Fourth of July can mean family time, BBQ’s, swimming pools, and beaches. The beautiful display of fireworks celebrating our independence, closing the evening out with spectacular shapes and colors displayed all over the night sky. The perfect midsummer celebration to create magical memories that last a lifetime.
But for some, it can mean stress, anxiety, fear, loud noises, over-stimulation, confusion and the sense of being under attack from above.
So what should you do if your pet is fearful? Plan ahead! If you know your pets don’t or won’t like the fireworks, there are plenty of preventative measures you can take.
Most importantly, if you have an outside cat who likes to cruise in and out during the day and evening. Bring them in. Set up a room or bathroom with their food, litter box, a cat tree or a bed to hide in / under. Put them in the room with some new toys, catnip, and some yummies – and close the door. Keeping them contained in a room is much safer for them than trying to brave the outdoors when confusion hits. I recently mentioned to someone: “I’d much rather have a cat who is pissed off at me for locking them up, than to have to bury my cat because they tried to find cover in a panic and got hit by a car.” Hurting your pets pride or ego is 100% curable. Keep that in mind.
Setting up a quiet, comfortable space for kitty to spend the evening is going to be your best bet for keeping them happy and safe!! Don’t take any chances. Keep them in.
I have heard many, many horror stories about dogs getting out of the yard, jumping fences, chewing through fences, breaking through glass windows, all for getting away from fireworks.
My advice for them would be quite similar as for cats. Bring them in where it’s safe. If they are kennel dogs, setting the kennel up in a bedroom with the radio or TV playing for some noise, some chew bones or filled frozen Kong’s to keep them busy – and something to take their stress out on. Close windows and doors to help dampen the sound, maybe turn on a fan to keep the air flowing. All of these things will help to set a calm environment.
If your dog is exceptionally anxious or nervous, I would suggest NOT leaving them alone. Keep them with you, hang out at home, or board them with a friend they are comfortable with where you know they’ll be contained, safe, and with others. In most of the Animal world there is safety in numbers! Being with the pack and watching them handle the noise helps a nervous dog tremendously!
Being in a pack of dogs that are all friends and being able to play can help many dogs make it through the fourth also! Years ago I would have puppy parties at my house. We would take all the nervous dogs and have them in mid-play before the fireworks in our neighborhood began. That way they were otherwise distracted during the event and then too busy to even care.
What helps the most is being a calm, confident, leader towards them. Dogs are looking for leaders to follow and if the leader isn’t worried, they drop their worries too. Never coddle or fawn over your dog when they are in a nervous state. Instead, confidently tell them that they are ok, and divert their attention to something else. If they aren’t interested in anything else and would much rather cuddle and lay with you – then do that without any emotional sing-songy communication.
Remember: Calm, confident, leadership.
This is my most favorite Holiday!! Maybe it was the staying out late as a kid, the AWESOME decorations, the bountiful haul of candy, or SCARING PEOPLE that makes it my favorite. But, it’s just the best! Although, it’s not about the candy for me anymore – I still remember how awesome it was when I was younger though. 😉
for others, and then the few unaffected who don’t pay much mind to it. Adie, like my husky Prince, is definitely the latter. Prince only thought it was pretty cool when my sister and I would stay in the garage for hours on end, setting up our haunted house, as he cruised around and “helped”. But that was as involved as he ever got. Adie likes to play with the Halloween decorations and lay in the piles of plastic bags that are our “walls” for our haunted house. But she’ll just sleep through tonight, comfy on her bed.
Number one thing – don’t coddle them when they begin their nervous behaviors. Holding them, hugging them, telling them sweetly that “it’s ok”… That may be very comforting to a human child? It does the opposite to your dog. It actually encourages them to continue the nervousness and it can get worse from there.
Providing a safe place for them to be. A bedroom, bathroom, their crate or a back room away from the front door and all the activity. Have their bed, blankets, or maybe a shirt of yours for them to cuddle up with. Close the door, turn on the radio on low, and give them their chewy to focus on. Going in and checking on them when things are quiet and calm, to tell them how good they’re being will help them a lot. This way they feel protected, and away from all the action going on. They can control the situation they are in – which brings them comfort when they’re in a state of nervousness.
For indoor-only kitties, I would also close them up in a room. That way there’s no chance of them accidentally slipping out, or running out/bolting because of fear. Again, you may have a very confident kitty who can take care of him/herself, but it’s better to be safe than to chance it. You Just never know.
Costumes are fun for some, not so much for others. You know your pet best and if you think they’ll dig a costume – by all means, do it! I have never actually put my dogs in full on costumes. But, costumes didn’t start becoming popular until just a few years ago, so that’s just by default, I guess. I did, however, always put my dogs in seasonal-themed bandannas. Tobi loved them the most. He had one on almost all year-round. Prince would tear his off. Adie likes them for a little while, but gets tired of them.
Introduce your dog to them slowly. Let them sniff the items first. Place them on the dog gently. Just lay it on them, at first, and praise them for allowing you to do that. Be sure that the costume size is just right for them. Nothing too small, because you don’t want them to feel constricted. Just make sure it’s a positive interaction, and you try it out a few times before the actual night (I know, it’s kind of late for that – but now you know for next year!).
Some pets love them, and wear costumes happily and proudly! And then they can go trick-or-treating as well! It’s just like going on a walk, only in costume – with lots of stops. But it’s a good idea to expose them to you wearing costumes, before Halloween night, as well. By having them watch you put them on and take them off, it teaches the dog that sometimes we can change our “skins”. And they will be less likely to be fearful of other peoples’ costumes.
Be safe out there tonight, if you’re going out with your kids. Enjoy yourself! Have fun, and make it fun for your doggies, too!