On Thunder, Dogs and Sleepless Nights

Where I happen to live.... it gets hot.  I  live in a land locked high desert location.... and cool air this time of year is a distant memory.  It also happens that we have a broken air conditioning unit.  This, most of all, can hamper one's joy on a 100 degree day.

Yesterday, was one of those warm days....  so in the evening we throw open every window, and ceiling fan and hope for cool air.  Last night around 2 am a Thunderstorm rolled in....  lots of beautiful heat lightening, a cool shifting breeze.... fat lazy rain drops that sound like splats, and make the air fresh with the smell of rain.  I know all this about this storm, that I should have slept through, because my dog.... went insane.

She sat at the back door barking and whining and scratching and howling and doing everything with in her doggie self to let us know she was loosing her mind.  I thought it was the OTHER dog... and he DOESN'T freak out, so I woke up Big Daddy and asked him to check why there was barking....  I wanted to make sure it wasn't an intruder........
So dutifully and sacrificially my dear husband trudges out to the back of the house to see whatever IS this dog's deal....  The following... "knock it off", "be quiet"... followed by the sound of the gate going up and the dogs being let into the laundry room.... let me know it was not an intruder, just a wigged out dog.  Hubby tells them to lay down... and then shuffles back to bed.

It lasted about 5 min. Now she is IN the house.  The windows are open... she hears the storm still, it is WAY to hot to even entertain the thought of closing a window..... and now she is inside yapping her fool head off and we are sure she is going to wake the entire house.  We lob a few more " No!", and "knock it off!" 's and she settles down around 3am.

3:45 am........ more barking. more scratching, more "please save me from the evil thunder" pleas from the neurotic dog.
Hubby gets up again, this time is more forceful in his demand that the dog shut its mouth..... he even said... " you are IN the house!, you are fine... safe and sound... now SHUT UP!"

I get up a few minutes later and turn on the light in the laundry room.... some how in my sleep deprivation, I am sure that if she can't SEE the lighting, maybe she won't wig out as bad.... and she will settle down.....

It didn't work.  4:45 am...  again she is in full panic.  I am thinking at this point she is just out of control.  Hubster is up.... this time he stubs a toe in the bedroom on the way to yell at the dog.... he mutters something about if she doesn't shut up she may not live to see daylight....This time.... there was no calm soothing words to the dog.  Just a really loud nearly swearing version of "be quiet"......it wasn't pretty.... but we were rather over her all night panic attack.

5:30 am...... scratching, whining..... quiet yips. I get up.  Let out the other dog.... and bring princess panic back to the bedroom to sleep on our floor.....

She finally settled down and we were able to get a few hours of sleep.........As we tried to talk ourselves out of bed in the morning..... we talked of tranquilizers, in dart form...... so we could legally shoot the dog and she would not have to suffer from the stress of being up all night either...........I think this is something we need to bring up with the retired vet across the street........  I am sure she kept HIM up all night too.

Tonight's forecast is for more of the same weather.....  I guess we will soon know how much sleep we will get....