Do any of you have any experience of using a thundershirt for dogs that get stressed with car travel please?  One of my girls has always hated being in the car - she shakes, pants and won't settle and I wondered if a thundershirt would help?

I spoke to a lady from XtraDog who supplies a lot of the Ttouch stuff, and she said that it is really good for car anxiety, but you must be sure to put it on at random times so it's not always just associated with the car and gives a negative reaction to the thundershirt being put on!

I have one which I used for my dog in the house, she had issues with people coming in, I didn't notice any difference at all. I will be selling it on.

You won't know unless you try!  They work for some dogs and do nothing for others.

Some tips.  It can be a good idea to try a tight-fitting child's t-shirt first, it's a hell of a lot cheaper and you'll get an idea if it's going to work from that (or indeed that might be enough!).  Another option is a body wrap - google ttouch body wrap.  Works on the same principle and it can be a bit more customised.    Also, the velcro on thundershirts is immense and can cause problems by itself - we tried one on Phoebe in her last home, it worked really well the first time but once it was taken off, the noise of the velcro upset her and now she won't tolerate anything at all, even a thin body wrap.  And it's not just noise phobics like her - same thing happened with another client's dog who has no noise issues whatsoever.  I'm not the only person who's seen this happen.  But a body wrap just knots at the ends, so no velcro.  Damn sight cheaper too!

If you do buy a thundershirt, get it from the company direct - they offer a full refund if it doesn't work, or at least they did.  Do check that first.  At £40ish a time it's a huge layout if it doesn't then work, and a lot of places won't refund you once it's been used.

Nando was very chilled in his homemade version on bonfire night!

I've used one with my jack Russell. Originally got it for bonfire night which worked fantastically and since used it on her around kids and also wen she's generally unsettled. It's been a miracle for her. She's always been a nervy dog and this has really helped her with situations she gets stressed in. Can't reccomend enough. Got mine pets at home for 35 pound and they also had a 45 day money back guarentee. Good luck.

ive got one for my girl as she is afraid of strangers. it doesnt make a huge diffrence but does seem to take the edge off. when i first started using it if i walked her in town with out it she would be in a compleat panic and would just drag me back and forth trying to escape and she couldnt hear a word i was saying she was that upset. With the shirt she still wasnt happy but she wasnt draging me and would look when i spoke to her. Same with when i take her to the care home where my fathers is, id be dragged to his room but when she has it she does pull but not drag but i can get her to stop and come back to me when told.

I got mine from the orignal company in america as it worked out cheaper to ship it from them that get it from the uk one as they were doing free shipping and free emboridy at the time.

I don't know what a thunder shirt is but, my boy hates to travel and one day I left his cool coat on him whilst in the car and it was amazing as he traveled so well. In fact it was like he was another dog, So now he always wears it in the car.

Triona, the Thundershirt is much like the keep cool coats, a snug fitting dog coat that calms dogs down by applying gentle pressure to certain points.

http://www.petexpertise.com/images/detailed_images/thundershirt-dog-anxiety-wrap-2.jpg

Thanks for your input everyone! :)

On a different tack ... have you tried feeding her in the car? Starting off without the engine running ... after a while, if she's comfortable, run the engine whilst she's eating. Then building on from then.

I have a Thunder Shirt for one of my girls who is worried by gunfire, she wasn't but then something happened that caused her to become stressed by it. I'd say the TS reduced her anxiety by 80%, so well worth it. She's a BC (small) so a medium fits perfectly. We got ours on Amazon, fortunately the medium was half price!

But if you haven't tried the feeding in the vehicle it really is worth a go. I have a friend who bought a dog that was terrified of being in or getting into a vehicle. This is the tactic she tried and now her girl is very happy jumping in and travelling in :-D

I've just bought one on amazon. Used it first time today for my very nervy springer girl.Seems to have definately made a difference, but from what I've read about them, it seems to work for some dogs but not for others! Good luck!