Thundershirts for cats??? Does anyone use them?

kittymomNC · ‎08-09-2012

I just spent an hour and a half during a thunderstorm, part of the time on the floor with my cat wrapped up and holding and talking to her, and the other part on my knees in front of my recliner with her in the recliner wrapped up, holding her and my body literally on top of her. My poor knees and back!

She is so scared of thunderstorms and usually runs and gets under my bed before I can catch her, because apparently she hears the thunder before I'm aware of it. This time she didn't run, and I saw she was getting nervous so I got on the floor and wrapped her up. It was one of those "training" thunderstorms where they just keep coming, one hasn't stopped before the next one starts. I feel so sorry for her, but she's a little scaredy cat of everything anyway. The doorbell ringing, a car in the driveway, someone coming to the house (even my son calls her the "invisible cat" because all he ever sees of her is her tail going around the corner into my bedroom when he comes). I don't want to, but I'm going to talk to my vet about some kind of meds for her.

Has anyone used a thundershirt for a cat? Can you tell me if it worked, how did your cat react? Any information would be helpful -- I've been thinking about getting one for her but would like to know if they really work for cats. (Thank goodness my Baby Cat can sleep through a storm and I don't have to worry about both of them!) TIA!

Brooklynny · ‎07-08-2010

I don't have a cat, but I do use a thundershirt on our Yorkie. She is 10 years old and has been totally terrified by thunderstorms since she was a puppy. Today has been especially bad because the storms have been "training" here also. Unfortunately, the shirt really doesn't work for us, but we put it on her anyway hoping that ithis time might be different. We tried meds only once years ago, but we found that meds made her worse, and we never used them again. Even at the smallest dose, the meds made her dopey and caused her legs to go out from under her. She was so scared, didn't know why this was happening to her, and it made her even more frightened. The thundershirt and/or meds might work for others, but not for us. We just do the best we can to calm our dog, wrap her in a blankie and hold her, and we turn up the AC, floor fan, and television to try to block out some of the rumbles. Good luck with your cat -- it's a challenging problem to deal with because we don't want our little ones to suffer fear.

jaxs mom · ‎04-18-2012

I just got one for one of my cats after he kept throwing up his before bed snack due to the fireworks that people set off for a week here for the 4th of July. I only managed to try it on him once since I got it. He did the hilarious freeze and flop they talk about on their website. He did start walking around wearing it but I need to put it on him more often and let him get used to it. We haven't had any thunderstorms or fireworks since I got it so I can't say if it works for my cat or not.

Don't Change Your Authenticity for Approval

RJGeorgia · ‎03-15-2010

I don't have one either but I can sympathize -- four cats, three of whom are terrified of storms. I just let them hide under the bed -- it's close, dark, and they feel safe there. I make sure the windows and blinds are closed to help muffle the sound. During July 4th, I turned on both TVs (one in LR and one in BR), again to help muffle the noise.

I think if your cat heads for the underside of the bed, that's okay. She'll come back out when she feels safe. Like you, my cats run and hide when people come over, when UPS rings the doorbell, when anything is different. They are truly "scaredy cats!"

Rebecca J

kittymomNC · ‎08-09-2012

Just bumping this up in the hope someone will see it who has had personal experience with thundershirts for cats. Thanks.

jaxs mom · ‎04-18-2012

LOL I put it on him again today and he flopped on the ground. Then he started walking around slowly. Then he flopped on the ground again.

Don't Change Your Authenticity for Approval

kittymomNC · ‎08-09-2012

On 7/16/2014 jaxs mom said:
LOL I put it on him again today and he flopped on the ground. Then he started walking around slowly. Then he flopped on the ground again.

That sounds so funny--of course, not funny for him, poor little thing. I need to look up the website and see what it says. I don't even know if I could get it on her! ${#emotions_dlg.laugh}$

jaxs mom · ‎04-18-2012

By the way, I think they run a little small. I got a medium for my cat because his chest size is 16 inches and he's 11 1/2 pounds. He has a large frame but he's skinny, even the vet says if he filled out his frame he'd be really big. But I think it's too small for him. I'm planning on taking it back and getting a large because I can just barely get the velcro to hook without it being really tight.

It says 13-17 inch chest and 9-13 pounds for size medium so that should have fit fine.

Don't Change Your Authenticity for Approval

kittymomNC · ‎08-09-2012

On 7/16/2014 jaxs mom said:
By the way, I think they run a little small. I got a medium for my cat because his chest size is 16 inches and he's 11 1/2 pounds. He has a large frame but he's skinny, even the vet says if he filled out his frame he'd be really big. But I think it's too small for him. I'm planning on taking it back and getting a large because I can just barely get the velcro to hook without it being really tight.

It says 13-17 inch chest and 9-13 pounds for size medium so that should have fit fine.

Thanks for that info - I haven't measured Missie's chest, but I think she's probably about 10-11 pounds. She seems to feel better during a storm when I wrap her up and hold her kind of tight, so maybe it might work. She's due for her exam, so I'll get her weight. Thanks again!