July 2008 Update

We have had another month of unsettled weather............but we have coped well. Last night we were up from 1:15 AM-4:00AM....................very heavy storm activity. O'R spent much of his time burrowing in different places in the bedroom while I spent time at the computer...............he was not dosed untill 3ish and he did well..........a heavy band was predicted for 3 AM so he was given 2 Clonazepam..........he did some scratching at the window etc but finally got up on my bed and place his arse next to my head :) The improvement in him is a marvel..........we have both retrained ourselves, I think to handle these storms much more wisely..........I must say, I will not be sad when summer is done with.........never thought I would say that !!

Good Boy Mr O :)

Summer Update ~

Things are going well............I realize that O'R needs some retraining as he has not remembered every thing we worked on last year........understandable, for sure ( neither have I !!) Redirecting is SO important...........i.e. tonight he was standing near me and panting and I quietly repeated " You go lie down.........you go lie down" .................and he did and fell asleep, sweet boy...........he just needed some guidence as he was......um.......shall we say................under the influence? :)

We've had a number of pop up storms this season ( very typical when one lives to the east of a major great lake !!)

Weather Underground is the best website I have found for accurate info and great radar maps that show storm direction and severity...........I have no problem giving him three 1 mg Clonazepam when a strong storm is approaching and I will administer 2 more after 2-3 hours if he is very anxious or if the radar tells me there are alot more storms coming..............I have never had to give him more than that in any 24 hour period...................and if the radar shows me a small passing storm I will not medicate him.............rather walk him, brush him and happy talk him through it

I want to reach a point where I can leave the house during a storm.............that is my goal.

Another little victory !

Last night a neighbor set off a round of firecrackers...............O'R 's ears went into action and that was it......head never left the bed and I praised him mightily !

At around 3 am he jumped off the bed and went to the window.............lightening in the distance along with a rumble of faraway thunder.............I went to the computer and checked radar............it was a small cell so I did not dose him...........after a few minutes of coaxing he got back on the bed and I praised and offered a treat (which he declined) but he was quiet and so was the storm

Unrelated to storm phobia, and realizing he'll be 11 on October 31st, I am sensing a few small changes that I want to record...............his muzzle is whitening.........he often won't jump into the back seat of the car from the garage...........I think the space is confining and it is uncomfortable, perhaps? So I back the car out onto the driveway......stop and get out and he bounds towards me from the garage and hops right in :) He is not guzzling his food as he normally did..........I frost the top of his kibble with Alpo prime cuts to cover his 2 daily pills but lately I think he's leaving some (not hungry?) (hoping I'll come back and coat some more?) when I do he happily finishes :)

Sometimes, in the morning, he stays on the bed when I get up.........for maybe 10 0r more minutes.................a new behavior............no worries.........just observations.......I think :(

A correction

I mistakenly said I had given O'Riley Clomicalm (Clomipramine) at the onset of a storm...........I meant to say I gave him Clonazepam.........it can be confusing as they both start with Clo :)

I also wanted to mention that once the storm season was over last fall I cut back by 50 % his daily dosage of Clomipramine ( Clomicalm)

Another Season, Another Show !

Welcome, 2008 storm season !

This year is going to be one of many successes, I'm sure, with lessons learned from last year , thus a more positive, less stressful approach to storms by MOI :)

Today I went to my grand son's varsity baseball game...........unseasonably warm for this time of year ( 84) with storms predicted later on in the afternoon.........I left O'Riley outside as was his wish ; ) .................after an hour or so I heard a thunder boom in the far distance and came home immediately..........O'R was anxious, of course, but I ( rather than rushing to the computer to track a storm or leaping to the fridge for cheese to give with pills) greeted O with a happy, calm
" Hi there, Bunny..........looks like we may have some weather approaching?" ...........and casually offered him 2 1/2 mg of Clomicalm ( an extra half pill as this was our first dose of the season ........does that make sense? (makes little to me, but did at the time ! ) )

It takes 45 minutes, give or take 10, for the meds to work, but work they did !!!!!!!!!! On a scale of 1-10 I would categorize this storm a 7 .............lots of loud thunder, a few CRACKS like it was next to the couch and he was calm and lying down near me..........and he was like that till it was over..............no shaking and shivering........no clawing.........

What a GREAT start to the season :)