To the Batcave Robin

It must have rained last night. Some lightning and thunder must have accompanied that rain. There are people who are forewarned through their lumbago or, perhaps, an old wound. I have an akita. That's a rather large dog of Japanese descent who has become part of my family. She knows when there is a thunderstorm approaching before the TV weatherman.
On a quiet evening while watching TV she will come slinking into the room and attempt to hide behind a chair. She would have all 110 pounds squeeze beneath a lazyboy recliner while it's occupant holds on to avert tipping over backwards. She doesn't make a sound. She just forces her way into the recesses of the space beneath that chair. And there she remains with eyes closed and ears bent back along the top of her head panting heavily.
The vet prescribed Ativan for her. Give 1 hour before storm read the instructions. Which is pretty much impossible when her face is buried beneath a lazyboy jammed into a corner. Ever tried to pull a 110 pound dog from under a chair by her hind leg? If you feel brave let me know and I'll have you come over to do that. It would be somewhat like pulling a bear from its cave during hibernation season. Nakita is very determined to stay there.
Recently she has begun to slip into her crate. Mind you her crate is the last place she wanted to go in the past. As hard as it is to coax her from beneath the lazyboy, it used to be twice that difficult to get her into the crate. Ever try to force a 110 pound dog into a crate when she did not want to go? You could put your back into her rump and push with all your leg's might but her four paws would engage the edge of the opening and push just as determinedly against you. Usually she proved the stronger. A few of her favorite treats would sometimes, and I say sometimes, get her to venture in. For her to go into the "cave" of her crate for a thunderstorm event says something.
At any rate, she must have heard thunder last night because her paws sounded in the hallway as she came running. She gallumphed to a screeching halt within the crate beside the bed. I never heard thunder so I'm thinking that the rain on the roof and windows had alerted her to the possibility of thunder and lightning.
It might be funny that such a large dog who throws fear into the occasional FedEx man would quiver and shake during a recurring event of nature. I always feel sorry for her since there is nothing I can do to reassure her out of those shivering quakes. Ativan only makes her into a flaccid zombie which is worse in my opinion.
So I have my very own weather predicter when it comes to thunderstorms. She is right 100% of the time. Eat your heart out Bill Walsh.
As an after thought, Robin has never shown the slightest interest in the claps of thunder that send Nakita into a frantic fraidy cat. Robin just watches her. That's laughter in her eyes when she does, I'm sure of it.