We all love the majestic display of fireworks as they lit the sky bright with various glittery patterns. But while we love it, it cannot be same for our dogs. Indeed, fireworks in the county is a major cause of dogs acting hysterically simply because of the fear of the loud sounds. In fact, fireworks itself isn’t the cause. Rather, it’s the sudden loud booming sound that dogs are afraid of.
But while dogs are afraid of the sound produced during firework season, it doesn’t mean that we have to accept it and allow the dogs to be scared and perhaps depressed from the sounds. We, as pets owners, can take steps to ensure that the dog’s mental wellbeing is still taken care of during the firework season. With that, here are some of the steps that you can take so that you can look after your dogs during the firework season.
Choose to walk the dogs during the day
This is one of the best and most obvious method to prevent your dog from being scared during the firework season. The reason is simple; is highly unlikely that anyone would set the fireworks off during the day since the effect will not be as great as when the fireworks are set off at night. Hence, if you have to bring your dog out for walks, make some changes to your schedule so that the walks can be taken during the day.
Sound proof the house
One other way to look after your dog during the firework season is to sound-proof the house. In this way, you are isolating the dog from the thunderous firework sound. The simplest way to do so is by drawing the curtains and closing the windows. You can further bring your dog into your room so that there is an additional barrier before the sounds reach your dog. Otherwise, you can look at engaging a sound engineer to help sound-proof your house. This can be good for the dog as well as for your child.
Leave the lights on
Dogs are afraid of fireworks not only because of the thunderous sounds but also because of the flashy lights. Hence, when the light show starts up, the flashy lights might be too much for the dogs to take and hence they start to suffer from anxiety attacks. To prevent this from happening during the firework season, all you need to do is to draw the curtains as well as leaving the lights in the room on. This way, both the sound and the lights from the firework display will be shielded from the dog’s eyes.
Masking the sound
One of the ways to care for the dogs during firework season is by masking the loud thunderous sound of the firework display. To mask the sound, all you have to do is to play some loud music such that the booming sound from the firework will be masked totally. Of course, try not to over do it as you might need to content the neighbors too. Your own family members might not like loud music too. An alternate to the loud music can be sounds from the TV too. Heck, during firework season, it might be a good opportune to indulge in Netflix with your dog too.
Buy items to calm your dog down
As anxiety attacks may set in during the firework season, you can take measures so that the dog’s raging nerves can be soothed during the firework display. There are a few ways that this can be achieved.
The first option is to purchase items such as the Thundershirt for dogs that can help to calm your dog down. It is said to mimic the enveloping feeling of a human touch which can help to soothe the dog’s nerves. The Thundershirt is like a weighted vest, and it has been proven to help alleviate anxiety attacks in dogs.
Another option that you might want to consider is to get CBD oil for dogs. CBD oil are all in the rage in recent years, and research has shown that CBD oil does contain compounds that can calm dogs down and hence reduce the effects of anxiety attacks, which is important when the firework display starts up!
Bring the dog elsewhere when the fireworks is scheduled to start
Another way to look after your dogs during firework season is to check the local schedule of the firework display, and ensure that you are not around when it starts! You can arrange for a road trip with your dog, or you can also consider bringing your dog out for a camping trip. This helps to avoid the onset of anxiety issues in your dog, yet at the same time allowing you and your dog to have a good time and hence develop a stronger bond between both of you.
Use actions and words to reassure the dog
When the firework display starts up, and if you are caught unprepared, the next best thing you can do to look after your dog during the firework display is to reassure your dog using your voice as well as by hugging the dog. This helps to reassure the dog that all is ok, much like how the Thundershirt for dog can help your furry companion.
Ensure that your dog is microchipped
This may seem like a far-fetched idea, but if you haven’t, please get your dog microchipped. In the even that your dog runs away during a firework display, you wouldn’t want to be caught in a situation that you are unable to locate your dog.
Distract the dog
You can also opt to distract the dog when the firework display starts. Ways to distract the dog includes acting nonchalant when it starts, or you can opt to provide your dog with long-lasting chews that can keep your dog occupied. We preferred getting the dog intellectual dog toys that can keep the dogs engaged for hours end.