Fireworks
Many animals are afraid of fireworks and can even suffer from panic attacks once dusk approaches during firework season. There are many options to keep them calm through these noisy times, from natural products like pheromones to prescription drugs which control the panic attack.
However, these must all begin before the firework season starts as the fear is harder to control once the animal has been sensitised. Sedatives do not stop you pet panicking - they just render it unable to do anything about it.
Along with any treatment you organise through the vet, the following advice can also be helpful if your pet does suffer from panic attacks.
Help your dog to overcome fear of fireworks
At least one week before the event, prepare a refuge area and encourage your dog to use it by hiding food treats there. On the day of the event:
- At sundown, move you dog to a blacked out room. Ensure toys are available for the dog to play with
- Make sure you have something to do in this room so you can stay with your dog
- Put some music on, preferably something with lots of constant drumbeats. It does not have to be loud
- Try to engage you pet in some form of active game
- Ignore any fearful behaviour. Do not fuss or attempt to reassure your dog when it is scared as this rewards the behaviour
- Do not punish your dog when it is scared
- Make sure your dog is kept in a safe and secure environment at all times so that it does not bolt and escape if a sudden noise occurs
Help your cat feel secure during fireworks
If possible keep your cat confined inside the house for the week leading up to the event, make sure it has some form of identification (eg microchip) so it can be tracked if it does manage to escape, and prepare plenty of bolt holes and places to hide inside the home. On the day of the event:
- Check you cat is definitely inside the house and that escape routes to the outside are blocked
- Create a darkened room and put on some music or the TV to drown out the firework noise
- Where ever the cat chooses to hide leave it well alone until it feels safe enough to emerge
- Do not punish or fuss your cat during the event
- Stay calm and act normally