When dogs are afraid of storms, what can you do?

Two out of my three dogs are terrified of storms and fireworks; so much so that they pace furiously, shake uncontrollably, and search for the place they feel safest (like wedged between the couch and end-table or sitting on my head).

Instead of each passing year getting better and desensitized, their stress level had reached sad proportions. No amount of comfort or treats made them feel at ease, so I thought, "What can I do?"

Thanks to many searches on the web, Twitter, and Facebook, I finally found something that made a difference -- RESOURCES Canine Anti-Anxiety & Calming Formula tablets, which contain Melatonin, and this new piece of clothing called the Thundershirt®.

What's a Thundershirt®, you ask? According to the company's website, www.thundershirt.com, "with its patent-pending design, Thundershirt’s gentle, constant pressure has a dramatic calming effect for most dogs if they are anxious, fearful or over-excited."

At first I wasn't convinced, but after reading tons of positive reviews, and a little insight from my pal on Twitter, @fearfuldogs, I figured that I didn't have much to lose at this point.

We've had three loud storms since the shirts arrived, and I'm happy to report that both dogs seem more relaxed and are content to lay down and take a nap; it's almost as if they hadn't even noticed the thunder. 


Now, if I could just get all three of them to calm down when ANYONE comes to my house!

The first bath of Spring 2011

Gertie™ Gear Pet Beds are Grrrrrrreat!

Cercei loves her new Gertie™ Gear bed!




Michigan Made Gertie™ Gear Pet Beds: Available online at gertiegear.com/

Read more about Gertie™ Gear and the namesake on AnnArbor.com/Pets

Taking a Walk - Pomeranian (and Mutt) Style

Attack of the Pom

My neighbors are a bunch of dogs!

What's more fun than three dogs? Four.

Yesterday I took some pictures for my neighbors and the dogs were having a grand ol' time. Running, jumping, swimming, chewing, and of course barking.

Things have been hectic, to say the least

I've been awful at writing lately, but at least this time I have an excuse. During the wee hours of June 6, a Tornado ravaged the small town of Dundee. Although no one was killed and few were seriously hurt, the destruction to my neighborhood was great. Many of my neighbors had far greater damage than we did, but the loss of 50+ year-old trees is still something that's hard to take. We lost seven, over 20 ft. tall, pine trees on our property alone. The entire, historic neighborhood will take another 50 years to look that beautiful again.

Besides the neighborhood looking quite bare, it was so sad to see all the squirrels and birds wandering aimlessly about. They were confused because their "homes" were gone, and some even lost their babies. I've never experienced anything quite like it and hope that I never do again.

Here's a slide show of the damage at my house. Pictures will never do it justice, because seeing it in person is so much more intense.