During the holidays, while you and your family find yourself enjoying every moment together, appreciating the presents, the food, and the laughter, your dogs tend to deal with the situation differently. If you’re expecting fireworks to go off as part of your tradition, then you know that it involves loud noises and flashing lights—all of which could place unwanted stress on your pet!
You will need to take extra precautions to make sure your dogs are safe and sound, helping them calm down when fireworks are blowing off and sounds can be heard everywhere. It would be best to get them accustomed to the sounds early on, so that come Christmas, you don’t have to worry about your pets feeling scared and dreading the holidays each year.
Keep reading below to find out tips on taking care of your dogs during the holiday season to help them stop becoming scared of the fireworks and start enjoying the holiday celebration.
1. Keep Them Indoors
One of the best things you can do to prevent your dogs from feeling petrified over the sights and sounds of fireworks is by preventing them from going outdoors when it’s time to light the fireworks. If you have a scheduled walk with your dog, you can continue with your routine but make sure to be back before nighttime.
Since dogs still need to pee in the evening, you can bring them out of the house only when you’re sure there are no more fireworks, and your neighbors have exhausted the last of their supplies. You could also consider feeding your dog dinner earlier than usual, so they don’t lose appetite and cower under the table once the fireworks display outside commences.
2. Build a Safe Corner
Making your dog feel safe amidst all the chaos during the holidays is just what they need to survive nights filled with endless noise. You can cover a table with a big blanket where they can hide under when the show starts.
But if your dog has a crate they’re comfortable sleeping in every night, you can also cover its top, fluff their pillows and add blankets inside, and leave it open for your dog to freely enter and exit as they please. However, you should avoid locking them inside the crate because instead of holding them safe, they will feel even more stressed because they have nowhere to go when they hear the fireworks outside!
3. Turn on the TV
If you want to divert your dog’s attention away from the fireworks, you can turn on the television or play Christmas songs on the radio. It will drown out the noise and keep your pet calm and distracted throughout the festivities.
You can also consider playing classical music, which can be soothing for dogs. Playing videos of dogs can also keep your pets entertained enough that they forget about the loud noise outside and start enjoying themselves.
4. Draw the Curtains
It’s important to keep the sounds and lights of the fireworks out of your house, and you can easily do so by closing your windows and drawing your curtains. Blocking the view can keep your dogs content because they can’t see what’s going on outside.
You can also turn on more lights inside your house so that the flashes outdoors won’t be as noticeable for them. Since dogs can get easily distracted by what they see, covering your windows can prevent them from feeling scared or stressed because now they can’t see the fireworks at all.
Conclusion
This holiday season, don’t forget to take the extra effort to make your dogs feel comfortable and happy. Aside from showering them with presents in the form of toys and treats which you got from your local pet store, you should also strive to make sure they feel safe, home, and loved by protecting them from sounds and lights that can affect them, such as fireworks and noisemakers.
Are you looking for pet supplies in Ann Arbor for your furry friends? Wags to Wiskers is a pet store that offers natural and holistic pet food and other products for your dogs and cats. Browse through our website to view our complete catalog! We now offer online ordering via email!