Adaptil For A Dog That Is Scared Of Thunderstorms

[kamuzz]

My GSD seems to be getting more anxious during thunderstorms as he gets older. (He is 9 now)

Has anyone tried any of the Adaptil products? Do they work?

[cavNrott]

I sprayed the inside of my car with Adaptil spray about 10 minutes before I put the dogs in when I last took to the groomer. My little deaf Cavalier gets agitated in the car and screams which makes me agitated as well. I think the Adaptil worked because she was quiet though still seemed a bit agitated.

The Adaptil spray is expensive but I'd give it a try for your storm phobic GSD.

[BC Crazy]

Yes I find the Adaptil spray effective with my noise phobic/anxious girl during bad weather but I use it in conjunction with a Thundershirt & Mutt muffs. I also use it at bed time as she is very anxious at night sometimes. I spray her bed with it about a hour before retiring. Well worth trying IMHO.

Edited December 5, 2014 by BC Crazy

[denali]

I know some people have had great success with this, and moreso when used in conjunction with a thunder coat.

But it does seem to be an individual type thing and doesnt always work unfortunately

[Panto]

Hey BC, was there training involved so that they would keep the mutt muffs on?

My girl is so bad now, the only thing that works is valium - on consultation with the vet of course. It's been a hectic week in this house with the storms!

[Loving my Oldies]

I have to confess that I've not tried any of the other remedies ---- went straight for a little tablet: valium. Of all the dogs who have shared my house, only Myrtie was afraid of storms and a little bit of valium (1/4 tablet as she was tiny) saw her back to normal within about 20 minutes even if the storm was still raging.

Good luck Kamuzz. It is horrible watching a frightened dog running around the house looking for you and/or somewhere to hide

[BC Crazy]

No Panto, I just put them straight on Stella. She will actually come straight over to me when she sees I am getting them out to put them on her. She loves them. The only thing is if she shakes her head they sometimes move off her ears slightly but she comes to me straight away for me to fix them for her. They definitely help her settle. She also is on Xanax & Prozac.

[bianca.a]

I agree it is worth a try but it doesn't do a thing for my severely storm phobic GSD. She used to be on Xanax but that stopped working as she progressively got worse. After a consult with a vet behaviourist she is on a beta blocker.

[Guest crazydoglady99]

I swear by adaptill collars. I've seen them work wonders on my own dogs and my fosters. Thundershirt worked well for an anxious dog i had a few years ago - its large breed size and sitting here gathering dust if you would like to give it a try kamuzz?

[Yonjuro]

I used an Adaptil collar when my boy was a puppy and took his long flight over from the Eastern States and I think it definitely helped with anxiety. They only last for around 4 weeks though. I bought a spray to use for car travel and think it worked slightly, but less effective than the collar - this is hard to quantify as Ronin was a major stress head in the car no matter what we did... he is much better now after an enormous amount of work.

My thoughts on the Adaptil types and individual cost would be that a diffuser might be the best bet, as you can switch it off when there are no forecast storms, so it should last a very long time this way and the pheromone will be spread over a large living area. I think you can put the collars in a zip lock bag and they will last a bit longer but hard to judge this.

The spray is handy for things like beds and crates but cannot be sprayed on the dog, I am not sure if they can be sprayed on a thunder shirt, but it might be worth looking into this.

If money wasn't an issue then a combination of the three types will cover all bases.

[Aleksandra 157]

I used to use Calmex tabs on my male JS on long car trips ,but did not work as well on Lulu .They seem to work better the day after you give it to them .in think it's a bit hit and miss ,though .I've never used Valium for them ,but I imagine it would be the2mg not 5? We've had an unusual amount of storms lately ,Ollies very frightened of them so might try small dose Valium next time. :)

[kamuzz]

Thanks for the replies.

animallover99, I've sent you a PM about the thundershirt.

Yonjuro, I had also thought that the diffuser would be the best bet for us.

[SarasMum]

Kamuzz my shepherd is just starting to show signs of being storm phobic too. She will be 9 on xmas eve. She has never had any problems before. The other night she paced and panted for a while and ended up sleeping next to my bed with me touching her. Good luck.

[02Dogs]

My oldest started developing a REALLY - jumping into walls - bad thunder & fireworks phobia when she was about 1.5 years old.

It took years of trial and error (Adaptil didn't work for us) but we found the thunder shirt and crating calm her the most.

[westiemum]

Out of the Adaptil products I found the spray works best - a couple of pumps on the fav bed and a nice firm pair of PJs (works similarly to a thunder shirt I find) and Andy is much calmer. Although it makes me wonder how the poor little man got on in thunder storms in a puppy farm cage in the middle of nowhere.

[kamuzz]

Asked the Adaptil people if it was safe to spray a thundershirt. Here is their response:

It is fine to spray the Adaptil onto a thunder shirt. 8-10 sprays should be sufficient-spray the area closest to head. We often use it on bandanas to put around dogs necks.

[YOLO]

I have been wondering what to do with Jasper? He has been getting increasingly agitated during thunder storms.

The problem is that he won't stay put, so spraying a bed won't work.

I was thinking of trying either a (vet recommended) antihistamine (which has proved sedating in the past) or a small dose of Valium?

[BC Crazy]

Big d perhaps a Thunder shirt, maybe crate Jasper with a sheet over it as well. I find with Stella they more she runs,moves around lots etc the more agitated & fearful she becomes. Zanax & Prozac also work to help her anxiety. Maybe try some Resue Remedy to begin with as well.

[YOLO]

Unfortunately Jasper has never been crated, and suffers severe separation anxiety at the best of times.

[karly101]

I'd suggest start using a crate, place his bed in there, feed him in there, give really good treats in there. Gradually work up to closing the door and increasing time in there.

That way probably by next storm season you could do adaptil + small dose valium and he will probably be a lot more comfortable. I find mileage varies with thundershirts (if the dog likes being cuddled that tends to indicate they will do well in a shirt). Adaptil I find good results for most dogs too.