With some Storm Anxiety dogs you don’t need to ever pay attention to the weather. They warn us well in advance of an upcoming storm. Sweet Maddie is my own storm alert system. About an hour before normal people would begin to worry, poor Maddie was already reacting to an upcoming weather change. She begins with pacing and some whining. This becomes much more pronounced and frantic. She is looking for a dark and deep storm cellar to gather all members of the household. Most homes now do not have deep, dark storm cellars. So, Maddie and I created one for her. Before we began our cave building, I used several drops of calming essential oils on the inside of Maddie’s ears, and put rescue remedy in her mouth. Then we put a tee-shirt on Maddie and snugged it tight to help her to feel more secure. Then had to find her a spot where she can feel safe. So we built her a cave to hide in.

I have an extra large crate. I have covered all parts of the crate with quilts and sleeping bags and not being able to find any safety pins, I used duct tape (There are 1000’s of uses for duct tape – some of them even work!) to keep them in place. Knowing that if it is a long storm, Maddie will be in residence for several hours, we stacked two dog beds in the crate. Then I checked the batteries in the CD player, and decided that tonight Maddie would be listening to celtic harp music. I have the door of the crate tied open so Maddie does not have to worry about getting closed in. That would intensify her fear immensely.
Maddie, as are most Separation Anxiety dogs, is afraid of crates. I have not put Maddie in a crate, but rather created a cave without a door for her to hide in to feel safe. Maddie now has a safe place that is large enough so one of her foster brothers can join her if they choose – they have checked on her several times. This storm is not a bad one, but these actions helped Maddie, and we will be using them again. The methods I use with Maddie are holistic and not drug oriented. I am not trying to drug her, I am trying to help her to deal with her fears and find some relieve from them.

Anxieties are involuntary, often incapacitating fears. They are real. When a dog is suffering with a severe anxiety, that dog needs extra love and extra understanding. Please think brave and calm thoughts toward dogs that suffer with these fears. Watching a dog you love suffer through these episodes is hard.