Advise needed

could it be his hearing
if hes partially deaf the loud noises may be the only ones he really hears
that can be very scary.
had a cat that got an infection and was poisoned and for years because she couldnt smell or hear properly was the biggest scardy cat ever.5 yrs later after all the poison had worked out of her.
it was so amazing,one day i walked past her with food and she goosenecked out to smell it.i almost dropped the plate.
now she visits with people and even cuddles with some.she used to run the minute she saw some one coming to the door. didnt get her purr til she was 5.
but usually a late in life reaction like that means hearing or

he had an experience you dont know about
someone throwing fireworks at him
thunder and lightening way too close
or even a close strike
my wolf was indirectly hit with lightening
and he was young.
never could get him over the fear.he reacted to the thunder since he didnt understand it was the lightening that had hurt him
sory this is so long but the idea of any animal being afraid rips my heart out

Sue and Marion have already said Rescue Remedy. It's good stuff, and if you want to be more specific Aspen is good as well, that's another of the Bach flower remedies. (But Anniebach is the expert.) The remedies are gentle and powerful.
Good luck.

My cat was frightened of her own shadow until she went deaf, now she is quite content, unless you walk up behind her and stroke her!

I should have mentioned that there is a return policy within 45 days if you are not satisfied with the Thundershirt, so it may be worth a try.

Dillonsgrandma mentions that Thundershirts help. DD has one for her dog who is very sound sensitive, and it helps him a lot, especially during fireworks and thunderstorms.
www.thundershirt.co.uk/thundershirt/for-dog-by-variation.html

I to have a scardy cat, if I move any of the furniture to hoover etc he's unsettled. When I move my linen basket or laundry basket he looks at them as if they are going to murder him.

He hates the bin lorries even when he's safe in my bedroom! He has overcome his fear of men as long as they stay a fair distance from him.

However fireworks don't bother him

I hope you manage to calm your dog

I think you can get recordings of noises specially for familiarizing your dog with them. You start off playing them really quietly and increase the volume over a period of time. Our dogs aren't trained gun dogs but they're not bothered by loud noises.

Hello Whitewave, dogs and cats hearing changes as they get older...slowly going deaf. Thundershirts help, as do those calming plug ins. Noises they ignored when young can be frightening when older, and vise versa.

Yes we are day one of recovery. So at the moment avoiding opening yogurt pots, dog foil cartons and opening fizzy drinks in Duncans hearing. We are keeping our fingers crossed that there are no loud bangs like gun fire on our walks. We are totally calm but confident and hopefully reliable.

So far do good. Yes buddly he has a permanent worried look on his face, but seems more relaxed today, although he was up at 5am -on the Downs with upset tum. Honestly dogs eh!!!!

Thank you for all your posts I am grateful for the advise.

I used this when my dog developed a fear of loud noises.

Dogs Trust sound therapy for pets

It worked a treat, but took a while and dedication. Worth it. Then a year later he went deaf (nothing to do with that programme.

This happened to my jack russell too. We found ourselves in the middle of a carneval procession on holiday and there was a lot of noise and chaos, loud engines etc. I saw she was very frightened and came away but it really seemed to affect her in many ways. She has always been afraid of thunder, fireworks etc but now she was scared of any noise at all. She wouldn't go in the car which she used to love, normal household noises terrified her. Walking around with her tail between her legs and generally looking very unhappy. when I got the lead instead of getting excited as usual she just looked worried.
This went on for about 6 months and slowly, very slowly she seemed to trust things a bit more. The car took a few months but even then if I got out to go to a shop she went under the seat. Now it's two years and she's fine but it was a long slow recovery. I think she's just super sensitive. She's 8 yrs. old.

In my experience all dogs, except trained gun-dogs, police dogs and dogs for the blind are scared of loud noises.
As far as fireworks go, if one has once left the dog on his own on bonfire night or the like, that's it - there is only one thing to do, stay at home and perhaps get your vet to prescribe a mild sedative for the dog.

Thunder - you should be able to teach both dogs and cats not to worry about a thunderstorm. Make sure the animal is indoors before the thunderstorm starts. If he feels safest in a dark corner, that's fine. However, if you or anyone else in the household are afraid of thunder the dog will pick up on your fear, just like a small child will. Keep calm, stay where the dog can see and hear you. With a little bit of luck and much patience things should get better.

Sudden loud noises: show the dog the ladder or whatever it was that fell. However, if the dog is reacting to the noise of a chain-saw, lawn-mower, car or any thing else that is potentially dangerous, you need to ask yourself whether it is wise to try to train him to accept the noise.

I hope you get to the bottom of it Whitewave but I must admit that men in hats made me smile.
My puss is a right scaredy cat and recoils at the sight of a shopping bag.

I have used Bach rescue remedy for canines with great success. I agree that it does seem like a hearing problem.

My cat also suddenly turned into a 'scaredy cat'. I suspect a trauma. Possibly a confrontation with the urban foxes that now consider the garden their territory. You can hire a man with a gun, but I fear others would just replace them. For a time he was seriously terrified to leave the house. But this is NOT going to be a 'litter tray' household.

Is there anyone I HAVEN'T offended with that message? :-)

Hello WHITEWAVE. Just reading about Duncan, your terrier and his great fear of sudden noises. I remembered Bach Flower RESCUE remedy available at Boots and Holland & Barratt. This liquid can be placed in his drinking water or simple a few drops into his mouth. I used this on my old labrador when he was starting to go deaf at fourteen years. He had changed from being a docile old dog to a nervous worried one. Bach Flower remedies help humans and animals with a great variety of conditions. Within a week of regular doses of Bach Rescue Remedy, my lovely old dog was once again content and happy. I have sworn by this little helper ever since for any anxious situations. Just hope it helps.

https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/201705/medium-101160-adaptil.png https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/201705/medium-536881-zylkene.png

I too would suspect a hearing problem.
The dog version of Feliway is Adaptil. I am fortunate to have a vet as a next door neighbour, and she once recommended Xylkene capsules for stressed pets. The powder can be emptied into food and is tasteless. Both these products are available on Ebay or Amazon, cheaper than the vet.
I hope you manage to get to the bottom of the problem.

Maybe its only for cats? The name would indicate felines. Maybe there's a dog version. Hope something helps. Its awful to see an animal so upset.

I was going to suggest Felliway too.

Feliway? Jane10. I've seen it do wonders for nervous cats.

If it's a hearing problem, in the short term can you try drowning out sounds with a radio in the background - maybe Classical FM?

Tearing foil was the one thing that made our last cat go berserk.He was nervous generally (most animals don't like loud noises) and although we know what causes the noise ( and whether to be afraid or not) animals don't.But they all stay calmer eventually if you do.Good luck ww with little Dunc.

I agree with Trisher this sounds like a hearing problem. He's being surprised by what he is hearing and surprised when he's heard nothing and something happens.

I think a hearing check would def be the way to go .

Poor wee thing! I wonder if one of those plug in calming things from the vet might help? I can't remember what it's called though.

Dunc is a Cairn. I will give all the advise a go and if i cant get it to work will get his hearing checked.

It has taken us since about 4pm but he has finally relaxed -on sofa with legs in air.

Another day tomorrow. The last thing to give him the jitters was opening his food foil tray.

He's quite young for it, but could it be a hearing problem?
ie slow loss of hearing sensations, which makes them confused.
Might be worth having his hearing checked.