How Do I Make my Dog Feel Safe Despite the Loud Fireworks Outside?

Fireworks add to the excitement of New Year’s Eve, but they can confuse and frighten your pooch. We asked dog lovers to share tips for helping your pup survive the holiday cacophony.

Table of Contents

• Offer a quiet, safe place
  • Provide distractions
  • Seek vet advice
  • Microchipping
• Speak with your veterinarian
• Try herbal remedies, aromatherapy
• Keep the windows and curtains closed
• Make your dog feel safe
  • Thunder Vests
  • Music Therapy or Background Noise
  • Crating In A Dim Room
  • Supplements or Medications
  • Exercised and Fed Before The Scheduled Event
• Keep the TV on at a volume
• Create a safe and comfortable space

Offer a quiet, safe place

Providing a room within your home that is quiet and safe for pets to relax and wind down is beneficial to dogs. This alleviates tension or stress that might be caused by any loud noises during celebrations.

Provide distractions

Turning on a television, listening to music—especially music made specifically for dogs—gathering their favorite toys to play with or a snack to chew on, keeps animals preoccupied and calm should there be any noises from fireworks in the vicinity. This covers up noises and diverts attention away from the fireworks.

Seek vet advice

If pet owners notice that their dogs or cats are having a difficult time adjusting to the celebrations, and in the event of extreme cases, it might be a good idea to reach out to a vet for advice about medications or calming aids.

Microchipping

Proper identification, including a collar with tags and a microchip, ensures that pets who get scared and runoff will have an ID on them and can be safely returned back home.

Speak with your veterinarian

Noise phobia in dogs is one of the most common sources of fear and anxiety we see in our companions. There are many tips and tricks that you can do at home to help comfort your friend during these loud noises.

Before fireworks start, I recommend putting your dog in a middle room of the house or a room that receives the least amount of outside noise. In the room, set up their bed, food and water bowls, and their favorite toys. Also, play classical music to help drown out any firework noise and help soothe their anxiety.

Some dogs will need extra help besides placing them in a quiet room of the house. Their sensitive hearing may still sense the rumblings occurring outside. For these pets, I recommend a compression jacket. Compression jackets will apply gentle, constant pressure to your dog, calming anxiety, fear, and excitement.

In severe fear and anxiety, anti-anxiety medication needs to be given to reduce noise phobia and help your dog feel safe. I recommend starting with natural medicines that contain ingredients, including L-Tryptophan, melatonin, L-theanine, or casein. Before using a product, make sure to speak with your veterinarian to ensure there will not be any contraindications for usage.

If changes to the environment and natural medications are not enough to help your pet feel safe during fireworks, I recommend speaking with your veterinarian about prescription medication. Your veterinarian can prescribe short-term usage medication to help your pet through noise phobia events.

Try herbal remedies, aromatherapy

Fireworks can be scary for all animals; they’re loud, unpredictable, and it’s hard to tell where they’re coming from. Even the lights can be frightening! To help your dog feel safe, you should close the curtains and windows to help muffle the noise. Playing music, or turning the television up loud, can also help to muffle the noise and give them something more predictable to listen to.

Many dogs feel safer with a ‘den’- use a crate, space under a desk, a low table, or even a chair- whatever your dog appears to be comfortable with. If you can make this ‘den’ as far from any windows as possible, do so. You should also consider whether they would be happier with you close by- placing it by the sofa might be a good idea for some dogs. Drape a cloth over it so that it’s mostly covered, and fill it with their scent by putting a bed or toy in there. Show the den to your dog and encourage them in with a game or food, but if your dog chooses not to use it don’t force them in.

You may choose to try herbal remedies, aromatherapy, or pheromone therapy to help your dog relax. Your vet will be able to advise if any of these are appropriate. T-shirt wraps or Thundershirts can help some dogs to feel safer. Similarly, headdresses designed to cover the ears work for some dogs.

It’s a good idea to follow as many of these tips as possible for all dogs, even those that don’t appear to be afraid. For those that have severe firework fear, however, it’s likely the steps won’t be enough, and you should discuss your worries with a veterinarian, who may refer you to a behaviourist.

Desensitization therapy, the only proven way to improve your dog’s fear rather than just mask it, is best started in January so your dog has plenty of time to work on their fear before the firework season starts again.

Keep the windows and curtains closed

The fireworks are popping, and it’s not even the 4thof July yet. Here’s how to make your dog feel safe.

• Keep your dog inside away from loud noises. If possible, keep the windows and curtains closed. Many dogs are calmer if they’re not exposed to the sounds outside.
• Get him plenty of brain (mental) or physical exercise. A tired dog is a less fearful dog.
• Ideas for brain exercise include: scatter feeding food or treats around your house. Or place his food in a muffin tin. Place toys on the top of the “muffins” and put the container on the floor. Allow your dog to discover how to remove the food.
• Playing classical music keeps pets calm in veterinary clinic settings, so try it at home! Choose the music carefully because some can be loud and booming, not very soothing to your dog.
• Use a white noise machine with the volume turned up to mask outside noise.
• Have someone come over and “sit” with your dog if possible. Human companionship helps dogs feel more secure.
• Use calming sprays such as Canine Calm from EarthHeart. I’ve found these to be very effective for my dogs on numerous occasions.
• Pheromones can have some positive effects like Dog Appeasing Pheromone. The pheromone comes in a diffuser, collar, or spray.
• Thundershirts are snug-fitting garments for dogs that make them feel swaddled, much like a baby. I’ve also personally found these to be effective for my dogs.

If all else fails, consider asking your vet for some medication to keep them calm. Dogs who don’t feel safe will often injure themselves or damage their environment. It’s worth checking with your vet ahead of time to ensure your dog feels secure.

Make your dog feel safe

There are a few different ways you can help make your dog feel safe when fireworks (or other loud noises) are bound to occur.

Thunder Vests

Thunder vests are perhaps the most well-known calming aids for anxious dogs who have noise phobias. As the name suggests, thunder vests help soothe dogs during loud events like thunderstorms, fireworks, etc.

The vests work by “hugging” the dog firmly and making them feel safe and comforted.

Music Therapy or Background Noise

Background noise including a loud fan, a TV, and even classical music can help mask loud noises outside. When using this method, I suggest isolating your dog in the back room. Close windows and blinds, dim the lights, and give your dog activity toys like KONGS, chews, or puzzle toys to keep him or her occupied.

Crating In A Dim Room

Some dogs become destructive when anxious. If your dog is one such dog, it’s a good idea to crate your dog during scary events. Of course, only use this method if your dog has been properly crate trained and your dog feels safe and comfortable in their crate, to begin with. You can cover the crate with a blanket or sheet to help make your dog feel even safer, just be sure to check on your dog as many dogs will pull the blanket or sheet into the crate and chew it if they are bored or anxious.

Again, you should crate your dog in a back room where the noises are less prevalent. Play background music, a TV, radio, or fan to help dim outside noises like fireworks.

Supplements or Medications

In Severe Cases, Invest In Calming Supplements or Medications As Prescribed By Your Vet. Some dogs have a severe form of noise phobia and can cause damage to belongings and sometimes even injure themselves. If this is the case, I suggest speaking with your vet about possible calming supplements or medication.

Exercised and Fed Before The Scheduled Event

Ensuring Your Dog Has Been Exercised and Fed Before The Scheduled Event. Last, it’s always a good idea to ensure your dog is properly exercised and fed before events like fireworks. This will help reduce any pent up energy or anxiety before the event.

Keep the TV on at a volume

The holiday season is a time for people to celebrate, and fireworks can be a lot of fun. Unfortunately, they can be traumatizing for pets but there are things you can do to minimize their stress levels.

My top tip for helping pets through the firework season is to keep the TV on at a volume that will help mask the loud banging noises. This goes for when you are at home, but especially if you are out and not around to comfort them.

Create a safe and comfortable space

Dogs would normally hide during fireworks, it is their natural survival instinct. But how do we aid them while [they are] feeling anxious or dealing with the discomfort? It is ideal to create a safe and comfortable space for your dogs before the fireworks display. In this safe space, it is expected that you create a soothing environment for them such as playing music that will overlap the noise. This will divert their attention and will make the fireworks inaudible to them.

Another method is conditioning your dogs by making them listen to fireworks in advance. This will allow them to get used to the sound of fireworks and be less afraid of it.