Animals & Fireworks

Fireworks are meant to represent “bombs bursting in air”—and to dogs and cats, that’s exactly what they sound like. When animals hear the cracks and booms in the sky, many of them panic and jump over fences, break chains, or even break through glass windows in an effort to escape the terrifying sounds.

Many animals who run in fear are never found. After fireworks displays, animal shelters nationwide report an increase in the number of lost animals, some of whom have bloody paws from running, torn skin from breaking through wooden fences, or other serious injuries. Some animals are hit by cars or killed in other ways as they attempt to escape.

What You Can Do

Take the following precautions to ensure the comfort and safety of your animal companions during fireworks displays:

Keep cats and dogs indoors, and if possible, stay with them.

Leave your animals at home during the celebrations—never take them with you to watch fireworks displays!

Never leave animals tethered or chained outside—they can hang themselves if they leap over a fence while trying to run from the noise.

Close your windows and curtains. To help drown out the sound of the fireworks, turn on fans and air-conditioning units as well as the TV or a radio that’s tuned to a classical-music station.

Consider purchasing a Thundershirt to help your dog or cat cope with the stress of the fireworks.

Other ways to keep animals calm include playing specially formulated CDs from Through a Dog’s Ear and giving them a natural supplement called melatonin, which is available at your local health-food store (but consult your veterinarian first).

Make sure that your animal companion is microchipped and wearing a collar or a harness with an up-to-date identification tag—just in case.

Independence Day & Companion Animals

Many companion animal guardians will celebrate July 4th with barbeques, pool parties and fireworks, but they may not realize these seemingly harmless traditions can have catastrophic consequences for their four-legged family members. Nearly one-in-five lost companion animals first go missing after being scared by the sound of fireworks, thunderstorms or other loud noises.

Losing your companion animal is heartbreaking, but there are other dangers lurking in your own backyard that might not cross your mind as you celebrate this 4th of July. It’s critical that animal guardians consider their animals’ well-being during holiday celebrations, and when enjoying the outdoors all season long.

What You Can Do

Below are the top five tips animal guardians need to know to safely enjoy the dog (and cat) days of summer:

Traveling can be highly stressful for our animals. If you’re planning a road trip, prep your companion in advance by taking short rides in the car and getting them used to riding in a crate or car harness. Animal guardians should never leave their animals unattended in a parked vehicle. Parked cars, even with windows open, become very hot in a short amount of time and could lead to heatstroke or death.

Dogs and cats can become dehydrated quickly, so give them plenty of water when the weather is is hot. Always make sure your companion animal has a shady place to escape the sun and don't let your dog linger outdoors, especially on hot asphalt. Being so close to the ground, your dog's body can heat up quickly, and sensitive paw pads can get burned.

Summertime can be perfect for backyard parties, but the food and drinks should be served only to people, not companion animals. Keep alcoholic beverages away from animals, and remember that any change of diet – even just treating them to a bite of your festive food – may give your dog or cat severe digestive ailments. Make sure to avoid raisins, grapes, onions, chocolate and products with the sweetener xylitol, all of which are toxic to companion animals.

During warmer months, many animal hospitals and veterinarians across the country see an increase in injured animals as a result of “High-Rise Syndrome,” which is when animals fall or jump out of windows and are seriously or fatally injured. Keep all unscreened windows in your home closed and make sure screens are tightly secured.

Warm weather can inspire longer walks, and while this is exciting for both dog and human, it’s important that dogs are always kept on leash – with collars and up-to-date ID tags and microchips – to protect them from getting loose and injuring themselves or others.


How You Can Help Animals