Andrew Warner Dog Training
  • Home
  • Training Info
    • Training Philosophy
    • Board & Train Packages
    • 1:1 Training Sessions
    • In-Home Boarding
  • Testimonials
  • FAQ
  • Blog
    • Ask the Trainer
    • Training Tips >
      • Adopting a New Dog Advice
      • Dog Training Fallacies
      • Family & Baby Advice
      • Leash Reactivity Help
      • Poor Recall Help
      • Separation Anxiety Help
    • Training Videos
    • Board & Train Stories
    • Helpful Infographics
  • Contact

4 Ways to Help Your Dog Overcome his Fear of Storms

3/2/2017

0 Comments

 
PictureWorking on a "stay" or a "place" is one way to help calm your dog down.
This week here in Indianapolis we had a doozy of a storm. My dogs don’t care a bit about storms, but my wife certainly gets worked up about all the lightning, thunder and high winds that seem like they’re going to rip your house off its foundation.

Many dogs out there have storm phobia far worse than even my wife does. They might hyperventilate, pace, whine anxiously, or even get destructive. If that’s the case and a storm is coming, take a few steps to help ease your dog’s anxiety
.

And if you have a young dog who isn’t bothered by storms, not so fast – you’re not out of the woods yet! Storm phobia is often a phobia that is born later in a dog’s life – sometimes not showing up until they are 4 years of age or older. So you might want to pay attention too.
​

Here are 4 drug-free ways to ease your dog’s storm anxiety: ​

1)      Exercise – Most of these steps are all about eliminating anxiety in one way or another. There still is no better way to ease stress and anxiety than with good, old-fashioned exercise. If you see a storm is coming, check the weather report in detail and really exercise with your dog before it hits – I’m talking biking, rollerblading, swimming, vigorous fetching – anything that gets you and your dog’s heart rate up and gets the endorphins flowing. If your dog is dealing with pent up energy from sitting in a crate all day, and then is forced to deal with their storm phobia, you’ve got a tough road ahead of you. If your dog is treadmill trained, you might want to have him walk on the treadmill during the storm since that will give him a productive outlet for his nervous energy.

2)      Leash-up – This might be my favorite thing to do with an anxious dog – put a leash on and give him guidance. It’s so simple and so effective. Often, pacing back and forth around the house raises your dog’s heart rate and adds fuel to the anxiety fire. If your dog is leashed and in a down stay, you force them to relax by focusing on another task and physically calming them down (stopping the pacing). If your dog likes to train, you might even work on your basic obedience during the storm.

3)      Check your own energy – If you’re nervous, they’re nervous. If storms bother you, then maybe pass the dog off to your spouse or friend who isn’t afraid of thunder crashing. If not, fake it until you make it. Make a mental note to smile or cheer every time you hear thunder. Sooner or later your dog will think that thunder is something that makes you bizarrely happy. If it makes you happy, it can’t be that bad.

4)      Explore different products – Thundershirt has built a whole empire on the promise that their products can ease your dog’s storm based anxiety. Their products are based on the idea of compression – wrapping your dog up tight to slow breathing and provide comfort. For all of you parents out there, you will know the magic of this if you have swaddled your angry baby before. Compression can be calming. Thundershirt is something I have seen mixed results with, but you can always do it the low-budget way and wrap a towel, ace bandage, or t-shirt around your dog’s chest to have a similar effect. On top of Thundershirt, there are numerous other products out there that can ease dog’s anxiety – like Dog Appeasing Pheromone, or even lavender. Try them all and see what works with your dog. Maybe each one helps a little bit or one helps a lot. There’s no rule that you can only use one.
​

Follow me on Twitter: @drewwarner
Like me on Facebook: @andrewwarnerdogtraining
If you find this article helpful, please like, share, and comment!
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    RSS Feed

    Archive

    April 2022
    June 2021
    May 2020
    November 2019
    September 2018
    August 2018
    June 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    September 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014

    Categories

    All
    Aggression
    Ask The Trainer
    Board & Train Clients
    Dog Training Fallacies
    Family & Baby
    Fun Stuff
    Infographics
    Inspiration
    Leash Reactivity
    Life Coaching
    New Dog
    Newsletter
    Quick Bites
    Recall Technique
    Recovery Stories
    Separation Anxiety
    Tips
    Training
    Videos
    Walk

    Tweets by drewwarner
Andrew Warner Dog Training | COPYRIGHT © 2014 . ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Andrew Warner is an IACP certified dog trainer based out of Indianapolis, IN.
Andrew Warner Dog Training
Email: andrew@awdt.net
Phone: 317-719-6584
Url: www.awdt.net
cash, check, credit card, invoice, paypal
Indianapolis, IN 46219

Site designed and maintained by TeeDub Web Designs.
  • Home
  • Training Info
    • Training Philosophy
    • Board & Train Packages
    • 1:1 Training Sessions
    • In-Home Boarding
  • Testimonials
  • FAQ
  • Blog
    • Ask the Trainer
    • Training Tips >
      • Adopting a New Dog Advice
      • Dog Training Fallacies
      • Family & Baby Advice
      • Leash Reactivity Help
      • Poor Recall Help
      • Separation Anxiety Help
    • Training Videos
    • Board & Train Stories
    • Helpful Infographics
  • Contact