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Fear of thunderstorms, lightning and frightful noises (fireworks) is not confined to humans. Our pets are susceptible to fears and at times traumas concerning these occurrences. It is important to recognize these fears and provide solace to your pet by conditioning them to not be afraid of these common occurrences.

Indication that your pet may be suffering from fear during storms would be: hiding, involuntary urination, panting, nervous chewing, pacing, fidgeting, trying to escape, drooling, trembling, shaking or dilated pupils. Any combination of these reactions that happen before and during storms or loud noises is a clear display of neurosis. Neurosis is a rather deep term, but in layman's terms your pet is having an anxiety attack.

Your pet depends on you for lots of things, and the help it needs to overcome or calm itself rests in your hands. Be reminded not to cuddle your pet in times of anxiety. This will act as an affirmation that he has every reason to be nervous. At the same time, never punish your pet for feeling fright. If you want your pet to overcome this behavior, you need to solve the problem.

The extent of neurosis differs from pet to pet. For cats and dogs exhibiting minimal phobic reaction, it is best to anticipate the weather by keeping tabs on the storm months in your area. Identifying this, you can alter your pets schedule and allot special amenities for them in your home.

When severe storms come into your area you can assign a safe haven for your pet inside your home. This change of environment will help ease their anxiety. If your pets nook is usually a front row seat to a lightning display (read as: near window), transfer its nook to the basement or your den or anywhere far from the window. Try to block noise from your home by installing shutters or heavy curtains in rooms where the family gets together. When the family projects a calm and positive attitude during the storm, your pets will follow suit. Your pets are animals ruled by instinct, making it sensitive to the feelings of its pack (you and your family). You may consider adding to your pets’ activity when there are signs of a storm coming. Often times a tired pet will care less about the thunder and lightning and may even sleep right through the turbulence.

Some pets that exhibit extreme phobic reaction to strong rain, lightning and thunderstorms will need to go through behavior modification processes. Usually this is done with the aid of dog training collar that acts as deterrents to unwanted behavior. You can test unwanted behavior by playing a recording of a full-blown storm, soliciting phobic responses from your pet. Triggering the collar deters the responses. Since dogs learn by association, the mild stimulation will deter the pet from acting in such a manner. This treatment must be done in a short period of time, 10-15 minutes ideally every other day.

Training by reconditioning and desensitizing allows your dog the ability to ignore what it fears the most. This calls for creativity and stamina of the owner. Your dog cannot learn this overnight so teaching it before the stormy season would be a wise decision. Patience and perseverance of the pet owner is critical for success.

If you do not wish to train your pet with negative stimulation you may try positive re-enforcement. When you introduce the thunderstorm sounds, like strong rain, teach your dog a re-conditioning command such as: "calm boy", patting your pet. Your tone should be calming but firm. Remember, you are the leader. Desensitize your dog by playing this recording for 20 minutes a day, adding different sounds associated with storms, until the combination of sounds mimic a full-blown storm. This is a tedious process, but training your dog to get over his fear will be beneficial for all.

An ideal training program would incorporate both negative and positive stimulation. If you follow this approach you can change your pets behavior rather quickly. Being a responsible pet owner sometimes entails activities that we would rather not do. However, when you see the change in your pet, your reward will be well worth the trouble.

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