If you think a camera is bad....

[lizbud]

Smokey could be the poster boy for storm phobia, at least he used to be.
he still gets nervous but has discovered the bathroom is his safe place.

Maggie doesn't like storms either but she's never paced, panted heavily,
like Smokey used to do.She found her safe place right away & stays there
and sleeps till it's over. (under the dining room table)

I really do believe in the drastic cases, meds do help. I guess each dog is
different.

[Freedom]

Sugar is also terrified of thunder. If permitted, she climbs up the back of Dad's recliner. A few times she has become tangled up in there with springs etc. and we've thought we would have to cut the chair to get her out. But she manages. She also hyperventilates the entire storm, panting quite heavily. Eyes are almost but not quite glazed over. Forget offering a treat of any sort.

If we manage to block the chair, she will curl up under one of the beds. I have also taken her in my bed under the covers and that is acceptable to her as long as I am right there next to her.

Takes her about an hour after the storm is over to come out. And then she is exhausted, from all the stress.

None of the other dogs, none of the cats, seem to care about storms. Tommy actually runs to a window to watch it.

As she is not getting into trouble, we just accept that this is how she reacts to storms. But in the extreme cases mentioned above, I can certainly see where a sedative would be required.

[chocolatepuppy]

Layla too! She is terrified of storms. The worse the storm, the worse she is. She tries to hide under the computer desk and she doesn't fit. She shakes terribly. During most storms at night she'll hide in the bathroom. She will not come out until the storms are well past and I have to coax her out. I have the pheromone plug in, it doesn't seem to help. I do have some of those 'natural' pills and they do seem to help a bit, but you have to know the storm is coming. I'm careful not to baby her but there are times I hug her really tight (think anxiety wrap) and it seems to help. I only do that if she's really shaking bad.

[K9karen]

Thanks so much everyone! I have to admit, I heaved a sigh of relief reading that Mz Logan isn't the only dog afraid of camera, flash or not.

Yes, she feels the storm hours before it hits, but at the first crack of thunder and sight of lightening, she's GONE! I'm glad she found "her safe spot", and doesn't pee or vomit. Surprisingly, she didn't shake much last night, just licked her lips a zillion times, tail under and ears back.

Somehow, I conjoled her to come upstairs to the TV/computer room. We shut the blinds, put on an extra light and upped the TV volume. We also shut the door and tried to act normal. She eventually calmed down, even through the rain part, and hasseled me for head rubs.

She's as happy as a clam today, even on wet grass..there are flocks of birds and rabbits.

It just totally breaks my heart. Logan is so sweet and obedient and loving, but she's so transfixed during a storm, she's not herself. Normally, I'd be less stressed and accept it, but I have a lot of stuff going on with hoomans. Regardless, my always top priority is my precious pumpkin.

Thanks you, again for all your caring and suggestions!

[shepgirl]

A friend has 2 dogs that go totally freaky when a storm hits. She ordered some kind of cape on the internet, don't really know what it's made of, but it was advertised as guaranteed to keep pets calm during storms. Believe it or not it really works, don't have a clue as to why it does. She just wraps them in the capes and the dogs sleep through the storms.

[Logan]

Karen, you might remember that Zipper and Lilly had horrible storm phobias. I finally resorted to 50 mg of Benadryl for them at Dr. R's suggestion. If I could catch it in time, it did take the edge off. I always thought that Zipper was a stray Golden because he got frightened, outdoors, in a storm and escaped his yard, wherever it was that he lived.

Of course, you could live in Greenville, SC, and never get rain or storms and not have to worry about it. Just a thought.