How does everyone's cats react to thunderstorms?

alyssam

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The recent amount of daily thunderstorms down here in South GA had me wondering...
How does everyone's cats react to thunderstorms? 

Our outdoor cats seem to just seek shelter and wait it out, doesn't really seem to bother them (other than the getting wet part).
Nel is typically inside with me and usually just sleeps through it.
However Silky(r.i.p), absolutely hated thunderstorms. My mother-in-law used to say that the lightning made her fur stand on end because of the electrical charge (not sure if there is any truth to this?). But she used to go crazy, run around the house and meow and eventually find a spot in someones lap or under a piece of furniture until it was over.
 

ritz

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Funny, I was just thinking about this. The DC/Annapolis area may get some severe thunderstorms Tuesday.
Ritz doesn't like thunderstorms. At. All. She hides under the sofa and is visibly scared. She doesn't seek me out (she's not that kind of cat). She'll eat reluctantly when it's thundering--and then throw it up.
I think outdoor cats eventually get use to thunderstorms and seek out a relatively dry shelter.
 

micknsnicks2mom

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my snick doesn't seem to care one way or the other about thunderstorms, thunder, or lightning. she continues doing what she usually does. mickey didn't get upset by them either. in fact, i remember one thunderstorm at night that i went to check on him (because he wasn't downstairs with me and snick) and he was upstairs sitting on the cat tree in the hallway looking out the window at the rain and lightning. just relaxed and watching the storm.
 

peaches08

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Julie is better as she's getting older, she's the "squirrel" of the bunch.  She still crouches and sometimes runs off growling.  Mason just looks around a little nervously.  Gadget doesn't care.
 

rachelinaz

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Thankfully... they do not seem to mind. We have only had one small storm and one med size storm so far, but we just started Monsoon season. It ends the end of October. So we shall see.
 

braysnaner

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My kitty came to us June 28 and this past week was the first we got to see what he did during a thunderstorm.  He stayed on his favorite pillow snoozing; but did jump when lightening struck very close and shook our entire house!  Now our K-9, Abby, she's a total wreck during storms!
 

greycat2

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Luvbug, Buster (the largest 2 cats in size - not weight - Maine Coon size) and Drooler ( traditional Siamese type) hide whereas Fang, Smudge and Lil' Jag (the smaller kitties) take it in stride.

Vacuum cleaners and garbage trucks however.......All flee for safety.
 

Kat0121

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My 2 don't care about storms except that the dog flips out and barks, whines, etc. during them. THAT they find annoying. 
 

thesighrye

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Bella will take off and hide, usually. She didn't care too much in the past but we've been getting a lot of huge, LOUD thunderstorms lately here up in MA. A couple weeks ago we had very loud intense storms a few nights in a row, like we hadn't seen in a long time!

I'm noticing everyone across the country is having quite the season for storms lately!
 

cat servant

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Autumn Angel is afraid of storms.  She hides if it thunders loud at all or if it rains hard enough to hear in the house.
 

Jem

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Having our first thunderstorm of the season. (not a bad one though) And I'm pleased to say that all three of our newly adopted kitties aren't phased at all.
Bynx is still playing with the box and paper I left in the middle of the floor.
Lily is grooming herself on her favorite middle level of the cat tree, which is right by the window (that is currently open as well).
And Chester is sitting at the open window watching the rain fall and the drops coming off the eaves.
Not one of them have even flinched at the sound of the thunder.
 

aliceneko

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Fudge is afraid of them and hides under the foot stool, but Toffee is curious and jumps up onto the window pane inside to watch them from the window (watching rain is one of his favourite indoor pasttimes!).
 

vince

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Storms don't seem to bother my cats. If it's loud, they may start up and look at me for reassurance. If I don't do anything, they'll just go back to what they were doing.
 

vyger

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We had some big storms roll through last night with lots of thunder. The only time the cats reacted was when I did. There was a close by strike that startled me, I think I heard it sizzle, and they jumped when I did. But after that they all went back to doing cat things.
 

ThePortMan

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When my cat used to go outside, it was kind of remarkable in a sense. Somehow, he must have sensed when it was about to rain.... and he would immediately know to go somewhere dry. Often times, there would be pouring rain, and then as soon as the storm stopped he would come home completely dry. I'm not sure where he went, but he probably had lots of places.
 

ThePortMan

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He is a little scared of the thunder, not much though. But I can tell that the sound makes him a little anxious. He's similar about other loud noises, such as the vacuum cleaner. It scares him a little bit, makes him nervous. But not panicking. My dogs on the other hand are much more reactive to thunder and loud noises, and go absolutely nuts with barking at any little noise, including thunder.
 

VinceL

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Lexi used to head downstairs when it started thundering. But, for the past few years, she has been a brave kitty and stays upstairs with the other kitties none of whom seem to be bothered.

A couple of years ago there was a lightning strike about 3 houses away from us. Clyde was on a cat tree looking out the window when the flash of lightning and roar of thunder came. He jumped up, got off the tree, and headed for our master bathroom in a flash. That was a little too close for comfort. We actually had some electronics damaged by that strike...came in via the TV cable.
 
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