The Thundershirt:

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. Based on surveys completed by over two thousand customers, over 80% of dogs show significant improvement in symptoms when using Thundershirt.Thundershirt is already helping tens of thousands of dogs around the world, and is recommended by thousands of veterinarians and dog trainers.

As for WHY Thundershirt’s gentle pressure works to calm a dog, experts such as Dr. Temple Grandin believe that pressure has a calming effect on the nervous system. Using pressure to relieve anxiety has been a common practice for years. For example:

• TTouch dog trainers use pressure to address a wide variety of anxieties.
• Veterinarians use pressure to relax cattle when they are administering vaccinations.
• People with autism use pressure to relieve their persistent anxiety.
• Children with certain behavioral problems use pressure shirts and weighted vests to relax and focus.
• Parents use swaddling to calm an inconsolable newborn infant.

Until now, there just hasn’t been a well-designed, inexpensive pressure wrap commonly used for dog anxiety. Thundershirt is changing that! Thousands of veterinarians and dog trainers now recommend Thundershirts for their anxiety cases.

We wanted to thank you for ordering the Thunder Shirt for Gidget.  Heather, the fit is great. To be very honest, Kris and I were VERY skeptical about the Thunder Shirt but we figured that if it doesn’t work, it’s a great coat for her to wear in the winter when she walks in her cart.

But Kris and I are both believers now.  The Thunder Shirt was nothing short of miraculous for Gidget!  Last night we didn’t get it on her until after she’d already heard the thunder.  However, her level of reactivity after the shirt was on was probably 60% – 70% what it typically would have been without the shirt.  So we considered it a success.

Knowing that more storms were expected we had Gidget sleep in the shirt.  This morning when the thunder started, it was as if we had a different dog.  The same thunder that would have had Gidget racing around the house, trying to crawl up the chimney in the fireplace and barking like a mad dog, merely garnered a few barks this morning!  In fact, Gidget was so relaxed during the storm that she ate breakfast, got a few drinks and relaxed on the bed – legs sticking out behind her with her tail wagging!  At times the thunder was so loud that I could hear it in the shower – but Gidget never reacted!

Thank you so much for bringing this wonderful product to us.  I think that the Thunder Shirt will make a huge difference in Gidget’s life – especially as spring and the associated storms roll in!