Thundershirt

Moose is terrified of thunder. Moose is terrified of rain. Moose is terrified of cloudy days. Poor Moose gets so worked up that it seems like he is having a seizure. If we pet Moose, talk to him, or even just look at him, it makes it much worse. Moose also gets even dumber than normal during these times. Last April at least 3 police vehicles were out looking for Moose when he ran away during a storm. I took the dogs to the vet yesterday for routine shots and mentioned that Moose was even more nervous at the time because it was cloudy. The vet immediately said, "Thundershirt." Um, excuse me? What did you say? She proceeded to tell me about her big wussy dog that is also terrified of thunder. They tried everything, even drugs, but then they learned about Thundershirts. They work like swaddling a baby. The pressure on their chest is supposed to make them less anxious (even with non-thunder issues). With the rain starting to come down and thunderstorms predicted (well, face it, we live in Iowa), Wally, Moose, Daisy and I rushed to a pet store and picked up a Thundershirt for Moose. He really did seem calmer during the drive home. Maybe he is just an old dog and he was worn out from the exciting afternoon. There hasn't been any thunder since we got the shirt last night, but he started shaking this afternoon, so I put it on him. I'll up-date everyone to see how he does this weekend. Poor Moose. Hopefully his "Brave shirt" will help.