Why do my dogs know it is going to thunder ages before I do?

Question

They both react really badly to storms and fireworks and stuff although the short haired one is far worse, virtually shaking herself to pieces. I've tried getting sedatives but they don't work very well for them. Advice please. I realise this is really two questions.

Just need to say thanks for all constructive answers so far. I will find it very difficult to select a "best" one.

Just as I suspected. This has been a really hard choice. Lots of scientific and commonsense advice - I've ended up going for what I reckon is the most compassionate answer. Thanks everyone.

Answer 1

Dogs can sense the change in atmospheric pressure - plus their hearing is far more acute.

One of my greyhounds is afraid of thunder and I tried tranquilizers prescribed by the vet, and though they held him, I don't like the side effects.

What I use on him (but I don't know how severe your dog's fear is so don't know if it will work) is an all natural remedy with absolutely no side effects called Bach's Flower Essences. There's lots of varieties - the one you want is called Rescue Remedy. He gets 4 drops, takes about 15 - 20 mins. to work and it calms him enough that he's comfortable. It would be worth a try for your dogs. Hope it works for them!

Answer 2

You know, most of the above answers have good explanations as to why dogs know of a thunderstorm before you, but the truth is its all speculation. There is no scientific study that conclusively establishes why and how dogs know of impending thunderstorms. However it is plausible that any number of explanations are correct until we actually scientifically prove otherwise. Barometric pressure, Sound, Static electricity, Scent, Vibrations... all are possible explanations as to how dogs know when a thunderstorm is near. As for helping your dogs overcome thier anxiety over a thunderstorm.... there isnt much you can do, the reason sedatives dont work is because by the time you know to give it to them they have already detected the storm and are already upset, my vet told me it is pointless to give a dog sedatives at this point because it generallly has no effect on a very upset dog. My dog gets really upset too and the only thing that has been suggested is to desensitize him by playing recordings of thunder until he is used to it... but he doesn't seem to consider recorded thunder to be upsetting at all and I havent been able to even make him react to the sound of recorded thunder. This leads me to believe that it isnt just the sound that upsets the dog but a combination of many things in a thunderstorm.... this makes it near impossible to treat the dogs phobia and the best thing to do is simply ignore the dog, and dont feed thier fear by comforting them just act like nothings wrong and go about your business, putting the TV or Music on loud helps too. Other than that there is no true cure and you just have to let it run its course, the dog will be OK.

Answer 3

dogs, cats and many more have an extra sence than humans its most visible in pigeons believe it or not but when a thunderstom is approching it creates static in the air an electric atmosphere as you might say no joke intended, the sheer mas of clouds and the fact there are colliding much quicker than normal creates static electricity which is stored in clouds until it finds a point to strike well back to the point not oll of the static is stored in the clouds its actually on the air as well air is a great conductor of electricty and it doesnt strike because the charge is not strong enough anyway dogs and other animals pick up on this and its scary to them fireworks make them go crazy because fireworks create a bang yes fair enough but its the really high pitch noises that scare dogs we cant hear these noises but dogs can hope this gives you some clue

Answer 4

Animals in general are much more in tune with the rythms of nature than modern humans - they recognise the change in pressure and humidity that precedes a thunder storm - humans can learn to recognise this too, with enough training.

As for them getting worked up, have you tried palying music in the room with them? Loud music or a loud tv, in fact a lot of pretty constant noise will help to drown out the loud noises from thunder and fireworks. My dog used to really settle if we played him Frank Sinatra loudly whenever fireworks were going off.

It has nothing to do with a "special" sixth sense or hearing it at a far greater distance - even humans can hear the most distance sounds of a thunder storm.

Answer 5

Animals are aware of impending danger earlier than us because they still have their natural survival instincts intact. Ours have been suppressed by years of modern living, not having to hunt for our food etc.
I think the best way to settle your pet is probably to try to distract her with a favourite activity during the storm or fireworks. Get her involved in a game of something.
I really hate fireworks in built-up areas and think it should be limited to organised displays in parks etc , but that's a different topic altogether!

Answer 6

Concerning to thunder: Well before the actual thunder occurs there is a atmospheric pressure change in general, so your dog feels that
pressure change and knows what to expect. In addition there is strong static discharge during thunderstorm, so before thunderstorm begins they really feel that electrical situation in the air.

For fireworks I'm not sure what is the reason but I can assure you that this is a common behaviour amongst the dogs.

How to get rid of this situation? Hmm, you better just relax and allow your dogs to react. When you get angry with that they feel the change in your temper and get over-excited.

Answer 7

On Monday teatime my dog was so restless and pacing up and down, she wouldn't go out and sat shaking like she was about to be beaten into next week, the thunder came about an hour after that, we have had our dog for nearly 11 years, we have tried lots of things to try and calm her down when the thunder or fireworks start, its so horrible seeing her like that and upsetting too, we have tried those herbal drops in her water, putting music on a bit louder than normal, you name it we have tried it, I just think some dogs are basically more afraid of sounds than others, our vet told us the worst thing you can do is pander to them and fuss them as it just makes them worse, thing is how do you not do that when you love your dog so much and hate to see it upset.

Answer 8

As far as the thunderstorm issue, animals can sense the drop in atmospheric pressure that coinsides with coming of a storm. Other loud noises will probably take alot of work, slowly expose them to a noise they have problems with. Then over the period of several weeks slowly increase the loudness and and frequency of the noise. Always let your dog know that you will protect it, by standing between the dog and the source of the noise. Remember that a dogs hearing is 16X better than yours so if it hurts your ears it is excruciating for your pup.

Good luck!

Answer 9

Dogs detect sounds as low as the 16 to 20 Hz frequency range (compared to 20 to 70 Hz for humans) and as high as 70,000 to 100,000 Hz (compared to 20,000 Hz for humans), and in addition have a degree of ear mobility that helps them to rapidly pinpoint the exact location of a sound. Eighteen or more muscles can tilt, rotate and raise or lower a dog's ear.

Additionally, a dog can identify a sound's location much faster than a human can, as well as hear sounds up to four times the distance that humans are able to. Those with more natural ear shapes, like those of wild canids like the fox, generally hear better than those with the floppier ears of many domesticated species.

I cover my dog's ears with a folded towel, he seems to like the security of being under a towel when thunder/fireworks start.
We make sure windows are closed and also switch a radio on as the noise levels on radio don't fluctuate as much as TV's. and always let him stay close to one of us.

My old rescue dog used to shiver and shake and throw up, we found giving him Bach flower rescue remedy stopped the vomiting and lessened his stress, we used to drop it in his water preceding bonefire night (week!) and used directly onto his tongue if a sudden storm or firework started up and he was much calmer.

Answer 10

Rebecca has it. It is the same is true for cats. An ordinary firework rocket to them sounds like a Jumbo jet taking off at close range to us . No wonder they get nervous!