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Protecting our dogs from storm phobia (and bad Photoshop)

Storm Watch & Storm Success, Part 1

    This entry is part 1 of 7 in the series Storm Watch
    Protecting our dogs from storm phobia (and bad Photoshop)
    Protecting our dogs from storm phobia (and bad Photoshop)

    It’s been a very stormy year across the country, and in the Midwest in particular. Since I have three dogs with three variants of sound/storm phobia or sensitivity, my former love and thrill for dramatic weather has degraded to a dejected, “Oh, more storms?!”

    But storm fear or sound phobia doesn’t have to be the end of the world for your pets or the end of sanity for you. There are many options now to help fearful or sensitive dogs (and cats!), and no reason to tolerate unnecessary suffering in animals or humans. In the next few posts, I will share what is working well for us and for others, and you can be the hero in your own household!

    Storm Watch & Storm Success, Part 2 – Carry-on Allowances & Emotional Baggage

      This entry is part 2 of 7 in the series Storm Watch
      Figure 15 from Charles Darwin's The Expression...
      Figure 15 from Charles Darwin’s The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals. Caption reads “FIG. 15.—Cat terrified at a dog. From life, by Mr. Wood.” Author’s signature is at bottom left. See also figures 9-14 and 18 by the same author. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

      Before we start with the nuts and bolts of helping pets with storm fear or phobia, we really have to discuss the emotional aspects of  fears and phobias. No matter how much has been written or described on this, I still encounter an amazing amount of misinformation which slows or counters owners’ best training efforts.

      The Cell Block Tango - relevant to storm phobia?

      Storm Watch & Success, Part 3 – Desensitization & Counter-Conditioning

        This entry is part 3 of 7 in the series Storm Watch
        Storm
        Storm (Photo credit: Moyan_Brenn)

        So you’re ready to get started combating storm fear, right? Of all the various tools we’ll cover, these will be the most generally useful for the most cases.

        Desensitization and counter-conditioning are often confused, and indeed they can be similar. Both involve starting at a very low level of exposure to the trigger and gradually raising it. But they are different processes.

        fireworks

        Storm Watch & Storm Success, Part 6 – Phobias & Emergency Management

          This entry is part 6 of 7 in the series Storm Watch

          Okay, so you’re well into your new conditioning plan, with graduated protocols in place to reduce your dog’s noise fears or phobias. You’re taking it slowly and making good progress. But suddenly it’s Independence Day or Guy Fawkes, with fireworks going off all around, and a thunderstorm rolling in to boot, and you know you’re not ready for all this. How do you survive tonight?

          Puppy’s First Tornado – Preparedness for Pets

            This entry is part 7 of 7 in the series Storm Watch
            Tornado warning
            Tornado warning (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

            Spring came very late to Indiana this year, and I got complacent. With a lot fewer spring storms, I didn’t prep for tornados like I should have. So when the warning sirens went off a few minutes ago and I saw that a tornado had been sighted, I was unprepared.

            This is dumb. If you’re lucky, you get up to half an hour of tornado warning, if it’s considerate enough to touch down at a distance and with an observable and predictable path. The average warning time with today’s radar equipment is about 13 minutes, according to NOAA. But you might have just a few minutes, if even that.

            So I’m writing this post from my basement, waiting for the tornado to pass (it seems to be heading north of us) and making plans to improve my storm preparations.