
A Dog Gone Eulogy For Fabulous Earl
The Beginning A Good Dog Story As a dog trainer, I have shared my life with many dogs. I have had the good fortune to have had one amazing dog who took my life on unanticipated adventures and taught me to embrace life with all of my heart. Fabulous Earl is my German Shorthaired Pointer…. Read More
Have any of your dogs had any fear issues with the sound of rain on the roof? We are full timers, and have to give our dog gabapenten and have her wear a Thundershirt during each storm.
Hi Gail,
Thank you for reaching out. None of my dogs has any noise-related issues. However, If they did, an easy way to get around it is to play sounds (look up rain sounds on Youtube) for short 2-3 second periods and pair them with something the dog loves that he never normally gets- an Ultra treat. This could be a bit of canned sardines delivered from the end of a spoon whenever the sound is played. Alternate the sound coming on for 2 seconds while you deliver the ultra treat, and the sound going off for 2-3 seconds, and no treat. The sound will become a predictor that you are about to deliver the ultra treat. Do 5 reps in a row, and then stop for 15 minutes. And then start again.
It’s important to start at a barely audible volume for the first 10 mini sessions. Once the dog is really starting to look for his Ultra treat as soon as that sound comes on, and he’s done this more than a few times, it’s time to increase the volume a tiny bit
Repeat as before. Until he is good at the new volume, but don’t increase the duration of playing the sounds yet. When he is totally repeatedly looking at you for his Ultra-treat when the sound starts, it’s time to up the difficulty a tiny bit and increase the volume slightly.
Increase the volume slightly and repeat as before. Keep doing this until he is really good at even a slightly loud (but not earsplitting) volume.
This process may take a few days to a few weeks, depending on the needs and abilities of your dog. Once he is always comfortable at any volume for a few seconds, you are ready to increase the duration of the sound a few seconds at a time, working in roughly the same process you went through when building tolerance of the sound through increasing volume. The key is to be very, very patient, keep the mini-sessions short and frequent and don’t try to hurry the process. Have faith he’ll get there.
DOn’t try to get him used to real rain until he’s good with the recorded version. Once the recorded version doesn’t even elicit an ear twitch or big-eyed look at all you may proceed to real rain and use approximately the same process.
When there is rain in the forecast, disguise the sound by playing music on the stereo, or TV well before it starts and then during the rain. You don’t want music or TV to become a predictor of scary things for the dog so start it 1/2 hour to 1 hour ahead of the storm where possible.
You may need to start with your dog on his meds and work with him in a medicated state to begin with. Some dogs are more sound sensitive than others due to their breed/type and inherited genes, early experiences (or lack there-of), or a medical history where ear infections were common. Be patient. Don’t attempt to hurry the process by increasing volume or duration too soon. Remember, from your pup’s perspective, his life is in absolute danger here. He is experiencing real and palpable terror. This has to be handled with sensitivity and compassion and patience. Good luck Gail!