Party Precautions For Dogs With Fear Of Firecrackers

When the end of the year festivities or Carnivals approach  one of the times with more fireworks and rockets. Although children find them fun parties, dogs with a fear of firecrackers have a very hard time. In this situation, we advise you how to solve these difficult days for your pet:

Fear and how it works

The fear of firecrackers can be overcome, but it takes time and a competent educator who knows how to do it. A few days before the holidays we can only put a patch that allows us to overcome them and that will be aimed, especially, at guaranteeing the safety of our dog and minimizing the effects that firecrackers have on him.

When an animal is afraid it has three options: flee, fight or surrender. In the case of dogs, the first option will always be to flee, although in other situations the dog could try to fight, although in the face of the noise of the firecrackers there is no enemy. When there is a fear of firecrackers, we will almost always see a dog that wants to flee home.

Insure your home

We know that firecrackers are coming and that our dog can panic. First of all  we must guarantee your safety and our house is the first place where you should feel safe.

We must block access to balconies and close windows. Every year stories are read of dogs with fear of firecrackers, who in despair throw themselves out of the window and suffer serious damage or even die from the heavy fall.

In houses with gardens we must check the state of the fences. If there are holes under or between the fence the dog could escape. Even if the fence is low, there are chances that he will jump it, and we could consider the option of not allowing him to go out to the garden on those days.

Nor should they be within the reach of dogs with fear of firecrackers dangerous elements that can bite or gnaw. Dogs take off a lot of stress by chewing on things, and if he needs to nibble on an object, it shouldn’t be toxic or dangerous for him.

A safe area for dogs with fear of firecrackers

We can create a safe area within our home that helps the dog get through the days ahead.  It is a room or a place in our house where nothing bad will happen to the dog. This area should serve you to take refuge from your fears, so it should have the following qualities:

• It must be accessible every day for 24 hours. For example, if the dog hides in the bathtub, the bathroom door must always be open and, when he takes refuge there, we must not force him to leave.

• If the dog does not choose it, we can guide him to it . Many dogs with fear already have a preference for certain places in the house, but if when it is afraid it roams the house, we can create a safe zone and guide it to it in a gentle way.
• It must be isolated from the outside. You cannot have windows open, and if possible you should have the blinds drawn or the shutters closed. In addition, it has to be quiet and, the less noise comes from the outside, the better.
• When he uses the safe zone, we can’t kick him out of it. If the dog chooses to take refuge, we must offer him water (panting is a sign of fear) or our comfort, but we cannot ask him to leave it ; much less should we force him out of it.

Change the rides

We must check what noises there are during our dog’s walk and change it if necessary;  we can reduce the number of tours or their duration if necessary. There are hours in the day when there are fewer explosions and we must take advantage of them.

It is better to have a short, calm walk than a long one full of frights or fear. For a week or a few days that you have a shorter route, or that you walk less times a day, nothing will happen . Dogs with a fear of firecrackers will appreciate not being exposed to noise on the street.

Clamping methods

In dogs with fear of firecrackers, it is essential to review the restraint methods with which they go out on the street: harnesses are safer than normal collars, and punishment collars only increase the fear that the dog already has.

Everything you carry on the street must be in good condition. If with a noise we run the risk of the dog jerking, we cannot risk the leash breaking or the harness buckle coming loose. The dog could run disoriented and not know how to return home and, if we live in an area with busy roads, it could endanger its life.

A new harness or leash is inexpensive and can be the difference between a safe dog or a lost dog. It is always worth renovating your things if necessary, even more so at this time of year.

Extreme cases

There are a few extreme cases of dogs with intense fear – dogs that become paralyzed or have such a hard time that they vomit or stop eating, and some even stop relieving themselves for hours or days.

These external cases should be reviewed by a veterinarian. Faced with such a radical fear, it might become necessary to prescribe anxiolytic drugs – never sedatives – to help you get through these days. They will not make you forget your fear, but it will allow you to survive these holidays.

After the worst days of firecrackers and rockets have passed, the dog should be seen and evaluated by a canine trainer to help him face his fears. This is a treatment that can only be carried out under the supervision of a professional. Finally, such an intense fear compromises the well-being of the dog and should not be forgotten until the following firecracker parties.