Really bad problem with my German Shepherd

[Marty]

I'm at my wits end with this problem my German Shepherd is having and I would love any ideas you'd like to throw at me.

We are remodeling this house (another topic) and Amy cannot stand the noise from all the power tools. She's really terrified so badly that I've never seen anything like this. Its been going on now for a few weeks and you'd think she would get used to the noises but no such luck. We have turned our front porch into the designated saw mill and there is a compressor that is really loud that vibrates the whole porch and is powering the nail gun. This stuff is extremely loud. The nail gun sounds like a gun shot. All the tools are so loud that I can hear the noise when I'm up at the barn with the radio on. Its worse than that: I can hear these noises all over most of the property, no exaggeration whatsoever.

Amy goes completely into panic mode when the tools go off to the turn of shaking worse than any dog I have ever seen. I'm really afraid she's going to have a heart attack or something. She starts pawing on me and is actually tearing me up all over my arms and legs and even my back. She doesn't know if she wants to be inside our outside. She has nowhere to hide where she cannot hear the tools. I found her yesterday in the back seat of my truck, laying on the floor shaking like crazy. She jumped through the window. I have found her hiding up in the barn loft shaking. She actually jumped in a stall with one of the horses and was laying in the corner shaking half to death. This morning took the cake when I heard a constant crashing noise when she was trying to get outside she was body slamming the door. A miracle she didn't break the glass in it. I have been leaving our back door open for her now so she can run and hide somewhere and come back in when she wants to. The only place she feels safe is either in my arms or when I take her for a ride in the truck away from here and I can't ride her around all day long. I thought about bringing her to Dan's house but he's never home so that's not an option. She wouldn't stay anywhere without me anyhow. She also does this when someone shoots off a gun or fireworks on the 4th of July.

All I can think of is getting a tranquilizer from the vet. But this remodeling is going to go on for another month or more and I can't tranquilize my dog every single day. I feel so sorry for my dog I don't know what to do to help her through this. I have to wonder if all this noise is physically hurting her eardrums.

Any ideas are very much appreciated.

 

[candycar]

Maybe you could try some Prozac to help with the anxiety. Your vet can perscribe it with proper dosage. It works wonders on my very anxious kitty. He has been taking it for years. We get the perscription filled at Walmart for $4.

The only other thing I can think of is is earplugs. If you can keep them in! I use those little pom-poms with a string loop sewn on for the minis when giving them baths, or clipping ears. Shove them in far enough and they don't shake out and the string makes it so you can get to them to pull them out.

Good Luck

 

[sfmini]

A friend of mine got her dog a thundershirt and it really worked for him. She also puts him on her treadmill in his shirt as soon as the noise (thunder) starts and off he goes. He has to concentrate on keeping moving and that helps.

Of course the treadmill idea won't help with something that goes all day, but google the thundershirt.

Also, dog trainers will tell you to start making positive associations with the tools sounding off, something that she is over the moon for, a special treat that only appears when the tools start up. My dogs would be nuts for cooked liver, for the shows we bake it until it is dried out (don't want slimy liver in your pockets) and the dogs drool. Humans not so much, I hate the smell, when I was showing I got into the habit of buying my cooked liver at the show from the vendors.

I imagine the thundershirt people might have information on other things to do.

Good luck!

 

[Jill]

Can you close or tie her in the barn while the work is underway?

 

[Reble]

Benadryl from the drug store, give 2 tsp, they also have it in pills, had to give this to my Shih Tzu who is terrified of storms and knows when they are coming an hour ahead..

She hated the sound of thunder or loud noises.

Not sure put might help..

 

[Marty]

Thanks for all these ideas they are really good and I really need them and I'm ordering some things for her today.

Today we are going to take the "saw mill" off the front porch and set it up in the garage where the doors can be shut and get rid of part of that noise. He'll have to carry the wood back and forth but anything that helps will be worth the extra trouble. Got to admit that screeching saw drives me crazy like someone running their nails on a blackboard. I think its the compressor and nail gun causing the worst of the problem. Wish we could use the smaller stuff but this work requires the major tools for right now. I drove one of the trucks to the very far back of the property and have the window open if she wants to jump in it. (Last time I left the door open I ended up with a dead battery) and she is a truck window jumper in and outter anyhow. I left the golf cart way out back there too which she likes to sit in so now she has a choice. I can still hear the nail gun from back there but its not so piercing. If the noise still bothers her that much she has bionics installed in her ears! I'm also going to crank the radio in the barn full blast if she cares to run in there. This is really sad seeing Amy so distressed day after day. She's our daughter.

 

[Miniv]

Valerian Root in liquid form can be found at health food stores. It's the base for what Valium is made from. We feed it to our Golden who has developed seizures. He has panic attacks when he comes out of them and the Valerian Root calms him down. There's also something called Rescue Remedy (R & R) which helps with anxiety and you can give it with the V-Root without a problem. Any vet who recognizes the importance of holistic medicine will probably approve of them. Plus, you can give them to your fellow every day.

We have another dog who is terrified of thunder and gun shots. I have made her a "cave" in our bedroom closet, which she uses regularly.

Good Luck. I sure do feel for your boy AND you.

 

[mydaddysjag]

Marty, I really feel for you. I have a rescue Basset hound here with the same problem, and I live in an apartment complex where they have been redoing roofing, porches, sofit and facia, etc. since MAY. This dog is scared of everyday household noises, like the sweeper, let alone saws, nail guns, etc. Ive tried the prescription prozac from my vet, benedryl, "rescue remedy" a dog calming supplement that had valerian root, a thunder shirt, positive reinforcement, kong toys stuffed with PB given in the quietest room of the apartment, etc. So far, nothing has worked. I find him laying on his back, shaking, peeing himself some days. Others, hes so frantic that he will jump in my lap, on top of my 15 month old, which obviously isnt acceptable. Im also at my witts end, as this construction was supposedly going to be done in the end of June. Buddy lost a LOT of weight, because he wouldn't eat for a while because he was so nervous, not even table scraps. Now I have to take him for a ride twice a day, and feed him at my parents place. Unfortunately, he cant stay there, but he is gaining the weight back now that he isnt so scared when he should be eating. How noisy is it inside your tack room? Could you get some foam insulation and rig it up temporarily to reduce the noise more, like a sound barrier? Maybe now that the weather is cooling down, Amy could go out there sometimes, to get some relief?

If you find something that works, please message me and let me know. Im to the point that im considering placing Buddy in another home, because since starting this construction (that they now say will continue through the winter) he is absolutely petrified all day everyday, and thats not fair for him.

 

[mydaddysjag]

Im not sure if this would work with Amy, but someone suggested putting some of those large craft "pom poms" in my dogs ares through the day when they are doing the work. It doesnt work with him since hes a basset and has long floppy ears, they just fall out, but might work with a GSD's ear, if she would let them in. You have to make sure to take them out at night though.

 

[Marty]

I've been working with Amy on this all day long determined to figure something out and I'm posting this in case others ever have this same problem going on sometime.

First, there is no way I can tie her or lock her up or confine her anywhere because it would be very dangerous to do that to a dog in full blown panic mode so I won't do that. Just like a horse, you don't want to do that to them when they are freaking out or they will hurt themselves trying to flee. The tack room is insullated but I can't shut the door on her because she'd kill herself trying to get out.

So without even realizing it until I paid attention I did a process of elimination today. The saw was going on just a little bit and there she was with me doing so-so inside while I was having a cup of coffee. Not saying she liked the saw, but she wasn't going insane over it either. It's the nail gun. 100% no doubt about it, the nail gun is what is making her nuts. Not even the big compressor, just the nail gun. It set her off into a spin like you cannot imagine and there went the cup of coffee and the end table it was sitting on turned over. That nail gun does sound like a gun shot but you'd think she'd be used to hearing that as much as we have hunters and gun shots go off so often. Its totally beyond loud. So I moved the truck to the back of the property for her to sit in and that worked like a charm until I got out and headed to the barn she wouldn't stay in it alone. But the good news is that I found out I could blast my radio in the barn while we are doing stalls and that totally helps. Not perfect but we're getting close finding a way through this. Dan's bringing over one of his boom boom systems for me to borrow in the am and will hook that up to my truck which will also help drown out the nail gun noise. You know the kind I mean that these young kids have that break your ear drums and you can hear them coming down the road a mile away. Dan builds those systems for customers as a side line so that's what I'm borrowing. (For my Christmas Carols maybe?). So I guess this means fight noise with another kind of noise. Crazy house.

 

[anoki]

Several of my corgis HATE loud sudden noises. I use a staple gun when putting saddles back together, and yes, it's not the air compressor that gets them, it's the noise of the stapler going off. They hate me hammering loudly, if I drop something on the cement floor.....they even bail out whenever anyone PICKS UP a fly swatter-they hate the noise of the swatting.

The thundershirt does work wonders...sounds funny, but I've heard some very positive results...

Benedryl I have yet to use and be effective....I know people swear by it, but it hasn't worked for any of my dogs (non corgis included).

Rescue Remedy is a very effective product. I've used it on several dogs (and use it when I'm grooming dogs). It is pretty instant to work too...5 mins tops.

Bonine or Dramamine are other products which are available at most drug stores (or Walmarts etc) in the US (not available in Canada). They are also effective in settling dogs down. It takes about 20 mins to work.

Glad you were able to determine exactly what it was that was triggering it!! That is a huge step!!

Hope she's able to cope with it until the renos are finished.

~kathryn