Fourth Of July And Fireworks

It’s not that dogs aren’t patriotic, but many dogs, and also most cats, are terrified of the loud and sudden bangs we call fireworks.

It’s actually adaptive to be afraid of sudden loud sounds. Fear is designed to help us stay alive. If we didn't understand that fireworks are a normal way of celebration, we would likely run, hide, or jump too.

There are training methods and techniques available that can help ease or even change our pets' feelings about fireworks. These include desensitization, counter-conditioning, management, and enrichment.

Using pre-recorded sounds

While YouTube recordings and other audio recordings may be helpful in counterconditioning, dogs hear differently than humans and may not respond as expected unless using a specialized recording. It is also possible that some pets will be too afraid to learn anything. There are some easy ways to potentially lower that fear level by at least a notch.

That’s important because if afraid, it’s nearly impossible to learn. Think about it. Let’s say, I’m about to push you out a window from the 40th floor, and you are just hanging on by your suspenders – and now I ask you to do work on your tax returns. When that afraid, it’s impossible to learn or problem solve – except, hopefully, to solve the problem of not plummeting 40 stories!

Medications and Nutraceuticals

There are several products available to help pets with this type of fear. It's important that you speak to your vet before trying anything, regardless of whether it is easily accessible online or at a local store. Your vet will be able to tell you if something is safe for your individual pet, given their health and any other medications they're taking.

If your pet’s terror level is high, or one might say in the which can include shaking, excessive salivating, becoming incontinent, decreased appetite, and/or described as “inconsolable,” contact your veterinarian and ask about the two medications that have been FDA approved fur use in noise phobias (SILEO & Pexion). 

Here’s what you should NEVER do:

• NEVER tie up a dog outside on a tether, or even keep a dog in a yard around July Fourth without adult supervision. Fearful or terrified dogs may get out (even if you think that is not possible). And tethered dogs may panic and even choke themselves, as they desperately attempt to get away from the sounds of fireworks.
• NEVER holler at or scream at or punish the fearful or terrified dog. All this will do is disrupt the human-animal bond and increase your pet’s anxiety. Think about it: Afraid of snakes? If you’re locked in a room with 100 snakes, and a friend screams at you for being afraid, how does that help?
• NEVER use drugs without input from a veterinary professional. Drugs that solely make pets sleepy, like Benadryl or Acepromazine, never touch the fear the pet is feeling. So now the pet is sleepy and terrified which is arguably inhumane.
  Victoria Stilwell offers an entire program with firework sounds. A reasonably new option and a high-tech one is with Through a Dog's Ear or Through a Cat's Ear is icalmpet (new 4.0 edition now available).

For some dogs, what might work is to combine several of the products, such as pheromones with nutritional supplements – and “jollying.” Take your pet to the basement, or the most secluded room in your home. Pump up that music, like soft rock or reggae which have both been shown to increase relaxed behavior by a recent study. Also, try to distract your dog or cat with play. Don’t worry, you’re not rewarding your pet’s fear; instead, you are readjusting from fearful mode into a fun play mode.
Thundershirt, Storm Defender, Anxiety Wrap: Each of these options provide something for the dog to wear which has a potentially calming effect if they are conditioned properly and not just placed on the dog each time there's a scary noise event:
Thundershirt: A vest that applies gentle, constant pressure, similar to swaddling an infant – the original product created to lower anxiety, originally created for dogs fearful of storms.
Storm Defender: With its special lining, around your dog may bring relief to your nervous pet.
Anxiety Wrap: Uses acupressure and gentle, maintained pressure to relieve stress and end fear in dogs.
Since sound is the most significant issue regarding fireworks, Mutt Muffs, and Happy Hoodies are also options for some dogs. Again, these must be introduced and conditioned properly to avoid adding another layer of stress and discomfort to an already scary situation.
Number one message: Speak to a professional who can tailor the right solution for your individual dog.