On July 4, Americans will celebrate their 249th Independence Day. It is a day of patriotism and pride, American flags, hot dogs and hamburgers, beer, and fireworks.
For your dog, it may be the most terrifying night of the year as deafening cracks and massive booms transform your neighborhood into a brilliantly colored combat zone for hours at a time. And this year the Fourth of July falls on a Friday, which means your poor pooch may have to put up with bangs and kabooms for three nights running.
Many dogs (and cats) find fireworks deeply distressful. The colorful explosions that entice appreciative oohs and ahhs from the crowd may trigger fight-or-flight behavior in your pet such as panic, howling, barking, shaking, anxiety attacks, destructive or aggressive behavior, or just running away.
Here’s how to make your pet’s holiday a little less stressful, with tips collected from veterinary experts, the Jacksonville Humane Society and the American Kennel Club.
Before the fireworks: Get your dog ready
Make sure your pet can be identified and keep it safe
Make your pet comfortable
Get professional help
Talk to your veterinarian to see if anti-anxiety medicine is recommended.
If so, give your dog a dose beforehand to see how they respond. Never share the medication with other animals or give yours more than the recommended amount, and keep a close eye on them after they’ve been dosed.
During the fireworks: Keep your dog calm
After the fireworks: Don’t let your dog near fireworks debris
Don’t let your dog outside until you’ve checked your yard for fireworks debris and don’t let them go attended near any other yards or on the beach on July 5. It is a very bad idea to let your dog eat fireworks even after they’ve been used, and some of them may try.
According to the ASPCA Poison Control Center, the most common problems from snarfing down some fireworks are vomiting and an upset stomach, which is bad enough, but some fireworks contain chemicals that can be corrosive to the lining of the digestive tract and cause bloody vomiting and diarrhea, serious dehydration and secondary infections. They’re also choking hazards.
Fireworks with chlorate salts can oxidize red blood cells, which can lead to life-threatening conditions. If your dog is lethargic with brown, gray or blue-colored gums or breathing rapidly with a fast heart rate, contact your vet immediately. Symptoms can develop up to 10 hours after ingestion, the ASPCA said.
“Many commercially used fireworks and even some sparklers contain barium which can cause animals to become extremely weak and uncoordinated,” the ASPCA said, and they can cause heart problems. This type is the most dangerous after they’ve been used.
Why are dogs scared of fireworks?
Dogs’ ears are different.
A dog can hear, on average, about 4-5 times as far as a human can, and while we can hear lower frequencies than dogs, up to 20,000 Hz or so, dogs can hear sounds as high as 47,000 to 65,000 Hz. They also can hear sounds too soft for us to detect.
It’s no wonder they don’t like crashing booms and sudden cracks of fireworks at night. Plus their sensitive noses may react to the smoke and the used-firework smell.
Fireworks in Fort Walton Beach
The city’s annual 4th of July celebration will be 5-9 p.m. July 4 at the Fort Walton Beach landing, 131 Brooks St. SE. Fireworks are scheduled for 8:45 p.m. over the Santa Rosa Sound. More details here.
Jim Ross contributed
This article originally appeared on Northwest Florida Daily News: Kaboom! Yipe! How to protect your dog from freaking out over Fourth of July fireworks
Reporting by C. A. Bridges, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida / Northwest Florida Daily News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
