anxiety - Page 1

My GSD is suffering from anxiety from the wind , it's gotten worse as she gets older,to this point that she is keeping us awake when she hears wind,Does anyone have any suggestions on what to do? Is there anything I can give her to keep her calm?

The arrival of strong winds in a climate is most often accompanied by atmospheric changes, oftentimes undetectable to most people.. such as pressure, barometer, etc..
The dogs can become sensitive to these minute changes, and sometimes get stressed, sensing a storm, heavy rain, hail, lightning, etc.

Friends of mine have had very good success using the "Thundershirt" on the dogs who acted up..
I think you can find them online or in higher end pet stores.

The above is true and sometimes as dogs age and their hearing gets bad, things don't sound the same and it scares them.  Don't know if your dog is old or not. There are many calming products out there, all you have to do is Google.  The biggest thing to remember when a dog is scared... DO NOT CODDLE THEM IN ANY WAY!! Comforting them and babying them will only make it worse. Dogs take that as a sign that they are behaving correctly and you LIKE what they are doing.  I don't know as it will work in this situation, but my first reaction to fear to to continuously expose them to it and make light of it until they ignore it .  But like I said, this would not work in this situation because you can't replicate it and I'm guessing it mostly happens at night.

Debby

I will back up DenWolf's suggestion of a Thundershirt.

I bought one for my Border Collie last year just before Bonfire Night as he is terrified of fireworks, it worked a treat for him

http://www.thundershirt.xtradog.com/  scroll down for description...

Yes, my female GSD started to behave fearful like this when she was older ..We would play music if we knew a storm was coming and that appeared to help distract from the sound ..And yes, ignore the behavior as they will become more insecure if you coddle them .On the other hand I would accommodate her by staying near, but expecting her to settle and remain calm..

Good luck..