“Thunderbolt and lightning; very, very fright’ning me!”
By ingrid
@ridingbet (66854)
Philippines
May 25, 2017 9:08pm CST
Bohemian Rhapsody is a song of the Queen that I often tell my students to use in their music therapy on Psychiatric nursing because of the highs and lows, and ups and downs of the song. The emotion of the client is clearly manifested here.
Yesterday evening, there were thunderstorms and flashes of lightning, signifying that we are now entering the rainy season. (It actually rained so hard.) As such, I remembered Vodka, the dog of my niece (who came for a brief vacation with her father few days ago), who trembled and scratched our door whenever there is thunder.
It is known that dogs are anxious when they hear loud thunder, which is why somebody invented a blanket to ‘hug a distressed canine’. From what I read on Face Book, this blanket provides comfort and security to the dog.
Our dogs however, do not mind if there is thunderstorm or lightning. Some even want to go out, but we forbid them because they might ‘catch a cold’. They still play around the house even though thunder and lightning manifest themselves in the dark skies.
Do your dogs get anxious when there is thunderstorm or flashes of lightning?
19 people like this
16 responses
@Courtlynn (67085)
• United States
26 May 17
No dogs here. But our cat hates it. Even hates the wind when it gets loud.
4 people like this
@hereandthere (45645)
• Philippines
28 May 17
really? how does your cat react, by hiding?
3 people like this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
29 May 17
your cat is too sensitive to the sudden changes of the climate.
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
27 May 17
oh, so even cats are afraid too. a touch from you gives the cat the reassurance that you are there for her 'in times of distress'.
i like almost all songs of the Queen.
2 people like this
@DianneN (247186)
• United States
28 May 17
@ridingbet I wonder if any other animals in the wild are afraid. I just played lots of Queen today! lol
2 people like this
@allen0187 (58582)
• Philippines
27 May 17
Had a number of dogs but never had a dog that got anxious because of thunder and lightning.
2 people like this
@allen0187 (58582)
• Philippines
28 May 17
@ridingbet I guess it also depends on the temperament and behavior of the dog.
2 people like this
@minx267 (15527)
• Hartford, Connecticut
31 May 17
@ridingbet This is true. much of our anxiety is transferred to our pets
2 people like this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
31 May 17
@minx267 i agree. maybe the masters of these scared pets are also showing fear and anxiety when they hear strong and loud sounds.
2 people like this
@bluesa (15022)
• Johannesburg, South Africa
26 May 17
Our rainy season has sadly come to an end @ridingbet and I already miss it. Yes, my little miss Daisy hides under my bed during storms, but we always cuddle and try to calm her.
2 people like this
@bluesa (15022)
• Johannesburg, South Africa
27 May 17
@ridingbet , Yes, unfortunately. But we do sit with her and calm her. :)
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
29 May 17
@bluesa you are a caring fur mother to little Miss Daisy.
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
27 May 17
oh, so little miss daisy is scared of thunder as well. does her tail get in between her hind legs when she is scared?
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
27 May 17
just a while back, there was a very loud roaring thunder. our dogs just barked loud, then they continued their activities, while the 4 puppies are about to sleep now.
1 person likes this
@RubyHawk (99405)
• Atlanta, Georgia
28 May 17
@ridingbet That's good that they don't run scared.
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
28 May 17
@RubyHawk last night, there was a very loud thunder. what they did was bark in unison, then continued their sleep.
1 person likes this
@responsiveme (22926)
• India
26 May 17
My neighbours birds don't like it either..
2 people like this
@hereandthere (45645)
• Philippines
28 May 17
even birds? how do the birds react to them?
2 people like this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
29 May 17
hmmm, maybe they chirp loud and are restless too?
1 person likes this
@dpk262006 (58676)
• Delhi, India
26 May 17
I have heard that dogs get anxious in case of thunderstorm or lightening. They could sense it better than human beings. I do not have a pet dog, so I cannot say whether my dog gets anxious during thunderstorm or lightening.
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
29 May 17
maybe you can observe the other dogs of your neighbors when there is thunderstorm and lightning before the rain.
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
31 May 17
@dpk262006 i am sorry but i did not say you have to peep into others' house. i just said 'observe'. thank you.
1 person likes this
@minx267 (15527)
• Hartford, Connecticut
26 May 17
My other Collie that I had to put down 2 years ago did. if he heard thunder he would follow me around the house sticking to my hip like velcro. He would lay down very close to me and be very distressed.
The thing of which you speak.. I think, is the Thunder Shirt... my friend bought one for her dog. she said it did help to calm him.
PS. Bohemian Rhapsody is one of my FAVORITE SONGS
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
29 May 17
wow, i have one more who favors Bohemian Rhapsody; the other is miss Dianne.
i read that on FB about that thunder shirt;it gives security and comfort to the dog that uses it. but maybe we can give our hugs to these distressed pets when they come running to us; our body heat is enough to make them feel relaxed.
1 person likes this
@minx267 (15527)
• Hartford, Connecticut
29 May 17
@ridingbet I think it is the pressure of being swaddled in the shirt that gives them relief.
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
29 May 17
@minx267 maybe it feels like a human blanket.
1 person likes this
@Nawsheen (28643)
• Mauritius
29 May 17
@ridingbet those people's whose dogs react negatively to thunderstorms might get those blankets. It is a good thing that your dogs are not scared
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
29 May 17
@Nawsheen yes, they just bark and they don't hide when there are thunderstorms. it is contrary to Vodka, who scratched our screen door when the skies get dark, even before thunders sound.
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
29 May 17
yes, that is why this 'security blanket or coat' was designed to give comfort and security to the distressed dogs during thunderstorms.
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (471506)
• Switzerland
28 May 17
@ridingbet The dogs are not afraid by the noise, it’s the static electricity that makes dogs feel uncomfortable. As your country is very humid, it is very possible that they feel a lot less the statics.
2 people like this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
29 May 17
@LadyDuck but why don't my dogs get scared while others do, when we live in the same vicinity as the other dogs? is it possible that the static electricity to them is stronger than ours here?
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
28 May 17
i believe this is their nature to be scared. but having dogs that are brave, i think they are exceptions to the rule.
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
28 May 17
yes, they are all brave, unless we shout at them to discipline them. 
1 person likes this
@AliCanary (3239)
•
26 May 17
I like how you started with the song and linked it to actual thunder and lightning. I don't have a dog, but my cat doesn't seem to mind it too much.
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
29 May 17
yes, that line of the Bohemian Rhapsody is sung by only 2 of the Queen but it is magnified in to a chorus, or many voices. i am actually awed by how Queen does that when they are only a quartet in the group.
maybe your cat is a brave and courageous one, unmindful of the strong sound from the skies.
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
30 May 17
@AliCanary hmmm, like us here. well, the only very anxious person here in our house is... you guessed it right, my sister! she is really a worrier.
1 person likes this
@AliCanary (3239)
•
30 May 17
@ridingbet - All of my cats have been pretty chill about storms except for one, who would go hide. They do look startled when the thunder is very loud, but I try to reassure them. I think part of the secret is that storms don't scare me at all--pets frequently pick up on their owner's anxiety.
1 person likes this
@Ruby3881 (1963)
• Canada
2 Jun 17
I love "Bohemian Rhapsody!" I'd never thought of it being used in a psychiatric setting, but it does make sense. Far better than the muzak that gets played on some hospital wards.
We had thunder here the other day too. It wasn't much, but it still unnerved my daughter. She spent several summers at a camp high in the mountains where the storms are really severe, and now she gets nervous whenever we hear thunder.
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
4 Jun 17
maybe your daughter had an untoward incident when there were thunderstorms during their camping spree? it is much more scary if she saw a flash of lightning striking down a tree.
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
4 Jun 17
@Ruby3881 i hope she will get over the PTSD symptom that is bothering her. was she from the military before?
1 person likes this
@Ruby3881 (1963)
• Canada
4 Jun 17
@ridingbet I guess it was just very frequent storms that were both loud and prolonged. When living in summer lodgings, that can be rather frightening. I think she has a sort of mild form of PTSD now.
1 person likes this
@prashu228 (37524)
• India
26 May 17
We don't have dogs, I never heard that dogs are afraid of thunderstorms
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
29 May 17
some of the dogs are scared of thunderstorms. i hope you observe a dog when it thunders.
