By Best Friends Pet Care Trainers
The coming holiday week – with its fireworks, firecrackers and other loud noises -- can be terrifying to dogs. Some run away, trying to escape the sound; in fact, the Fourth of July week is peak time for lost dog reports.
Resist the temptation to take your dog with you to the community fireworks display or a backyard celebration that includes firecrackers. Even if your dog hasn’t been troubled by loud noises in the past, this could be the time that she runs off to escape the scary sounds.
Following are our top tips for keeping your pets safe during all the noisy celebrations next week.
- Don’t leave a fearful dog outdoors. Bring him indoors to a quiet area of your home – preferably an interior room where the noise is muffled. Move his bed and some toys into the room for comfort and turn on a radio or TV to help mask the load noises outside.
- Don’t leave your dog alone during fireworks. Stay with her and try to distract her by playing a game or practicing obedience skills. Talk to her in a calm voice.
- Don’t leave your pet alone. If you can’t be home with him during fireworks, find someone to stay with him, or take him to a boarding facility with indoor rooms. The company of other dogs and the attention of caring humans can help distract him when you aren’t there.
For more advice on coping with fireworks fears, visit our Dog Dish blog.
He said about the 4th of July: "It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shows, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more." I'm happy to still live in a free country where we can still make a bang on the 4th of July
Either way, we're just suggesting that people should keep their pets safe.
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c209/tfalconier/3c7d571f.jpg
GLEN
Was very glad that it rained last night. CT is a bit dry and sure don't want to see us become like the west....
But yes, your overall point is valid. Don't hurt your puppy unless a situation of life or death. Main think is be consistent during the training period, and make sure everyone with a lot of interaction with the dog is on board. It is confusing for a dog when one person is properly authoritative in tone, and someone else is trying to say "No" but comes out in wrong tone. Also, if you have pets, you can't be all overdoing it with odor control in the house. Dogs (and cats) sense and process information. Spraying chemicals everywhere just confuses the fudge out them (not to mention harmful due to size and proximity)
Please if anyone reads that, you should never take a chance with a dog and fireworks. If you are lucky to have a dog that is not afraid, wonderful. But, I also know people whose dogs never were afraid of much and suddenly get afraid, particularly if a really loud one goes off. Just be safe rather than sorry; if your dog runs away, the threat is great it will get hit by a car or never found again.
Start with a noise slightly louder than normal (like a aluminum pot cover dropping on the floor) Drop the cover from a slight height. Give the dog a small piece of hjot dog. Keep increasing the loudness slowly and rewarding with hot dog. Then go to something like a .22 working your way up to a 12 gauge shotgun. Soon you will find your dog looking forward to loud noises. Soon a loud clap of thunder sends your dog running to you looking at you expectantly. Want more advice? Check out the book, "Gun Dog," by Richard Wolters (1961).
6:27 pm on Monday, July 9, 2012 Here is a DOG being a DOG. Sally is a GUN dog. She was traines at the range and we have a big pond their. She is a pure bred champion retriever as you can see. We always play with her as you can see in this photo.Being a dog and a dog owner is a great responsibility. Sally knows who is the BOSS and she wastrained by me and my wife. You have to spend lots of time with them and be dedicated to the cause. To many times people have dogs for the wrong reasons. One thing i HATE WITH A PASSION is dog shows. Just me . But as you can see she is a great dog. When e would go duck hunting the minute she heard the shot she would look up at me as to say. HAY DUMMY can i go and get that bird. I give her the command and right in to the water and she comes back with the bird. She absolutely loves it. But now at 12 she has arthritis and bad hips, So we now play with he and make he confertable. When she hears the fireworks she looks at me and wags her tail. She is waiting for me to give her the command . But she knows she is now retired and living the good life as she always deserved Thank You. Remember let dogs be dogs that is all they ask of YOU.
A few things to keep in mind. Gun dogs were selectively bred to be less sensitive to specific types of noises than other dogs. It is normal for dogs to be startled and even extremely frightened by explosions. (Veterinary behaviorists, please correct me.) Not phobia. Noise phobia may be genetic in origin. I do not know whether a double blind study has been performed to prove the effectiveness of the Thundershirt. I do know that many dog trainers recommend them and I have spoken with pet parents who report good results. I have also spoken with pet parents who saw no results. With a sample population of one (my own dog, who has been diagnosed with storm phobia by three veterinary behaviorists), I have had excellent results using vanilla scent on his collar when a storm is approaching to block the storm's smell. Do note that my dog is elderly and is now deaf, so he can no longer hear thunder. He is, however, very frightened if he smells the storm coming, hence the vanilla. I cover the windows, too. Ask your veterinarian before trying any scent on your dog's collar. If your vet gives the ok, it might be worth a try. Please have compassion for pet parents whose dogs are not the same as yours. Diane Podolsky, CPDT-KA, CTC http://www.theculturedcanine.com