Got a quick question about dogs' ears and thunderstorms

[Mary Plummer]

Hello everyone,

My question comes, of course, from Mr. Blue's behavior this afternoon during a thunderstorm. I had taken the day off from work; one of my duties was taking our cat Carmel to the vet for her rabies shot. That's NOT a fun thing to do! Anyway, after we were back home, a thunderstorm sprang up. It had gone cloudy very quickly, and then the thunder started, followed by rain. Mr. Blue isn't a big fan of thunderstorms, but he is so much calmer now than he used to be! Anyway, I noticed that he wanted to be close to me, but not too close, and he would stand there shaking his head a lot, like his ears were hurting him. After the storm was over, I took a look at them. They were nice and clean, with none of the smell I've come to associate with ear infections. So I started wondering whether or not the pressure changes that come about in a storm could bother a dog's ears. I know my ears are bothered by changes in altitude, but I've never had a problem with storms. Then again, my ears are nowhere near as sensitive as Mr. Blue's! Anyway, thanks for your help with my wondering!