- Do not coddle, petting them and saying its ok is exactly the wrong thing to do. They hear “its ok, be scared.” You are rewarding their fear behaviour. You might try engaging them instead. Work on basic obedience, feed them dinner and give them rewards for working for you. Give them a massage, but not pets and encouragement the way you do when they do something right. If the dog does not respond to any of these tips the best thing to do is ignore him. He will see that no one is making a fuss about the commotion and he shouldn’t either. You want to reward calm behavior, not fear!
- Keep dog in the house, close the doggie door.
- Play music, jazz fits our dogs. Or you can have the TV on.
- Provide a place to hide—crate, under a bed, in closet
- Make the room dark, close blinds
- Thundershirt
- Lavender oil
- Rescue remedy (not my choice) or DAP (Comfort Zone)
- Make sure cats are indoors for the Fourth. It is a good idea to have them indoors a few days before and after the holiday. Check to see when your town and surrounding towns are celebrating the holiday. Keep this in mind in helping the pets.
- Place cat in a dark room with the blinds drawn to keep out the glare from the fireworks.
- Play background music. Classical is a good choice for cats.
- Feliway can be used to help keep cat calm.
- Thundershirt
- Lavender Oil
- Rescue Remedy (not my choice as it has alcohol in it)
Cats and Dogs:
Be sure pets wear identification tags and all information is up to date.
Have a current full-bodied picture of your pet on hand if they were to get lost.
Never use fireworks around pets.
Fireworks are toxic to pets
Fireworks can result in severe burns and/or trauma to the face and paws of the curious fearless pet that bites into or steps on a flaming fused firework.