My very best furry friend and firework fear: Thundershirt?

[C Moon]

When fireworks start (and there are some loud M80 types months before and after the 4th around here) our pup paces, pants and wants to go to the garage to go into the car—probably wants us to drive her somewhere else.

Last year, we gave her the vet recommended medication, but I don't like how it just makes her limp. I read that the dog can still fear the fireworks, but just is unable to move.

Has anyone else used a Thundershirt with good results? I just now wrapped a back brace around her, and it didn't notice much difference in her reaction.

Thanks for any input DU'rs!

[NYC_SKP]

1. I just HATE that so many people are so ignorant and selfish about fireworks.

Not just fireworks but noisiness in general, motorcycles on quiet residential streets, monster sound systems on boats and in cars.

It's just uncivilized.

Good luck with whatever you try.

[C Moon]

2. Thanks! Yes, she hates the loud motorcycles as well.

If I'm walking her and one passes by, she barks and barks. Some of them are so loud they hurt my ears. I can't imagine what the dogs feel. OUCH!

[mnhtnbb]

3. I have friends who have used thundershirts with great success on their dogs.

My current dog, Snowy, is not bothered by either fireworks or thunder, so I don't
have any personal experience with thundershirts.

[shenmue]

4. {{{Hugs}}}

[intaglio]

5. You might want to look at calming pheromones

I believe they are quite effective at reducing stress

[C Moon]

9. Thanks intaglio: we actually bought drops and they did help somewhat

After we give the drops, you can see her try to pull herself out of the "trance" she's in.
I was hoping to use the Thundershit in tandem with the drops.

[Sweet Freedom]

6. What's a thunder shirt?!!!

Do they have them for cats? My poor kitteh is terrified of fireworks and thunder.


And is that your furbaby in the picture? Beautiful!

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

8. There are Thundershirts for cats.

http://www.thundershirt.com/Product/ThundershirtForCats.aspx?item_guid=04a62476-dd84-4c67-ae9b-83f2fb67db81

I don't know how well they work. My cats are oblivious to pretty much everything.

[Sweet Freedom]

13. Thanks!

I'll check it out.

[kiva]

22. Please post if you get it,

my roommate's cat could use something to help with anxiety.

[Sweet Freedom]

24. I wish I had it now!

There's a horrible storm overhead and my poor furbaby is hiding in a closet.

(Yes, I'll post if I buy one. They are a little pricey, so it may not be as soon as my kitteh would like.)

[alphafemale]

28. My previous cat used to love fireworks.

We lived close to a dirt track speedway and they did fireworks quite often. She would sit out on the porch and watch them.

Miss that little one.

Current feline fuzz butt isn't impressed by much of anything. Either way. lol.

[hack89]

7. Thundershirts work very well. nt

[C Moon]

10. Thx. I think I'll go get one today. :)

[2theleft]

11. Ditto for my 110 lb scaredy pup!

He LOVES his shirt. Prances around when he has it on. Dusting it off for our storms tomorrow night and then for the fireworks on Friday.

Best of luck to your baby.

Interesting that has seemed to work in overall calmness with him - a essential oil diffuser. I have both the "relax" and "anti-anxiety" blends from plant therapy. Put them with water in the diffuser. Doesn't completely relax him, but calms him down some. My boxer takes nap whenever I turn them on. I tried it on a whim, not expecting results, but ok with a house that smells good, and I've been impressed.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

12. I've learned that trying to calm my dog makes things worse.

If I act like nothing is wrong, so does she.

She used to be bothered by fireworks but now she isn't.

Every dog is different. Just throwing that out there.

[C Moon]

15. Thanks. Yeah, ours is better this year. Last year after 1 blowup she'd run to the car....

This year, it takes several in a row to get her nervous.
We try the nothing is wrong thing, but after a bunch of explosions she doesn't even look at us—doesn't even want treats.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

16. Maybe turn it in to playtime.

Maybe get her favorite toy and turn the bangs in to a signal that it is play time? That's what a trainer told me to do with my dog's leash aggressiveness - he said to bring a toy on the walks and use another dog approaching as a signal for play time.

I think sometimes we have to use reverse psychology on our little critters.

Good luck. I know watching your baby in distress sucks.

[RebelOne]

14. I have seen the ads on TV for the Thundershirt.

My Chihuahua is terrified of storms. If she even hears rain, she hides behind the couch. They are available at Petsmart, which is close to my house. I have been wanting to buy one. But they are $39.95 and money is short right now, but I will get one soon.

[OriginalGeek]

17. Both my aunt and my daughter use them on their dogs

We got the one for our daughter's little Papillon after seeing how much it helped my Aunt's big shelter rescue mutt. My aunt's dog probably came from an abusive environment because when she got him he was afraid of absolutely everything. He is now a big, sweet, huggable giant that thinks he's a lap-dog but he's still afraid of thunder.

So she got him the Thundershirt and he loves that thing - we always know when a storm is coming because he senses it before we do and goes over to the spot and gets in the position for her to put his Thundershirt on.

My daughter's dog isn't THAT advanced with it yet (we haven't had hers for very long) but she is noticeably calmer with it on (because she is absolutely terrified of thunderstorms with it off)

So if you're looking for thumbs up for Thundershirts you can count 6 here and an 8-pack of paws.


And I should add I was VERY skeptical before they got them. I just didn't buy that they could work any better than hugs and a blanket but they do.

[C Moon]

18. Thank you!

[a la izquierda]

19. It works well for my Chihuahua...

so long as we get it on in advance of the storm.

[RobinA]

20. Thundershirt

We had great luck with a thundershirt on our shepard mix who became afraid as she grew older. Just make sure to put it on sometimes when there is nothng to be afraid of so she doesn't associate it with scary stuff.

[C Moon]

21. Thanks! How tight should it be? I just bought one and it seemed kind of loose (esp in the front).

I didn't measure her chest, so I went by weight.
I'm wondering if I should exchange it for a smaller size.

[ailsagirl]

23. Where I live...

for some reason, there are fireworks on SIX CONSECUTIVE NIGHTS!! They sound like bombs and my cats hate it. So do I, when it comes down to it. Why six times? And they're so expensive-- seems like a waste to me.



I know-- Bah, humbug!!

[C Moon]

25. Here, it starts w loud ones a month b4 the 4th; then it gets heavy 2 days before and 2 days after.

The same happens on New Years. Which isn't as bad, because it's pretty much just in /around midnight, but they do start setting them off (LOUD ones) every night about a month before.

[C Moon]

26. Unfortunately, the Thundershirt didn't work for our pup. So, I'll see if I can return it to Petco.

[lunatica]

27. I've found that Bach Original Flower Essence

Rescue Remedy has helped my pets be calmer. It's a natural stress reliever for humans and animals and it works pretty well.

If you don't know about these flower essence remedies (they're remedies for specific emotional issue such as feelings of lack of purpose, self negativity, bad mental habits of self-criticism, and for emotional shocks, etc.) here are a couple of links:

http://www.bachflower.com/

http://feelbach.com/?refID=glgn&gclid=CNmHwK6TrL8CFQGTfgodXLoAZw

[femmocrat]

29. I bought a calming collar for the most panicky of the corgis.

I bought it at Big Lots, nothing special. It worked great! During the fireworks, all three corgis were passed out, lying on their backs and snoring! It was the funniest thing ever! They never do that. The other two must have been affected by the smell.