There isn’t much that Murry, our eight-year-old wheaten terrier, is afraid of. He doesn’t fear other dogs, moving cars, falling anvils. If a tiger was charging, he’d splay his paws and wag his tail or show his adorable belly. If a dog-hating armed robber broke in, Murry would bring him a shoe.
That’s not because Murry is brave. It’s because his brain is the size of a pea.
But I love my pea-brained mop dog. He’s my most constant companion. I can’t imagine how I’d survive these hot summer days without his sopping wet beard, freshly refilled from the bucket, cooling my leg as the water dribbles down from where his chin rests on my knee.
Not counting deep thought and pop quizzes, there are only a few things that Murry is truly afraid of. The first is the groomer, for whom he has a seething hatred, along with a knee-knocking fear. The others are thunder storms and fireworks.
Our family’s two other dogs represent opposite ends of the anxiety spectrum. The silky terrier, Chewie, is essentially fearless, almost stupidly so, while Roo, our closet dog, has phobias so specialized she even has one for vertical men.
That Roo chose to share Murry’s fear of thunder and fireworks seemed unsurprising to us, but to Murry, her fear compounds his, as though Roo’s trembling gives him proof there’s something to fear.
And gives us reason to dread holidays like the Fourth of July.
Not long ago, Geoff and I were on the back porch with the dogs when a storm started to brew. For some reason, when the thunder rumbled, I gave Murry a nudge and said in a playful voice, “Get it, Murry.”
He barked at the thunder.
“Good boy,” Geoff encouraged. “Get it, Murry. Chase it away.”
More thunder, more barking. Instead of growing more fearful, Murry was soon hopping and woofing at each fresh crack of thunder, thoroughly enjoying that he was being encouraged to bark. He seemed to forget to be scared.
Roo, however, was barricading all the doors with heavy furniture while Chewie was busy sticking forks in electrical outlets.
Knowing the upcoming fireworks would have our crew in a tizzy, I began seeking suggestions for ways to calm dogs during stressful times. I was told to put a tiny dab of peppermint oil on the back of Murry’s paws during a storm (or other stressful event). He would lick off the oil, which has calming properties, while the process of licking helps distract and calm him.
Unfamiliar with peppermint oil, I mentioned it to my husband. Wondered if it was safe.
“What’s the danger?” he asked. “That his breath will be minty?”
Concerned, I researched about the safety of peppermint oil and found an ASPCA warning that large quantities could cause gastrointestinal irritation in dogs, but the risks appeared to be small.
Other recommendations include. . . .
- Taking your dog for an extra long walk prior to the fireworks starting, since a tired dog is naturally less stressed.
- Feeding them a little more than usual shortly before the loud noises begin, as a full stomach tends to make them sleepy and relaxed.
- Providing a safe, dark place with music or a fan running.
- Making sure your pet has an I.D. tag in case he races off in fear and gets lost.
- Not taking a pet to a fireworks display (or forcing them to go outside during a thunderstorm) thinking it’ll help them develop an immunity to their fear. It almost never does.
- And making certain outlets have protective covers, and forks are kept out of a terrier’s reach.
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Oh, I can so relate to this! Two of our 4 dogs are afraid of storms and fireworks. Like Geoff, my husband brilliantly taught them to scare away the thunder. Remember those recently middle of the night thunderstorms? I might have slept blissfully through them had it not been for 2 wildly barking dogs! And the Fourth of July is a holiday I dread. I no longer enjoy fireworks because Reggie is so terribly scared. When our neighbors had a fireworks display in the lot next to us, I thought Reggie was going to have a heart attack. I had to put him in the car and drive around St. Albans with the air conditioner on full blast to mask any noises. Since he hates car rides the fact that this calmed him down shows just how scared of fireworks he is. At least Annie has not learned the trick with the forks yet!
I feel your pain. I also live in St. Albans and have a 13-year-old Dalmatian. For some unknown reason this year she decided to bark when a storm is coming. She never did this before. It came after a trip to the kennel. She has gone to this kennel for about four years now. No issues before. The only way to get her to be quiet was to take her outside and put her in her kennel. She slept like a log….outside.
We just picked her up from the same kennel on Monday, July 19th after a seventeen day stay. Last night an awful storm hit. Lots of lightning and thunder that was very close to us, it actually shook the floors of the house. Not a peep out of my dog the whole night… in her crate in the basement.
One has to wonder sometimes.