything else. Rescue Remedy seems to have the opposite effect on him. He’s broken out of his crate several times now to the point we had to buy padlocks to hold the doors closed, since he’s learned to unlatch the doors.
Do you think the shirt would work for our situation? I am afraid in investing the money for it, and not getting any results. We want our little guy to be comfortable and not afraid. Makes me sad!!!
Please feel free to email me with your comments. I’d appreciate it.
I don’t think it will solve your problem. It might help slightly.
My dog Mollie has separation anxiety. When i am gone for more then a day she wont eat will the thundershirt help her?
Probably not
My dog flips out and destroys my house when I leave for only ten minutes, I am also hesitant to get this because I fear she will find a way to rip it off and eat it.
My dog suffers, anxienty of everything, Kids shouting and being roudy, fireworks, thunderstorms, shouting and she even cowers if some used swearing language and she has travel sickness…..she is 14yrs old and i know she is old but here the golden questions….Do you think it would work for her..(i think i know your response)
You know my response, yes. It probably won’t help very much, but it may help a little.
I have used the Thunder Shirt on my Great Pyrenees and it reduces his stress from storms about 60%. It has allowed us to enjoy storms again!
I had to reply to your comment because I just can’t imagine trying to control a 125-pound dog that is having a panic attack. My Aussie mix weighs about 45 pounds and I can barely control her. She’s not stressed by thunderstorms, but the Fourth of July noises send her right through the ceiling.
Its terrible when large dogs freak out, mine destroys my house when I leave. I cant hide anything from her, shes huge and can reach everything when she stands, shes taller than me.
I am happy to finally find a review of how it works on larger dogs, I also have a Great Pyrenees.
I have a 3 yr old Austrailian Shepard who went insane when we USED to take him on walks if another person or animal would pass by. Since we are not able to walk him anymore because of this (fearing he might do something) we let him and our other dog take over the back yard which is about a full fenced in acre. But again, of course when any person may be walking down the side walk, another animal, even a squirrel on the other side catches his eye he goes insane and now has been able to figure out how to jump the fence. We’ve gotten tickets from the cops and a dog warning in the mail…He’s never bitten anyone, and as soon as we know hes out we can get him back in insantly…NOW he’s learned to open the sliding back door by himself that we try to keep locked so sometimes we have no idea that their even out!!! We are getting so frieghtened because hes jumped the fence and gone insane with barking and jolting up to the mail man at least 8 times in the past 3 months……we are getting so scared that we might have to put him down. Do you think this is cause of anxiety? And do you think the thundershirt will help??
Since it has a money-back guarantee, I’d sure be willing to try it. Have you tried the electric dog collar? I know it’s a little severe, but it might help control your dog so you don’t have to put him down. Just a suggestion.
NEVER use any punishment with a fearful dog. It will make the problem much worse, and may actually cause aggression, which will require the dog to be euthanized if it gets bad enough.
The best solution is desensitization and counter-conditioning.
I’m a little late, but hoping you’ve found a way to help out your pup. It sounds like a lot of anxiety and maybe even protection of the humans he so dearly loves. A good trainer should be able to help you. It will make both of you much happier.
I wanted to comment on the electric fence/collar. While I do agree that punishment is a very bad idea for fearful dogs, I don’t at all consider the underground fence a punishment. We have four dogs, three of witch don’t think that over an acre of land is enough space and will dig under the fence to wander for a while. Even though we have a fence, we put in the underground fence inside it to stop their behavior.
If they are trained correctly on the fence, which can certainly be done with positive training, they understand that it is a boundary and not a punishment. The collars we have provide a training level…beep only… and several levels of shock. The three dogs who wear the collars only need the beep. After training they NEVER get shocked because we trained them to stop at the beep and we don’t even take it off the training mode.
That being said…still with proper training…if they needed to have the level turned up, I would rather have that than for their safety or someone else’s safety to be at risk. It is not painful, they simply don’t like it. I’ve held the collar tight and run it over the fence to see how it feels. I wouldn’t use it if I thought it brought harm to my furry children.
There are very strong feelings about shock correction on both sides of the fence (haha) and I can see both sides. It also doesn’t work for all dogs. However, for ours it works wonderfully and I don’t have to worry when we are home or out of town.
Again, I hope you found a solution. I know it’s difficult, but hang in there!
I am so sorry to hear about the aggression issues. That is hard on everyone. No, I do not think the Thundershirt will help. Worth a shot, i guess. I think he needs a lot of exercise, training and structure. Would it be possible to hire a trainer to help you? Best of luck to you.
Sarah, have you contacted a professional trainer or animal behaviorist? You really should. Your local shelter or humane society can probably help you find someone who can help. Look for someone who uses positive reinforcement training.
Please get your dog some training from a well reviewed dog trainer. This behaviour can be and should be changed. Your dog deserves it. Take care
Thundershirt worked great for my 1 year old German Shepard mix I just got from arf.net. He cries non-stop to get attention. I have not slept since I got him, 3 days ago. I picked up a Thundershirt this afternoon at Petco. He stopped crying and is sleeping right now. I take it off, he starts crying and looking for attention.
This product is awesome.
I have a 7 year old lab mix…very hyper, seperation anxiety, fear of storms, fireworks, etc….and it did not work with her.
Looks like my Golden Retriever Sunny May is exactly like your Elsie… She has the same symptons when a storm is approaching and does not calm down long after it is over. I do not think a Thundershirt would work for her either. Nevertheless, I will put her raincoat on, a little tighter than I would normally do, just to check this thing about pressure… We live in Brazil where Thundershirt is not sold yet. So we will have to do with something similar…
I hope it works!
It works for us!!!! we just bought a Thundershirt on the recommendation of our son whose 1 yr old had huge anxiety issues – it really calmed her down. Over the years our 6 yr old terrier’s reaction to storms and fireworks has become extreme – we were concerned that he would have a heart attack if he continued. It is pitiful to watch the violent shaking and panting – he can’t settle, wanting to hide in a corner, but also needing to be near us for protection. The Thundershirt arrived this morning. We put the Thundershirt on quite snugly. The fireworks started a couple of hours ago. Our terrier is lounging relaxed as you like on the sofa taking absolutely no notice of the noises outside. We can barely believe it. With the money back guarantee I’d recommend anyone who has a dog with issues to try it. I can send a pic of Josh chillin’ in his Thundershirt if interested.
I’d love to see your photo. I’m glad it has helped your dog!
The thundershirt is amazing!! It worked immediately with my puppy. He is a 4 month lab chow mix. I am pleasantly suprised!!
Bailey came from a rescue shelter. Ten year old 22 pound Cocker Spaniel !
He was wearing a thunder coat. I am not sure why? I was told he suffered anziety at being caged at the shelter. But, I doubt that is where he was given a coat.
He is a very laid back dg after just three days here. He and I attached almoast momentarily.
Should I leave it on always or most of the time, or only at day time or only on possible stressful events. Thunder storms are rare around here. Same for fireworks. Even the visit to the Vet didn’t seem to cause him any stress.
Bailey is anything but hyper.
Maybe just take it off and use it in the future if he seems stressed.
can someone explain the theory behind this Thundershirt, also, whats the material and does it have zippers because my 7 month old Coton du Tulear who loves to chew anything. she has anxiety when we leave her sight or the house.can it be washed? she is crated when we leave the house but can hear her yelping and carrying on. could she be left alone with it on?
I believe the theory behind the Thundershirt is that deep pressure over a large part of the body is calming to many people and animals. I have seen the effectiveness of deep pressure in calming the anxiety of autistic children and my own dogs.
Temple Grandin is an autistic woman and associate professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University. She grew up on a cattle farm, and used her observations to help herself (she developed a “squeeze box” to help her relieve her own anxiety after seeing the squeeze chute vets use with cattle), and to help the animals (she developed more humane slaughter yard environments to reduce animal anxiety and panic). She believes that what makes her different as an autistic person helps her see the world as animals see it…with pictures, not words. She has written several books that I have found extremely helpful. “Animals in Translation” is one of them. They are very readable, and are available at local bookstores and at Amazon.com. Valuable insights even if you are not interested in the Thundershirt!!
I read Animals in Translation and I thought it was interesting.
The company says it is safe to leave on the dog, so I don’t think there are any materials that would harm your dog if she chews it. You may want to contact Thundershirt directly, but I know of many, many people who put it on their dogs and then crate their dogs – leaving them unsupervised.
I hope it helps your dog!
I’ve heard a lot of great things about Thundershirt first hand but haven’t tried it on my dogs. If it helps with excitability, I wonder if it would help my Labrador Maya on our upcoming road trip from Kansas to Texas. She loves to ride in the car and whines excitedly for the first 15-20 minutes, then starts all over again every time we make a pit stop. It’s cute for the first 5 minutes but then it gets really annoying. Oh my, oh my, oh my Maya.
Ace has a similar whining problem in the car, and I agree, it’s very annoying! I do think the Thundershirt might help for both our dogs. I wil let you know if I try it.
I have a puppy mill rescued pug. She could have been the poster child for puppy mill abuse horror stories. She’s fine in the morning with my husband. She loves him to death. At night she goes crazy when he comes home. She barks until she makes us crazy. Nothing seems to work. I have tried drugs, pherinome sprayers, I have even sqrayed her with water while giving her a stern “Hush!” when she barks at him, but nothing works. She’s too worked up to stop. I’m sure it’s some memory from her abusive past making her go nuts. Will the Thundershirt help her?
No I don’t think the Thundershirt will help your situation. Doesn’t hurt to try, of course.
I read your story about your dogs issues and my heart just went out to you. I had rescued a severely abused Malamute when she had been hit by a car and the people drove off. She apparently had been dumped, and then got hit by the car. The vet I took her to found evidence of repeated physical abuse, which of course results in an emotionally damaged animal.
Now what I am about to tell you worked extremely well, but it may not be conventional. She suffered from nightmares which caused her to wake up screaming as if she was being tortured. My vet had no suggestions but heavy meds, which turned her into a zombie.
I contacted a Homeopath Physician ( which I used) and asked him if there was any thing he could suggest. He told me to put Gorse( a Bach Flower Remedy) which you can get at most good health food stores, on the area between her eyes.( Do not get it in her eyes) ,. Several times a day so it is constantly fresh. The first night she only woke up 3 times instead of every two hours. It continued to diminish the night terrors over a period of several weeks until she slept through the night. , for her, her aggression stopped,her attacks on the other animals stopped, and she became the most loving, sweetest animal I had the pleasure to know. If this is really too weird for you. I would try St. Johns Wort, an herb, which also is good for anxiety and depression and works very well in animals. Also found at a good health food store. I really hope that you will try both actually, if nothing else it just may work. Good Luck
My 4 year old Pug/Shiba Inu Rockey is terrified of firecrackers. Thunder doesn’t bother him very much. But in the summer, even if he hears only one, he scrambles for cover, runs around looking for places to hide and whimpers. I put the Thundershirt on him and sat with him in anticipation of the July 4 fireworks. He wasn’t 100% better, but he was certainly much more calm than usual. The next evening, I put the shirt on him, but did not sit with him. He stayed at my feet and didn’t run around, although he was obviously still nervous. On another occasion, I did not get the shirt on him before the noise started. When I finally did, he was still very agitated. I’ve learned to get the shirt on him early when possible. I’ve also learned to extend his walks early in the day when I know there’s going to be fireworks later in the evening. If he’s tired out, he can act up only so much.
Thanks for sharing your experience, Beckie!
Had a Husky like this. Fed him a treat every boom, he was obsessed with treats, and eventually he would stay near me during storms, and instead of running away when the boom came, he would look up or run to the pantry where his treats were kept.
He would cower in a corner where I could easily see and talk to him though, I guess if your dog has a different hiding spot this method would be more difficult.
Exactly, that’s called counter-conditioning. Great advice, John!
Bailey is a ten year old rescue Cocker spaniel. He came with a Thunder shirt and a bedraggled bandana and a surgical collar. I took them off bit by bit. He is quite comfportable now. He had nt done well in the kennel, and I guess that is why he got the shirt.
I’ve saved it. We seldom get thunder and lightening, but if Bailey has an issue with it, i’ll have it to put on him.
And, i am a believer that if you have something like this, it is liley to not be needed, however, the converse is true!!
@Lindsay
It seems just because you did not have a good end with Thundershirt, you are discouraging other people from trying something that could be the best thing that ever happened to them. The Thundershirt is affective %85 of the time, you were one of the others that didn’t work. That doesn’t mean it is reasonable to tell people it won’t work just because it didn’t work for you. That’s just ignorant.
Bailey status:
The Thundershirt is in the closet with his other stuff, sweater, blanket, etc. He is doing just fine.
My idea of how it works is something on the order of a good hug. He likes that. And snuggling in alongside me in the evening on my recliner. A bit big for a lap dog, but, oh well. He also finds the recliner a perfect place to sleep.
Thinder an d loud noises upsets some dogs as it hurts their ears. I just leave out my hearing aids!!!
But, I’ve not heard of dog anti noise protection, Mebbe it exists and I just am ignorant of it.
The Thunder shirt is a nice bit. I guess the next time Bailey dresses up, he can wear it along with his bandana, blue collar and blue dog bone shaped chip notice ID. Not to mention the chrome chain leash.
I bought the thundershirt for my dog about a week ago. She is a 7 yr old daschund. She gets nervous unless she is under the covers in my bed. She whines and pants in the car, She shakes and cries when I go out with or without her, She freaks out when I feed her. I had to buy her a special slow feeding dish so she wouldn’t choke on her food. Unfortunately the thundershirt seems to have no effect at all. I am returning the coat. I also have another 8 yr old daschund who is calm, quiet and very well behaved so I don’t believe her behavior has anything to do with my training.
People that buy it just because of the name that it coll anxiety are ignorant.
I have a four yr old Cocker spaniel…. shes insane, shes a very well behaved dog, except she has anxiety… and well she sits around chewing on her feet all day, we have had her to the vet many times about it to make sure that nothing was in there irritating them and he says it anxiety…. and she never really hurts them but boy is it annoying… do we think the thundershirt will help her?
I hope so, and it is worth a shot! Most likely, it will only help minimally or not much at all.
we have her some stress pills which help a little mostly at night just not much during the day was hoping but if it doesn’t sound like then im not wasting the 40 bucks thanks
I don’t know which anxiety problems might benefit from the Thundershirt, but before spending the money, see if the pressure that the shirt provides is calming for your dog. Firmly wrap a sweatshirt or other fabric around the dog’s body, simulating the Thundershirt. I would make sure his “shoulders” are covered by the shirt. If this pressure seems to calm him, then the Thundershirt might be worth a try.
For larger dogs, you can try laying on top of the dog to see if the pressure works (I would have my Dobe laying on her side and use the weight of the upper part of my body). I feel confident it was the pressure, and not my presence, that worked because just holding her did not have the same effect.
It’s worth a try before you spend the money!
I have a small mix breed that has anxiety issues. She doesn’t get along with my other dogs, they just leave her alone, and she barks at anyone that comes into the house. She also licks the walls furniture and bed even when nothing different is going on. She doesn’t want to be held when she is in this shape. Do you think the Thundershirt will help her?
I doubt it.
The thundershirt is not a cure-all, but it can calm a dog enough to help them be responsive to counter-conditioning and training. Try it when there are no anxiety triggers, see if the behavior is more relaxed, if so than it does help. And with a money back guarantee, what do you have to lose? If it doesn’t help with anxiety, please get get in touch with a trainer that can help. You will thank yourself.
The only thing that works for our female pit bull is an expensive crate from Zinger Sporting Dog Gear. We have the 5000 with an Escape Artist Feature. Drugs did not work, neither did attention and TLC. For the humans to get any respite, she had to be crated in the basement. But she is very strong and used her head to break out of wire crates. She was injuring her beautiful face. This crate is very expensive, $900 but I think/hope it also relieves her anxiety when she is in there because she knows she can’t get out and she can’t hurt herself. When she comes out, she is her old self (if the storm is over) she does not seem at all traumatized.
I’m a little late, but hoping you’ve found a way to help out your pup. It sounds like a lot of anxiety and maybe even protection of the humans he so dearly loves. A good trainer should be able to help you. It will make both of you much happier.
I wanted to comment on the electric fence/collar. While I do agree that punishment is a very bad idea for fearful dogs, I don’t at all consider the underground fence a punishment. We have four dogs, three of witch don’t think that over an acre of land is enough space and will dig under the fence to wander for a while. Even though we have a fence, we put in the underground fence inside it to stop their behavior.
If they are trained correctly on the fence, which can certainly be done with positive training, they understand that it is a boundary and not a punishment. The collars we have provide a training level…beep only… and several levels of shock. The three dogs who wear the collars only need the beep. After training they NEVER get shocked because we trained them to stop at the beep and we don’t even take it off the training mode.
That being said…still with proper training…if they needed to have the level turned up, I would rather have that than for their safety or someone else’s safety to be at risk. It is not painful, they simply don’t like it. I’ve held the collar tight and run it over the fence to see how it feels. I wouldn’t use it if I thought it brought harm to my furry children.
There are very strong feelings about shock correction on both sides of the fence (haha) and I can see both sides. It also doesn’t work for all dogs. However, for ours it works wonderfully and I don’t have to worry when we are home or out of town.
Again, I hope you found a solution. I know it’s difficult, but hang in there!
P.S. We just got a thundershirt for our newest addition because of her fear of storms and my lack of sleep. We’ll let you know what happens!
So sorry!! Somehow this posted as a reply and separate post. It was meant as a reply to Sarah (10/12/12)
Hi, I purchased the thundershirt for my 11 year old rescue terrier mix. In the past few years he has exhibited extreme stress when going to the groomer or vet. To the point of having a seizure. We have tried sedatives & phenobarbital for the seizure. These didn’t even work. He frightens himself so much & it’s hard on him & me. Its hard to see your dog suffer & have resorted to having a vet come to the house for minor shots & physicals. He hasn’t been groomed in over a 1 1/2 year & I have been doing my best using scaredy cut scissors & he does allow me to using a razor (portable) for a short period of time.
Now, when the fireworks or a nail gun goes off, he starts going into panic mode.
I’m at my wits end trying to allieve his stress & am hoping this might help. Will let you know and what do you think? Thanks.
I think it is worth a shot, but it does sound like your dog is so anxious this is by no means going to be a quick fix. Hopefully it will at least help, even slightly.
Thanks for giving me a place to vent JJ’s issues. It seems I can’t find any vets to listen or help. Last night, we had a thunderstorm & I put the shirt on JJ. Not too thrilled at first but later, curled up on the couch & went to sleep. He was very proud of his shirt after we made a big fuss.
I’m going to hold out until after the 4th of July. That will be the true test.
Thanks again so much.
Oh I’m so, so happy to hear this has made a difference for you. That’s great to hear!
I don’t really have any specific problem with my 5 year old cocker-mix rescue dog. He is, however, very fearful when I walk him; he’s terrified of buses, pickups and the like (he got ran over twice and is half blind for that reason) and pretty scared of big dogs (got randomly bitten by a stray pitbull, though he’s really patient and sweet with other dogs). He is also scared of thunder, his reaction is to shake like crazy (he has peed himself a couple of times from fear) and he calms down when I hug him for a bit.
It would be nice to try it on him to see if it helps to relax him when I walk him, has anyone here used it outside? Since my dog’s problem is far from severe and I’d just want the thundershirt to make HIS life a bit easier -rather than mine-, I’m not sure if it’s worth the money. I can’t get a refund here where I live and I’d buy it from a person who imports doggie stuff.
Poor guy! Are there trails or quiet residential streets you can walk where there is little traffic and few dogs? Even if you have to drive to that place, walking somewhere he is comfortable should help over time. Also, if he is blind in one eye, walk him so his good eye is near the street and you are on the side with the blind eye. He may learn to trust that you will protect him from things on that side. I left an earlier post suggesting using body pressure or tightly held cloth or towel around the dog’s body to see if this “deep pressure” helps to calm him. If it does, then it might be worth trying the thunder shirt. Good luck!
Well, I didn’t try Thundershirt for storm phobia but for Jasmine’s mysterious episodes. Didn’t seem to help much. But then I never really believed that anxiety was at the root, rather perhaps an outcome.
It was about like with many things, it seemed that it could work but it really didn’t. But nothing else did either. So I wouldn’t hold it against the product.
Interesting. Thank you for your feedback, and I’m glad my blog is accepting your comments now!
Has anyone tried making a smaller, quieter place for your dog when there is a storm? I had a dobe that would try to hide in any small space when it thundered…my shoes suffered when she dug her way to the back of my closet! I put quilts over a card table to make a cave for her. This made her feel safe and let her stay in the room with the family. If I had a smaller dog, I would just select a smaller table. Or, if she’s content in her crate, cover the crate to muffle the sound, (but leave the door open so she can get out…it will get warm in there!).
Reba, we figured out the same thing with our oldest who is a shep mix. He would try to crawl between the sofa and the wall. He was crazy when we would have storms and would even tear things up. Once we came home and he was so scared and disoriented that he was trying to climb over the railing of our second story deck!!! We tried so many things including anti anxiety meds and finally, out of exhaustion one afternoon, crated him. He was SO happy. We didn’t think of it before because his crate never seemed to be anything but a reluctant place for him to sleep at night. To think after all those years of struggle, all he needed was his crate.
Unfortunately, this is NOT the case for our new rescue. We haven’t figured it out yet, but hoping that the thundershirt will at least assist us if not fix it.
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