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

4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars | 52,985 ratings

Price: 44.95

Last update: 08-13-2024


About this item

HELPING MILLIONS OF DOGS: With over an 80% success rate, ThunderShirt is recommended by thousands of vets, trainers, and pet owners alike. Combine use with our effective ThunderEase for double the calming power.
ORIGINAL DOG CALMING WRAP: The patented ThunderShirt design applies gentle, constant pressure to calm anxiety, fear, and over excitement due to a variety of environmental triggers.
DRUG-FREE CALMING: Effectively eases anxieties during fireworks, thunder, separation, travel, vet visits, and much more with no training and no medication, so your beloved pet receives naturally soothing relief. Great for rescue dogs!
100% MONEYBACK : We stand behind ThunderShirt. If you are not satisfied for any reason, simply return for a full refund of your purchase price.
THUNDERWORKS IS COMMITTED to making affordable, effective, easy-to-use solutions for real problems faced by real pet families. Our Calming and Walking innovations create functional solutions for common pet problems.

Product information


Top reviews from the United States

Kevin Hazboun
5.0 out of 5 stars Better than expected, some odd behaviors
Reviewed in the United States on July 6, 2024
The thundervest arrived before Independence Day and my dog has always been anxious from hearing fireworks from the day before. The thundervest miraculously calmed him down.

The manual has an infographic step by step guide that gets to the point and is very simple to understand for beginners. I bought the large-sized vest for my Shepsky and was worried that it was too tight. I used four fingers to go inside the vest and they fit. Still a bit unsure so I might order the XL vest.

My dog is always standing whenever he hears fireworks so it was a completely different experience for him to have the thundervest on as he mostly sat in one place after. He usually would go to my mom's room but he still laid down. This concerned me a lot since he's usually always on his feet wherever we go and I didn't know if it was tight on him or not. He was still able to move eventually.

My dog was still shivering but he was VERY calm during the entire process and he didn't show any negative behaviors towards it.

The vest shouldn't need to be washed unless it wreaks and it's just like a dog collar. The vest is also a strap that doesn't get loose so the Velcro seems to be sturdy.

Although it kept him from being scared, there are some cons upon observance:

He didn't go outside to use the bathroom the entire night.

Up until dawn, he was sleeping perfectly and was hardly fazed by the fireworks which is a pro, however the con is that at dawn, he didn't sleep on his bed and was just chilling in the living room which is a first. He slept with the vest on and they didn't stop until about 4-5am.
MLM
5.0 out of 5 stars Calmed my dog significantly
Reviewed in the United States on August 8, 2024
My dog had the energy of a puppy and was absolutely not focused on commands. I’ve bought other jackets in the past and they didn’t work immediately upon putting this one on her her demeanor changed. She was definitely more docile and focused, and soon she relaxed into doing something she never does, which is actually sleeping. I think my dog suffers from separation anxiety and fear of missing out which causes her to be up in everyone’s face constantly so this is a nice break and she seems really comfortable in the jacket. Be sure to measure your dog and follow the chart so it fits snug and properly I have a large size Yorky as you can see in the photo. She’s probably 9 pounds but she’s very long and I ordered the extra small and it fits her perfectly.
Customer image
MLM
5.0 out of 5 stars Calmed my dog significantly
Reviewed in the United States on August 8, 2024
My dog had the energy of a puppy and was absolutely not focused on commands. I’ve bought other jackets in the past and they didn’t work immediately upon putting this one on her her demeanor changed. She was definitely more docile and focused, and soon she relaxed into doing something she never does, which is actually sleeping. I think my dog suffers from separation anxiety and fear of missing out which causes her to be up in everyone’s face constantly so this is a nice break and she seems really comfortable in the jacket. Be sure to measure your dog and follow the chart so it fits snug and properly I have a large size Yorky as you can see in the photo. She’s probably 9 pounds but she’s very long and I ordered the extra small and it fits her perfectly.
Images in this review
Customer image
Soshanna
4.0 out of 5 stars Seems to be working. Issues with Amazon's sizing - in review.
Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2012
OK - currently I'm rating this 4 stars, but I may come back and change this depending on how things continue to go.

For some background - I have a chihuahua mix who is deeply attached to me. He has issues with separation anxiety and a hyper-aggressiveness toward other dogs, particularly large dogs. If he so much as sees a dog or anything else that may be threatening (a person walking by or a noise downstairs) he will start barking as ferociously as a chihuahua can bark. It's problematic for me because he is an agility dog and I have to constantly be aware that he may try to attack the dogs near me at any moment he feels like they're encroaching on his territory (namely, me). I've done obedience training with him since he was 10 weeks old and he's a SUPER well behaved dog aside from these issues.

After researching online, I came to realize that he may be suffering from some form of anxiety, which is causing him to act out because he feels threatened. Thus, I came upon the Thundershirt.

I'm really not the type of person to purchase items that seem gimmicky, and admittedly, this shirt screams gimmick. However, with nearly 600 reviews on Amazon and a 4.5 star rating, I had to try it. Anything is worth trying if it will remedy a big issue in my dog's life. I don't want him to feel like he has to protect me all the time as that causes undue stress.

So, after receiving the shirt, I opened the box and was greeted with a very cute plastic packaging for the shirt. Almost like a manilla envelope except see-through. The shirt was very well made and soft to the touch..but I was more concerned with testing it out rather than inspecting the intricacies of how it was made.

I put it on my dog after taking a moment to think about the logic behind the velcro straps and it fit him nice and snug. I ordered an extra small - my dog is about 8 lbs but very lanky and it fit him perfectly. I opted to go with the sizing on the Thundershirt website vs. the Amazon website as I've been burned by Amazon having improper sizing info in the past.

I was debating on an XXS vs. a XS.

For example - on Amazon an XXS states:

Size XXS for dogs less that 12 pounds and with a chese size of 9" - 13.5"

Whereas the Thundershirt website states:

Size Chest Size Weight
XXS 9"-13.5" < 7 lbs.

That's a HUGE difference. So I highly recommend using Thundershirt sizing to decide on which is best for your dog.

-----------------------------------
Here is the complete chart:

Size Chest Size Weight
XXS 9"-13.5" < 7 lbs.
XS 13"-18" 8-14 lbs.
S 16"-23" 15-25 lbs.
M 18"-26" 26-40 lbs.
L 24"-32" 41-64 lbs.
XL 31"-40" 65-110 lbs.
XXL 38"-50" > 110 lbs.

-----------------------------------

OK so regarding the efficiency of this shirt.

I tested it outdoors with my dog on our front driveway just absorbing the sounds and sights of a normal neighborhood.
My dog laid out in the sun and didn't seem reactive to much, whereas he normally would be. A neighbor walked their dog relatively near us, and my dog barked a little but he didn't run after the dog despite not being on a leash. Usually he won't leave my side but it can be unpredictable when it comes to dogs.

The next day I took him out again and this time I forgot to put the shirt on. He was more on edge, and when a neighbor brought out their little dog, my dog went crazy and went running up to their dog barking. I grabbed him and took him straight inside.

The next day, I tried it with the shirt again. This time children came running by, other dogs, etc. and he didn't move.. he actually just lay on his side and didn't react much. He might give a little bark here and there, but no where near his normal level of intensity.

I tried his shirt during his advanced obedience training. He's in a class with all large dogs and the first day (without the shirt)he was shaking and just terrified. He would bark everytime the other dogs seemed to be a safe enough distance away, and wouldn't perform anything in front of the class since he was so scared. (sometimes I think my dog is bipolar). The second day of class (with the shirt) he was way more calm and less scared of the other dogs. We walked by 3 large dogs and he didn't make a peep. He performed in front of the class and was just more mellow overall, although he is still shakey and seems scared.

I gave it 4 stars because I DO see improvement in my dog and it has only been about a week or so. However, I feel that although it takes the edge off him, I don't feel like the videos they post showing miraculous changes just by putting on the shirt are accurate. Perhaps there are dogs that this effect will happen, but I would consider it a rarity rather than the norm. I would have preferred more accurate marketing that really stresses the need to do behavioral modification in addition to the shirt. They do mention this, but its very brief compared to the marketing showing it as a miracle shirt.

And after reading so many reviews, it seems I'm not alone in this shirt being part of a process rather than a fix.

Overall, I recommend it and I'm going to try it with my friend's dog who is VERY hyper and see if it solves any issues with him.

EDIT: The shirt worked miraculously on my friend's dog. The dog is high strung, paces, jumps up on people and overall just "starving" for attention. Won't let you pet any other dogs and has to be the center of attention constantly, which wears my friend out.

We put the shirt on him and he just calmed down completely to normal dog levels. He lay down, relaxed.. yet, when the other dogs wanted to play, he still had energy to play. I played fetch with my dog in front of him and he just lay down and watched and didn't have the urge to go get the ball himself, which he normally would do.

We took the shirt off him to see if maybe he was just in a mellow mood and he immediately got hyper and started pacing everywhere again. She's going to be buying one of these shirts because it made such a big difference in how he behaved.
Myla
5.0 out of 5 stars pleasantly surprised !
Reviewed in the United States on July 21, 2024
Never in a million years did I think this would work!

I know this is meant for thunder, anxiety, loud noises etc. However, I specifically purchased it as a last ditch effort in getting my puppy to sleep through the night in her crate.

I was sleep deprived and delirious with crate training and someone recommended I try this. You can imagine my surprise when I woke up in the morning and realized I finally slept a full night and my pup did too!

This little thing was like magic, she has slept through the night since the first time I put it on her. It’s very lightweight with Velcro straps so you can adjust the size as they grow. My pup still fits in it.

If you’re struggling with sleepless nights, definitely give this a try!

If you’re still struggling here are all the things I use in conjunction with the thunder jacket, that in my opinion, are the perfect recipe for sleeping through the night:

A sound machine
Heartbeat pup
Black out wrap for the crate
Small anti anxiety dog bed in the crate

Hope that helps someone out there!

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