Fear of thunder or other loud noises is when a dog shows scared behavior–such as salivating, frantic attempts to escape, panting, or hiding–in reaction to a particular noise. Some breeds, such as Australian and German shephards, border collies, and shetland sheepdogs, are more susceptible to noise phobia, like due to their sharper hearing abilities. Other dogs can learn to fear certain loud noises based on one scare or bad experience.
What should you do when you dog shows a fear of thunder? First, visit your vet and rule out a medical problem. Then, it largely depends on the severity of your dog’s phobia. Like people, dogs’ reactions can vary tremendously to certain situations. If your canine has a severe phobia, medication/sedation can sometimes be the best option of their well-being. In other cases, behavioral therapy involving exposure and a sort of retraining, can help. And, in yet other cases, management–or avoidance or prevention of the problem– is the most helpful. This is the case if your dog’s fear of thunder is unsettling but does not really decrease his quality of life.
Ultimately, fear of thunder is a case-by-case problem, so click over to the article below for more detail and to see the information used in this post:
http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-behavior/fear-noises
