ThunderShirt for Dogs, Medium, Heather Gray Classic - Dog Anxiety Relief Calming Vest

This thunder shirt is a life saver for my 8 year old Min Pin! I got it about three weeks ago, tried it on her as soon as I got it to make sure she would like it or not. She immediately fell asleep for two hours… So, last night thunderstorm was coming through- she would run around and cry and try to hide. Well, not this time, took her to potty before storm came through- heard the first crack of thunder and put the shirt on. She was calm. It’s easy to adjust, just measure your puppy PRIOR to ordering- just know the XS is does not go over the puppy’s head like the small. Sizing up your puppy is key, make sure you measure correctly prior to ordering - there is definitely a difference between the XS and the S. The S goes over their head, the XS is ALL Velcro and it’s definitely smaller. I like the material because it’s soft, not thick but not too thin - just right. It’s really easy to use, as soon as you get it out of the package you will be able to see how to put it on your puppy. I do like the soft gray color as well. I think it helped my puppy calm down. Definitely love the product and recommend it! Would definitely buy it again!

This is the third ThunderShirt I have purchased over the last four years. None of the dogs I purchased the shirts for was afraid of thunder, but I have found these shirts to have a calming effect for other anxieties. The first ThunderShirt I ever purchased was a size XL for an elderly 84-pound labrador retriever to help her deal with the anxiety she experienced following a stroke. It also seemed to give some relief from the itching caused by her meds. She really liked wearing it, and would have gladly worn it 24/7, but I didn't think that was a good idea. I was concerned she would get chafing or circulation problems from overuse, so she only got to wear it for a few hours a day. Still, I think it was an important part of the various things we did to increase her comfort until she was ready to leave this world. After she crossed over, the shirt was donated to help rescued dogs in foster care, and it was much appreciated by the foster "mom". The second shirt was a size XS that was purchased for a rescued 11-pound rat terrier who has no issues other than sibling rivalry. He wanted to wear a ThunderShirt because his "sister" was wearing one. It also helps give him a little extra warmth in cool weather, which he really appreciates because he chills easily. And he looks really, really handsome wearing it. The third ThunderShirt was a size XXS purchased a month ago for a 5-pound chihuahua puppy I adopted two months ago. She was found abandoned in a storage container with three other dogs. She was rescued by the county animal control department and given veterinary care until she recovered enough to be adopted. She has issues. Many, many issues. She hadn't been socialized at all and was absolutely terrified of people. She hadn't been potty trained. She was not much more than skin and bones -- you could easily see the outline of every rib. She obviously had been badly abused and she has a leg injury that may never heal completely. She didn't know how to walk on a leash and was terrified to try. She shook with fright for fifteen minutes when shelter staff placed her in my arms. She screamed and screamed and screamed in absolute terror when a very gentle friend of mine tried to pet her. After a month of training and socialization, and lots and lots of love, my chihuahua had gained a whole pound, was starting to get the idea about where to go potty and where not to , and had learned how to use a doggie door! But she was still exhibiting a lot of fear and anxiety, so I got her the ThunderShirt. I forgot to go through the recommended training process to introduce her to the ThunderShirt, but thankfully it turned out to be one of the few things that didn't frighten her. She loves it! It doesn't make all her issues go away, but it definitely seems to reduce her anxiety. She doesn't have very thick fur, so she appreciates wearing any shirt, but this is the only one that helps to calm her. She, too, would love to wear it 24/7, but I won't let her. With lots of love and positive reinforcement and her new Thundershirt, she is getting a little braver. She can't tolerate a leash attached to her collar, but she loves to walk in familiar places with her Bright Mesh Heart Printed Dog Cat Pet Vest Harness and Matching Leash Set in Blue for Dogs Cats (Large) . She will cuddle with me for hours, but she cowers if I move suddenly or use a stern voice. She is afraid of anyone new, except delivery people. They might be bringing Dogswell Nutrisca Dog Food, Salmon and Chickpea, 15-Pound Package or GREENIES Dental Dog Treats, Teenie, Original Flavor, 130 Treats, 36 oz. from Amazon! :-) I wouldn't call the ThunderShirt a miracle, but I would call it an excellent tool for helping dogs with anxiety issues. It is effective, and it is well-made with quality materials. The latest version has three new features that were not on my original two ThunderShirts: a patch for using a calming spray, snaps for attaching a jacket, and some reflective trim to make your dog more visible at night. Unfortunately, I can't use the calming spray because I am sensitive to one of the ingredients. I would love to get the snap-on ThunderShirt Outerwear Raincoat, X-Small , but so far have not been able to locate one in size XXS. I do appreciate the reflective trim because it glows in the beam of my flashlight when I take my puppy out after dark. I will continue to use the ThunderShirt to help reduce my puppy's fear and anxiety. I will be using it when I introduce her to new situations, and I will update this review to report on how that goes. The first photo below shows what the ThunderShirts look like from the front, where they can be adjusted with the velcro that is under the front tab. Of course, the photo also showcases how adorable my dogs look in their (almost) matching ThunderShirts! The second photo clearly shows two of the new features on the chihuahua's ThunderShirt, the patch and the reflective trim at the neck. The rat terrier is wearing the older version of the shirt, which he has had for four years now. He even has his name embroidered on it. The third photo was taken with a flash to show the reflective trim doing its job.

My dog is usually scared during thunderstorms. I bought the ThunderShirt and am pleased with its effectiveness. We have had two storms and she was noticeably calmer. It is easy to put on and the velcro straps help it stay in place

Great for anxious dogs. I have a 8 year old Chipoo (Prince) and a 2 year old Chiweenie (Leia) who are both very anxious in their own ways. Prince has bad separation anxiety and Leia is scared of loud noises like fireworks/thunder. They both seem to be more calm after I put on their vests. When we leave them alone I watch them through a doggie cam and Leia just sleeps and Prince lays down and watches out the window. Prince would howl and lick the window before and that has stopped now (with the vest). It also helped Leila tremendously with christmas/new years fireworks. I did also combine these vests with the Thunderease diffuser so I definitely recommend both products. Quality is good, Prince is 10.8 lbs and i got him the XS and Leia is 8.8lbs and she got the XXS. Both fit great. Prince also got the sport version so it’s different material and less stretchy than the original. The jump from XXS to XS is also a bit drastic as you can see in the photos, the sport version seems to be made for bigger breed puppies so I would say stick to the original for smaller breed dogs. I put them on pretty tight and they are still able to move/run like they normally would.

I purchased the Thundershirt for my dog 1 week before July 4th. She's a 10 yr old rescue who has always been afraid of thunderstorms and fireworks. She shakes uncontrollably and digs at anything to find a place to hide. She will pull books out of the bottom shelf of the bookcase to get into the space, one time she pulled all the cleaning solutions from under the kitchen sink and spilled them all over the floor. The biggest problem is when the thunderstorms come in the middle of the night, she is in a complete panic then. I had resorted to medication, she was on Prozac, Valium and Acepromazine, however after a liver test, her enzymes were elevated so I had to stop the Ace and Prozac. Of course the valium on its own does not do anything to calm her so I decided to give the thundershirt a try. The first thing I did when the shirt arrived was to put it on her for a short time with some treats. She seemed to like it right away and she has never worn clothes so this was good. Over the next few days I would put it on a few times a day for brief periods of time. In my neighborhood, people start setting off fireworks a few days before the 4th and continue for a week after. The first afternoon the fireworks started we were outside and as soon as Pepper heard the first pop, she made a mad dash for the door. I put the shirt on and got some treats and took her back outside. The very next pop she did not run for the door. Every time she did not run for the door when she heard a pop, I gave her a treat. I noticed significant improvement right away. Later that evening it got a little worse so I decided to give her a valium in combination with the shirt. She ended up laying on the couch with her head in my lap for the rest of the night. That's amazing for this dog who never does that even when she's not stressed. The next night I skipped the valium and just left the shirt on her and she did great again. She did not do quite as well on the 4th but my next door neighbor was shooting them off for hours and they were pretty loud. She did cuddle next to me at bedtime even though some smaller ones were going off and she did fine until we were both woken out of a sound sleep by some in front of the house. At that point she freaked out a little and I had to crate her for the rest of the night so that I could sleep. Now during these fireworks on the 4th, we also had a thunderstorm. Pepper's biggest problem is not the sound of thunder but the barometric changes leading up to the thunderstorm. I can tell when a storm is coming long before it gets here and she remains scared long after it is over. I think this would be more helpful if she were only afraid of the noise. Normally she hates being crated during a storm or fireworks but the shirt seems to keep her slightly calmer when she is in the crate. Overall I am disappointed that this didn't work better for thunderstorms but I was impressed with the changes during the fireworks and she did improve over the course of a few days. We have only had 2 thunderstorms since we got the shirt so more improvement is possible. I think it helped that I used it in conjunction with training during the time they were going off. It helped her relax enough that she could keep her focus and not be in a panic. While I was writing this more fireworks were going off and she ran upstairs to hide. I got the shirt and put it on and now she's laying next to me on the couch. I would definitely recommend trying it if you buy from a vendor who will accept returns. I would also suggest not to expect to put it on and have an instant cure. I think for some dogs it may need to be used as a training tool and not just something you put on and walk away.

Edit [11/14/2019]: Returning for feedback. This is great! We haven't had many uses for it since we bought it but every time we have tried it out there was a significant improvement in her temperament. We tried it while the baby was over and she calmed down, and it made car rides go from a quaking mess to laying down and resting on my lap! Very pleased with this product. I honestly didn't expect it to work at all or at least that it'd be placebo, but we actually did one car ride without it and one the next day with it on and the difference was outstanding. -- Original review: We have not encountered an anxiety-inducing situation yet since we bought this jacket, so I will return to this review once we have to let you know how well it works. Until then, I'm leaving 5 stars because I'm just so impressed at how much effort is put into this product for making sure it works for you. From the instructions to the extra information to all the extra resources you can try if it doesn't work, I feel very confident that even if this jacket doesn't work initially, we can work something out in the end. The jacket itself is more of a thin vest material than a shirt-- as it should be. It's a bit confusing to work out how to put it on your pet at first, so try it out on a stuffed animal or around your arm so that you don't freak them out trying to get it on right the first time. My dog was VERY aware that this was clothing for her which she hates, and even after serving treats on it as a plate she would run away and bark at it. I had to grab her and put it on her while I held her so that she could realize it would be okay and not pester her. She say calmly with it on for about 10 minutes until we took it off as recommended. The second time we put it on her she was much less hesitant and let us put it on her without much of a fuss. Hopefully by the time a storm comes she will be happy to put it on. The material itself is very nice and seems high quality. I would not leave your dog alone with this if there is a risk of them chewing it though. It feels too thin to withstand a dog that wants it off. Overall, I'm very happy with this purchase and I hope that it works for her when she needs it. It fit her very snugly (we bought a Small for our ~18lb dog) and she was able to go pee without any problems. Seems like a wonderful product, even more so if it works when she needs help.

One of our dogs was a war rescue Malinois. She became a Master Class Therapy Dog with PAWSforPeople.org working in our Autism School, an AKC Therapy Dog Distinguished and my 3 task/medical alert Service Dog. However, from her past, every loud bang sent her into full panic mode. We trained her when she is afraid, safe spaces are a dark room with windows to a porch, a small room no windows and she could come to us. We got her a Thundershirt. We knew when fireworks were going to set off and with the ThunderShirt she was better handling the panic. Eventually she could sense a storm an hour before it arrived and come to us for her ThunderShirt. Then she'd go into the room with no windows, shut the door and wait it out. This July, we adopted a 1 yo puppy that is deaf and blind, and very little training. When he smells someone he doesn't know he bursts into a spinning weather vane. We got him a Thundershirt. He still gets excited but calms down quickly. We paid a little more for quality, fit, easy on and off, and ThunderShirts really work!

**Skip to the end for our fool proof way to solve separation anxiety (hint: it's not this shirt)** I have a dog with separation anxiety. When she was a puppy, she would poop, destroy things, and bark. Luckily, the first two have stopped, but she still barks and howls the whole time we're gone. We have tried it all--kongs with frozen treats, chew toys, hiding treats everywhere for her to find, exercising her for hours before we leave, leaving the tv on, confining her to her crate or small rooms, ignoring her 30 mins before we leave and upon return, etc. Friends kept telling us to try the thundershirt. I was skeptical, but figured we might as well try. We also bought a webcam and hooked it up to skype so we could watch her (and talk to her! but she never listened to our "quiet" command or soothing voices). The positive: it fit her well. She's a 45 lb beagle/rhodesian ridgeback mix and the large fits her nicely. Easy to put on and off once you get the hang of it. Nice and snug. The negative: it did nothing. She barked her head off with the same intensity with and without it on. She did not calm down. Theories: We have spent a lot of time on research and talking with experts, so I figure I'll share what I've learned if anyone is coming to this review hoping to find a solution for their dog with separation anxiety. Our dog was not abused as a puppy, and most experts suspect she just has very low self-confidence. This leads to her fear of being left alone, among other things (she is also afraid of strangers and objects she has not seen before). Through leaving and gradually increasing the length of time she is alone, we have trained her to a point where she is just fine sleeping in her crate, doesnt mind sleeping in the living room alone overnight, and couldnt care less if we are in the bathroom and she cant get in. BUT - as soon as we exit our actual home, she will start barking. Right now we are practicing leaving and walking outside a window where she can see us and for a few seconds not see us--completely ignoring her. We hope this will relax her and "teach" her that when we leave the house, we are just "right outside"-- even if she cant see us. She still gets way too excited when she sees us though. She has started going to dog socials where 30 people bring their dogs and run around while all the humans walk in a circle and ignore them. It is mainly teaching dogs how to socialize with each other, but we hope our dog "monkey see's and monkey do's" that other dogs are not afraid of strangers so she should not be either--building her confidence. Friends who have dogs are watching her for a few hours while we go out to eat, see a movie, shop, etc. This solves the barking issue and builds her confidence. At first she was very nervous and paced around, but after 5-6 visits, she is now able to enjoy spending time with them, playing with the other dog, cuddling with our friends, and generally forgetting about us being gone. After trying so many different things, we hope confidence-building is the key. Treats and stuffed kongs never worked before we started building her confidence--we could have left a raw steak on the floor and she wouldnt touch it until the moment we returned. Now, she is starting to get the food out of the kong, but stops just a few minutes after we leave. Now, our 100% fool proof solution to fixing separation anxiety (in our case): get another dog! I know this wont apply to everyone, and we actually dont own another dog, but whenever we have babysat another dog and we've left them alone together, our dog becomes a Buddhist monk of peaceful tranquility. The other dog can even be in a crate in the other room and she is totally fine.