German shepherd dogs and thunder?

Question

I have two dogs; a very skittish golden labrador retriever/australian shepherd mix and a very regal (if I do say so myself!) German shepherd. My yellow lab mix runs from the vacuum cleaner, the blinds in the windows being rattled, and mean faces given to her. My other dog, on the other hand, seems to be afraid of nothing... except thunder.

For some reason, both my last German shepherd and my current one seem to become very nervous (and in the case of my current, even fearful to the point of shuddering and hyperventilation) before a storm and especially when it thunders.

Is this something specific to the breed or a coincidence with both of mine of the same breed acting the same? If specific to the breed, how did it come about? Is it caused by fear of the thunder itself or pressure or something else entirely?

Answer 1

German Shepherds and any breed can be afraid of Thunder and storms in general but I will say that 75% of the german shepherds I have rescued have had at least some response to storms/thunder.
Theories include: Barometric pressure changes. Dogs can feel the subtle changes and know something is going to happen.

Being left outside: some dogs form severe anxieties from being left outside at some point in a thunderstorm alone and they remember that fear.

Their ears: German shepherds have ears like Satelite dishes; designed to pick up and focus any noise detected. They can hear better than some other breeds because of the design of their ears which can increase their susceptibility to sound and they can hear it long before others can.

You: German Shepherds are very tuned into their 'people' and can sometimes pick up the anxiousness or excitement in their owners. They themselves then get anxious or excited. If the 'alpha' is agitated, there must be a reason for it they think.
Instinct: wild canines seek shelter during storms. It could be a throwback to their wild ancestors in which the primitive fight or flight instinct kicks in; they just dont understand WHY they have this feeling and panic.

Natural: Dogs can just be afraid of loud sounds like anyone or anything else and there may be no contributing factor.

Answer 2

I've read that fors ome reason herding dogs (which German Shepherds are) and dogs who have been abused are the majority of dogs afraid of thunder. I've had 2 - 1 of them a herding dog and now one of my rescued greyhounds.

I've gotten tranquilizers from the vet but don't like giving them because of the side effects - they leave the dog really dopey for hours and that's on half a dose. What I use is an all natural remedy with absolutely no side effects called Bach's Flower Essences. They make lots of varieties - the one to use is called Rescue Remedy. The dog gets 4 drops, it takes about 15 - 20 mins. to take effect and it's enough to calm them down.

The theory is that it's the change in atmospheric pressure that affects the dogs.

Answer 3

I've had 2 Labs and they both got freaked out at storms w/ lightening. the one I have right now is afraid of everything so that's not saying much, but my last Lab was afraid of nothing, except thunder. so I think it's just a dog thing, not just a German Shepherd thing. speaking of which, I really want a German, they're awesome!!! =)

Answer 4

My dog is terrified of thunder. These are the things I have tried or were recommended to me. 1) Gravol, it has an antihistamine in it that makes the dog a little groggy and helps take the edge off. You have to try to give the pill to the dog in advance of the storm if you can. 2) Valium, my dog currently gets this. The Gravol eventually stopped working for him either that or he just became more neurotic. You will need to get a prescription for this from your vet and again you have to try to give your dog the pill in advance of the storm. 3) There are a couple of herbal remedies you could try. Rescue Remedy is available at most health food stores and is fairly inexpensive. It works great for people too. You could also try Anxiety-TFLN (thunder, fireworks, loud noises) by Homeopet, this one was recommended by my vet. A warning though, if your dog has allergies you should avoid the herbal remedies as they can trigger allergic reactions. 4) Train your dog to "rescue" one of his toys during a thunderstorm. Whenever the dog carries the toy around during the storm praise the dog for being so brave. Your shepard should be smart enough to learn this and with the toy in his mouth he will be unable to bark. 5) If your dog was crate trained and you are no longer using the crate try setting the crate up for the summer so your dog has a safe place all his own to go and hide in. If you are still using the crate, cover the top and three sides to make it nice and dark. Praise your dog when he uses the crate during storms. If you haven't used a crate with your dog in the past, set up a room in your home, maybe someone's bedroom, where you can draw the blinds during a thunder storm and train your dog to go to that place as his safe place during the storm.

Answer 5

There is some kind of coincidence going on here. Back in the mid-50's, when I was 8 or maybe 9, we got a german shepherd puppy, the runt of the litter. I forget what we named him initially, because his name changed after the second thunderstorm. We lived in the midwest in Illinois and thunder was a frequent event and this poor dog headed for the space under my parent's bed. He was too big to fit, and only got his head half way into the space, but he kept trying to get under there each time he heard thunder. And in the great plain states, thunder really DOES roll across the plains. My mom decided he should be named Thor. My mom was the only one who could calm him enough to not try and kill himself trying to get under that bed. Thor was with the family for many years, and never lost his fear of thunder, however, he learned to tolerate it better as long as my mother was there. He would put his head into her lap, lean into her leg with his shoulder and just shiver. As long as he could be with my mom, he was able to avoid outright blind panic. Thor was a good dog, well tempered with people, fierce guardian of little children in the family and everywhere. He grew to be one of the biggest dogs in town. A surprise since he was the runt. The littler kids would ride him like a horse and he seemed OK with it. Can't say he liked it, but he tolerated it well. Yes, Thor was a really good dog.

Answer 6

It's not breed specific.We have 2 male german shepherds ages 4&2.
4 yr.old loves fireworks!!!!!!!!Barks and jumps as tho he's trying to catch the lights.
We got him when he was 12 weeks old.Storms have never phased him.We live 1/2 block away from the air raid and storm siren that goes off once a month and he could care less evan tho the dogs that live on either side of us are howling until it stops.
2 yr.old on the other hand ,while the siren does'nt seem to affect him at all,is terrified of thunderstorms and fireworks and will bolt at gunshots heard from a distance!
Trainers have told me to offer comfort while forcing him to face his fear so we,ve taken them both to see fireworks.No amount of comfort or coaxing can get him from under the dash of the truck while the other one sits happily in the back waiting for the next round to go off.
I have to wonder if it was'nt due to how they were treated before we got them.
4 yr.old was in the house with littermates and mom.Raised by a kindly old couple.
2yr.old was stuck in a kennel with mom and 10 other pups with no shelter other than a dog house.Mother was only 2 and had already been bred 3 times.Owners husband did not like dogs and yelled at her constantly because she chased his champion horses and said she was acting like a wedge when she sat calmly between the 2 of them.The poor mother dog was obviously very anxious at the sight of the man and walked around with head lowered and cringed whenever he spoke her name.
I can't help but think that my 2 yr.old problem came from it's mothers fear of every loud noise she heard.
Called the lady back a week after buying the pup to check on the mother who was for sale as well.She admitted to me that her husband had gotten out a gun and was going to shoot her for chasing his horses but missed.I think the pups had already been born when this happened so the mothers fear was absorbed by the pups and rightly so.
I was going to buy the mother as well to get her out of that place but thankfully she went to a middle aged lady who was freshly divorced for a companion.

Answer 7

Breed has nothing to do with it. Some dogs just have anxiety problems, some of thunder, some going to the groomer,...etc. Some dogs need a medication from the veterinarian to help with these problems,...a sedative. Not something that nocks them out completely. But just settles them down. Pet owners also have to give them to their pets before coming to the Vet sometimes, so their not so aggressive/afraid.

Answer 8

Well there you go. Same thing here. Have had a Shepard, Buster, he was an old boy who showed up in a thunderstorm on my front step. Lets just say he was here for 5 yrs. Best d...dog.But after one spring he had gone through all my screens in my house before & during a thunderstorm! I believe they are very sensitive and smart( POLICE DOGS) - Hello! My other Shepard, Cody followed me all over one morning and even came upstairs, which he never ever did(bad hips) Guess what? It was the day that Hurricane Bob hit...he knew what was coming!

Answer 9

A fear of thunder can happen with any dog. I used to have a shih tzu that was afraid of storms and thunder and would mess in the house and/or bark non-stop. She even tried running away a couple times (to get away from the noise and smell of the storm) We tried restraining her and calming her down, but nothing worked. We asked a couple vets and they just said it happens. We gave our dog benadryl and it calmed her down, basically just making her drowsy and she didn't seem to care. But if you don't want to give your dog any drugs, I guess just bare with it.

Answer 10

A lot of dogs are afraid of thunder, I don't know why, and to my knowledge there is no cure for it.
As for your other dog being afraid of the vacuum take the dog up to the vacuum when it is off, and when she sniffs it tell her good girl, and give her a treat. Let her get use to it and then after a few weeks of doing this when it is off turn it on, and leave it in one spot and let her go up to it and sniff it, then tell her good girl, and give a treat. She will come to learn that there is nothing to fear. The same can be done with the blinds being rattled. Let her sniff them when not being rattled tell her good girl, and give a treat, then start to rattle them and if she stays put tell her good girl, and give a treat. Good luck to you.