Cat scared of thunderstorms (kitten, safe, dogs, hair)

[Amazonchix]

Has anyone ever had a cat have a fear of thunderstorms? Our indoor 7 y/o cats started this about 3 years ago. We've had him since he was 2 months old. He was a stray kitten. He'll make a desperate attempt to get into our bedroom to hide under the bed when we're having a thunderstorm. Most recently he has even tried to crunch down and lay tightly next to us or even next to our dog in an attempt to hide from the storm. I've heard of this with dogs, but never a cat. Just wondered if anyone else has experienced this.

[milledge44]

yea i have had 3 of my cats do it too.. the funnest part about it.. is that they were all "big strong" males.. you know not scared of anything... but as soon as the first crash of thunder was heard they went running for the bed..

[Ohiogirl81]

GirlKitty doesn't like thunderstorms, either. She runs into the basement and hides in the closet or under the shelves. Occasionally she'll hop into my lap and tuck her head under my arm when she hears a loud noise, but if it's persistent like during a big thunderstorm, she hides.

[Amazonchix]

Thanks so much for the feedback! That was so funny reading both of your posts. I can relate to both. Renzi (our 7 y/o old cat) is the biggest bad butt in the house even to our dogs but yet the thunderstorms scare him to death. Lucky for all these babies...they have parents like us who love them dearly.

[Drouzin]

When the 3 cats and I rode out hurricane Rita in a travel trailer, (don't try this at home), you couldn't have slipped a piece of paper between the four of us.

[Amazonchix]

Why did a vivid imagine appear after I read the last post (lol)?

[quiet walker]

My current one (I'm 58) is afraid of the loud banging and roaring trash truck outside. He takes off to wherever he goes. And actually _all_ the cats I have had since I was 4 yo have done the same thing.

[Ohiogirl81]

Originally Posted by Drouzin

When the 3 cats and I rode out hurricane Rita in a travel trailer, (don't try this at home), you couldn't have slipped a piece of paper between the four of us.

Oh, dear! Were you slashed to ribbons?!?! Poor kitties! Poor Drouzin!

[littlelou]

my two were never concerned during thunderstorms, the vacuum cleaner makes them run and hide. That was until 2-1/2 years ago, when a tree in the wooded area in front of my apartment was struck by lightning. The tree fell crossways in front of my building but scared the pee out of Bubba....literally. he tinkled on the floor, poor guy. don't know if it was the strike, crack of wood or crash of the tree. I jumped as high as they did, felt the static tingle the hairs on my arms and boom down came the tree. Now if the wind picks up, they are under the bed and no amount of treats will get them out. We've had a couple of bad storms in the last few days and when the wind starts, get out of the path to the bedroom.

[allforcats]

All of my four cats look up, wake up, come to semi-attention at the sound of thunder. But one of them, the little girl, runs under the king-size bed, waaaay back under the head against the wall. She doesn't shake or crouch; she just plays it safe and counts herself the smartest cat in the house.

But give that girl a vacuum cleaner? Years ago, she ran from it. Then she spent time perched high up, watching its behavior. Then she tried running past it, about two feet away. Now Miss Magic Courage will walk into the room in which it's making all its nasty noise, and -L E A P- flying high over the beast out the door! Then she'll turn and look at me, for my acknowledgement of her magnificence. :-) :-)