Dogs and cats

Shortly after I got out of bed this morning the thunder and lightning began, followed closely by a gentle rain.  Gabe, the dog, was frightened and wouldn't settle down.  He's always been a mess during storms.  He went to the door needing to go out, but when I opened the door and he actually saw the rain, he didn't want to go.  I insisted, but stood on the porch watching and cheering him on.  Blue, the cat, was sitting on the only half-dry portion of the porch.  When Gabe came back in, I allowed Blue to follow him.  Normally this time of year I don't let him in because of shedding, but he looked pitiful there on the porch.  He has an entire barn he could go to for shelter, but he's a good cat and deserves some special attention from time to time.

Blue is not afraid of the weather.  Thunder is nothing to him, it's as though he doesn't even hear it.  When he came inside, he ran straight to his scratching post as he always does first thing.  Then he roamed from one end of the trailer house to the other, I guess just to make sure everything was the same as it was last winter.  He seemed to want in the chair with me, but since I had a laptop on my lap and Gabe beside me cowering from the storm, there wasn't a place for him.  He went to the door to the back porch and began softly meowing at me.  He wanted some breakfast; normally I feed him and Mama Kitty outside on the deck, but since it was raining, I gave him some cat food and shut him in the  porch so Gabe wouldn't eat it.  When I saw the cat's paw reaching under the door, I let him back in with us.

Awhile after that, I realized I hadn't seen Blue for awhile; I did notice Gabe was sitting a little in front of me, as calm as could be.  I asked him where the cat was, and he got up and quickly went to his bed, which is right beside my chair.  That's where the cat was.  I thanked him for finding the cat, who is almost invisible lying in that dog bed.  Gabe returned to his place near my feet and lay down, calm as you please.

That's when I realized he hadn't been scared of the storm after I let Blue, the cat, in.  Somehow Blue's calm demeanor rubbed off on Gabe!

This got me wondering:  Are any cats afraid of storms?  Blue wasn't even worried about the fact that he was slightly wet, out on the porch.  It's something I've never thought about.  Most dogs are scared of storms, but maybe cats aren't.  I do know Blue and Mama Kitty are scared of fireworks, but that's a totally different thing... fire streaking through the sky, earthshaking booms... who wouldn't be scared?

Apparently Gabe simply soaked up Blue's calmness and is now at ease, although it's still raining outside.  Very interesting.

Blue in Gabe's bed, sleeping through the storm

Gabe, calm as he can be, beside my footstool, five feet away from Blue

I believe Gabe has his own emotional support animal.