My dog's storm anxiety makes her frantic and aggressive. What to do?

Question

Please help me , my dog has anxiety when it storms and usually she stays inside quietly , but today she is behaving frantic even after the storms have passed and I don’t know what to do or how to handle her she as finished going to the toilet several times and has food and water still and does not want to stay inside with me or outside alone she keeps on crying or barking and breathing really fast I have tried calming her but she is still becoming a little aggressive as well please help me. Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Medium (23 - 60lb) | Female | spayed | 4 years old | 26 lbs

Dr. Elizabeth · Accepted Answer

First, be careful that Rolo does not lash out and hurt you. It does not mean she doesn't like you. It means she is very stressed. There are two things you can do: 1) Call her vet and get a sedative for her. Long term, this would not be a bad idea. When you know storms are coming, you give this two her before they hit so that she does not get so worked up. 2) try to distract her. If she will let you, take her for a hard walk or a game of fetch until she is tired. A dog who is physically tired has less energy for anxiety. Then try to bring her inside and play classical music to drown out the sounds. Classical music has been shown to calm pets down. Other ways you may be able to refocus her attention include a training session or a longer lasting food treat like a Kong toy stuffed with Peanut Butter (make sure Xylitol is not found in the ingredients). They do make recordings of scary sounds for dogs. Look online. The idea is that you play it as background noise. Every few days you gradually increase the sound. The idea is that it desensitizes the brain to the noise. This may also help long term. A thunder jacket for dogs can also help some pets immensely. I hope this helps to point you in the right direction. Please feel free to post any further questions!

My dog's storm anxiety makes her frantic and aggressive. What to do?

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